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acupuncture-westlondon
24th September 2020
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Episodes 8 & 9: A Year In Business | Setting Up Your Own Clinic

Welcome to Episodes 8 & 9 of ‘Acupuncture West London – The Podcast’. Today’s episodes are entitled, “A Year In Business | Setting Up Your Own Clinic – parts 1 & 2”.

We all study acupuncture and Chinese medicine in the hope that we may develop into the greatest of practitioners. However, we are often under-prepared for how to set ourselves up as practitioners after graduation, or we are perplexed as to how we can take our already existing business to the next level. Today, we speak to Emma Eaton of the Cobham Acupuncture and Reflexology Clinic, who talks us through a year in business and setting up her own clinic.

Episodes 8 & 9 of ‘Acupuncture West London – The Podcast‘ are brought to you courtesy of our FREE ebook, Yin & Yang. Download your FREE copy at the link below:

DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE E-BOOK TODAY: Yin & Yang

Emma Eaton BSc (Hons) Acupuncture, Lic. Ac., MBAcC

In episodes 8 & 9, we discuss the following:

PART 1

  • Factors in deciding to set up your own clinic.
  • The considerations of setting up your own clinic.
  • Working with/alongside other practitioners.
  • Initial outlays and the costs of setting up your own clinic: What do I need to know?
  • Pricing: charging what you feel you’re worth.
  • Online – building your website and creating an online presence; social media, search engine optimisation (SEO), backlinks, and more.
  • Getting referrals and building a network of patients.
  • Advertising.

PART 2

  • Online – building your website and creating an online presence; social media, search engine optimisation (SEO), backlinks, and more. 
  • Advertising. 
  • Clinic management software: accounting, appointment scheduling, automated confirmation/reminder emails, etc.  (See affiliate links below):
  • Payment Solutions:
    • iZettle (get the new iZettle Reader 2 for £25 + VAT* – regular price £59+VAT)
    • Square Reader
    • SumUp Air
    • Paypal Here
    • Stripe
  • Employing a Virtual Receptionist.
  • Doing your clinic accounts and submitting your tax return.
  • Pitfalls to avoid during your first year in practice.
  • The effects of Covid-19 on a newly established clinic.

To learn more, tune in to episodes 8 & 9 below. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Podbean.

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Part 3 of our ‘A Year In Business’ podcast series. Over three two-part episodes, we’re talking to practitioners who have set up businesses in various guises. We’re discussing the various pros and cons, considerations and potential pitfalls of:

  • setting up a practice from home,
  • setting up as a practitioner within an established clinic (as a sole trader or as an employee), and
  • setting up your own business.

In Part 1, we spoke with Rachel Marks from Oakridge Acupuncture. She talked us through ‘A Year in Business’ and lessons learned from setting up her own home practice in Horsham, West Sussex.  In Part 2, we spoke with Vicky Newman from Cherry Tree Acupuncture. She talked us through ‘A Year in Business’ and lessons learned from setting up as a practitioner within the Marine Clinic, an established clinic in Rottingdean, East Sussex. If you haven’t listened to Part 1 and Part 2 already, check them out!!

So, to conclude our ‘A Year In Business’ series, today we’re speaking to Emma Eaton. Emma is a fully certified member of the British Acupuncture Council. Having initially set up as Eaton Acupuncture, her own practice from home, Emma expanded in April 2019 – setting up her own busy clinic in the centre of Cobham, Surrey. Her clinic, the Cobham Acupuncture and Reflexology Clinic, recently hit its one year anniversary. Today, she’s talking to us from Cobham – from where she’s going to talk us through a year in business, how she’s managed her own busy practice (particularly in the times of COVID-19), and her plans moving forward.

To learn more, tune in to episodes 8 & 9 of the podcast. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts or Podbean.


CLINIC MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE & PAYMENT SOLUTIONS

Within this series, we discuss the best options for managing clinic bookings, accounts, patient notes, etc. As a practitioner, I bit the bullet pretty early on into setting up my clinic last year and signed up for an online clinic management platform called Cliniko. Honestly, I’ve never looked back. It’s £29 a month, which I know can seem like a lot when you’re starting up. But truthfully, with the amount of time you save (RE: accounts, booking and changing appointments, confirmation and reminder emails/texts), it pays for itself ten times over, and you can then put that time into other things. It really is about what you think your time is worth. There are a number of free options like Calendly or something along those lines. But again, it comes back to that old adage – “You get what you pay for”. There are also other paid options like Cliniko, Timely, Acuity Scheduling, 10 to 8, Setmore and others. In regards to taking credit card payments, sending out payment links to patients, etc, there are also loads of options here, too. Personally, I use iZettle, as the card reader looks slicker and is more sturdy than others I have used. Others I’ve used myself in the past are Paypal Here and Sumup, but I didn’t like these as much.

The good news is that many of these options offer free trials or discounts for signing up. To avail of these, check out our affiliate links below.

Resources:

Clinic management software (See affiliate links below):

Payment Solutions:

  • iZettle (get the new iZettle Reader 2 for £25 + VAT* – regular price £59+VAT)

Acupuncture Needles & Herbs:

Phoenix Medical (£10 off clinic supplies)

Phone and Communications:

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