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10 Questions to Help Small Businesses Narrow Down Their Target Audiences

Posted on Nov 2, 2021

Understanding your target market is essential if you want your business to be successful. The more specific you can be about who your customers are, the more readily you can create effective marketing strategies and products that will appeal to them and avoid wasting time and money. Here are some questions to help you narrow your target market while owning your own slice of the market. Remember, we have a marketing department that can assist you with determining your perfect prospect – and also work with you on-going to manage all of your content, newsletters, social media maintenance, and website needs.

Pinpointing a target audience is one of the most crucial steps in launching any successful business effort, including creating marketing campaigns and increasing sales. However, determining your audience is often much easier said than done. Before you can narrow down your ideal customer, you need to know how to do it correctly.

To that end, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:

“What’s one question small businesses should ask themselves when narrowing down their target audience? How does this help them in their business efforts moving forward?”

Here’s what they recommend you consider when thinking about who you’ll be selling to.

1. What Segment Would Be Most Impactful?

“What segment of customers will be most impactful to the business if we can capture them? Focus on the customers who will be most impactful in a specific timeframe. Every company wants to reach every possible customer, but focusing on who will be most impactful in the near future helps you to narrow your focus and deliver to customers who will help you reach your goals faster.” ~ Cody Candee, Bounce

2. Who Are My Current Customers?

“Identify who is currently buying your products or services, as well as any common factors such as demographics or psychographics. Once you do, incentivize them to spread the word with a referral or loyalty program. Thank them, and encourage positive reviews.” ~ Duran Inci, Optimum7

3. Who Is My Business Not a Good Fit For?

“Ask yourself, ‘Who are we not a good fit for?’ I know early in the Influence & Co. days we would think, ‘Any business can be our client!’ and over time we’ve realized that we’re a much better fit for B2B companies, specifically in professional services or technology. But it took us working with a few companies who were really not a good fit for us to realize that.” ~ Kelsey Raymond, Influence & Co.

4. What’s the Data Saying About Customers?

“What’s the data saying? Companies often come into customer acquisition with a target customer in mind. This is a good starting point, but ultimately, you need to listen to the market. You need to see who’s interested, paying and engaging with your product or service. As that base begins to scale, the data becomes meaningful and can significantly improve marketing and business ROI.” ~ Carlo Cisco, SELECT

5. Who Would Buy My Product?

“If I stripped my product to its bare bones, who would buy my product if I dropped it in their hands? Find the people who are asking for your product. That’s your initial target audience and they often know what it needs to succeed. They can give you the most actionable feedback to iterate on it and improve it.” ~ Ryan D Matzner, Fueled

6. What Pain Points Can My Business Solve?

“Ask, ‘What pain points does my target audience experience that my business can solve?’ Consumers are constantly looking for brands to give them answers or solutions, so if you can do this, you’re already on the right track to moving your business forward.” ~ Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms

7. How Do Customers Get Their Information?

“We live in an information age, and knowing how people get their information is key to business success. Do they get their information from Google, TikTok or print sources? Are they persuaded by billboards and media advertising? Figuring out where they get their info will help you know how to frame and present your content.” ~ Shu Saito, Fact Retriever

8. What Makes My Business or Products Unique?

“To narrow down your target audience, focus on what makes your business and products unique. Your competitors may offer something similar, but consider any features or benefits that set you apart. This may come down to superior quality, a lower price, faster service or a certain feature the others don’t offer. Then you can target those who will really appreciate this distinction.” ~ Kalin Kassabov, ProTexting

9. How Will I Reach My Audience?

“If you narrow down your audience too far, you may have a tough time actually reaching your audience with an impactful message. Or, you may narrow it down too far so that it’s nearly impossible to reach the numbers you need. Always think about how you are going to reach your audience when planning, and not just be theoretical.” ~ Peter Boyd, PaperStreet Web Design

10. Where Does My Target Audience Spend Time?

“You’re going to want to connect to as many potential customers as possible. If you know that a majority of your audience spends their time on Facebook, you can develop more detailed customer personas by engaging in conversations and getting involved with the community.” ~ John Brackett, Smash Balloon LLC

You don’t need to do everything on your own. From billing to marketing, including credentialing and patient eligibility verification, Perform Practice Solutions can help. Give us a call today at (833) 764-0178 and join our Facebook community.

Reference: [https://smallbiztrends.com/2021/10/small-businesses-target-audiences.html]

10 Ways to Take Better Care of Yourself and Your Business

Posted on Oct 2, 2021

Managing your business can be stressful. If you’ve been feeling like having no time to rest or are always anxious, stop for a few minutes and read more about some self-care tips. It will be super beneficial to you AND to your business. When it comes to less anxiety about running your PT or medical practice – that’s where we come in and take the load off regarding operations, billing, marketing, credentialing – and even sales. Meanwhile – take a deep breath and read on.

Entrepreneurs are always taking care of their businesses. But some forget to do the little things to take care of themselves. Sometimes, entrepreneurial self-care can just mean doing things in a simpler or easier way to free up time or limit stress. Here are tips from members of the online small business community for entrepreneurs interested in self-care.

Sleep Better at Night

A good night’s sleep is important for all humans, but especially for entrepreneurs that want to improve energy and brain power. Lisa Sicard offers tips for improving sleep to optimize entrepreneurial output in this Small Biz Tipster post. And BizSugar members shared additional thoughts in the community.

Find the Best Times to Send Emails

No entrepreneur wants to waste time on inefficient communication. If you send a lot of business emails, you want them read and responded to right away. For the best times to accomplish this goal, read this Respona post by Payman Taei.

Consider Integrating AI into Your Company

Technology can free up a lot of time for small biz owners. But you need to use the right tools to reap the benefits without taking on extra risk. AI provides tons of opportunities, which Emily Johnson details in this MyTechMag post.

Support Neurodiversity in the Workplace

Diverse workplaces bring tons of new ideas and can help people from all backgrounds feel comfortable at work. Neurodiversity means welcoming people with neurological differences. Read about this concept and how it benefits businesses in this GoCo post by Nikhil Bendre.

Learn from These Marketing YouTube Channels

Business owners should always keep learning. Marketing concepts constantly evolve. So it’s important to find sources for information that are current and full of new ideas. This 99signals post by Sandeep Mallya includes 15 marketing YouTube channels to check out.

Speak with No Fear

It’s normal to feel a bit nervous when you speak to a crowd. However, you don’t want to feel tons of stress every time you talk about your business. Learning to speak with no fear can make life much simpler. Learn how in this Duct Tape Marketing post by Sara Nay.

Break Through Writer’s Block with These Technologies

Writer’s block can be frustrating for bloggers and entrepreneurs. However, there are tools that can help you break through. Anthony Gaenzle lists some in this Moss Media post. And BizSugar members shared additional thoughts here.

Read These Books to Improve Your Marketing

Reading can be an ideal way to relax, while still learning something that may help your business. If you want to get better at marketing, read this Einstein Marketer post by Josh Barney that includes several books to help.

Improve Your Business with Website Traffic

Growing a business with limited web traffic can be incredibly stressful. Once you get people coming to your site daily, it becomes easier to relax and focus on other things. In this SmallBizTechnology post, Becca Williams explains why web traffic is so important.

Reference: [https://smallbiztrends.com/2021/09/self-care-tips-for-entrepreneurs.html]

6 Business Lessons From A Successful Entrepreneur

Posted on Aug 2, 2021

Advice to continue to grow and develop your business is always welcome! Having a business means hard work, successes, and failures. So it’s important to keep learning from it. Here you can read more about the most valuable lessons a CEO has to share in his two decades of entrepreneurship.

Ask any entrepreneur for business advice and they’ll be glad to share their stories of hard work, successes, and failures.

I spoke with serial entrepreneur Brian Kalish, CEO of Xigem Technologies, to share some of the most valuable lessons he’s learned in his two decades of entrepreneurship. Kalish’s entrepreneurial journey has spanned multiple industries from consumer packaged goods to publishing, healthcare, and professional sports. Kalish credits this diverse experience with his continued success as an entrepreneur. Here’s his advice:

Embrace failure and learn from it.

Failure is a wonderful teacher, as long as you’re willing to learn from it. As Kalish points out, “You learn more from the failures than you do the successes.” You can learn from every failure, no matter how large or how small. Take the time to analyze what when wrong, when and where in the process it went wrong, and come up with ways to ensure that those mistakes are corrected moving forward.

Surround yourself with the right people.

Having the right team in place is integral for business success. You want to build a strong team that supports all areas of your business and doesn’t leave any gaps uncovered. Seek out people who are experts in their field and hire them, learn from them, or partner with them. Not everyone on the team needs to be an employee – your team can be made up of freelancers, advisors, and mentors as well as full or part-time employees.

Think ahead to the future.

“As a serial entrepreneur, you’re always looking for what the next great adventure is going to be as well as how to leverage and take advantage of any changes that are happening,” says Kalish. His advice is to not only think about what’s happening now, but what might change in the future.

Look for opportunities.

You always have to keep your finger on the pulse and think a few steps ahead. “Really try to understand where the market is moving,” advises Kalish. Observe what’s going on in the business world and analyze those changes. Look at which sectors are leading and which ones are lagging behind. Think about ways to use or incorporate new technology to improve existing business processes. Think ahead to what might come next in technology, AI, and global business trends.

Don’t be afraid to take risks.

Risks are simply part of doing business, especially when you’re bringing a new product to market or entering a new field. The key is to take calculated risks where you’ve fully weighed your options, thought about the pros and cons, and are making a fully informed decision. Take risks wisely, don’t just dive in on a whim without doing your due diligence first.

Be prepared for change to happen quickly.

“We went from sharing everything, from bicycles and cars to apartments, and then all of sudden sharing nothing,” Kalish said, highlighting the almost instantaneous shift to a remote economy. The pandemic upended everything from industries to the very way we work, and many of those changes will be long-lasting. No one could have predicted the overnight shift to remote work, yet most businesses managed to adapt, often learning as they went along. Businesses that don’t adapt will quickly get left behind.

Whether you’re embarking on your first entrepreneurial journey, you’re an established businessperson, or anywhere in between, follow this advice to continue to grow and develop your business.

If you are looking for better ways to grow your practice, Perform Practice Solutions will help you tailor solutions to keep your practice thriving. Contact us and find out more about our packages at (833) 764-0178 and visit our Facebook page.

Reference: [https://www.forbes.com/sites/ashiraprossack1/2021/07/16/6-business-lessons-from-a-serial-entrepreneur/?sh=65ae9dcf2087]

14 Ways For Companies To Improve Digital And Mobile Marketing In 2021

Posted on Jul 2, 2021

Digital marketing is all about balancing strategy, creativity, and analytical thinking. With the right tools and knowledge, your company can take full advantage of the opportunities to interact with your customers. Below you can read about 14 ways companies can improve their mobile and digital marketing in 2021. However, you don’t need to do it all on your own. With Perform Practice Solutions, you can have all your physical therapy marketing taken care of. Every single thing, from blogs to newsletters to social, by a team who knows PT.

More than ever before, consumers are turning to the internet to find information and engage with brands and other consumers. With the right tools and knowledge, your company can create digital and mobile marketing strategies that effectively capture the attention of digital buyers.

To take full advantage of the opportunities to interact with customers and prospects online, you have to make sure your strategy will help you reach your target audiences where they are. Below, 14 members of Forbes Agency Council discuss effective ways for companies to improve their mobile and digital marketing in 2021.

1. Leverage Tech To Guide Decisions

Leveraging technology to make data-driven decisions is one of the most important things business owners can do to put themselves a step ahead of their competitors. Your customers now live in an on-demand world and need to be able to easily find you, contact you, buy from you and leave you a review. Active participation on all new advertising channels, such as Google Local Services Ads, is a must. – Michael Sauer, scorpion.co

2. Focus On What’s Already Working

Often, we get so busy with new ideas that we forget to look at what we can take away from the efforts of the past. Our customers leave a footprint of what’s impactful, so do more of that. Analyze information such as web traffic, clicks and email open rates to determine what has worked. Don’t work to reinvent the wheel when you can expand on what’s been successful to date. – Carm Lyman, Lyman Agency.

3. Build A Strong Brand Image On Social

Double down and build a brand image on social media. Most consumers are constantly on their phones and spend a majority of their time on social media platforms. So, to optimize marketing for your business on mobile, focus efforts on making your brand on social media as strong, consistent and engaging as possible. – Tony Pec, Y Not You Media.

4. Adopt A Conversational Marketing Approach

Companies will need to move past the one-way mindset of simply “pushing” a product toward a customer and shift their focus toward engagement in order to drive customer loyalty and increase satisfaction. Adopting a conversational marketing approach enables companies to effectively communicate with existing customers and prospects in a more personalized and interactive manner. – Matt Ramerman, Sinch for Marketing.

5. Utilize Artificial Intelligence And Machine Learning

Embrace the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies to better personalize experiences for users. Move away from the mass marketing tactics where your company delivers one message to a set target audience; instead, deliver tailored messages to individuals based on their trackable behaviors. – Russ Williams, Archer Malmo.

6. Diversify Ad Spend Across Channels

One great area to improve your digital and mobile marketing this year is to diversify your ad spend across various channels. Long gone are the days when it was just Facebook and Google reigning supreme. Pinterest, LinkedIn and TikTok, to name a few, are all showing promising returns on ad spend. Create mobile-specific content and diversify ad spend across platforms to increase ROI. – Krishan Arora, The Arora Project.

7. Create Content That Aligns With Your Values

First, ensure that your messaging and content align with the mission, values, culture and value proposition of your company. Second, ensure that every asset you produce consistently meets your brand and style guidelines. Third, maximize your opportunities to reuse and repurpose assets for cross-channel syndication while ensuring that they are optimized for each platform and device. – David Hall, GeniusVets.

8. Track Traffic To Optimize For Organic And Paid

Optimize your website for organic and paid traffic by tracking mobile page load speeds, implementing design and layout with mobile users in mind and using UTM codes to accurately track traffic. It’s imperative to know where traffic is coming from and which marketing efforts are actually working. – Melissa Litchfield, Litchfield Media.

9. Keep An Eye On Competitors And Emerging Tech

It is important for companies to keep up with the latest trends in digital and mobile marketing. Three ways that your company can improve its digital and mobile marketing this year include improving customer data, keeping an eye on competitors and taking advantage of opportunities with emerging technologies, such as 5G, AI and machine learning. – David Rollo, Acronym.

10. Review The Past Year’s Data

Take a look at your statistics from the past 12 months and identify key areas where you can improve in the next six months. Data will show you what’s actually working with the new norms of digital marketing and point out areas that you’re losing customers along their journey. Test everything on mobile devices with real customers and ask the hard questions at each click. – Darrell Keezer, Candybox Marketing.

11. Repurpose Content Into Different Formats

As brands work to create engaging content despite fewer resources and reduced budgets in 2021, there will be a bigger focus on repurposing content. By turning one asset into something else—say, a blog post into a podcast episode or YouTube video—you’ll maximize the investment and give your brand a holistic feel that will drastically improve user experience. – Donna Robinson, Collective Measures.

12. Optimize The Post-Click Experience For Mobile

A post-click experience is essential and must be optimized for mobile. Nailing the ad and getting the user to click is just half the job; the other half is getting people to purchase on your landing page or website. The post-click experience has to be seamless and frictionless to maximize conversions. – Ralph Burns, Tier 11

13. Examine Audience Intent Data

The most important step you can take is to better understand your audience, and quality data offers the most effective way to do that. We recommend intent data to fuel campaign efforts across all stages of the buyer’s journey and, above all, to understand and identify decision makers who are ready to buy. This level of insight gives marketers greater accuracy in targeting and higher campaign ROI. – Paula Chiocchi, Outward Media, Inc.

14. Maximize Media Efficiency

The key to improving digital and mobile marketing is maximizing media efficiency; that is, make sure that every media buy targets your ideal customer and is delivered at the right time and to the right place. To do that effectively, consistently and at scale, companies should utilize the analytical and self-optimization capabilities that AI and deep learning have to offer. – Jeremy Fain, Cognitive.

Set the perfect digital marketing strategy for your clinic with Perform Practice Solutions. We can truly help you build your business with efficiency and success. Give us a call today at (833) 764-0178 — and also we’d love to see you join our Facebook community.

Reference: [https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2021/06/22/14-ways-for-companies-to-improve-digital-and-mobile-marketing-in-2021/?sh=32861c4e8d5d]

What Should Your Business Still Be Doing Manually, Anyway?

Posted on May 25, 2021

When it comes to business processes, many companies try to automate as much as possible to help save time and streamline operations. From accounting software to social media tools, there are countless ways to automate small and large tasks alike. But, automation isn’t for everything—contrary to what many business owners believe. In fact, there are some things in business that you’re better off doing by hand … and I’m here to give you the rundown on what they are.

4 Tasks Your Business Should Be Doing Manually

Approximately two-thirds of businesses have fully automated at least one function in their company. And as technology evolves more each year, this number continues to grow. But, this doesn’t mean you should necessarily push manual tasks to the side and automate absolutely everything in sight. There are some tasks that should (and frankly, need) to be done by hand. Without further ado, here are four things your business should not be automating.

1. Responding To Customer Reviews

Customer reviews can make or break your business. They are what your potential customers see and read before deciding whether or not to go with your business or a competitor. Not to mention, they can be a great marketing tool.

With customer reviews being an oh-so-important part of your business, it goes without saying that it’s crucial to respond to reviews. But, something you should 100% absolutely never automate is your responses to reviews. You hear me? Never.

When responding to customer reviews, the last thing you want to do is sound like a robot and say the same thing to every customer that leaves a review. After all, they took the time out of their busy day to give you (hopefully good!) feedback.

All responses should be genuine and personalized. When responding, don’t forget to show your gratitude for the feedback. If it’s a negative review, investigate the situation, be empathetic, and provide a solution.

2. Providing Customer Support

Picture this: You call a support line to get some answers to questions you have. There are so many department options that you don’t know which one to select. And once you finally choose an option, you’re led down a pipeline of other options and struggle to get a hold of a real live person. Sound familiar? If so, you’re definitely not alone. This is the reality for many customers trying to get support.

When it comes to providing customer service, steer clear of automating. Attempting to automate certain customer support options, like phone calls and online chats with robots and canned responses, makes it extremely frustrating for customers. And what can said frustration lead to? That’s right—a lost customer for your business (and bad reviews you must attend to!).

Instead of automating aspects of customer service, pride yourself on your customer support and try to give the best experience possible. Give your customers numerous ways to get in touch with your team, like email, chat, or phone call. And, be sure that regardless of which customer support avenue your customers take, they can easily get in touch with a representative.

At my accounting software and payroll company, Patriot Software, we pride ourselves on our top-notch and quick customer service. And, our customers absolutely love us for it (based on the reviews we meticulously read through and respond to!). So, don’t be afraid to provide some good old-fashioned customer support.

3. Engaging On Social Media

Chances are, part of your marketing plan probably includes some form of social media. After all, it is 2021, and social media is all the rage. If you want to really give your business a boost on social media, you have to get your followers talking and engage with them. And, you probably guessed it: engaging with folks on social platforms is something you should not automate.

Keeping people engaged on social media is an absolute must if you want to help spread the word about your business. When you engage with customers on social media, your responses shouldn’t be bland and robot-like. Trust me, that’s not what customers want to see. And, those types of responses are not going to make people want to engage with your business.

Take advantage of social media to humanize your business and truly connect with customers. Let your business’s personality shine through in your social responses to give engagement a boost.

4. Thanking Customers

Your customers are the foundation of your business. Heck without them, you wouldn’t be in business. Because they do so much for your company, you should be thanking them, right? Right. And, you should be automating said thank yous? Wrong.

When it comes to showing your customers your appreciation, avoid automating as much as you possibly can. Handwriting and sending a simple thank you note or email can go a long way with customers. And yes, your customers notice (and appreciate) the small details.

Of course, if your business has really taken off and you have more customers you can count, handwriting thousands of thank yous may not be physically possible. But even as your business grows, you should still avoid automating this aspect by adding a touch of personalization to emails or selecting certain customers to send thank you notes to.

Whatever you wind up doing, make sure you’re showing your customers that you appreciate their business.

So … What Should You Be Automating?

Now that we’ve gone over what you shouldn’t be automating at your business, let’s review what type of tasks you should consider automating. Here are some things you may want to automate at some point:

Accounting tasks
Payroll tax filings
Emails
Social media posts (e.g., scheduling posts in advance)
Appointment and meeting scheduling
Sales

Again, automation is a great tool you can and should use in business. But, that doesn’t mean you should automate absolutely everything. Take time to consider the tasks that absolutely need automated and the ones you’re better off handling manually (aka 1 – 4 above).

Perform Practice Solutions can help you to optimize your day-to-day operations and improve your clinic’s performance. Visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/PerformPracticeSolutions or give us a call at (833) 764-0178 to see how we can help elevate your physical therapy practice!

Reference: {https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2021/03/01/smart-marketing-can-give-small-businesses-an-advantage-in-2021/?sh=5bbd790134af}

We can help you to run your practice with more efficiency and prepare for your challenges. Perform Practice Solutions can help you to optimize your day-to-day operations. Improve your clinic’s performance now. Visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/PerformPracticeSolutions or give us a call at (833) 764-0178 to see how we can help elevate your physical therapy practice!

Let’s talk about your business challenges today.

Our fresh perspectives, experience, and specialized skill sets will get your practice where you want it, and with far less stress. (833) 764-0178

How to Get Physical Therapy in the Middle of a Pandemic

Posted on Jul 23, 2020

To keep your patient roster full, you’re going to have to get creative. There are no two ways around it.

Even in states under a lockdown or with restrictions, PT is still considered essential – but that doesn’t mean that your population will want to readily come to your (super clean) practice. You’ll need a hybrid of solutions to offer your services to your patients – and we liked the overview of options in this article. You’ll also need to make sure your marketing is top-notch. Do contact us for help there with a free consultation, and you might need to now off-load billing, eligibility, or credentialing to free up your time (and save money) to take your patient care to the next level. We can help there also. Call us and we can, at no cost, share an overview to keep your practice thriving. (833) 764-0178

Back in March, Anne van Hemmen—who had become partially paralyzed from a stroke the previous fall—was making considerable progress toward recovery. Every week, a physical therapist visited her at home in Fair Haven, N.J., and took her through exercises to help her regain mobility on her left side.

Then, the coronavirus pandemic hit. After skipping two weeks of therapy, van Hemmen, who is 60, started video sessions in April. Her daughter Abby held the camera, and her husband Rik helped her complete the exercises. Now, van Hemmen is getting in-person physical therapy at home again—but her therapist stays at least six feet away.

The spread of COVID-19 has complicated treatment for all sorts of patients, but the close contact necessary for physical therapy presents special challenges. Even as some states begin to reopen, many physical therapy offices are continuing to limit risk for providers and patients by offering sessions over video and retrofitting clinics to abide by social distancing and infection control best practices.

Even in states still on lockdown, physical therapy is generally considered “essential,” says Karen Litzy, DPT, a physical therapist in New York City and a spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). But “we want to reduce the risk as much as possible for everyone involved,” she says

What Physical Therapy Looks Like Now

Litzy used to see patients in their homes. Since stay-at-home orders went into place in New York in March, she’s transitioned most of her patients to telehealth.

In between visits, many patients are used to completing their physical therapy exercises at a gym. But with most gyms closed, Litzy has come up with creative ways for her patients to continue their exercises at home.

For example, if a patient doesn’t have weights at home, she might suggest using a frying pan instead. Standing beside a dresser or an ottoman can be used for balance exercises. “It’s sort of like MacGyvering things out,” she says.

Physical therapy clinics that continue to see patients in-person need to be extra vigilant about sanitizing equipment and surfaces.

“A lot of it is good practice, even before COVID,” says Ann Marie Pettis, R.N., president-elect of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).

Pettis advises physical therapy clinics to follow guidelines from APTA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). That includes advice to work one-on-one with patients, require patients and staff to wear masks, take patients’ temperatures upon arrival, space out patients at least six feet apart, stagger appointment times, and limit the number of people in waiting rooms.

In Georgia, for example, which has begun reopening, doctors’ offices are now doing select orthopedic surgeries, so referrals to physical therapy will likely increase, says Ryan Balmes, DPT, an outpatient orthopedic and sports physical therapist based in Atlanta and a spokesperson for the American Physical Therapy Association. “We are starting to see an uptick, nowhere close to our previous volume,” Balmes says.

Other states may not be far behind, says Pettis, of APIC. She’s been consulting on best practices for all sorts of medical facilities in Western New York State as they prepare to re-open for non-urgent cases with proper precautions in place.

Some physical therapy offices have even begun to prepare for an influx of patients recovering from COVID-19-related complications.

If You Need Physical Therapy

Talk with your physical therapist, who can help you figure out the best course of treatment and whether it’s possible to do some or all of it remotely, says Litzy. Here are some guidelines from experts to help ensure that you are getting the care you need while minimizing the risk of exposure.

If You Are Going in Person

• Confirm appropriate precautions are being taken. Before you go to your physical therapy appointment, call ahead to ask about the protocols the clinic has in place for social distancing and disinfection, suggests Pettis.

• Assess your risk factors. If you are over the age of 65 or have an underlying condition that makes you more susceptible to complications from COVID-19, APTA recommends that you consider refraining from seeking in-person care to limit possible exposure to the virus.

• Come prepared. If you opt to see your physical therapist in person, wear a face-covering (make sure your therapist does, too) and bring hand sanitizer to use before and after, suggests Pettis.

If You Are Doing Remote Physical Therapy

• Keep an open mind. Since much of physical therapy is based on touch, it may be hard to imagine how that might translate to a video session. Patients who want to stay at home but are skeptical about whether remote PT will be effective should at least give it a try, says Mike Evangelist, vice president for clinical services at JAG-ONE Physical Therapy, which has 62 locations and has been offering PT via telehealth since mid-March. “Once they have their first [remote] session and see what they can get out of it, I think pretty much they’re sold,” Evangelist says. You can also complete your physical therapy using a hybrid of in-person and telehealth sessions, says Balmes, in Atlanta.

• Check your internet speed. Do everything you can to ensure a fast internet speed, whether that means unplugging other devices or using an ethernet cable instead of relying on WiFi. Connectivity issues can interrupt the flow of a session, Balmes says.

• Set up your space. Make sure you have a quiet space with enough room to lay down yoga or other mat and lie flat on your back. While it may seem like a minor consideration, proper lighting will help ensure that your physical therapist can see your movements in detail. If you have a sunny space, use it: Natural light provides better visibility than artificial, Balmes says.

• Contact your health insurance provider. While Medicare and most major insurance companies are now covering telehealth physical therapy, individual plans vary, and each state has different regulations. Before you decide to move forward with remote PT, check your plan to make sure it will be covered.