Your sales pitch always needs tweaking. Doesn’t matter if you’re Tony Robbins, there’s always room for better approaches.

Here are 3 reasons to outsource when talking to prospective clients.

Do they have high staff turnover? It cost tens of thousands of dollars to retrain in-house processors not to mention the down time. You’re up to speed and ready to go.

No learning latest tech trends. They won’t spend hours learning to the newest software.

They’re doctors, not accountants. They didn’t get into the business to billers. Show them it’s more efficient, profitable and fulfilling if they stay on the patient side and you take care of the money.

1 Know how much time you have. Don’t have a 30-minute presentation when the decision maker has only 10 minutes and then leaves. It’s a waste of everyone’s time. Instead, ask the office manager how long you get and figure on a few minutes less than that to leave time for questions.

2. Know the client’s needs and tailor your talk to address those needs. Other stuff is just background noise.

3. Give 3 reasons why you’re the best choice among the vendors they’re meeting. Surely they’re talking to others so don’t forget to say why you’re the best, not just what you can do.

Uh oh, too late — it’s 60 degrees in the east. There’s still snow in my yard from the blizzards a month ago, but we’re finally free of Old Man Winter’s grip.

A lot of us in cold-weather areas want to run amuck now that spring has touched us. Just play outside like kids on spring break. But, that won’t pay the bills, will it?

So let’s compromise. Let’s do 3 things this morning and then take a couple hours off.

* Organize your prospects list. Are they on scraps of paper here and there? How is that working for you? Probably pretty scattered. Let’s make a complete list and call them to schedule a presentation.

*How is your presentation package? Everything up to date? Are the handouts complete? Could you hand five people your package right now? If not, let’s tidy up loose ends.

* Finally, is your oral sales pitch in tune? If you haven’t done it in awhile, run through it out loud once. You’ll be surprise how you stumble. Go over it a few times, smooth it out. You never know when you’ll need to deliver it.

So, after getting all angles of your sales presentation done, go ahead and run through that meadow. Then we’ll see you again in the morning.

Where do you want to be in five years? Handling a lot more clients?

They’re coming. The Association of American Medical Colleges says first-year enrollment in new and existing U.S. medical schools grew by  2 percent in 2009 to nearly 18,400 students. Half of the increase comes from medical schools in Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida.

Just some food for thought, especially if you live in Texas, Pennsylvania and Florida.

The average certified medical coder earns $44,750 while non-certified coders make $38,920, according to 10,000 respondents in a survey by the American Academy of Professional Coders. Salaries rose 4 and 2 percent respectively over 2008.

The AAPC survey also revealed education plays a direct role in income. A coder with a Bachelor’s degree earns $51,820 — $11,000 more than a high school graduate.

Those in urban areas earn $45,631; suburban areas, $44,551; and rural areas, $38,930.

Coders in the West Coast earn $50,143 while those in the Mid-Atlantic receive $40,713.

Those with special credentials earn $52,777.

“In a time of economic troubles it is great to see that our coders are still excelling in terms of salary and recognition,” said Reed Pew, AAPC president and CEO. “It appears certified medical coders are more recession-proof than others.”

We know, every time you mention new technology with health care providers, their eyes glisten over as they groan. First, they don’t want to learn it. Second, they don’t want to spend more money.

Start the next conversation like this – “A UnitedHealth Group study says the U.S. health care system will save $332 BILLION over the next decade through updated technology.”

$332 with a B Billion.

That ought to catch their attention. We’re not just talking about electronic health records. The study notes $109 billion using electronic funds transfers, another $47 billion in a national system to catch questionable claims. The use of common technology and information standards is the key.

Then, mention how your software with ClaimTek Systems is the leading edge of their new technology. If you want to see if you need further upgrades, call us at 1-800- 224-7450.

For some people, the toughest part of business is pitching their services. They can do the work, don’t mind the ups and downs and can handle frustrations, but simply talking to a stranger gives them the willies.

That’s right, public speaking scares them. Hey, it happens. We all have our strengths and weaknesses. But, this is a real problem because everything revolves around getting clients.

We talk about this all the time, but I thought a simple video by someone else might freshen the topic. Here are five things to remember when readying to talk to health care providers.

At a recent national conference in Washington, a roundtable discussion on how businesses could help each other turned into one hour of lively interaction over how Facebook, YouTube and Twitter were the new tools to find clients.

“I met people at a Tweetup,” said one panelist, which drew a laugh, especially from those who didn’t know what that was.

The biggest growth in Facebook are businesses. Everyone is putting their shingle on the world’s greatest social networking site. Young people are especially involved and those are the ones starting out in the business who need support systems like you.

Reasons to do it?

First, it’s all free. What’s better than that?

Second, it’s less than one hour of work. A internet-savvy person could do it in 30 minutes. Just be careful on putting out too much information like your birthdate.

Third — it’s a great way to remind everyone you know what you do for a living. You’d be surprise how often people forget. They say you have to tell someone seven times before they truly remember. If you’re thinking “So what, they’re not in the medical field. They can’t send me business” then you’re thinking too small. Remember, it’s a small world and you never know where a referral will come. I once gained a client from a referral via my ex-sister-in-law whom I hadn’t spoken to in years.

Finally, everyone else is doing it so don’t be left out of the hottest marketing tool out there.

And remember to have some fun, too. Facebook has lots of fun games, too. Just do them on your lunch hour.

Doctors are getting all types of free technology. Free webpads for patients to fill out information. Free TVs for their lobby and patient rooms for people to watch free videos touting somebody’s services. Free medicine to dole out as samples.

Free stuff is corrupting. Doctors get so many things free that they start to feel entitled. If you haven’t heard the following, you soon will.

“Why should I pay for medical billing technology when so-and-so will give it to me for free?” they ask you.

Brother, you get what you pay for in life. Nothing’s free, not in the end. Oh, drug sales reps will gladly give you pills so patients can start buying them afterwards. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out those giveaways are a loss leader to real money.

But you have to be prepared to smartly counter why your business cost more than someone willing to give away their product and services. And as much as we’d like to smugly say, “You get what you pay for,” it won’t help gain any business.

Have a prepared response. Explain why your company, your software, your expertise, is worth the money. Say it convincingly and you won’t lose business to those desperate enough to give it away only to disappear or do a bad job.

Doctors won’t have a problem paying for a job well done. You just have to remind them.

You’ll notice we show a YouTube video on the blog now and then. It has become the new network of TV. In fact, just like young people don’t read newspapers, they read websites, they watch YouTube instead of network news. Yeah, scary.

Now this young lady tells how to create a popular video for YouTube. The first few seconds are a little weird, but she actually later says why she did it. She has some very good points on advertising in general. And, it never hurts to have a pretty young woman to see.

You’ll learn something in these three minutes or your money back. Of course, we’re free.

You’ve finished your whole presentation. It seemed to go great. You’re reaching for your contract, and then the dreaded words come.

“I want to think about it.”

“What’s there to think about, you ninny” may be racing through your mind, but this isn’t over yet. Countering their indecision is often essential to sealing the deal.

Ask what questions are they still weighing. The key is not to seem confrontational or pushy. Make it appear as if you’re merely trying to understand their position and how you can provide further information.

Often, we’re talking about money. Tell them you understand it’s a commitment. Make it seem like you’re on the same team. Explain what else you might do for them and why it’s a great value.

Now some people just won’t make a quick decision. OK, don’t burn the bridge. Leave on an upbeat conversation and follow up tomorrow.

ClaimTek Systems includes sales presentations and marketing as part of its support. Be sure to check the website ClaimTekSystems.com or call 1-800-224-7450 for more information.

You’d be surprised how many people just wing it. The most important part of their business and they haven’t even organized a presentation. And, they wonder why they’re not getting more clients.

Your sales presentation must be organized so it flows well while describing exactly what you can do for them. But, it should be no more than 15 minutes, avoid extreme details and give the impression you can do whatever they need. Then, be prepared for some Q & A as they ask specific questions on their specialty.

Here’s one gameplan on readying for the meeting:

1. Start with a simple outline of topics. Write down some ideas. Organize them so it follows naturally instead of seeming helter skelter. Then, go back and fill in the details.

The outline should include an introduction, summary of your company history and capabilities and examples of past clients. If you know they know some of your clients, name drop, please.

2. Don’t spend time on needless small talk. Get right to it because the clock is ticking. These people are busy, and so are you. Open with a simple, “Thank you for meeting me today” and get right to it.

3. Don’t promise what you can’t deliver. People can smell a fake. If they ask for something you aren’t comfortable with, just say you don’t work in that area. Better to be great at something than awful at anything. You’ll grow in the business and may one day take on those needs.

4. Know your costs and finish with your prices because that’s the key detail they’ll want to discuss. Rather than start early and have them think it’s too expensive and stop listening, make them fall in love with you and become willing to pay any price.

Finally, after every presentation, ask yourself if there were areas that could have gone better. Maybe things you need to include. Then incorporate them into your presentation so the next one will be even better.

ClaimTek Systems includes sales presentations and marketing as part of its support. Be sure to check the website ClaimTekSystems.com or call 1-800-224-7450 for more information.

No matter how good you think you are, no matter how successful you’ve been — it can all fall apart in a whisper of a moment.

Think some of the Wall Street people out on the sidewalk thought it wouldn’t ever happen to them? If the titans of industry are vulnerable, so are you.

Now is the best time to start working on your sales presentation. And here’s the kicker — it doesn’t matter how well it has worked before, you need to update it.

In the first of two parts (come back Friday for the second), we’ll discuss how to gather information for your presentation.

1. Update your data. This business is ever-changing, especially with electronic records and the stimulus package encouraging health care providers to modernize their systems.

You should know everything about the software program. Everything. Get stumped on a question and you’ll be considered a poser (twentysomething talk for faker) and the doctor will move on. It’s not easy being an expert. That’s why it’s invaluable to be one.

Be able to explain all of the recent technological improvements in recent months of your software. There are probably some areas you haven’t used lately. Go in there and look around some just so you know it again.

2. Update your company’s statistics. Maybe it’s just you. OK, how many clients and in what areas? How much did you bill last year or last three years?

“Doctor, my company has billed $12.6 million over the last three years for 13 firms, including 6 chiropractors, 3 dentists, 2 OBGYNs and 2 oncologists.”

Now that’s an answer that impresses.

3. Know your competitors. Don’t badmouth them because throwing dirt usually means getting some on yourself. No, we’re talking what gaps are you filling in the marketplace that others are missing and how it can fill this potential client’s needs. Maybe it’s Medicare, the VA or dental insurance.

4. Know your client’s business. Do some quick homework. How long have they been in business? How big are they? How have they handled billing before? By anticipating their needs, your sales pitch goes to the heart of what they’ll want to know.

ClaimTek Systems includes sales presentations and marketing as part of its support. Be sure to check the website ClaimTekSystems.com or call 1-800-224-7450 for more information.