By: Tony Barlow | tbarlow@barlowmccarthy.com

I stumbled upon a collection of job postings from an organization on one of the familiar physician recruitment database websites the other day. The posting read like this:

Family Medicine opportunity available. Competitive salary and benefits. Contact us for more.

As I scrolled through the 10-15 postings, they all said the same thing, with the specialty changed in the first line. I think we can all see a missed opportunity here! It’s an extreme example of a common problem. Every communication – the job posting, emails and any other copy you write for your job opportunities NEEDS to have a strong, compelling and succinct message. Because it may be the only shot you get, it’s important to put your best foot forward!

Time can be the enemy because you want to get positions posted, but we’ve found that a little extra time in composition can be a real difference maker. As you look at your postings identify the pitch for the specific practice opportunity. Think about the type of specialty, the practice and the people side. Here are 4 ideas to make a strong, written first impression.

1. Location – This is low hanging fruit for many. However, not everyone has a location that is known or recognized! That’s when you must get creative. Do some research, hit the road and find something worth selling about your location. Then, talk about it. If you try to hide your location, that is a red flag to prospect.
2. Health System – This is another one that some of you will find easy and others will have to do a little work. Awards such as “Best Place to Work” or “Voted Greenest Hospital” rise to the top of the list. Do you have new infrastructure? New technology? Academic affiliation, Beautiful practice facilities? Every system has attributes, so take the time to consider those you provide that have interest for doctors.
3. The Team – This one can be specialty specific. Do you have an experienced team? Good leadership? A team with good experience might be particularly attractive to a resident stepping into their first opportunity. Any award winning or nationally recognized physicians?
4. Learnings from Others – Hit the ground and do some research. Talk to your physicians and figure out what attracted them. Do a simple survey to get some intelligence on areas you should highlight. Your team and your physicians can be an absolute goldmine. Tap into them!

Now that you have gathered some intel for your pitch(s). It is time to organize your message and put it to work. Remember when building your copy that your first few lines in your first paragraph must capture their attention. Don’t bury the good stuff at the bottom! Use it right away. Use headers to separate topics and make the note easy to scan. Don’t be shy to toot your own horn here! If you feel like you have multiple positive messages for a specific opportunity, try leading with different items in your copy and your subject line. Compare the numbers and results on different combinations. The important thing here is not to settle in and get comfortable. This is an ongoing process.

It goes without saying, but make sure that you have solid proof sources and content that will to back up your pitch. Be honest and truthful with how you package and position your opportunities. Doctors are smart enough to figure out when they are being misled.

We all know how competitive the recruitment space is. Getting the attention of the right doctors at the right time is a challenge. It takes creativity, persistence and the right message for the audience. Do the leg work and research to build a solid stable of sales pitches for your opportunities and then build your copy around them.

Creating a good pitch is our specialty! We work hard to build solid messages for all our clients using our email sourcing product. It is a seamless tool that puts us to work for you, sending email messages to prospective physicians. We would love to help your team as well! Contact me at tbarlow@barlowmccarthy.com for more details.