Podiatry Hive Member Profile – Heather Bassett
Member Profile
Name: Heather Bassett
Name of Clinic: Heather Bassett Podiatry Group
Where do you operate: Glenroy Melbourne Victoria Australia
How long have you been in business?
I purchased a clinic that the practitioner had built up over 20 years, her first 10 as a beautician doing nails and the next 10 as a Chiropodist. That was 33.5 years ago!
It is such a privilege and honour to have cared for many of my clients for over 3 decades. To understand the changes that occur with the feet and lower limbs from age 70 to 100, 4 to 34 and everything in between is incredibly empowering!
It is such a privilege and honour to have cared for many of my clients for over 3 decades. To understand the changes that occur with the feet and lower limbs from age 70 to 100, 4 to 34 and everything in between is incredibly empowering!
What attracted you to Podiatry?
Growing up in country Victoria, I used to travel with my Gran, who had to drive 25 miles to see the Chiropodist. When I was 15, Gran asked me to cut her corn using a razor blade. Her instructions were to take only a thin layer at a time. I became very proficient at this. I now know that the Chiropodist and I only ever debrided the corn. There was no enucleation at this time! No wonder she was sore!
As I finished secondary school my Gran noticed an advertisement in the newspaper that a course in Chiropody was on offer. It was the first course to be run in Victoria in 10 years.
Gran, one of my biggest fans, suggested that I could apply? That I would be a very good Chiropodist! Mind you, she thought I would be good at pretty much anything!
I was offered 3 courses at Tertiary level and chose “feet”! I understood that I could make a difference to the “quality of life” of clients that I would treat in the future.
How right I was!
What are the 3 crucial elements to your success?
- Passion! Never ending passion!
- Attending conferences, networking to learn new ideas
- Reflecting, learning and acting on these learnings.
What has been your biggest ‘OOPS!’ moment?:
Letting others sway me from what I knew to be true! Such as not putting our prices up because of their concerns about what others were charging! It is irrelevant what others charge!
What has been your biggest ‘A-HA!’ moment?
Wow biggest? … so many! One of the first conferences I went to, a Podiatrist from the USA was talking about practice management – not that I knew what it was back then.
He advised that payment was at the time of consultation! Great advice!
Also that a deposit on “anything” that was to be supplied to the client in the future, ordered in, custom made, be paid up front and that it cover all of the costs involved in the process.
I fully implemented these ideas which have been brilliant. Account keeping fees are low and little outstanding fees make a big impact on positive cash flow.
Can you you share one or two marketing elements or methods you’ve used in your practice, that have been successful, and have provided growth?
This same colleague advised to have my business details on everything that left my clinic. I went off to the printer the next day.
He also suggested I write letters, letters and more letters, which I did! As a result referrals were constant.
His humour was fantastic, he mentioned that even if the paper went straight in the bin, the reader was still seeing our name and it was registering somewhere in the back of the brain, ready for recall when they needed a Podiatrist.
A newspaper advertisement back in 1986 was one of my most successful pieces of marketing! I did not understand or process the why until many years later! The reason for the success was it was a story, it was authentic, it was true and people could and did relate. It was not a sales pitch!
New clients kept coming for months after this!
If you had your time over again, what would you do differently?
I am so glad that I do not have the option to do it over again. However, I would spend much more time understanding my business and working on it! Definitely NOT working in it!
The first 10 years I ran the business with no understanding of business. My Dad said you need a good accountant! I visited several, knowing that I needed to understand my business. They did my tax!
The next 20 years I had someone else manage the business. I still did not understand “running” a business or working ON the business.
Thanks to Podiatry Hive and Business Coach Shane Barker I now fully understand my business and I am working on it! (and at times in it!)
Other than being a fabulous Podiatrist, what do you do outside of Podiatry?
Much of my time is spent with my beautiful family!
I am a passionate student of life! Living with much gratitude!
Reading, gardening, travel, music, friends, movies and good food top it all off!
