It’s also true that running a private practice takes a lot more than just audiological knowledge to make it work. It requires making a difference in the community you serve through generating awareness around hearing loss and helping people understand it. This makes up the foundation of Ascent Audiology’s values, which is championed heavily by Cynthia.
It’s no wonder then, that with Daniel’s ability to empathize with his patients and Cynthia’s commitment to making a difference, that they have gained the reputation of the most trusted hearing care and audiology experts in Glendale, Goodyear, and Surprise.
“We have been able to grow into a successful practice that is over 3 million a year in sales and 3 locations with 18 employees and growing.” – Cynthia
What’s more, in December 2020, on the back of their success with Ascent, the couple partnered with an ENT practitioner and Upstate Hearing Aid Center in Greenville, SC was born, which in under a year has expanded to 12 employees.
So, how has this been achieved?
The 3 Things Cynthia & Daniel Did To Grow The Clinic
With Cynthia’s ongoing commitment to strive for better for her patients and community, she attributes her and Daniel’s success to 3 key areas of focus:
#1 – Being Part Of The Inner Circle
Cynthia & Daniel made the decision to join the Inner Circle when they recognized the reality that, if they were to grow, they needed a strong marketing strategy to attract the right people.
With Cynthia’s background in marketing and the determination to prove people wrong who had said “physician marketing doesn’t work,” she confidently chose to work with a company who shared the same values of their own business, which are “partnership,” “integrity,” and “education.”
“Daring to be different and willing to work with an organization that thinks outside the box was definitely a pivotal moment for us. The Inner Circle is a fabulous extension of who we are as a practice and they have adapted their principles to what our practice needs.” – Cynthia
Through a thorough website transformation and optimization, along with a strategic approach to regular patient communication and content creation, Cynthia and Daniel have capitalized on their digital inquiry opportunities, which has been a key marker to their growth success.
#2 – Focusing On Service Plans
It was important for Cynthia and Daniel to showcase the value of their expertise, as it contributed to changing people’s perception that hearing care should be free.
By creating service plans that clearly outlined what the patient would receive in return for their investment, suddenly the value spoke for itself, and Cynthia and Daniel were able to tailor their plans based on their firsthand experience of what people really need.
#3 – Prioritizing Company Culture
As making a difference in the community is a huge company value of Cynthia and Daniel, so is making a difference in the community of their staff too.
By putting a leadership team in place, as well as reshaping the culture of their practice to put the well-being of their staff first, which was achieved by weekly (and even daily) staff check-ins to see how it’s all going, they were able to get real time feedback and adjust accordingly.
This people-focused approach has meant their staff feels valued and is happy.
“The focus on who we are and what has gotten us here allows us to keep the ‘eye of the tiger’ alive and well in our practice.” – Cynthia
In Her Own Words, Cynthia Describes The Biggest Challenges And How They Overcame Them
Challenge #1 – The Pandemic
“We went from 24 staff before COVID to 6 and learned how to recreate ourselves. I am sure as with all companies that everyone had to rethink their strategy.
“My goal was to really allow our staff to have a voice and go back to our roots and hit the pavement and get back out there and let our people know we were there for them. We did curbside service, we went to people’s homes and adjusted hearing aids from outside their room or in their cars. We did remote programming of many patients in their hearing aids and it totally has revolutionized our practice.
“Because of COVID, our practice has become stronger and more profitable than ever before and with less staff and we have much greater sales than we did before the virus.”
Challenge #2 – Learning How To Balance 3 Companies Across 2 States
“I think that running five practices has allowed me to realize how to prioritize what I do and have the correct staff to allow us to manage the business and really allow the staff to see what we can do.
“The organization of managing my time and awareness of delegating has been so important. In addition, teaching others with tools like Trello & Loom has allowed us to become a much more organized and efficient team.
“Making sure we know what is measured is reported and allowing us to be able to stay on top of our practice.”
Challenge #3 – Balancing Family
“In business, families sometimes suffer and are not able to have the balance across the board. I have always been a person who loves to work and I love my three children as well.
“Balancing these things has also been something I have learned to do and making sure that I take the time with them as they grow up so fast.
“I focus on the quality as opposed to the quantity. I put the phone down and just focused on the children. That becomes my #1 priority. It is not a fine science and is more of a work in progress, but I intend to do what I can to be a part of their world as well as what we do in the business.”
The 3 Ways That The Inner Circle Contributed To Cynthia & Daniel’s Success
#1 – Greater Exposure
Through a strategic approach to website optimization and creating content designed to help answer people’s questions around hearing loss, coupled with an ongoing process to regularly communicate with existing patients, Cynthia and Daniel have been able to reach more people with their message to further educate them on why getting their hearing checked is so important, while truthfully conveying the reasons why Ascent Audiology and Hearing is best placed to help them.
“The Inner Circle is an extension of the vision of Ascent Audiology & Hearing. We have been able to reach more people with our message to educate them further about what we do and who we are. They allow us to paint the picture of the vision of what we are and they place it on paper and make it a masterpiece.”
#2 – Action And Accountability
Every successful business owner knows the importance of “getting stuff done,” which is what Cynthia and Daniel have really mastered…with a bit of help from Orange & Gray.
“They are relentless in keeping us on track. We get so busy doing what we do, but they are always on task of making sure that we complete what we do. It is a beautiful thing and really gives the reassurance of making sure that we are able to be successful without it being difficult or unmanageable. They make it easy.”
#3 – People-Focused People (& Profits!)
As one of Ascent’s main values is putting their people first, it was important that they worked with a company who does the same.
“I must say that the staff that Inner Circle has is awesome. We have enjoyed the team in different aspects and there are more layers to uncover, as we have not utilized all of it and that is our fault, not theirs. They have done everything you can ever imagine to make our practice more profitable, but the culture they have built matches what we have. Oli is incredible and has always been there for us no matter what. Incredible concepts and having a great team allow everyone to win.”
It’s been a pleasure to be on this journey with Cynthia and Daniel. They are real action takers and their strong digital presence and smart marketing approach reflects this. Also, their willingness to go above and beyond for their patients is second to none, which is why their success comes as no surprise. It is truly deserved.
