©OutreachU, ltd.
OUTREACH – IT’S NOT ABOUT THE PITCH. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CATCH
Excerpt from THE BOOK OF OUTREACH for HEALTHCARE; How to Grow Revenue by Astonishing the Right Customers Consistently by Rich Obertots
The 2nd RULE of OUTREACH
“Shut Up.”
In THE BOOK OF OUTREACH for HEALTHCARE, there are “5 Rules” to guide Outreach Operators. In a world so filled with overcommunicating – in person and digitally – those that embrace the 2nd Rule will flourish, differentiate and increase their success.
©OutreachU, ltd.
Does it sound harsh to state that the 2nd Rule of Outreach is, “SHUT UP!” Fine if it does. Because if you apply this rule, you will conduct some of the most professional and effective Outreach around. Why? Because most Outreach Operators act like poorly educated salespeople using the “BRAG & SWAG” approach. How is that? They pitch – they boast – they sell – tell – brag and try to bamboozle people – they pass out T-shirts primarily as bribes instead of brand reinforcers – and they rarely ever shut their mouths.
You know the type.
And yes – it’s often amazingly easy to be that type when you are so proud of what you do, and you are passionate that your organization does what it does safer and better than your rivals. You’ll want to express this. However, if you want to really fail and fail big time at Outreach, keep selling, keep telling, keep talking.
On the other hand, if you want to astonish customers – SHUT UP!
How did “SHUT UP” come to be The 2nd Rule of Outreach?
It’s fully credited to John Chamberlin, one of the co-founders of ThinkThroughTools and former Manager, Business Relations and Development, at STAT MedEvac, based in Pittsburgh, PA.
John was a volunteer firefighter and Nationally Registered Paramedic. Therefore, he understood exactly the expectations of those he would later engage to utilize STAT’s flight services. John knew how to ask questions that were relevant and compelling. What did this do? It motivated others to talk – and what did he do? SHUT UP. Listen – learn – understand, then formulate a plan to help his customers.
Later in his career, he managed his Outreach / Business Development team at STAT MedEvac. He began teaching and mentoring many others. STAT did it right. They hired and trained full-time professionals from the flight line and provided them with vehicles, phones, computers, CRM software, and more to be sure they could be focused on their Outreach duties. Just like any other sophisticated company would. John, in his mentoring, lived his rule: SHUT UP and passionately taught this.
FYI, John is now the co-founder of the fantastic Pittsburgh-based YaJagoff podcast.
Ya Jagoff!!! Check it out – especially if you are in or from Pittsburgh.
Robert Brooks Outreach Expert
Rob Brooks is the former SVP and COO at Erlanger Health System (Life Force is their flight program) in Chattanooga, TN. He began his career at STAT MedEvac working as a Flight Medic / Flight Nurse, then became full-time in Outreach & Business Development. He had John Chamberlin and me as his early-career Outreach mentors.
In a recent interview, he stated, “I credit much of my success to those early days at STAT MedEvac.” He emphasizes, “The most successful Outreach professionals I know and have worked with are really good listeners.”
As we have fine-tuned the skill sets of high-level Outreach Operators, we introduced Authentic Immersed Listening. Abbreviated AIL™ – this takes SHUT UP and listen to a new level. In THE BOOK OF OUTREACH for HEALTHCARE you’ll lean more about AIL ™ to elevate your Outreach effectiveness.
Always keep in mind…
©OutreachU, ltd.
OUTREACH – IT’S NOT ABOUT THE PITCH. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE CATCH
WHAT’S NEXT
In OutreachBEAT Issue 6, you will learn more field-proven Outreach tactics you can put into practice immediately.
COMMUNICATE
Please communicate to share your Outreach success stories, suggest topics to cover in the OutreachBEAT series or to express frustrations or problems you are encountering in your Outreach endeavors. I’m delighted to help and will keep the details confidential. You’ll surely be helping your peers in the healthcare Outreach community to be more effective.
And, to receive early access to the new book, simply email me at [email protected]. I’d be honored to include you with our growing group of Outreach Operators seeking to learn and deploy advanced principles, methods, and tactics.
Richard M. Obertots, MBA, NREMT-P (ret.) is CEO/Drummer of ThinkThroughTools, LLC. & OutreachU, ltd., based in Canfield, Ohio, USA. He has 45 + years’ experience in EMS, air medical transport and critical care healthcare. He began as a Nationally Registered Paramedic, then Hospital EMS/Trauma Coordinator and Financial Analyst. Rich has instructed full-time at the University level and been a non-stop business creator and owner for more than five decades. He and his companies have operated in nearly every state of the USA, and he’s had numerous healthcare business endeavors throughout Australia and Canada. All of these involved designing and implementing healthcare Outreach Operating Systems, methods and supporting software.
He is the author of THE BOOK OF OUTREACH for HEALTHCARE; How to Grow Revenue by Astonishing the Right Customers Consistently, the newest edition scheduled for limited release later in 2025. He can be reached at [email protected] 330.623.5910.
