Dr. Al's Powerful Marketing Program

Contents of the article from Fall, 2002. Please note that the article makes reference to Cosmetic Fee Plan, which is no longer available for Rittenhouse Plastic Surgery. You can get details about financing options that are available to you on our website.

Savvy doctor uses Web site and variety of media options to spread the word

In Philadelphia, Dr. Algird Mameniskis is a local celebrity. At the annual exposition hosted by hip-hop radio station Power 99-FM, "Dr. AI" was in high demand, signing autographs, posing for photos and chatting amiably with attendees.

What draws fans and patients alike is his personality, says Kathy Paonessa, business manager for Dr. Mameniskis' Rittenhouse Plastic Surgery, named for the historic square in Philadelphia where the practice is located.

"If you don't mind" and "when you get a minute" are two commonly used phrases in Dr. AI's lexicon. "How often do you meet a doctor who routinely says things like that?" asks Paonessa. "His manner is what makes him who he is. He's just really nice, and that comes across to everyone he meets. He's naturally caring and gentle. He's real He doesn't put on airs." In short, it seems, to know Dr. Al is to love him.

Word-of-mouth referrals drive his busy practice, but so too does a regular schedule of radio and newspaper ads and links on Internet sites related to plastic surgery. In addition to Power 99, Rittenhouse Plastic Surgery advertises on Mix 95.7 and airs a Spanish-language TV commercial on the local Telemundo cable affiliate. The goal is to reach a broad mix of patients by targeting a variety of demographic groups.

The energetic Paonessa says she personally responds to all e-mails for the four-person practice--as many as 80 a day. "I put myself in their shoes. When I send an email, I expect a reply. I answer all of our-emails even if I have to do it on my own time after office hours," she says.

The result? "We are booked three or four months ahead," Paonessa reports.

The doctor is so busy that Paonessa routinely prescreens potential patients during the initial telephone or e-mail queries to separate the celebrity hounds from those who are serious about receiving liposuction; breast augmentation, lift or reduction; abdominoplasty; body contouring; and facial rejuvenation surgery, including eye, face and neck lifts.

"I can't waste Dr. Al's time by booking consultations with patients who just want to meet him [because of his local notoriety], so I prequalify our customers by telling them about CFP. If there are no credit issues, they come in for an appointment prequalified for financing or with cash," she says.

Rittenhouse Plastic Surgery has used Cosmetic fee plan since the product was introduced almost two years ago. Last year, according to Paonessa, Dr. Mameniskis performed 330 surgical procedures, some of which patients would have postponed without the availability of a payment plan.