September 14, 2025 • 27 mins
Transformation—not just procedures—sits at the heart of Modern Body Clinic's approach to aesthetics and wellness. Founder Dr. Mark Carter joins us to reveal how he's built a thriving practice that balances clinical excellence with operational sustainability and practitioner wellbeing.
From his Phoenix clinic, Dr. Carter shares fascinating insights into how patient expectations have evolved dramatically in recent years. "People want results to be more natural," he explains, noting the dual shift toward both natural-looking outcomes and heightened safety awareness. This evolution requires providers to be exceptionally transparent about realistic expectations and potential risks, creating a more informed patient experience.
Perhaps most revealing is Dr. Carter's nuanced approach to the psychological aspects of aesthetic medicine. He candidly discusses the importance of determining whether patients have realistic expectations and sometimes refers them to mental health professionals before proceeding with treatments. "Whatever we do, it's not going to matter unless we address what's driving it internally," he notes, highlighting the profound connection between mental wellbeing and satisfaction with physical appearance.
The conversation explores operational challenges unique to aesthetics practices, from the consultation process to regulatory hurdles. Dr. Carter shares valuable lessons about marketing persistence, communication strategies, and identifying emerging opportunities in men's health services and regenerative medicine. His experience demonstrates that success in this field requires not just medical expertise but genuine business acumen and adaptability.
Whether you're a practitioner, clinic owner, or simply curious about the intersection of healthcare and entrepreneurship, this episode offers rare insight into building a wellness practice that truly transforms lives while maintaining its own operational health. Listen now to discover how the aesthetics industry is evolving and what it takes to create sustainable success in this rapidly changing landscape.
👤 Guest Bio
Dr. Mark Carter, MD is the founder of Modern Body Clinic in Phoenix, Arizona—a progressive wellness and aesthetics practice focused on patient transformation, operational clarity, and sustainable leadership. With a medical background and a forward-thinking mindset, Dr. Carter has grown his clinic from a niche weight-loss service to a multifaceted wellness hub offering body contouring, regenerative medicine, and more. In this episode, he shares his insights on managing operational stress, staying aligned with patient expectations, and planning for clinic growth while keeping staff and culture front and center.
🔗Contact & Social Links
- Website: modernbodyclinic.com
- Email: drcarter@modernbodyclinic.com
- Instagram: @modernbodyclinic
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markc25/
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Dr Andrew Greenland (00:04):
Welcome back to Voices in Health and
Wellness.
This is the show where we speakwith frontline leaders
reshaping how care, well-beingand business intersect in a
modern healthcare landscape.
Today's guest is someone I'vebeen excited to bring on, not
just for his clinical expertise,but for his thoughtful approach
to the challenges of leadership, lifestyle and scaling care in
a way that actually supports thepractitioner, not just the
patient.
(00:24):
Dr Mark Carter is the founderof Modern Body Clinic, a
progressive medical aestheticsand wellness practice that
blends clinical precision with adeep respect for work-life
balance and patient experience.
With a background in medicineand a sharp eye for operational
sustainability, mark has carvedout a space that many in this
industry admire, not just forthe results his clinic delivers,
(00:44):
but for the culture and clarityhe brings to it.
So, mark, welcome.
Thank you very much for comingon the show.
Dr Mark Carter (00:50):
Yeah, thank you, that was a great intro.
Dr Andrew Greenland (00:52):
You're very welcome, and where are you
calling from on this call today?
Phoenix, phoenix, arizona,wonderful.
So maybe we can kick offtalking a little bit about your
role.
Could you share a little bitabout what you do at the Modern
Body Clinic and how it all gotstarted?
Dr Mark Carter (01:08):
Oh wow.
So the first part is what do wedo?
So the way I look at it is thatreally we are looking to
transform people, and so there'sa version of myself that they
want to improve or get to adifferent level.
So that's what I think wereally do is transformation.
(01:30):
So, whether that's aroundweight loss or aesthetics, we'll
take the route that's going toget them there.
How did we start?
So I've been at this severalyears now and really I was
looking for to do somethingdifferent and I wanted to have
(01:52):
my own clinic, and weight losswas something I was interested
in.
And that's really how westarted.
We started with doing weightloss, then we did some body
contouring, just a a natural fit, and from there we just started
doing other services.
People started asking for otherthings and you know, that's
that's where we are now amazing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (02:16):
So what does a typical day look like for
you right now?
I imagine it's got a mixture ofclinical, operational and
leadership work, but I'd bereally interested to hear how it
plays out for you yeah, I don'tknow if there's a typical day
um.
Dr Mark Carter (02:28):
I can give like a full day is um depends when I
start.
I generally like to work outbefore I go in um, just then I
know that I have it in, and thenthe day um around 10 o'clock
I'll start.
I'll just start seeing patients, and it's various, so it might
(02:48):
be weight loss, they just Botoxsome.
I see some people with fatigueor energy issues, so it's really
a mix of different types ofpeople I see generally early,
early afternoon I'll do sometype of administrative work,
whether that's meeting with thestaff or doing a one-on-one and
(03:14):
all the other fun administrativestuff that we get to do Some
governmental issues or that typeof paperwork chasing down
results.
I can't escape that, but thoseare things that I would do kind
of early afternoon,mid-afternoon and that I may go
(03:35):
back to seeing patients again.
Generally I end at like 5 or 6o'clock.
Dr Andrew Greenland (03:43):
Okay, interesting.
So what proportion of your timeoverall do you think you spend
clinical versus managerial,operational?
What's your kind of split?
Dr Mark Carter (03:54):
I would say probably 80-20.
It's probably 20%administrative yeah.
Dr Andrew Greenland (04:02):
Thank you.
I mean you've been in the spacelong enough to see some pretty
big shifts.
I mean what've been in thespace long enough to see some
pretty big shifts?
I mean what changes are youseeing in aesthetics, in the
wellness space over the lastcouple of years or so?
Dr Mark Carter (04:13):
So probably the biggest thing is people.
They want the result to be morenatural.
That's, like I would say theoverarching one.
They don't want to look likeit's been done or they don't
want it to be.
Even if they have surgery, theydon't want it to be an obvious
change.
And definitely people careabout being safe.
(04:34):
They care about side effectsmore, I think, than before.
Dr Andrew Greenland (04:39):
Definitely get more questions around like
what's the risk, like how likelyis that to happen, and those
are like the two biggest thingsI've seen and I mean with those
sort of expectations, how haveyou had to change what you do to
kind of meet those expectationsaround sort of safety, the
natural approach, um?
Dr Mark Carter (05:02):
so the point of big yeah and that's that's a
good point is definitely theexpectation matters, and so I
try to give them somethingrealistic, especially on the
aesthetics that we are.
We're not going to have asurgical result like it's gonna.
It's gonna be better than wherewe are now, but it's not gonna
be a result.
And I definitely speak onwhat's the risk.
(05:26):
So I don't want people to besurprised that 1% person has
something happen and also likewhat can we do about it?
So I will bring that up to islike if this happens, what can
we do about it?
They use that to make thedecision to which I didn't see
that before is more about theoutcome.
(05:47):
Now it's more like okay, ifthis happens, is it permanent,
is it irreversible, that itdefinitely comes up more now?
Dr Andrew Greenland (05:57):
interesting .
And what about the sort ofwhole psychological safety of
these patients that are comingin?
I guess there must be some withpsychological issues around
appearance.
How do you kind of handle allof that in your clinic setup?
Dr Mark Carter (06:12):
So it's really around expectations.
You asked do they have arealistic expectation?
And so when we're doing weightloss, that's not as much of an
issue.
Um, I think aesthetics is morethat we have to be clear on,
like what, what we can do, andlike what the result will be.
(06:33):
Um, both of those groups ofpeople, there are some um
psychological things that do gowith it, and so we we have to
address it, and if there'ssomething underlying that's the
real issue then whatever we do,it's not going to matter unless
we really address, um, what's,what's driving it.
(06:53):
So, um, yeah, we definitelyhave to pay attention.
Dr Andrew Greenland (06:57):
Sometimes I have to refer people.
Dr Mark Carter (06:59):
I think you know I'll tell someone.
I think you should see thisperson, um, before we do
anything, because, um, whateverwe do, I don't think you're
going to be happy.
Whatever we do, it's not goingto matter.
We need to address what's goingon inside first.
Dr Andrew Greenland (07:15):
Interesting .
And on that note, I mean arepatients generally more
demanding?
I mean, I'm not using that in aderogatory way, but I'm just
wondering.
As the years have gone by andyou've had experience in this in
this space, I just wonderwhether people are more
demanding, for whatever reason,in terms of what they're
expecting and what the outcomesmight be.
Dr Mark Carter (07:33):
Um, I don't know if I would say more demanding.
I think more they know whatthey want and with that I do
feel like people are moreappreciative, because I think
before it would be less like youknow, there'd be less
appreciation.
But yeah, there's a lot morepeople know what they want.
(07:54):
They become more steady.
They've done more homeworkbefore I actually see them.
They're asking better questions, so like they're more prepared.
Dr Andrew Greenland (08:05):
Got it?
Have you noticed anythingaround the pandemic in terms of
any sort of lasting impact fromthe pandemic in terms of how the
clinic is run or how patientsengage with services?
It was a big blip for most ofus in any space, but I just
wondered how it's affected thehealth and wellness space that
you operate in.
Dr Mark Carter (08:29):
Probably, if I say last thing, probably the
biggest thing is televisits, sopeople are more open to doing
that.
So it's something that wedidn't really do before and like
now it's.
You know, it's part of what wedo.
That's probably the biggestthing for us, and this may have
been related by just them beingmore prepared, doing more
(08:51):
research and being moreconcerned about safety.
Dr Andrew Greenland (08:56):
With the tele-visits.
Obviously there's certaintreatments you can't do remotely
, so is that more about theinitial consults or the
follow-ups?
I mean, how do you factor thatinto the in-person versus remote
mix?
Dr Mark Carter (09:09):
yeah.
So if it's um aestheticsrelated, then yeah, I kind of
have to like see you at um.
Even if we're on screen I canmake some determination, but and
I still have to see him or liketo say this is the final
recommendation.
I see it more in weight loss orsome wellness service that we
(09:29):
can do it.
You know, a telehealth visitbefore they even come in, or
they may not need to come in, wecan just do it through video.
Dr Andrew Greenland (09:39):
I understand.
I think there's a generalinterest in wellness and
longevity in society.
Is that shaping how you thinkabout the services that you
provide?
Dr Mark Carter (09:52):
Yeah, we do pay attention to what the trends are
and what people want, certainlypaying attention to what people
are asking for, and if there'sa gap, like we can't provide it,
then okay, let's look at thatdeeper and see is it in line
with what we're trying to dohere, is aligned with our values
(10:13):
?
And, yeah, we started toincorporate a stuff that we
weren't doing five years ago.
Dr Andrew Greenland (10:20):
Interesting .
Are there any particular trendsthat you've got your eye on at
the moment, either because theyexcite you or because they may
raise concerns?
Is there anything you'rethinking about bringing online
for patients?
Dr Mark Carter (10:32):
um, there is one actually there's several that I
kind of think about.
One is um men's health in thisspace.
So it's, depending on your ass,85% women in regards to
aesthetics.
So we're looking at growingthat and then we're becoming
more interested in gettingaesthetic treatments.
(10:54):
Mental health is somethingthat's growing.
So that's something that we'relooking at, and particularly as
underserved.
But also it goes with whatwe're treating.
I mentioned before that wedefinitely care about the
psychology, because maybe that'smore the issue than whatever we
(11:14):
might be treating.
Those are the two main onesthat I would say we're looking
at.
There's some other minor onesaround technology or innovation.
So I will say we're actuallylooking at doing more
regenerative medicine.
(11:35):
So I do some of that and it'skind of, if it comes up, we
don't really have it as a menuoffer, but if it comes up, yeah,
that's something we can do aswell and that seems to be
growing as well.
Dr Andrew Greenland (11:50):
Interesting what's working well for you
operationally right now in theclinic.
Obviously, every clinic has itsrhythm, but I just want to get
a sense of what you're reallyfocused on, because it's working
and you're really happy withyeah.
Dr Mark Carter (12:08):
I think communication is important.
So we do have a weekly meeting,and so that's good in the
regards that it helps us stay ontrack.
Nothing goes undone too long.
As well as, like everybodyknows where we're at, we're all
on the same page.
Well as, like everybody knowswhere we're at, we're all on the
(12:32):
same page.
Um, I worked in differentsettings where they maybe they
meet once a month or quarterly,or I had one place I worked.
They never met and because youknow they had their reasons, I
was like, well, how can we allbe on the same page if you know
we don't know what's going on orwhat's coming?
So I feel like the meetings aresuper helpful and you know we
(12:54):
can get feedback.
I get to see like what's reallygoing on, because you know I'm
not there every day, all day,and so I can get feedback on,
like what's going on here, whyis this not working, or why is
this working?
Okay, we need to do more ofthat.
So that's probably been likethe most helpful thing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (13:13):
Sounds very productive.
Tell us a little about yoursort of staffing that you have
at the clinic, just to give us asense of the operation that you
have there.
Dr Mark Carter (13:21):
Yeah, so it's me .
We have an MA, and then we havetwo laser technicians
estheticians, so they can dolaser treatments as well as
aesthetic procedures likemicroneedling and those type of
things, and then we have apractice administrator.
Dr Andrew Greenland (13:43):
Okay and we were asking about what's going
well and what you're happy with.
Is there anything that'sfrustrating or more challenging
in your operation?
Dr Mark Carter (13:52):
Where do I start ?
For me it's going to be aroundadministrative, regulatory stuff
that we have to comply with.
I don't like that.
If I would say what's notworking or what I think we can
improve on, it's probably theconsultations.
(14:14):
So as providers we're notreally trained how to do sales
in this type of setting.
Sales and this type of setting,and it's almost kind of like a
hurdle, because you know we'retrained to.
(14:37):
You know take care of theperson in front of us.
And now we are makingrecommendations and there's
finances involved, and so youkind of think about that in the
back of your head like can theyafford it when?
Okay, that's not for me to saythat, I'm saying it's still.
It should be the same.
Here's my recommendation andyou can say yes or no to it, so
(14:57):
that's that's something we'reworking on.
Dr Andrew Greenland (15:00):
Interesting , you mentioned the regulatory
stuff and I've had lots ofconversations with people in
North America.
Is that around the wholebilling thing, or is it more
about the law and variousstandards that you have to kind
of maintain?
I ask the question because I'mbased in the UK, you're in the
US and obviously things are verydifferent.
So just quite interested tohear what the regulatory stuff
looks like for you.
Dr Mark Carter (15:22):
Yeah, there's not so much billing, though
billing that comes up.
We don't take insurance.
But even if I order lab,sometimes they want to deny the
lab for whatever reason, andthen we have to figure out why.
Why did they deny it?
It's just extra work.
But the main ones would be justlike the state has its
(15:45):
regulations, just as a medicalfacility, and then there's a
laser licensing, and so theyhave all this stuff that they
want you to do, you know.
Then there's, you know,business license and taxes and
the EA, and I mean there's likelayers, and sometimes it feels
(16:06):
like they just add stuff andlike, okay, does that really
benefit the patient?
Is that really making thingssafer?
And so, yeah, it's just allthose other things.
Dr Andrew Greenland (16:23):
Got it.
If you had a magic wand, whatwould be the one fix that you
would fix in the businessovernight?
Just wave it and it's done.
What would it be?
Dr Mark Carter (16:33):
um, I would say consistently.
Um, because it does feel likesomething you have to work at
and stay up front of, you know,because you know the landscape
changes so quickly.
Yeah, if I had a magic wand I'dbe like yeah, just the leads,
if we just have them consistentthat would really help.
Dr Andrew Greenland (16:59):
Got it At the moment.
Where do most of your leadscome from?
I guess it's multi-channels,but where do you think most of
your leads come from?
Dr Mark Carter (17:06):
I would say we get a lot of referrals and
that's great.
So we're doing more paid adsnow, and so I want that to be
more of where we get leads,primarily because I can predict
it more.
It's more predictable.
At least primarily because Ican predict it more it's more
(17:31):
predictable.
But right now I would say, yes,majority referrals and then
paid ads, and then Google searchor probably last would be
organic social media.
Dr Andrew Greenland (17:42):
Got it.
So if your clinic suddenly sawa massive influx in leads next
week, I think we you know if yousaid we could double, I think
(18:12):
we could accommodate that.
Dr Mark Carter (18:17):
But yeah, first would be like just getting them
scheduled and then, if that wasworking, then it would be like
having being able to provide theservice in a timely fashion.
So we want to do it withinseven days.
A new person, so yeah, thatwould kind of be.
Dr Andrew Greenland (18:38):
I would be the next issue got it and I mean
you've been in a space for awhile and if you could go back
and do it all over again and youhave to start the clinic fresh
tomorrow, what would you dodifferently?
Dr Mark Carter (18:51):
oh man, um by the uh, I think I would have um
committed more to marketing andum, looking back, I think I was
nervous about it.
I think, and when're startingmarketing or you haven't done it
before you think that youshould put the dollar in and it
(19:14):
should immediately come back toyou.
And not true at all, especiallyon Google.
You have to figure out whatoffer is going to work, you have
to figure out the messaging,and then it still is going to
work.
You have to figure out themessaging, um, and then you it
still.
It's going to take time, as youknow.
You have to be okay, like notgetting anything for a few
months, like you could justliterally not get anything and I
(19:38):
didn't have that.
I was like no, let's justforget it, we're going to do
something else.
So I would have committed moreto uh doing paid marketing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (19:46):
I understand, and if you had a
particular point, say in thelast six months that's been a
particular, I would havecommitted more to doing paid
marketing.
I understand, and have you hada particular point, say in the
last six months that's beenparticularly difficult, where
you felt stuck or unsure of whatyour move was going to be, if
at all?
Dr Mark Carter (19:59):
Yeah, we did have, like this year, we did
have a couple of down months andI was like what is going on?
Um, a couple down months and Iwas like what is going on?
And, um, so we, so we I mean wehad to just make some shifts
and really lean on the peoplethat we have already.
Um, now we were getting, youknow, we're getting the leads
(20:23):
where we'd normally get, but wejust had to really diagnose
what's missing here.
Why is our revenue down?
And it happens in some of theseasonal, but yeah, that was
difficult.
We had to really drill down andsee what the issue was, and was
(20:44):
there anything thatparticularly came to light?
Dr Andrew Greenland (20:46):
Did you make any discoveries or aha
moments that have helped youmoving forward?
Dr Mark Carter (20:53):
Yeah, we had some internal changes.
Someone had to go off, so wehad less capacity, so that was
one thing.
I think that, with that, thesales part, so I didn't realize
how valuable that person was andso, yeah, so it really showed.
(21:17):
So, okay, we had to shore upeverything else and really I
think it was hopeful because nowit's something that we can
specifically look at and so itwon't be something that we get
caught off on around ourselvesis like how we're interacting
with people.
You know we can actuallymeasure the number and like, ok,
we need to work on X or we needto work on how we talk to
(21:43):
people, or we really doubted inlike the whole sales process and
how it works for people thankyou.
Dr Andrew Greenland (21:52):
Is there a part of your role that feels
particularly heavier than itshould do at the moment?
Obviously, you're a clinician,you're working clinically,
you're seeing patients, you havemanagerial responsibility for
the clinic, but is thereanything that's particularly um
rolls heavier than it should beright now for you?
Dr Mark Carter (22:10):
um heavy, um no, I mean I always.
I mean I I feel like I'm I'mresponsible, like I've always
felt like I'm 100 responsiblefor everything that happens.
Even if you know someone doessomething wrong, then okay, I
didn't make it clear that that'sthe way we do it or this is
(22:34):
what I was looking for.
So, yeah, I don't feelnecessarily that there's undue
pressure or heaviness.
There's just an opportunity toaddress whatever the issue is.
So you know, whether it's me Iwasn't clear on something, or
the person's not understandingwhat the job is, or maybe
(22:55):
they're just not performingperiod, then that's on me to
have a conversation Got it, andis there anything in terms of a
blind spot?
Dr Andrew Greenland (23:03):
you're currently aware of Things you
know that might need attention,but just haven't got the
bandwidth to address it yet,because obviously there's so
many different things that we doin running these things.
I just wonder there's somethingin the back of your mind that
you know you've got to getaround to?
Dr Mark Carter (23:15):
um no, yeah, I have a list so, um, and it's,
it's this, it's a fire that'sburning.
I just have to let it burnbecause we have other priorities
.
So the one thing that I'm kindof not addressing, that we need
to, is our website.
So there's a lot of stuff, butthere's a lot of little things
(23:37):
that we need to work on.
Particularly, there's thisrecent Google update, and so a
lot of our pages got hit by that.
That's across the board.
Other companies, other medicalspas they've been hit too by
this.
That's certainly something thatwe need to address, but it's
(24:01):
not the single most importantthing Of course, of course.
Dr Andrew Greenland (24:05):
Where is the future for Modern Body
Clinic?
Where would you like to be sayin the next 12 months or so?
Dr Mark Carter (24:12):
Good question.
Well, in the next one month Ireally like to see that we
address those, particularly themen's stuff, that we address
that and like we have a programaround that, and then more doing
more regenerative medicine.
I'd like to see us doing moreof that particularly.
(24:34):
I'd like it that just thedifference you can see for
people is profound.
They don't primarily, they'rehaving some type of pain issue
and how you can just take themfrom here to this.
Like you know, they'refunctional.
They can go golf now or hike orwhatever.
The issue was that they werejust totally debilitated by
(24:58):
before and they tried all thisother stuff that didn't work.
Dr Andrew Greenland (25:04):
Got it In terms of thinking about growth,
expansion, more clinics, or areyou just happy with, or content
with, your operation there inPhoenix?
Dr Mark Carter (25:15):
I'm open to expanding.
I would.
I mean, I'd really like to seethis really dialed in and we're
almost there, but that would besomething, yeah.
Yeah, we'd be open to that andyeah, that would be interesting.
Dr Andrew Greenland (25:35):
And presumably there's opportunities
for things like sort ofpartnerships, and you've already
talked about other services inthis space.
Are those things that crop upfor you in your business?
You mean partnership with otherbusinesses or providers Other
businesses or I don't know techproviders, or sponsoring
(25:55):
particular products.
Um, I don't know tech providersor um sponsoring particular
products, I don't know how.
It's probably more somethingthat happens in the us, perhaps,
versus over here in our healthservice.
Dr Mark Carter (26:02):
So just curious to know whether those are things
that come up for you yeah, Imean I would like to develop
more um, at least informalpartnerships, so like um, at
least informal partnership, solike, for instance, like with a
yoga studio or a gym orsomething like that, because
they're, you know, we serve asthe same type of people but
(26:23):
we're doing different things,and so certainly I I talked to
clients a lot about doingexercise and training and all
that, especially with weightloss.
But I'm not a trainer.
Um, I can't give your programnecessarily or won't be good, or
I'm not good at it.
Um, so they'd be better servedby doing someone that can give
(26:44):
them a structured program.
So yeah, yeah, that is that issomething we're interested in
doing, and it's on that list too.
Amazing, mark.
Thank you so much for your timethis afternoon.
It's been a really interesting,amazing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (26:53):
Mark, thank you so much for your time this
afternoon.
It's been a really interestingconversation talking about you
and the Modine Body Clinic, someof the things that you've been
trying to do, the challenges,because I think these are things
we're all learning from and I'msure this will resonate with
lots of fellow clinic owners andentrepreneurs.
So thank you so much for yourtime.
I really appreciate it.
Dr Mark Carter (27:12):
You got it.
Dr Andrew Greenland (27:13):
Thank you.
Welcome back to Voices in Health and
Wellness.
This is the show where we speakwith frontline leaders
reshaping how care, well-beingand business intersect in a
modern healthcare landscape.
Today's guest is someone I'vebeen excited to bring on, not
just for his clinical expertise,but for his thoughtful approach
to the challenges of leadership, lifestyle and scaling care in
a way that actually supports thepractitioner, not just the
patient.
(00:24):
Dr Mark Carter is the founderof Modern Body Clinic, a
progressive medical aestheticsand wellness practice that
blends clinical precision with adeep respect for work-life
balance and patient experience.
With a background in medicineand a sharp eye for operational
sustainability, mark has carvedout a space that many in this
industry admire, not just forthe results his clinic delivers,
(00:44):
but for the culture and clarityhe brings to it.
So, mark, welcome.
Thank you very much for comingon the show.
Dr Mark Carter (00:50):
Yeah, thank you, that was a great intro.
Dr Andrew Greenland (00:52):
You're very welcome, and where are you
calling from on this call today?
Phoenix, phoenix, arizona,wonderful.
So maybe we can kick offtalking a little bit about your
role.
Could you share a little bitabout what you do at the Modern
Body Clinic and how it all gotstarted?
Dr Mark Carter (01:08):
Oh wow.
So the first part is what do wedo?
So the way I look at it is thatreally we are looking to
transform people, and so there'sa version of myself that they
want to improve or get to adifferent level.
So that's what I think wereally do is transformation.
(01:30):
So, whether that's aroundweight loss or aesthetics, we'll
take the route that's going toget them there.
How did we start?
So I've been at this severalyears now and really I was
looking for to do somethingdifferent and I wanted to have
(01:52):
my own clinic, and weight losswas something I was interested
in.
And that's really how westarted.
We started with doing weightloss, then we did some body
contouring, just a a natural fit, and from there we just started
doing other services.
People started asking for otherthings and you know, that's
that's where we are now amazing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (02:16):
So what does a typical day look like for
you right now?
I imagine it's got a mixture ofclinical, operational and
leadership work, but I'd bereally interested to hear how it
plays out for you yeah, I don'tknow if there's a typical day
um.
Dr Mark Carter (02:28):
I can give like a full day is um depends when I
start.
I generally like to work outbefore I go in um, just then I
know that I have it in, and thenthe day um around 10 o'clock
I'll start.
I'll just start seeing patients, and it's various, so it might
(02:48):
be weight loss, they just Botoxsome.
I see some people with fatigueor energy issues, so it's really
a mix of different types ofpeople I see generally early,
early afternoon I'll do sometype of administrative work,
whether that's meeting with thestaff or doing a one-on-one and
(03:14):
all the other fun administrativestuff that we get to do Some
governmental issues or that typeof paperwork chasing down
results.
I can't escape that, but thoseare things that I would do kind
of early afternoon,mid-afternoon and that I may go
(03:35):
back to seeing patients again.
Generally I end at like 5 or 6o'clock.
Dr Andrew Greenland (03:43):
Okay, interesting.
So what proportion of your timeoverall do you think you spend
clinical versus managerial,operational?
What's your kind of split?
Dr Mark Carter (03:54):
I would say probably 80-20.
It's probably 20%administrative yeah.
Dr Andrew Greenland (04:02):
Thank you.
I mean you've been in the spacelong enough to see some pretty
big shifts.
I mean what've been in thespace long enough to see some
pretty big shifts?
I mean what changes are youseeing in aesthetics, in the
wellness space over the lastcouple of years or so?
Dr Mark Carter (04:13):
So probably the biggest thing is people.
They want the result to be morenatural.
That's, like I would say theoverarching one.
They don't want to look likeit's been done or they don't
want it to be.
Even if they have surgery, theydon't want it to be an obvious
change.
And definitely people careabout being safe.
(04:34):
They care about side effectsmore, I think, than before.
Dr Andrew Greenland (04:39):
Definitely get more questions around like
what's the risk, like how likelyis that to happen, and those
are like the two biggest thingsI've seen and I mean with those
sort of expectations, how haveyou had to change what you do to
kind of meet those expectationsaround sort of safety, the
natural approach, um?
Dr Mark Carter (05:02):
so the point of big yeah and that's that's a
good point is definitely theexpectation matters, and so I
try to give them somethingrealistic, especially on the
aesthetics that we are.
We're not going to have asurgical result like it's gonna.
It's gonna be better than wherewe are now, but it's not gonna
be a result.
And I definitely speak onwhat's the risk.
(05:26):
So I don't want people to besurprised that 1% person has
something happen and also likewhat can we do about it?
So I will bring that up to islike if this happens, what can
we do about it?
They use that to make thedecision to which I didn't see
that before is more about theoutcome.
(05:47):
Now it's more like okay, ifthis happens, is it permanent,
is it irreversible, that itdefinitely comes up more now?
Dr Andrew Greenland (05:57):
interesting .
And what about the sort ofwhole psychological safety of
these patients that are comingin?
I guess there must be some withpsychological issues around
appearance.
How do you kind of handle allof that in your clinic setup?
Dr Mark Carter (06:12):
So it's really around expectations.
You asked do they have arealistic expectation?
And so when we're doing weightloss, that's not as much of an
issue.
Um, I think aesthetics is morethat we have to be clear on,
like what, what we can do, andlike what the result will be.
(06:33):
Um, both of those groups ofpeople, there are some um
psychological things that do gowith it, and so we we have to
address it, and if there'ssomething underlying that's the
real issue then whatever we do,it's not going to matter unless
we really address, um, what's,what's driving it.
(06:53):
So, um, yeah, we definitelyhave to pay attention.
Dr Andrew Greenland (06:57):
Sometimes I have to refer people.
Dr Mark Carter (06:59):
I think you know I'll tell someone.
I think you should see thisperson, um, before we do
anything, because, um, whateverwe do, I don't think you're
going to be happy.
Whatever we do, it's not goingto matter.
We need to address what's goingon inside first.
Dr Andrew Greenland (07:15):
Interesting .
And on that note, I mean arepatients generally more
demanding?
I mean, I'm not using that in aderogatory way, but I'm just
wondering.
As the years have gone by andyou've had experience in this in
this space, I just wonderwhether people are more
demanding, for whatever reason,in terms of what they're
expecting and what the outcomesmight be.
Dr Mark Carter (07:33):
Um, I don't know if I would say more demanding.
I think more they know whatthey want and with that I do
feel like people are moreappreciative, because I think
before it would be less like youknow, there'd be less
appreciation.
But yeah, there's a lot morepeople know what they want.
(07:54):
They become more steady.
They've done more homeworkbefore I actually see them.
They're asking better questions, so like they're more prepared.
Dr Andrew Greenland (08:05):
Got it?
Have you noticed anythingaround the pandemic in terms of
any sort of lasting impact fromthe pandemic in terms of how the
clinic is run or how patientsengage with services?
It was a big blip for most ofus in any space, but I just
wondered how it's affected thehealth and wellness space that
you operate in.
Dr Mark Carter (08:29):
Probably, if I say last thing, probably the
biggest thing is televisits, sopeople are more open to doing
that.
So it's something that wedidn't really do before and like
now it's.
You know, it's part of what wedo.
That's probably the biggestthing for us, and this may have
been related by just them beingmore prepared, doing more
(08:51):
research and being moreconcerned about safety.
Dr Andrew Greenland (08:56):
With the tele-visits.
Obviously there's certaintreatments you can't do remotely
, so is that more about theinitial consults or the
follow-ups?
I mean, how do you factor thatinto the in-person versus remote
mix?
Dr Mark Carter (09:09):
yeah.
So if it's um aestheticsrelated, then yeah, I kind of
have to like see you at um.
Even if we're on screen I canmake some determination, but and
I still have to see him or liketo say this is the final
recommendation.
I see it more in weight loss orsome wellness service that we
(09:29):
can do it.
You know, a telehealth visitbefore they even come in, or
they may not need to come in, wecan just do it through video.
Dr Andrew Greenland (09:39):
I understand.
I think there's a generalinterest in wellness and
longevity in society.
Is that shaping how you thinkabout the services that you
provide?
Dr Mark Carter (09:52):
Yeah, we do pay attention to what the trends are
and what people want, certainlypaying attention to what people
are asking for, and if there'sa gap, like we can't provide it,
then okay, let's look at thatdeeper and see is it in line
with what we're trying to dohere, is aligned with our values
(10:13):
?
And, yeah, we started toincorporate a stuff that we
weren't doing five years ago.
Dr Andrew Greenland (10:20):
Interesting .
Are there any particular trendsthat you've got your eye on at
the moment, either because theyexcite you or because they may
raise concerns?
Is there anything you'rethinking about bringing online
for patients?
Dr Mark Carter (10:32):
um, there is one actually there's several that I
kind of think about.
One is um men's health in thisspace.
So it's, depending on your ass,85% women in regards to
aesthetics.
So we're looking at growingthat and then we're becoming
more interested in gettingaesthetic treatments.
(10:54):
Mental health is somethingthat's growing.
So that's something that we'relooking at, and particularly as
underserved.
But also it goes with whatwe're treating.
I mentioned before that wedefinitely care about the
psychology, because maybe that'smore the issue than whatever we
(11:14):
might be treating.
Those are the two main onesthat I would say we're looking
at.
There's some other minor onesaround technology or innovation.
So I will say we're actuallylooking at doing more
regenerative medicine.
(11:35):
So I do some of that and it'skind of, if it comes up, we
don't really have it as a menuoffer, but if it comes up, yeah,
that's something we can do aswell and that seems to be
growing as well.
Dr Andrew Greenland (11:50):
Interesting what's working well for you
operationally right now in theclinic.
Obviously, every clinic has itsrhythm, but I just want to get
a sense of what you're reallyfocused on, because it's working
and you're really happy withyeah.
Dr Mark Carter (12:08):
I think communication is important.
So we do have a weekly meeting,and so that's good in the
regards that it helps us stay ontrack.
Nothing goes undone too long.
As well as, like everybodyknows where we're at, we're all
on the same page.
Well as, like everybody knowswhere we're at, we're all on the
(12:32):
same page.
Um, I worked in differentsettings where they maybe they
meet once a month or quarterly,or I had one place I worked.
They never met and because youknow they had their reasons, I
was like, well, how can we allbe on the same page if you know
we don't know what's going on orwhat's coming?
So I feel like the meetings aresuper helpful and you know we
(12:54):
can get feedback.
I get to see like what's reallygoing on, because you know I'm
not there every day, all day,and so I can get feedback on,
like what's going on here, whyis this not working, or why is
this working?
Okay, we need to do more ofthat.
So that's probably been likethe most helpful thing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (13:13):
Sounds very productive.
Tell us a little about yoursort of staffing that you have
at the clinic, just to give us asense of the operation that you
have there.
Dr Mark Carter (13:21):
Yeah, so it's me .
We have an MA, and then we havetwo laser technicians
estheticians, so they can dolaser treatments as well as
aesthetic procedures likemicroneedling and those type of
things, and then we have apractice administrator.
Dr Andrew Greenland (13:43):
Okay and we were asking about what's going
well and what you're happy with.
Is there anything that'sfrustrating or more challenging
in your operation?
Dr Mark Carter (13:52):
Where do I start ?
For me it's going to be aroundadministrative, regulatory stuff
that we have to comply with.
I don't like that.
If I would say what's notworking or what I think we can
improve on, it's probably theconsultations.
(14:14):
So as providers we're notreally trained how to do sales
in this type of setting.
Sales and this type of setting,and it's almost kind of like a
hurdle, because you know we'retrained to.
(14:37):
You know take care of theperson in front of us.
And now we are makingrecommendations and there's
finances involved, and so youkind of think about that in the
back of your head like can theyafford it when?
Okay, that's not for me to saythat, I'm saying it's still.
It should be the same.
Here's my recommendation andyou can say yes or no to it, so
(14:57):
that's that's something we'reworking on.
Dr Andrew Greenland (15:00):
Interesting , you mentioned the regulatory
stuff and I've had lots ofconversations with people in
North America.
Is that around the wholebilling thing, or is it more
about the law and variousstandards that you have to kind
of maintain?
I ask the question because I'mbased in the UK, you're in the
US and obviously things are verydifferent.
So just quite interested tohear what the regulatory stuff
looks like for you.
Dr Mark Carter (15:22):
Yeah, there's not so much billing, though
billing that comes up.
We don't take insurance.
But even if I order lab,sometimes they want to deny the
lab for whatever reason, andthen we have to figure out why.
Why did they deny it?
It's just extra work.
But the main ones would be justlike the state has its
(15:45):
regulations, just as a medicalfacility, and then there's a
laser licensing, and so theyhave all this stuff that they
want you to do, you know.
Then there's, you know,business license and taxes and
the EA, and I mean there's likelayers, and sometimes it feels
(16:06):
like they just add stuff andlike, okay, does that really
benefit the patient?
Is that really making thingssafer?
And so, yeah, it's just allthose other things.
Dr Andrew Greenland (16:23):
Got it.
If you had a magic wand, whatwould be the one fix that you
would fix in the businessovernight?
Just wave it and it's done.
What would it be?
Dr Mark Carter (16:33):
um, I would say consistently.
Um, because it does feel likesomething you have to work at
and stay up front of, you know,because you know the landscape
changes so quickly.
Yeah, if I had a magic wand I'dbe like yeah, just the leads,
if we just have them consistentthat would really help.
Dr Andrew Greenland (16:59):
Got it At the moment.
Where do most of your leadscome from?
I guess it's multi-channels,but where do you think most of
your leads come from?
Dr Mark Carter (17:06):
I would say we get a lot of referrals and
that's great.
So we're doing more paid adsnow, and so I want that to be
more of where we get leads,primarily because I can predict
it more.
It's more predictable.
At least primarily because Ican predict it more it's more
(17:31):
predictable.
But right now I would say, yes,majority referrals and then
paid ads, and then Google searchor probably last would be
organic social media.
Dr Andrew Greenland (17:42):
Got it.
So if your clinic suddenly sawa massive influx in leads next
week, I think we you know if yousaid we could double, I think
(18:12):
we could accommodate that.
Dr Mark Carter (18:17):
But yeah, first would be like just getting them
scheduled and then, if that wasworking, then it would be like
having being able to provide theservice in a timely fashion.
So we want to do it withinseven days.
A new person, so yeah, thatwould kind of be.
Dr Andrew Greenland (18:38):
I would be the next issue got it and I mean
you've been in a space for awhile and if you could go back
and do it all over again and youhave to start the clinic fresh
tomorrow, what would you dodifferently?
Dr Mark Carter (18:51):
oh man, um by the uh, I think I would have um
committed more to marketing andum, looking back, I think I was
nervous about it.
I think, and when're startingmarketing or you haven't done it
before you think that youshould put the dollar in and it
(19:14):
should immediately come back toyou.
And not true at all, especiallyon Google.
You have to figure out whatoffer is going to work, you have
to figure out the messaging,and then it still is going to
work.
You have to figure out themessaging, um, and then you it
still.
It's going to take time, as youknow.
You have to be okay, like notgetting anything for a few
months, like you could justliterally not get anything and I
(19:38):
didn't have that.
I was like no, let's justforget it, we're going to do
something else.
So I would have committed moreto uh doing paid marketing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (19:46):
I understand, and if you had a
particular point, say in thelast six months that's been a
particular, I would havecommitted more to doing paid
marketing.
I understand, and have you hada particular point, say in the
last six months that's beenparticularly difficult, where
you felt stuck or unsure of whatyour move was going to be, if
at all?
Dr Mark Carter (19:59):
Yeah, we did have, like this year, we did
have a couple of down months andI was like what is going on?
Um, a couple down months and Iwas like what is going on?
And, um, so we, so we I mean wehad to just make some shifts
and really lean on the peoplethat we have already.
Um, now we were getting, youknow, we're getting the leads
(20:23):
where we'd normally get, but wejust had to really diagnose
what's missing here.
Why is our revenue down?
And it happens in some of theseasonal, but yeah, that was
difficult.
We had to really drill down andsee what the issue was, and was
(20:44):
there anything thatparticularly came to light?
Dr Andrew Greenland (20:46):
Did you make any discoveries or aha
moments that have helped youmoving forward?
Dr Mark Carter (20:53):
Yeah, we had some internal changes.
Someone had to go off, so wehad less capacity, so that was
one thing.
I think that, with that, thesales part, so I didn't realize
how valuable that person was andso, yeah, so it really showed.
(21:17):
So, okay, we had to shore upeverything else and really I
think it was hopeful because nowit's something that we can
specifically look at and so itwon't be something that we get
caught off on around ourselvesis like how we're interacting
with people.
You know we can actuallymeasure the number and like, ok,
we need to work on X or we needto work on how we talk to
(21:43):
people, or we really doubted inlike the whole sales process and
how it works for people thankyou.
Dr Andrew Greenland (21:52):
Is there a part of your role that feels
particularly heavier than itshould do at the moment?
Obviously, you're a clinician,you're working clinically,
you're seeing patients, you havemanagerial responsibility for
the clinic, but is thereanything that's particularly um
rolls heavier than it should beright now for you?
Dr Mark Carter (22:10):
um heavy, um no, I mean I always.
I mean I I feel like I'm I'mresponsible, like I've always
felt like I'm 100 responsiblefor everything that happens.
Even if you know someone doessomething wrong, then okay, I
didn't make it clear that that'sthe way we do it or this is
(22:34):
what I was looking for.
So, yeah, I don't feelnecessarily that there's undue
pressure or heaviness.
There's just an opportunity toaddress whatever the issue is.
So you know, whether it's me Iwasn't clear on something, or
the person's not understandingwhat the job is, or maybe
(22:55):
they're just not performingperiod, then that's on me to
have a conversation Got it, andis there anything in terms of a
blind spot?
Dr Andrew Greenland (23:03):
you're currently aware of Things you
know that might need attention,but just haven't got the
bandwidth to address it yet,because obviously there's so
many different things that we doin running these things.
I just wonder there's somethingin the back of your mind that
you know you've got to getaround to?
Dr Mark Carter (23:15):
um no, yeah, I have a list so, um, and it's,
it's this, it's a fire that'sburning.
I just have to let it burnbecause we have other priorities
.
So the one thing that I'm kindof not addressing, that we need
to, is our website.
So there's a lot of stuff, butthere's a lot of little things
(23:37):
that we need to work on.
Particularly, there's thisrecent Google update, and so a
lot of our pages got hit by that.
That's across the board.
Other companies, other medicalspas they've been hit too by
this.
That's certainly something thatwe need to address, but it's
(24:01):
not the single most importantthing Of course, of course.
Dr Andrew Greenland (24:05):
Where is the future for Modern Body
Clinic?
Where would you like to be sayin the next 12 months or so?
Dr Mark Carter (24:12):
Good question.
Well, in the next one month Ireally like to see that we
address those, particularly themen's stuff, that we address
that and like we have a programaround that, and then more doing
more regenerative medicine.
I'd like to see us doing moreof that particularly.
(24:34):
I'd like it that just thedifference you can see for
people is profound.
They don't primarily, they'rehaving some type of pain issue
and how you can just take themfrom here to this.
Like you know, they'refunctional.
They can go golf now or hike orwhatever.
The issue was that they werejust totally debilitated by
(24:58):
before and they tried all thisother stuff that didn't work.
Dr Andrew Greenland (25:04):
Got it In terms of thinking about growth,
expansion, more clinics, or areyou just happy with, or content
with, your operation there inPhoenix?
Dr Mark Carter (25:15):
I'm open to expanding.
I would.
I mean, I'd really like to seethis really dialed in and we're
almost there, but that would besomething, yeah.
Yeah, we'd be open to that andyeah, that would be interesting.
Dr Andrew Greenland (25:35):
And presumably there's opportunities
for things like sort ofpartnerships, and you've already
talked about other services inthis space.
Are those things that crop upfor you in your business?
You mean partnership with otherbusinesses or providers Other
businesses or I don't know techproviders, or sponsoring
(25:55):
particular products.
Um, I don't know tech providersor um sponsoring particular
products, I don't know how.
It's probably more somethingthat happens in the us, perhaps,
versus over here in our healthservice.
Dr Mark Carter (26:02):
So just curious to know whether those are things
that come up for you yeah, Imean I would like to develop
more um, at least informalpartnerships, so like um, at
least informal partnership, solike, for instance, like with a
yoga studio or a gym orsomething like that, because
they're, you know, we serve asthe same type of people but
(26:23):
we're doing different things,and so certainly I I talked to
clients a lot about doingexercise and training and all
that, especially with weightloss.
But I'm not a trainer.
Um, I can't give your programnecessarily or won't be good, or
I'm not good at it.
Um, so they'd be better servedby doing someone that can give
(26:44):
them a structured program.
So yeah, yeah, that is that issomething we're interested in
doing, and it's on that list too.
Amazing, mark.
Thank you so much for your timethis afternoon.
It's been a really interesting,amazing.
Dr Andrew Greenland (26:53):
Mark, thank you so much for your time this
afternoon.
It's been a really interestingconversation talking about you
and the Modine Body Clinic, someof the things that you've been
trying to do, the challenges,because I think these are things
we're all learning from and I'msure this will resonate with
lots of fellow clinic owners andentrepreneurs.
So thank you so much for yourtime.
I really appreciate it.
Dr Mark Carter (27:12):
You got it.
Dr Andrew Greenland (27:13):
Thank you.
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