Allied health demand isn’t flat. It rises and falls with school terms, sport seasons, health fund years, weather and the weeks around public holidays. Clinics that plan around those patterns spend less to get more.
Here is a general guide. Your own enquiry data will show the details for your area.
January to March: the fresh start
- Many people return to health goals and book assessments after the holidays.
- Health fund extras limits often reset at the start of the calendar year, which can prompt bookings.
- Winter sport pre-season approaches, so prepare injury-prevention content and club outreach.
- Plan school-term services such as paediatric therapy for the new school year.
April to June: winter sport and the end of the financial year
- Winter sports bring more injuries, so make sure injury pages and booking are ready.
- Some people book before the end of the financial year to use rebates or claim expenses.
- Review your plans and budgets for the second half of the year.
July to September: the long middle
- Cold weather brings aches, falls and winter sport injuries.
- School holidays can change who is available for appointments.
- It is a good time to refresh website content, reviews and Google profile photos.
October to December: summer and the lead-up to the holidays
- Spring sport and more outdoor activity bring a different mix of injuries.
- Many people try to fit in appointments before the holidays.
- Clinic closures matter: communicate holiday hours clearly on your website and Google profile.
- Plan the new year’s campaigns early.
Through the year
- Ongoing: reviews, referrer contact and Google profile updates.
- Monthly: check calls, bookings and cost per enquiry.
- Quarterly: review what is working and adjust.
How to build your own calendar
- Pull twelve months of enquiries and bookings by service.
- Mark the peaks and troughs.
- Note what caused them: school terms, sport, weather or holidays.
- Plan content, listings and campaigns about six to eight weeks ahead of each peak.
A note on compliance
Seasonal offers still fall under the advertising rules. Use clear terms for any promotion, and avoid urgency or claims about recovery.
Examples of seasonal content
- Pre-season injury prevention before winter or summer sport begins.
- Back-to-school information for paediatric services.
- Back and neck care for people returning to desks after holidays.
- Falls prevention for older people through winter.
- A reminder about unused health fund benefits late in the year, worded accurately and without pressure.
Keep each piece helpful and factual, with no urgency or promises about recovery.
Match promotion to capacity
There is no point promoting a service when the diary is full. Check your waitlists and availability before you plan a push, and consider extra sessions or hours for known peaks. When you are busy, say so honestly and explain how long people can expect to wait.
Common mistakes
- Starting a campaign when the peak has already begun.
- Promoting services that already have a waitlist.
- Using one message for every audience, from sporting clubs to older patients.
- Leading with discounts instead of information.
- Ignoring school terms and public holidays when planning appointments.
Making the calendar work
A calendar only helps if someone owns it. Put the key dates in a shared calendar, give each item an owner and review it every quarter. Compare each month’s enquiries with the same month last year, and tie every planned push to a service that has capacity to take the extra patients.
Our marketing planning service builds a calendar like this around your own numbers, and our allied health marketing page explains how we work with clinics.