Developing an Effective Marketing Message
Sometimes the most difficult part of marketing is focusing your message on the key selling points that will appeal to your audience. It's tempting to throw everything you know about chiropractic into a brochure, ad or website. But that's not an effective way to market to your audience.
Posted in Marketing on Wednesday, April 20, 2016
If you’ve conducted a market analysis, identified your target market and created a mission statement for your practice, you have the essential elements to determine your key messages.
Why Is a Marketing Message Important?
Your marketing message is vital to all your marketing efforts. It creates a consistent and unified approach to how you present your practice to the public.
If your message captures the attention of your target market, you’re more likely to be successful in your marketing efforts.
Identify the problems, symptoms, issues, needs and wants of your target market
Provide a Brief Description
Explain the products and services offered by your practice. Focus on describing the features that matter to the target market, And describe them from the target market's prospective. Talk about what your patient is buying - not what you are selling.
Describe the Benefit and the Value
It may not be readily apparent to individuals exactly how they’ll benefit from your care and the services you offer. Explain how they’ll benefit as your patient.
For example, people may not care where you are located or that you’ve been in business for 10 years – unless you tell them why it's important.
- Are they looking for a D.C. who is located close to their office or home?
- Do patients want a D.C. who has years of experience?
- Are patients looking for a chiropractor who treats families? Or athletes?
In some instances, people may not realize they have a need. But your marketing message might identify an untapped area that they haven’t considered.
Call to Action
Tell people what you want them to do and why they should do it. What action do you want your customer to take as a result of receiving your message? What can you do to motivate your customer to call, click or visit?
How Will You Measure Success?
Create a consistent way to measure and review your efforts to determine if your marketing is successful.
Do you want to track:
- Number of new patients?
- New patients who have seen your advertising and responded?
- New patients who make a follow up appointment?
- New patients who make referrals?
Measurement takes time but is well worth the effort because it helps ensure your time and money are well spent.
Creating a Professional Image
As a professional, it’s important to understand what impact your message has in creating or enhancing your image. For example, using professional photography in your advertising leaves a different impression than clip art or cartoons.
Generally, it’s best to avoid:
- Exaggeration
- Over promising
- Jargon
- Humor
- Inappropriate or tacky artwork