April 2009

'Going viral' can boost practice

by Stephane Laverdiere, DC

This month, I'm reviewing several ways to grow practices using 'viral marketing' through technology and e-mail. What exactly do I mean by 'viral marketing'? Everyone is now familiar with YouTube's method of posting, linking and searching for videos. It's a simple concept that started off with people posting videos on various subjects for fun or entertainment and it spreads through the internet like a replicating virus. Ultimately, it has become a way for companies to post videos on their products or services. To be successful at this type of viral marketing, an international presence or a product that can be purchased or ordered online is needed.

What are some of the benefits of using this type of technology to grow your practice and market chiropractic?

Fortunately, videos will do a great job to advance the concept of chiropractic in the general public, provided they are positive videos that explain the concept of chiropractic and boost the chiropractic wellness position. That said, the likelihood of someone local searching chiropractic on YouTube, finding your particular clinic and then booking an appointment is slim to none.

How then, does one begin educating people outside the confines of a practice, using the internet and e-mail for external marketing? There are many programs currently using e-mail technology with auto responders to educate and keep the communication lines open with potential clients. There are however, drawbacks to these systems; The doctor is responsible for initially creating the content to educate potential patients, or they're often using out-dated newsletter e-mail techniques. We must remember that we live in a high-tech, video-driven world with high expectations.

When was the last time you received a newsletter via e-mail from Coca-Cola or Pepsi? These are companies that spend millions in video-based advertising. Quite simply, when it comes to influencing the public, video is the way to go! What keeps these companies at the top is the amount of time and money that they spend on marketing. Yes, they have the money to spend on costly endorsements and expensive TV advertising. A single chiropractic clinic has limited marketing funds, and our associations are not spending millions to advance chiropractic in the public eye (and if they are it's on a small local scale). We need to find creative ways to educate people using 21st-century technology and techniques that work, at a reasonable price point that any chiropractor can afford.

Although newsletters and mailings can still be useful, as a profession, we must embrace newer technologies of patient education. People are used to being entertained and our new generation prefers visually based forms of education. The idea of newsletters is to inform patients, and their friends and family members, on chiropractic. The hope or payoff is that when they have a health issue, they might come in and see you as a result of receiving your monthly newsletter, however the return on investment is extremely limited.

Let's go back and explore the idea of video technology and the YouTube concept.

Are you using videos on your website? Better yet, do you even have a website? Any clinic seeking to increase its income potential should post high quality videos on its website that explains fully the concept of chiropractic and the wellness lifestyle. Additionally, videos enticing viewers to seek chiropractic care for various health-related issues such as headaches, low back pain and neck pain could also be posted. Chiropractic videos are a great way to educate the public at large and bring your website into the 21st century.

Services exist that take this one step further and allow doctors to capture e-mails on their websites by sending the potential lead a video e-mail with a coupon or offer to come into their practice for a consultation.

People are plugged into the internet and when they're looking for services they often do a Google search to find the closest chiropractic office. A powerful and compelling website with amazing video and video e-mail lead generation will have that edge that places your clinic above the rest.

Why re-invent the wheel? Rather than try to create your own, find a company that has created amazing high quality videos that will stream on your website seamlessly and effortlessly. Let these videos, with their distinct messages, act to passively draw potential new patients through your door.

Next time: video e-mail automation.

(Dr. Stephane Laverdiere is a 1995 graduate of National College. For more information about Atlas Chiropractic System, call 877-602-8527 or e-mail acs@atlaschirosys.com , or visit the website at www.atlaschirosys.com .)