If I had to brainstorm a list of the most common misconceptions about marketing a private practice as a counselor, coach or naturopathic doctor, I'd name these ideas frequently voiced by my clients.
- mass market advertising is the best way to make people aware of your services
- all a professional website needs is a description of your services, including benefits, and your contact info
- joining a networking group is essential for getting new clients
- a postcard campaign to referral sources announcing the opening of your business will bring in enough referrals
- spend a week or so on marketing and then get down to business
There are likely many more misconceptions, and I may start keeping a list! But really, what's wrong with these ideas?
Each of these notions -- except #3 -- is rooted in the idea that there is a magic formula for attracting client that can be accomplished once, and never need ongoing tending. Most self-employed professionals don't realize that building a business is a fulltime job in itself, and that marketing is the most time and energy intensive activity we must continually do if we want to be successful.
Misconception #3 is usually wrong because we join general interest business groups, which is not usually where our clients are -- or because other networkers are intent on getting us as their clients.
Instead of these misconceptions, the marketing truths we need to accept are these:
- Marketing, like bookkeeping, is a necessary DAILY task -- make it an appointment with success!
- For solopreneurs in the healing arts, niche-based, client-centered marketing works. General, provider-centered marketing doesn't work.
- Marketing from your personality strengths is more client attracting than trying to copy what works for others.
- Market only to your ideal client, and don't waste time and resources on a general public.
- Potential referral sources need to know why sending us clients will solve a problem for them, or how it will increase client loyalty for them.
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One of the biggest challenges new and seasoned solopreneurs seem to have is developing the habit of regularity when it comes to marketing. It's a central truth that for marketing to really attract clients, it needs to be done continually. Something -- just one little thing -- should be done everyday that serves your client niche.
A lot of self-employed professionals in the healing arts engage with the care and feeding of their business more like a firefighter than a gardener. We spend our days in crisis mode, putting out one fire after another, rather than patiently and methodically planting and watering seeds, and pulling out weeds. While we may get small flare-ups of clients who are likewise in frantic panic mindset, what we don't get is steady growth of name recognition in the marketplace and a bountiful harvest of ideal clients.
Having good marketing hygiene is like having good self-care hygiene -- it is the set of actions you do that take care of the daily health of your business. Whether it's interacting on a social media or discussion board site, blogging, updating your website, writing articles, giving a talk, attending a networking event or talking a potential referral source to lunch, it's crucial that you do at least one marketing related thing every day.
Plan it, schedule it, and follow through. Make it your business hygiene system for growing a thriving practice. Start today.
When you blog, you are creating and/or enhancing your professional reputation. You are giving information of value to potential patients or clients that may be the start of your therapeutic alliance or coaching partnership.
Giving free self-help advice, action step tips, healthful recipes, etc promotes not only goodwill, but lets future clients / patients get to know what to expect from you. It positions you as warm, friendly, generous, helpful, empathetic, and knowledgeable without having to say any of those things directly. It gives potential clients a favorable experience of you before you’ve even met.
More importantly, a blog contributes to your reputation as a specialist in your type of work. Even though most of us were trained to be generalists in our professions, to gain a steady flow of clients you need to market as a specialist. Presenting yourself as a specialist does not limit who you actually accept as a client or patient. It simply maximizes your client attractiveness magnetism.
In terms of time and energy management, blogging is one of the most effective tools and uses of time for the introverted solopreneur. An entry can be multi-purposed and used in your newsletter to referral sources, as a tip sheet give-away from your website, as part of an autoresponder series, as a networking or workshop handout, etc. Write it once, use it 4 or 5 times, or more.
And, as a special bonus for the introverted solopreneur, blogging is a way to network without having to attend a chamber of commerce breakfast at 7 am and remember your elevator speech! Blogging is a very low-cost / high reward marketing activity.
Asking our target audience what they're main problems are that they are right now willing to invest in solving is the action of getting basic marketing intelligence. Big corporate advertisers do this by paying research companies to host focus groups.
Solopreneurs can do the same thing. In fact, it's a good marketing strategy to do so. People love to give their opinions usually. And they like to talk about themselves, and complain about their problems. A focus group is a gold mine of marketing intelligence.
The basis of an invitation to come to a focus group can be that you are gathering information on the topic of ______for a special report you are writing, or for the development of a special tip sheet or CD or workshop. Pitch the invitation as you wanting info from the "in the trenches" experts (your target niche audience).
During the focus group, be sure to sprinkle into your listening a few free tips. Just because you are acting as an information gatherer doesn't mean you aren't still the specialist in your field. Never miss an opportunity to let people sample you doing your work.
Of course, you then do have to create the report (or whatever), but that becomes a further good marketing tool itself.
Gathering marketing intelligence is a standard phase of business development for all startups, and for any new major product or revenue stream launch. They can be fun, informative, and excellent networking -- all at the same time! A great way to leverage your efforts.
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