I live with three boys/men, and duct tape is a sacred, holy thing. It is simple, effective, and affordable. It is not always the prettiest solution, but it does always work. The central theme of Duct Tape Marketing: The World’s Most Practical Small Business Marketing Guide by John Jantsch is that effective small business marketing is a system—not an event—composed of simple, effective, and affordable techniques.
The top ten principles of this book are:
Narrow your focus.
Create a picture of the ideal client: what they look like, how they think, what they value, and where you can find them. Start saying no to non-ideal clients. For those of you who think that “anyone with a spine is my ideal client…” you are wrong. You are going to have a confused message, work harder with less effectiveness outside of your adjusting room, and possibly burn out more quickly in practice.
Differentiate.
Strip everything you know about your product or service down to the simplest core idea. Make sure that the core idea allows you stand out. To me, this is ESSENTIAL to chiropractors. We remove/reduce nerve system blockages – subluxations — by specifically and expertly providing a chiropractic adjustment. NO ONE ELSE DOES THIS.
Think about strategy first.
Take everything you’ve done in steps one and two and create a strategy to own a word or two in the mind of your ideal client and prospect. As chiropractors, we can get very “teachy preachy” and say a ton of sh*!. Zip it up. Find a key phrase or two to settle into the over-stimulated brains of your people.
Create information that educates.
You are in the information business, so think of your marketing materials, web sites, white papers, and marketing kits as information products, not “sales” propaganda. Give people bite-sized bits of info that lead them to an irrefutable conclusion.
Package the experience.
Sometimes I see our materials on Facebook, and we look dated and ugly. Have so much respect for chiropractic that you dress all the materials well. Put visual elements around every aspect of the marketing strategy that you adopt. Use design to evoke the appropriate emotional response from your ideal prospect.
Generate leads from many points.
Develop many strategic business alliances in your communities. There are many inroads into your office.
Nurture leads along the logical buying path.
Create a process of educating people about WHY chiropractic is so valuable for them and their families. This system should start before they begin as patients, and extend throughout their time with your office.
Measure everything that matters.
Measure tangible, and intangible things that are working. Get your OVA, your PVA, your numbers of people who come from certain events, but get intangible evidence as well. Listen to what attracts people – phrases like, “I feel safe here,” or “everyone here treats me well.”
Automate for leverage.
Embrace the internet, or else. Create online workshops, teleclasses, and webinars. Create an online community; capture and build knowledge to automate the basic delivery elements of your education wherever possible.
Commit.
Resist the temptation of the marketing idea of the week. Create daily, weekly, monthly, and annual marketing calendars. Make marketing your new habit, and find the money to stick with the plan. Systematize for ease and sustainability.
Bloom on!
