While professionals are smart and savvy these days, it is surprising that so many are weak and ineffective when it comes to content marketing.
By following these 5 steps, you will be far ahead of your competition and perceived as the “go-to” person in your specialty.
1. Spread the wealth
Have a meeting with all the staff (from the clerical and assistants to the other professionals in your practice). Let everyone know that you are devising a content creation plan. Set up an editorial calendar for the month and discuss who will take each topic. Spreading the responsibilities frees up your time and ensures that the content gets done.
You may be surprised to learn that many of your staff already participate in social media so they are already familiar with developing content. Let them suggest topics that engage patients since they are dealing with patients on a regular basis.
2. Dust off the unused Content
You already have a treasure trove of unused content that you can disseminate, ranging from preoperative and postoperative instruction sheets to what they can expect when they come to your office. Information you have already used can also be repurposed as:
- blogs
- Newsletters
- Podcasts
- Videos
- Article marketing
- ebook
- to name but a few
3. Keep an eye on your numbers
It’s key to affiliate with an analytic tool and to keep an eye on the numbers. I recommend Google Analytics as it is free and easy to use.
As you see the numbers rise, you can tell what topics are most wanted by your audience and which ones don’t get read. This helps shape the editorial calendar for the future and spurs on staff members who are writing the material. Acknowledge their work as a way to validate them and get future content created.
4. Alert, Alert, Alert
You need to respond to your audience each time that they post about you or ask a question to you through the forums and chat sites.
While it’s true that you can’t be everywhere, your friend Google is!
Register for Google Alerts which is a great tool to have and it is free. Register your name, the name of the practice, the services that you perform and any keywords that they would use to search for you.
This is also important as damage control if something wayward is posted about your practice. Take it offline if this is the case and ask the poster to come to your office to address the situation.
5. Be Their Source Guide
Patients and clients want to be engaged, not sold to. They look to you for education and entertainment. Communicate with your audience (making sure that you don’t speak about a specific patient or specific problem which would violate the HIPAA codes.)
Speak with the staff about the most frequently asked questions. Those along with the ones that you have been asked, make great articles.
This information can also be put out in podcast or video form. This helps strengthen your brand and boosts the perception that you are the authority in your field.
Do these steps and just watch your practice/business grow!
