The Most Asked About Spoke – Part 3
In our last blog we touched on what we refer to as “Foundational Marketing” – those building blocks that must be in place in order to build a lasting structure … whether that is a home (as the images we shared showed) or what we are discussing here, a SYSTEM such as marketing in a business. We pointed out that a cracked, un-healthy and un-stable foundation stresses the rest of the structure and eventually damage, imbalance and other noticeable ill- effects will, indeed, develop.
The first “block” of the foundation came in the form of a very simple and straight forward question: WHY does marketing in the weight loss, health care and the wellness industry really matter? If you haven’t dug into that, we suggest you re-visit that and get solid in it. It’s foundational!
Now, let’s lay down some other important blocks to help build your marketing foundation.
Empower your TEAM. By this we mean ALL of your “staff” – not just the person(s) who work directly with this particular service. Assure each member of your entire team is TRULY tuned into your “why”. They must be INSPIRED about that block. They must be EMPOWERED with a solid understanding of any and all services (i.e. weight loss) you provide.
Your team must be EQUIPPED with solid scripting. By this we do not mean make them robotic-like in their responses or description. But, let’s face it: weight loss is always in high demand. So, it’s always a hot topic. People will ask your team about this great service you offer. This will happen in your clinic by patients/clients who may be interested but not yet participating. It will certainly happen outside the clinic, too – on the street, in the store, at parties. You name it!
So, how do you prefer (and need) them to describe it? How is this to be done in an accurate and inspirational way? If you have not intentionally worked on this and are leaving this to your team to figure it out … and if you are assuming they are doing it properly, chances are you may be leaving out a very “foundational block” of your marketing.
How do you know if this block is in place? Well, you can simply role play and check them. But, the more telling way to check this is to MEASURE their performance. How many leads are being generated internally by your team? How about externally? If these numbers are zero or very low then they probably need inspire, empowered, equipped and trained better. Simple as that.
In other words, a foundational block of marketing is tied closely to another of the spokes: your LEADERSHIP. Not getting the results you want from your team? Better take a look in the mirror!
Next, assure your data-base is assembled, organized, categorized and leveraged. Many wellness providers have served hundreds or even thousands of people in the past. These are happy clients or patients. They like you and your team. They appreciate and value what you’ve done for them in the past. The problem is we ASSUME they know all we can do for them. How many people do you have who are “inactive” but remain challenged with weight issues?
Dig through that that big pile of inactive files you have or the list you kick out and consider the stats. You will quickly realize that 3 out f 4 of them are overweight. 1 of 3 are clinically obese. Are you serving them best by allowing them to sit at home in that state? Do they know you can help? If your WHY is big enough you will make sure they do!
While it is a topic with more moving parts than can be hit here, a foundational marketing piece is to assure you are consistently touching those you lead (sometimes referred to as your “herd”) through specific strategies done at pre-determined intervals. This is often referred to as a “Nurturing Process”. We like to call a “K.I.T. Plan” meaning Keep In Touch.
Of course, there are many such strategies to put in place. You may wish to do text or e-mail blasting. We are fans of using regular videos to your base. Maybe that’s sent via e-mail. Or, you can create a private Facebook group for your patients/clients only. On this platform, you and your team can share special messages for them which may be different than those you post on your general Facebook page which may be less personal.
Besides training your team and leveraging your data base, another foundational block for marketing a specialized service like weight loss is your tools. These are the simple things you have prepared, available and consistently used to easily and effectively introduce and promote that service.
An example of this may be a brochure or flyer your team could use to periodically share with EACH patient on a particular day. They can share the piece and simply say, “Have you heard about (whatever service you are focusing on)? Awesome things are happening!” Assure your team knows that some people may be sensitive when sharing about weight loss. They may feel targeted. So, saying something like “Please help us spread the word to your friends, family, co-workers, etc. about this life changing service”. Just sharing about it will often spur interest and open up some dialogue.
Other tools we recurrently use for weight loss are in-office flyers. Routinely re-create and alternate (at least 2x/month) focusing on timely messages. These may be seasonal or perhaps promoting an upcoming workshop. The point is mix it up! Different images and messages catch different people’s attention at different times.
We also like to use a stand-up banner in the office. Again, rotate this. Mix it up. Keep it fresh. Otherwise, these tools become stale, blend in and nobody notices them.
We realize none of this is fancy and, more than likely, are not new ideas for you. The goal here is to encourage you to acquire MANY tools and get them on a pre-planned rotation to be used. A tool that is always laying in the bottom of your toolbox does NO good. So, list your tools. Determine the way and frequency that they will be used. Then, put all of that on a simple calendar. It’s foundational!
Is your Marketing “Spoke” in place and strong? Do you want to learn more about “foundational marketing”? Ready to be a part of a group that focuses on ALL spokes of the Wheel of Business? Just click or Call and let’s talk! Building strong foundations is what we love to help wellness providers do!
