3 Mistakes to Avoid When Building Your Chiropractic Brand Online

In today’s business world, it’s common knowledge that having an online identity is a must. If you’re not online, you’re not being seen.

But, for those naysayers and late-adopters who think that being online is irrelevant, take a look at these numbers:

In November of 2009, Google powered around 9.5 billion searches just from the United States alone. If you throw in Bing’s and Yahoo’s numbers, an additional 4 billion searches were generated bringing the grand total to 13.5 billion searches. And, remember, those numbers only represent the United States!

So, if 13.5 billion searches were done by a population of around 304 million, doesn’t it stand to reason that you’d have a better chance of being found online than in some antiquated phone book?

I mean, seriously! How many times have you pulled out the phone book to look someone up?

With today’s technology, information is just a few clicks of the mouse away. When those clicks are done in your community, the chiropractors who are online have a better chance for business than those that aren’t! However, just because you are online doesn’t mean that you will earn the business.

You see, it’s just like running any other successful business. If you don’t understand its purpose, you won’t be in business for long.

Furthermore, just because today’s technology allows chiropractors to get their businesses online quickly doesn’t mean they should. This may seem contradictory coming from a true advocate of online marketing. Nevertheless, before you mark me as hypocritical, please hear me out.

Much like chiropractic, there is an exact art, science and philosophy to building one’s business online. It not only takes discipline, commitment, and fortitude but also significant knowledge and understanding of one’s market.

And, since most chiropractors aren’t inbound marketers, complete training on its concepts, principles, and procedures are a must. You cannot take outbound marketing strategies online and expect them to be successful.

So, as more chiropractors venture into the world of blogging and social media networking, the chance of failure within these mediums becomes huge. Not because the technology or platforms used fail, by rather because the knowledge and understanding chiropractors have regarding these platforms are limited.

It was this epiphany that opened my services to chiropractors. Through a three-pronged approach — Blogging Chiros, Developing Others and Next Generation Chiropractor — I attempt to address chiropractors’ online limitations from all angles.

However, regardless if you hire my services or not, there are three mistakes I see other chiropractors making when attempting to establish their brand online. And, like a wise student, if you’re cognizant of what these are, you’ll be better equipped to avoid them yourself and enjoy greater success online.

The three mistakes to avoid when building your chiropractic brand online are as follows:

1. Being Impatient

Technology allows us to live in an extremely fast-paced world. Everything from text messaging to Twitter causes the urgency for information to be ever present.

Although immediacy is good, it shouldn’t be confused with online ROI. Rome wasn’t built in a day and most overnight successes realistically take decades to produce.

So, instead of throwing your hands up and declaring that blogging or social media doesn’t work toward building a chiropractic practice, remember the story of “The Tortoise and the Hare” — slow and steady wins the race!

I’m reminded of several ideas by Mitch Joel, author of Six Pixels of Separation, when trying to understand slow:

Digital marketing is about being slow. That being said, the quicker you post your content, the faster you can start gaining the efficiencies of slow. Slow doesn’t mean resting on your laurels and not engaging in these new channels. Slow simply means that longterm and tangible results do take time. The digital social spaces are built on trust and trust alone. Trust is always built slowly and over time.

2. Being Inconsistent

One of the worst things you can do when attempting to build your brand online is being inconsistent with your publishing schedule.

In other words, instead of adhering to an editorial calendar and publishing consistently to build brand loyalty, posting sporadically can destroy any continuity for community growth.

Your goal as a blogger and social media participant is to engage consumers online in conversations. It’s conversations that build relationships and relationships that build trust. But, it’s very hard to build relationships when the conversation is sporadic.

Want more proof?

Try strengthening your marriage with just sporadic conversation over time. It won’t work.

3. Being Insipid

Last but certainly not least, writing boring content is a sure way to kill traffic and stop online growth. Consequently, you must stop thinking like a doctor and more like a patient when you write your content.

A good rule to remember is that it’s not about you, it’s about them. So, if you repeatedly write about you, how great your technique is, or how wonderful your practice is, stop!

Go back and re-assess the wants, desires and needs of your prospects. Focus like a laser on your niche and write valuable content that provides answers and solutions to their most pressing problems.

For doctors, this may be the most difficult part of blogging. And, justifiably so.

You see, writing is an art, not a science. It takes practice and time to truly find your voice and writing rhythm.

But, over time and via the right resources, you’ll become more proficient at it while simultaneously captivating readers with quality content that they’ll value.

In closing, whether you’re new to blogging and social media networking or consider yourself a seasoned veteran, avoiding these three mistakes will help strengthen your brand online, build loyalty among your readers, and secure a spot among businesses that people trust and admire.

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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