There's a joke going around Asheville, NC: if you shake a downtown tree, a musician and 5 healers will fall out. The joke isn't far from the truth. Asheville is the health and wellness mecca of the region. Chiropractors, acupuncturists, massage therapists, and all manner of alternative healers have flocked to the area because they know a large portion of the population regularly purchases a wide range of healing modalities.
So if you're a healing art professional, you've got plenty of competition in this region. Here are 5 Marketing Tips that will help give you an advantage:
1. Stand out from the pack. It's tempting to use online services with attractive templates to create your website and other marketing communications. You'll save money by doing it yourself, but you may compromise your ability to make money, because you'll get lost in a sea of competitors whose visual communications look similar to yours. List the things that make your healing service unique and set out to make your logo, website, etc. convey that uniqueness. Don't take the easy way out. Break away from the templates and create a distinctive design that will stand out above the competition.
2. Hire a professional to handle your marketing and graphics. It's important to seek out professionals who have the expertise to attract new clients to your business. Besides reaping the benefits of an effective marketing campaign, you will gain more hours in each day to spend doing what you do best: healing people!
3. Your visual identity must be consistent! I can't emphasize this enough. We are being marketed to more incessantly than ever before. In order to preserve our own sanity in the face of this onslaught, we have developed internal filters to block out most of the advertising noise. It takes at least 6 repeated exposures for the average person to notice a business' marketing communications. It takes a few more exposures for people to pay enough attention to realize what your business has to offer.
If your website looks different than your business card and your advertisements, you are missing out on those critical repeated exposures that build awareness for your business. A professional designer will help you create a set of graphic standards that when applied, will deliver the consistency you need to get noticed quickly.
4. Project a Professional, Gentle Image. Most healing arts involve touch. Touch is intimate, and requires a leap of trust from you clients. Build comfort and trust by creating the image of a healing nest. Graphics with rounded edges and warm colors convey a warm, welcoming environment. The appropriate visuals will help your clients feel pampered and cared for before they ever walk into your place of business!
5. Don't sell the process - sell the results. This is probably the most important tip of all. How you perform your healing means little to your clients. What matters to people are the results your healing expertise provide.
As a healer, you completed a rigorous training to become the professional you are today. You naturally feel compelled to communicate your credentials to your clients so they feel confident enough to choose you.
Many healers focus on process and technique to convey their knowledge and expertise. Chiropractors often use images of spines to demonstrate the efficacy of their adjustments. Acupuncturists want to show the perfect placement of needles along a meridian. This is the biggest mistake you can make! Spinal columns look like alien creatures. And even people comfortable with needles can be uncomfortable looking at photos of clients who look like human pincushions.
Your clients want to know that you can deliver RESULTS! If your clients are in pain, they want to know you can offer that highly-desired feeling of relief. Use photos of vibrant, smiling people who look like they just shed mountains of tension and pain. Potential clients will similarly picture themselves relieved of their maladies, and feel naturally drawn to your business. Include testimonials from existing clients to enhance your credibility.
Follow these tips, and watch your business grow beyond your goals! The initial investments you make will pay off in the longrun.