Why You're Not Marketing Consistently
Fallen off the marketing bandwagon - AGAIN? Let's face it - marketing consistently is not a skill that comes easily to everyone. But it is one that you can learn and implement.
So let's take a look at why you haven't been marketing consistently, and what you can do to get back on track.
5 Reasons Why You're Not Marketing Consistently
There are probably countless reasons and excuses that can come to mind. But in my experience working with praccies, most cases come back to one (or more) of these root causes.
You don't have a clear idea of who you're marketing to
Marketing is an uphill battle when you're trying to talk to everyone and anyone. The broader the audience, the harder it is to narrow everything down into a consistent and focused plan.
When you market or share any form of content, you are essentially sending a message to your potential clients. This message is the foundation of your marketing - so if it's vague, your marketing will follow.
For example, which do you think will resonate with people more?'
Eating a healthy diet, exercising, managing stress and sleeping well can help with every health concern ever'
OR'
Prioritising your gut health is key if you want to get autoimmunity under control'
The first topic should apply to everyone - but it doesn't make anyone go 'yes, this is for me!' On the other hand, the second message is clear about who it is talking to.
If you had to create content around the first topic, you would probably jump all over the place! But for the second one, you know what you're talking about - gut health and autoimmunity.
Remember to always do this from their point of view. Think about what they think they are having issues with, even if you know there is something else hidden underneath it all!
You're not planning ahead
Once you've got your audience figured out and you know where they are at, you've got what you need to market. But what I often see practitioners doing is setting aside a chunk of time every week to do one week's worth of content.
This seems great in theory, but in practice, it rarely works out for more than a couple of weeks! You can fall off and not do any marketing because:
You're not feeling inspired
You have no idea what to talk about
Someone else talked about the same topic last week so you couldn't possibly do that until later
A client requested an appointment for that exact time slot, so you can't turn them down
The stars aren't aligned
It's the wrong stage of your cycle to create content
The list goes on!
Planning your marketing and content doesn't have to be super-strict and rigid. It can be as simple as picking 1-2 services or offers that you focus on each quarter and brainstorming content ideas to support those.
You're trying to do everything at once
This is something I see all too often when working with praccies. You've heard of someone having massive success with one form of marketing - but your business coach has recommended another. Before you know it, you're trying to juggle 12 different forms of marketing and content!
In fact, this happened with a client of mine just the other day. She was getting frustrated with Instagram - she didn't particularly like or understand the platform, and she was getting crickets from it in terms of clients.
But when we dug deeper, it turned out that her ideal client was a corporate woman around the age of 50. Let me give you a hint - corporate women of that age are not typically scrolling through IG in their rare downtime!
My rule of thumb is this:
Pick two types of marketing - one social media platform and one other form such as a newsletter or blog
Do those two things for at least 8 weeks straight
Once you feel you've got the hang of them, you can dabble with a new form
And if you truly hate any particular type of marketing - I give you permission to outsource it or break up with it completely.
You're caught up in 'busy work'
Now don't get me wrong - I see the value of investing yourself in other areas from time to time. But let me say this with the greatest amount of love in my heart:
If you want to build a successful business as a practitioner, you cannot rely on building your clinical skills.
Catching up on your bookkeeping is not going to get you clients. Perfecting your legals is not going to get you clients. Going to another seminar is not going to get you clients. Reading 5 research papers a day? You guessed it - not going to get you clients.Do you know what IS going to get you clients?
Marketing. Yourself. Consistently.
End of story.
Stop procrastinating with all of the 'busy tasks' and focus on the tasks that are income-generating.
You're overthinking the process
This is something I come across almost every single day! Many pracs are making consistent marketing far more complex than what it really is.
You don't have to use a specific social media platform because someone else used it successfully.
You don't have to create a 10 step funnel to create the know-like-trust factor with potential clients.
Hell, you don't even need to spend a cent if you don't want to or are on a strict budget!
What you need is to know your message, share it wherever your ideal people are hanging out, and stick to a general plan to keep yourself consistent. It really is that simple!
Is it time to get back into marketing consistently and effectively?
My Practitioner Marketing 101 course might be just what you need. This 4-week course dives into the essentials of marketing yourself as a new prac, including:
Uncovering your niche & understanding your audience
Choosing & using your key marketing tools (social media, blogs, videos, newsletters and more!)
Staying consistent through planning, batching and scheduling
Booking your first clients & selling offers
