Barack Obama Teaches…
Step-by-step…
How To Market Chiropractic
I knew it would happen. I just wasn’t sure when.
For years I have been laughing at the way politicians run campaigns. There have always been so many simple marketing tactics ANY politician could use to not only raise money… but to get massive amounts of votes. But for the most part – they ignore them. Instead, they listen to (and give a ton of money to) big ad agencies that waste the taxpayers cash.
But this was different.
Barack Obama won the election convincingly. And in doing so – he proved the power of good (and in some cases brilliant) marketing.
He not only completely re-defined how political campaigns will run from this day on – he gave YOU the blue-print to create a massively profitable practice in the least time humanly possible.
Because you can do just about everything he did to get and keep patients. Well, at least some of what he did. Politicians have a funny way of regulating what you and I do – while they are exempt. And more regulation is on the way that will most likely KILL some of the methods he used to win the presidency. We will get to that chilling irony a little later.
But first… let’s talk about what Obama did and how you can use it in your practice to start getting more patients and making more money just about immediately.
Obama’s Marketing Secrets Revealed…
Obama raised more money – by far – than any other presidential candidate. Last time I looked, that number was $650 million. And he used that money to dramatically outspend McCain. In other words: OUT MARKET HIM.
This is very important… because… holding all other factors constant…the best marketer that has more money will win. And in this case, Obama not only had a lot more money – he had much better marketing.
Combined that with the economy tanking – and McCain never stood a chance.
And here’s a quick aside:
Obama originally signed an agreement along with McCain to only use public financing for his campaign. McCain stuck by his word – Obama reneged on his deal.
But in the end – the fact that he was dishonest did not matter. And it did not matter for several reasons. One is that – by reneging on his word – he was able to out raise and out spend McCain who was handcuffed by the deal and his “word.” His massive marketing campaign completely drowned out negative.
But listen… probably the biggest secret to Obama’s success was his…
“Message To Market Match”
Plain and simple – Obama knew exactly what the majority of people wanted to hear – and he told them EXACTLY that.
And he did it convincingly and with emotion and empathy.
There was a constant tornado of controversy surrounding Obama. Who he was, where he came from, lack of experience. who he had done business with, where he went to church, did he start his political career in the living room of a terrorist, was he even a citizen, etc, etc, etc.
Heck, just one of these issues would have been enough to sink John McCain’s ship literally overnight.
Obama overcame all this by having a better message to marketing match and hammering it home with great marketing.
How?
Obama never mentioned how he was going to do anything. Instead, he spoke in emotional terms. He spoke about making peoples’ dreams and desires finally come true. He sold the sizzle… not the steak.
McCain tried to sell the steak.
This is akin to Chiropractors lecturing prospective patients on the technical aspects of the subluxation complex.
They talk about anatomy, physiology, and all kinds of other technical mumbo-jumbo. The vast majority of prospective patients could care less and get turned off very quickly to this approach.
Don’t get me wrong. People want to know how things work and an explanation as to how you are going to do what you say you are going to do. But this explanation is a brief, small part of the overall picture. Anything more than that and you will bore and lose them.
I’ve Used This Example Before – But I Will Use It Again Here
Because It Is So Darn Good…
Where Rolex sells watches, they do not sell it on its ability to tell time. Sure, they BRIEFLY tell how the watch was made. How a team of engineers did a Vulcan mind-melt for 77 years to finally come up with the once-in-a-lifetime design and parts.
And speaking of parts – the gears where cut by special black diamonds that take this the most precise time piece ever created.
Yada, yada, yada. Point is – they do all that to JUSTIFY the real reason people buy a Rolex. A better explanation would be – they do all that to COVER UP the real reason!!!!
And they real reason is: People who buy a Rolex want to belong to a certain group of people who own Rolexes. They want to identify with this group. And they want to show them off. They want others to see them as part of that group.
Because, let’s be honest. You can get a 15$ (or even less) Timex or Casio or whatever watch that tells you it’s 3:00. Rolex doesn’t tell time any better. Rolex is ALL about image.
Which leads us to…
The Power Of Imagery…
When it comes to getting and keeping patients – this may be the most important thing you ever discover. Yet, it is the most misunderstood and scarcely used.
The real key to unlocking the prospect to patient flood gate is to create the illusion of ownership in your prospects’ minds.
Know this: Before they will ever become a patient and give you money for your treatment – they MUST take mental ownership by experiencing what ownership will be like.
One part of building that feeling is by with pictures, testimonials and demonstrating benefits. But most of all you accomplish it by getting the prospect to daydream about what their life will be like in the near future. What their life will be like as a direct result of what they can do, have and become through your treatments.
The key is using certain words and descriptions that create imagery. You make the prospect go inward and actually see themselves feeling a certain way. Doing certain things. Living the life they want to live.
You want them to go into, as Dr. Maxwell Matz describes, “The theater of the mind.” There they will produce mental movies based on their own memories. Feelings they has already had. Things they have already experienced.
That’s why this experience is extremely personal for each individual prospect.
For example: If I said to you… “Imagine falling in love like you have never fallen in love before.” Your mind will conjure up an image from memory that is 100% unique to you.
This image will be infinitely more powerful than anything I could tell or explain to you. And infinitely more moving than anything I could try to out into words for you.
I can lead you imagery – but you will go into memories and put together your very own images that are entirely personal to you. Which is why it is best to offer prospects several different scenarios. One will strike a chord with them and they will take it and internalize it.
Great imagery words are: Imagine, picture, what if, can you see yourself.
To the person with back pain: “Imagine yourself without back pain… sleeping all the way through the night and waking up well rested… powering through the day with energy to burn… looking forward to living life without pain…”
That is much different than the components of a subluxation… wouldn’t you agree.
Here’s something else that’s really important: The body only goes where the mind ha traveled. And if you can’t get the mid there first – the body wont go there either.
If you can not made you prospect take mental ownership of what you are offering – they will never say yes and pay you.
Your subconscious mind can not tell the difference between a real and an imagined experience. If you can get your prospect to enter the theater of their mind and create a mental image of themselves enjoying the benefit of ownership in the present moment– your results will be greater than you can ever imagine.
Before Ronald Regan’s deregulation – infomercials were illegal. Reagan exploded the economy and opened up countless ways to promote your business. Which also created brand new businesses out of thing air.
I’m sure you’ve heard… over and over… how cheesy infomercials are. Well, Barack Obama must be an enormous cheese-ball then!
Because he ran a 30 minute infomercial that was brilliant.
If you have not watched it – go watch it ASAP. It’s on YouTube and many other sites on the internet. Just “Google” it. And I’m not endorsing Barack and his policies. (Not by a long shot!) I’m talking about marketing here. And…
The marketing lesson is priceless.
Obama did not talk about technical stuff. Policies. How he was going to achieve anything.
Nope. What he did do was connect with the people by reading extremely well written, emotional marketing copy. He did what I just mentioned above. He made people go into the theater of their own minds, come up with unique experiences, and mental ownership of his presidency.
This was accomplished many ways. One exceptional part of the infomercial was a story of an elderly couple. This couple had worked hard there entire live and paid off their house. They thought their retirement was going to be spent doing all the things they always wanted to do.
But the woman had RA and medical bills piled up. They had to take a loan out on their house to pay the bills and… at 72… her husband had to go back to work.
It was a VERY touching story. Countless American’s can relate to that situation because they are in it. Countless others can empathize and feel their pain.
That emotional story gets infinitely more support and votes than going over the technicalities of actually fixing the health care system.
Once again – emotion trumps logic and facts.
Not that I agree. Not that I am happy about this. I didn’t make the rules. But I do understand them. And evidently, so does Barack Obama.
McCain…
Not So Much
And here’s something very, very, very important to understand from all this…
The Fear Of Loss Is Greater
Than The Desire For Gain
Marriage is a funny thing.
Bachelors commonly get cold feet. Why? Because they more afraid of losing their old life and all their perceived freedom than they are of gaining a wife.
And, of course, the bride’s father is much more concerned about losing his daughter than he is about gaining a son-in-law!!!
On of the best examples of this I have ever heard is about pets. Let’s take your pet for example. How much would you pay above and beyond what you originally bought your pet for – of you had to shell out some money to keep him or her alive?
I have a member that adopted a dog that was sick. With a few weeks of owning the dog, he spent almost $6,000 to keep it alive. Yet, there is no way he would have paid $6,000 to buy a dog.
Is your dog smarter or cuter than your neighbor’s dog? Probably not – but I bet you feel that way – don’t you?
The more effort you have put into it – the more value you feel. If you work hard for your money and invest it in the stock market – it is extremely painful to see it disappear overnight.
That’s why the stock market climbs so slowly and falls so fast. You are not the only one that cannot stand to lose what you already have and have worked so hard to get.
This is a way to increase the perceived value of your services. Create a situation that involves the prospect and makes them mentally commit. These can be hoops they must jump through to become a patient. Not every one qualifies. And, if you are a good and ethical doctor – not everyone that calls you should qualify for your treatment.
Some of my best members have been using applications prospects must fill out before they can become a patient. (and please don’t call, fax, or email us for them; I don’t have them, I’ve never seen them, I can’t get them.) This has two very distinct advantages…
(1) It cuts out the tire kickers. People who are not that interested and are not likely to become a patient will not do ANYTHING. This will same you a lot of time consulting with, examining and giving treatment plans to people who were going to walk out no matter what.
(2) You will convert many more of the likely prospects for higher fees. Prospects will feel investing in the process and much more likely to start care and pay for it.
We talk about scarcity all the time and how powerful it is. Which is why you should limit your availability. And limit how many patients you accept. And have deadlines on offers.
But the effects of scarcity are multiplied many times when ownership is present. And the more a prospect has invested (and ownership they feel) in the process the more power scarcity has.
The pet example again: Do you react differently to an email with a picture of a dog on “death row” that you’ve never seen before that is in the pound that only has 24 hours to live… than you would to one of your own dog?
Even if you only had that dog for a week?
Sure you would.
So, get your prospects involved and make them feel ownership in your practice right from the beginning.
And Here’s One Of The Best Ways To Turn
Short Term Patients Into Long Term Patients:
Educating patients is great. Even though most don’t care and it will go in one ear and out the other… I think it is important to give all your patients the opportunity to know all the what, where, when and whys of Chiropractic.
But, contrary to popular belief in the profession… education is NOT the key to keeping patients long term and getting them to refer.
One of the best ways to get a patient to stay and refer is to get them mentally invested in your practice. And you do this by having them give you a testimonial.
Get them to give you written permission to use their testimonial in your marketing. And then use it is ways that they will see it.
You will not only give them those little celebrity thrills – you will be creating unbelievable ownership and investment in you and your practice.
Just the act of them giving you a testimonial is HUGE. By doing so, they are putting on paper for all to see how much they like you and how much you have done for them.
This solidifies and amplifies their investment and ownership.
If they stop care it would be incongruent with what the put in writing. If they do not speech your praises and refer, it would also be incongruent.
And we a hard wired to be very uncomfortable with incongruence. So get those testimonials as early in the relationship as possible.
In fact, we are so hard wired to be consistent that the Japanese during World War II used to make prisoners of war copy by hand statements that denounced the U.S. government. And even though these prisoners did not say any of this stuff – they simply copied it in their own hand writing – it had a powerful effect in there sub-conscious mind and what they actually believed.
We’ve gotten off on a little tangent here. But now I’d like to tell you a little more about the marketing success of Barack Obama…
I’ve already discussed his incredibly message to market match. But what was just as important was his use of media. And not just media – but ALL MEDIA.
For years I have told members to contact patients and prospects by using all the media available to you. Not just the easy ones. This is because everyone reacts to certain media differently.
Some will respond to a letter in the mail. Others a phone call. Others an email. Etc.
But what’s really important is that MOST will respond due to a COMBINATION of two or more media. The more media you use to contact the same prospect – the better your results will be.
If you are trying to reactivate inactive patient – you will have much greater success if you snail mail them…AND… email them… AND… call them….then if you did just one of those things.
Many people like to ask me if I could only use one media – which one would it be. And I used to answer that question because I do think one media is usually better than the others. But the point is mute. Because you should NEVER use just one. And you never have to make that choice.
The real answer is to use ALL of them and maximize your results. Contact your patients very often from every possible angle!!!!
Barack Obama used every possible media and he sent sequenced letter to niched groups of prospects. Hmmm… does that sound familiar?
There was radio television and more. Point is – he did it all.
And you can do most of those things in your practice. You can match your message to your target market, speak in emotional terms that cause your prospects and patients to go into the theater of their mind and create a unique experience and daydream about a future after your treatments, give them hoops to jump through and get them to write testimonials to become emotionally invested, and use every possible media to convey your message.
Remember – this is not the best of times. The economy is not good to say the least. And your practice is either going up or down – you are never staying the same. Now is the time to do everything you can to grow your practice. If you do the right things – consistently – you will make money while other Chiropractors die on the vine.
Take action today.
Dr. Ben Altadonna, D.C.
Altadonna Communications, Inc.
Founder of “The Practice Building Alliance™”
For a free Chiropractic Proven Marketing Campaign, go to:
And Check Out Ben’s blog at:
Please understand that there are many legal issues that are always present in any business. If you feel that you cannot interpret the laws in your state, please consult an attorney. The content in this article is merely an opinion and not legal or compliance advice.
©2010 Altadonna Communications, Inc.