Spinal Decompression Marketing: A Waste of Money?

If you have been practicing spinal decompression for more than 6 years, you probably remember “the good ole days” during which you could run any old newspaper ad that would generate 30-50 phone calls and a waiting room full of highly qualified spinal decompression patients ready to write checks for $3,000, $4,000 or even $5,000. Well, the good old days are gone. In today’s market, your ads have to be better and they have to work harder. Can spinal decompression ads still generate a steady stream of qualified spinal decompression patients?  Absolutely!! Here’s how. First, spinal decompression marketing needs to be performed by someone who knows EXACTLY what they are doing.  Long gone are the days of a chiropractor sitting down at his computer during a lunch break and crafting his next newspaper ad. Your ads need to be perfect.  They need to contain EVERY aspect of professionally effective, high quality marketing principles.  Here’s some do’s and don’ts to consider: Don’ts Stop selling! Patients today need to be sold without being sold.  People are absolutely bombarded with sales all day, every day from TV, radio, the Internet, billboards, newspapers and magazines, robocalls and more. In self-defense, people tune out the minute they feel like they are being sold.  In-your-face headlines, cheesy sales gimmicks and promotions, high-pressure sales techniques, guilt and fear tactics do not work in today’s crowded advertising space. For years, most marketers would use a headline such as, “Spinal Decompression: Effective, Affordable and Safe” or “Revolutionary, New Spinal Decompression up to 90% Effective,” and then they would list of all the reasons why you “have to try spinal decompression.”  They would use words like “revolutionary”, “miraculous”, “life changing” and more.  While this may have worked years ago, marketing today needs to be toned down so that prospective patients don’t react negatively because they feel like they are being “sold.” Do’s The secret to good marketing is to sell without actually “selling.”  You can accomplish this by developing marketing materials that create the impression that they were generated by a non-biased third party who has nothing to gain from promoting a spinal decompression practice. A more effective approach is reflected in this headline, “Does Spinal Decompression Actually Work for Patients with Herniated and Bulging Discs?” When you take a non-biased approach to spinal decompression that promotes its benefits in a subtle, non-salesy approach, your ads will be met with more receptivity.  State both the positive as well as a couple of negative points to show fair balance and a lack of bias.  Include the following elements in your ad to increase their effectiveness: •    Include a headline that will stop readers in their tracks and make them want to read more. •    Incorporate perfectly written copy that educates your audience enough to pique their interest, without providing so much information that you discourage a call for more information. •    Include testimonials from satisfied patients whose success stories include personal histories that sound exactly like the challenges your ideal patient is facing. •    Provide authoritative evidence that leaves no doubt in peoples’ minds that spinal decompression is effective and long lasting. •    Always include an offer that motivates prospective customers to stop shopping and start calling. When spinal decompression is professionally discussed as an effective, non-surgical, long-term solution to peoples’ neck and back pain without over selling, over promising or sounding “too good to be true,” your ads will generate a much greater response rate. Sometimes the less you sell, the more you will actually sell. This principle is absolutely true when it comes to spinal decompression. Is your marketing campaign working as well as you’d like it to? Unlock the secret to maximizing your marketing using a full page newspaper advertorial by getting yours here.