Social Media Marketing for Chiropractors

Social Media Marketing for Chiropractors

Dr. Patrick MacNamara is a licensed chiropractor.  In this podcast, Dr. Mac shares how his chiropractic education didn’t prepare him for the business world. Early in his practice, he struggled with marketing.  He learned about Affordable Management Consulting, aka, AMC. He hired them and his practice exploded. Eventually, AMC asked him to join them to help other chiropractors explode their business. Dr. Mac was inspired by a report from Richard Telofski.  It said that less than 1% of chiropractors blogged. And, only one third of them were effectively using their blog to grow their practice.  That’s when Dr. Mac realized that chiropractors needed help with their social media strategy.  He began studying social media by following podcasters and bloggers like me and others. He read my book, Marketing 2.0, and has been a loyal listener of my podcasts since the beginning. He launched his Next Generation Chiropractor blog in April 2009. His blog targets the next generation of chiropractors, comprised of those just coming out of school that will more likely embrace marketing 2.0. Dr. Mac is also active on Twitter.

One-to-Many Effect

Dr. Mac fell in love with the idea of helping the chiropractic profession. Dr. Todd Osborne inspired him when he said that when you treat patients, you can only impact the patients you treat. But, by teaching chiropractors to market themselves more effectively he can impact more patients than he could ever impact in his own practice. It’s a one-to-many, rather than one-to-one effect.

Marketing to the New Generation of Chiropractors

As chiropractors have become more aware of social media, they are finding Dr. Mac through his blog. But, there’s a long way to go. The new generation of chiropractors spend more time online than more established chiropractors.  He’s trying to bridge the gap between the traditional marketing mindset and the new marketing mindset for chiropractors. His blog is the primary bridge for Dr. Mac. He quickly points out that the marketing that worked in the past for chiropractors (Yellow pages, direct mail) doesn’t work as well anymore. Dr. Mac has stepped up to the plate to help other chiropractors make the transition to Marketing 2.0.

Those Who Get It Never Go Back

Dr. Mac shows empathy for his peers in chiropractic care. He views his role as helping them expand the way they think. Once they expand their thinking, they can never go back to the previous way of thinking. The mindset shift for chiropractors is imperative. Dr. Mac does 4 to 6 hour presentations on how to market a chiropractic practice, then provides a webcast version as a follow up resource. He’s also available as a resource to chiropractors to answer questions.  The chiropractors that embrace the new marketing mindset come to understand it takes work and commitment. Many chiropractors have seen other chiropractors succeeding with inbound marketing, which inspires them to keep at it.

Success Stories

Dr. Jon Heins was one of the first that interacted with Dr. Mac on his blog. He developed his blog and within about three months he experienced a 20% increase in his business by sharing his blog content and using his Twitter account to engage with the local community. He followed all of Dr. Mac’s advice including techniques such as using hashtags and creating SEO friendly blog content.  He has moved full speed ahead down the Marketing 2.0 road.

Dr. Todd Sullivan is found online primarily through his blog. He has worked hard at consistently creating content, and being a good listener. He’s a young chiropractor, just five years out of school. So, the Internet is native to him. He also uses video marketing. His organic SEO works well from his online press releases and article marketing. His number one source of patients is referrals from medical doctors. His second highest source of new patients is from his blog, i.e., his inbound marketing strategy. His patients are likely to share his content and spread the word because so many of them are online.

After doing a presentation in 2009, Dr. Mac was approached by a chiropractor who said he didn’t fully understand all the Marketing 2.0 techniques. But, he was slowly implementing a strategy through his Facebook fan page. He had already experienced an influx of college students coming in from Facebook. It turns out his office is located across the street from a college campus. Traditional marketing wasn’t bringing in college students. But, his Facebook fan page brought the college students in the front door.

Dr. Mac’s Advice for Chiropractors

Dr. Mac advises chiropractors to develop a strong presence online. Get out of the 1.0 web world. Become interactive through a content hub starting with a blog. Share your blog content through other channels like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube. Identify the demographics you target.  Refine your content to appeal to the niche of your target demographics, e.g., young patients, older patients, etc.

Dr. Mac quotes Steven Covey: “Technology is a wonderful slave, but a horrible master.” Dr. Mac’s purpose at his Next Generation Chiropractor blog is to train chiropractors how to use this wonderful technology available at our fingertips to increase their practice in order to use it to treat more patients.

I hope you’ll listen to the entire podcast recording above. Just click the play button, or subscribe to my podcast in iTunes. Dr. Mac received insights and inspiration in part from my book, Marketing 2.0 and my podcasts. I am very humbled by that. If his story inspires you, let me know in the comments section.

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