By Glenn Bryan, GrowthMatrix, Inc.| Branding and Marketing Consultants to Healthcare

 

 

WHAT IS A PRACTICE BRAND?

Before you begin to improve your practice brand…it might be good to know what one is…which sometimes can be a little confusing.  Brands are a bit multi-dimensional which creates the possibility for confusion, but the intent of this article is to make them more manageable for you and your clinic.  Basically, your brand tells your community who you are, what you do, and how you do it.  Your brand informs your community about your relevance and credibility.  And most importantly, your brand is how you are perceived by your community – whether they actually know you or not.

 

The easiest way to describe a brand is that it is your promise of a consistent experience when people visit your clinic.  Your practice brand is, first and foremost, the promise of healthcare that you seek to provide to your patients through your practice.  And as I wrote in my “Image is Everything” article last year, whether you purposefully created your brand or it created itself – your clinic has a brand.  Let’s not just hope it’s a good one.  Let’s manage your brand so it IS a good one.

 

 

YOU NEED A UNIQUE PRACTICE BRAND

I know, you’ve heard this before.  Be unique in your marketplace and all the patients will flock to your door.  That’s not what I’m saying.  What I am saying is that if you establish a unique and compelling brand in the minds of your current and prospective patients, you will be able to leverage your brand perception in your marketing efforts.  I love the little line in Seth Godin’s book, Purple Cow, “’Tastes like chicken is not a compliment.’”  Is this how people describe your clinic, “Tastes like chicken?”  Nothing relevant.  Nothing exceptional.  Nothing compelling.  Nothing exciting.  Which translates into, “Why would I go out of my way to visit your clinic?”  Or, “Why should I complete your treatment plan?”  Or, “Why would I think about a long-term connection with your clinic?”

 

Being vanilla (or chicken) leads to mediocrity and even failure.  Think about Kmart.  It has high awareness due to a lot of advertising and past success.  Everyone knows about Kmart.  However, it is vanilla.  What is Kmart’s unique brand identity?  You’re struggling right now, aren’t you?  Now think about WalMart.  What is WalMart’s unique brand identity?  Lower prices for brand merchandise – which is captured in their tagline, “Lower Prices.  Live Better.”

 

 

BENEFITS OF HAVING A UNIQUE PRACTICE BRAND

Having a unique brand identity for your clinic has multiple benefits.  First, it differentiates you from other chiropractors and healthcare providers.  It allows your patients to think clearly about what you offer, when they should consider using you, and why they need your services.  Your brand sets you apart from the masses.  Second, it will give you better results in any marketing effort.  I know that’s a big claim, but it’s true.  When your brand identity communicates who you are, even before prospective patients come into your clinic or receive your message, then you don’t have to spend your time selling and explaining what you do.  And third, a distinct brand identity encourages your patients to talk about your clinic, and to talk about your clinic using the words and concepts you want them to use.  It defines your message through word-of-mouth, rather than just hoping that your message is being correctly delivered.

 

Your clinic has a brand whether you purposely created it or it created itself.  Get control of your clinic brand by defining your brand promise Building this foundation may be a tough, time-consuming process for some chiropractors, but it is worth it. In our next article we’ll provide a step-by-step approach to begin to create your practice brand.

 

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Click to Read Part 2 of 3

 

 

Next Steps

• Learn About Rapid Chiropractic Software