With all the different ways to communicate with potential leads in this day and age, it is easy to overlook your email efforts. Email shouldn’t go the way of the Pony Express in your marketing plans, though!
In fact, email could be one of the most versatile and influential tools you have in your marketing toolbox. Right off the bat, email offers an engaged lead--specifically someone who has already opted-in to receive your message. It provides the ability to segment and target messages based on the preferences they’ve established.
It also provides valuable feedback on the relevancy of your content with real data such as open rates, clicks, and unsubscribes. It is also easy to share on the various social media channels. But best of all, email is one of your most cost effective marketing tools.
12 Creative Email Ideas to Retain More Patients
- Use it as a follow-up tool in a timely manner. After a visit or event it’s a great way to keep the dialogue going.
- Use it to build relationships. It doesn’t have to a marketing subject line. Just drop someone a note to say hello.
- Personalize your practice’s culture and personality. Highlight the various staff members. Include their hobbies, favorite movies, books. Provide a behind-the-scenes look at a particular activity.
- Build campaigns around the events that occur each year, and not just holidays. Take advantage of some of the more quirky events, like National Donut Day; use them as opportunities to invite someone over for a cup of coffee and a donut.
- Use it to enhance your credibility within your local community. Piggyback on some the events in your community like festivals and 5K runs.
- Make it fun and use it creatively. Come up with scavenger hunt where they have to visit the web site for clues. Use it to tell a compelling story in serial form. Include puzzles and other games.
- Develop an automated reminder mechanism for events and directions to your practice.
- Treat each message as an opportunity to build consistency in brand image.
- Create emails for the internal staff. Use it to communicate marketing objectives. Keep them informed on the results.
- Test message frequency based on various content. Throttle back and forth between the segments in your list to gauge level of interest.
- Partner with a local business that lets allow you to send a special message with unique code for a discount on a product or service as a way of saying thank you.
- Always remember email is a fantastic tool to continually communicate what makes your community unique, whether it’s events or staff members.
Looking for even more marketing ideas to build your brand and retain patients? Contact a Digital Strategist at Marketing Essentials today to see how inbound can help! Call us today at 419.629.0080
