We have come a long way!
You have done all the hard work and followed the steps in our first three lessons in our course. For a quick recap, here are the first 3 lessons in Building The Perfect Marketing Plan For Your Addiction Treatment Center!
- Design The Perfect Website To Convert Traffic Into Admits
- 4 Steps To Building The Perfect Keyword Research Plan
- Site Structure And Content Creation For Addiction Treatment Sites
Now is the time to do a quick review, because at this point, all your foundational work is done. This is the point where we really start with the marketing and bringing traffic to the website.
The first issue we will touch upon is growing your social media presence. It is a good place to start because these days, all credible treatment centers are expected to have a social media presence.
Get Your Following Involved
At first, we find that many treatment facilities are apprehensive in getting your followers involved. Traditionally, recovery has been clouded with anonymity. It is understandable why many would think this way, but we suggest the opposite approach.
Clients who have graduated through your facility and have regained their lives should be celebrated. It is important to get permission, but posting pictures of people and celebrating their sobriety dates is a great way to get your community involved.
The attention is contagious, people will flock to get their pictures and their sobriety dates posted on your social media account. They will share it among themselves and it will only grow your following.
Share the love!
Create Content That Engages Conversation
We have touched on the many different kinds of content. We will dive deeply into this in our next segment which will be “Creating Blog Content That Makes An Impact In Recovery.”
When we speak about building a social following, there are very specific forms of content that do very well. There is a term called “virality” that defines how much your content has spread through social media.
When building a social following, you want to make sure that your posts have virality. In other words, create content that people will share with each other. The best type of content for this are generally list posts… but there’s a catch.
When dealing with something as serious as addiction treatment, it is important to make sure your content has substance and is filled with valuable information. Don’t make list posts for the sake of making list posts. First, think of a subject that needs to be explained and could be of value to the recovery community. A good list post is more than mindless entertainment. See the list as the structural foundation for your article, but act as if you are trying to inform and help your following.
These type of posts will spread like wildfire!
Keep in mind that other forms of content are also valuable and necessary. But speaking specifically in regards to content that will help build your social following, list posts are the way to go.
Personalize Your Posts
Addiction treatment is serious business, but that doesn’t mean we always have to take ourselves so seriously.
Don’t be afraid to show who you are. The transparency is appreciated and is good marketing. What do we mean by this?
- Post videos of your staff speaking about recovery or giving advice.
- Write blogs from a personal perspective. Don’t be afraid to give your opinion.
- Use humor.
- Show your faces and speak directly to your audience.
BE CAREFUL! Many times opinions mean controversy, and it’s important not to speak on controversial topics for the sake of creating an argument that will fuel interaction. You still need to represent your brand and only the business owner can decide what is appropriate or not.
The point is that social media is a medium for you to interact directly with your following. So take advantage of that! Let them meet your staff. Let them get to know your program. Keep them informed of community events you participate in. It all adds up and most importantly, it builds trust.
Your alumni will appreciate seeing your shining faces after they have left. You will serve as a constant reminder as to why they stay sober.
Be Consistent
This may be the most important tip we can offer. Social media is all about persistence and consistency.
Many times, business’s start strong on social media. They bust right out of the gate and are posting every day, sometimes 3 times a day. Yet, they quickly get discouraged at the lack of interaction on their pages.
Then they quit.
This is a mistake. Social media is a brand enforcer more than anything else. You need to maintain vigilance and post with consistency. Over time, as your following grows, so will your interaction rates. Your interaction rates will grow your reach and add more followers. It grows exponentially.
It may take a couple of rounds through the factor tree to really see that parabolic growth. But it will happen. A successful social media presence may take a year or two to gain real traction. However, once you have built a following, it is yours for the keeping.
SIDE NOTE – SOCIAL MEDIA ADVERTISING
Any time we take on a new client, we immediately assign a budget for social media advertising.
It is cheap and cost effective. It is not however, a good way to increase admits into your facility. To say again, social media is a branding tool. So assigning a budget that builds your brand is always worth the investment.
Here is a rule of thumb. 3/4 of your social budget should be assigned to growing your social following. This includes a Facebook likes campaign, a Twitter followers campaign, etc.
The other 1/4 should go towards bringing traffic to your site. Most social media platforms have very robust and comprehensive PPC options where you can pay to drive traffic to your website. It may be a good idea to drive this traffic to a sign-up form to increase your email list as well. This kills two birds with one stone.
Also, for Facebook, if you have a post that is doing really well, don’t be afraid to spend some money to spread it even further. There is a little blue button at the bottom of posts that says “boost.” It is simple. Click the button, assign how much money to put towards that post, and then watch as your content spreads across the recovery world!
Building a social following is critical. It serves many purposes and can bring credibility to your brand and gives you an outlet to speak to your following and alumni.
Get social! It will be worth the time and investment!
