Building a Thriving Practice--Part XII

Advertising on our web site referral pages

This facility isn't just a bulletin board where people put up their quickie ads in hopes that someone will buy something. That rarely works, as many of you who put up such ads on our previous referral pages can attest. Instead, this facility will be more like a meeting place where friendship and healing coalesce. The ads will be friendly welcome mats rather than various forms of classified ads.

Thousands of prospective clients perused our previous referral pages in search of someone who could help them with their issues. Unfortunately, most of what they read had no personality, was written in the third person and was loaded with alphabetic acronyms and a rundown of the practitioner's accomplishments. In a word, they were boring. They didn't reach out to the client in a human way and extend a helping hand. They were static, plastic and had no life in them.

In addition, they didn't make it easy and attractive for the client to make contact. To paraphrase, most of them said, "Here is wonderful me. Please call." They didn't say, "You might be interested in my new book/brochure entitled 'Real Relief using EFT'. Email me and I'll send you a free copy" or "Let's chat for awhile on the phone without charge to see how well we might work together."

Most people think of advertising as either (1) attention getting graphics with clever phrases that suck people into buying things or (2) or the tombstone type of ad that says, "I have XXX for sale, please call." Ads like these exist, of course, but they are nowhere near as effective as they could be. They miss the bullseye by a wide margin.

Truly effective advertising is easy and you don't need to invade the library to learn how to do it. In fact, you don't need to learn anything. You already know how. To write an effective ad you merely write....

a welcome letter.

That's it! An effective ad is simply a warm, personal message from you to someone else that reaches out and welcomes them. It is a message that might say....

"Let me suggest a free chat to see if we might work well together. Wednesday mornings are usually good for me. 555-8794"

instead of....

"Here are all my achievements. Be sure to notice all the letters behind my name. Please call."

Do you see the difference? Which message (ad) would YOU be more likely to respond to. The first one says, "Come on in and sit down. I would like to get to know you." while the second one is more standoffish and tends to be static, lifeless and displays "yawnable" qualities.

With this in mind, let me list several advertising principles that should help you write an effective ad.

1. YOUR AD SHOULD BE A WELCOME LETTER: We covered this above. I place it first because it should be your underlying principle. Always write it in the first person as though you were writing it to a good friend. It is much more congenial that way.

2. MEET YOUR PROSPECTIVE CLIENT WHERE S/HE IS COMING FROM: This one is obvious, but often overlooked (especially in this field).

Suppose, for example, you have an interest in buying some running shoes. Consequently, you walk into a shoe store and tell the salesperson what you want. The salesperson, however, seems to think it necessary to acquaint you with their inventory of high fashion shoes. So s/he takes you down those aisles, pausing to sing the praises of the latest styles and high fashions of those unwanted shoes. Since the salesperson isn't speaking to your interest, you excuse yourself and walk out. No connection. No rapport. No sale.

While the prospective clients that read your ad may not be looking for running shoes, they ARE coming with a very specific focus--namely, EFT. That's where you should meet them. I know it is tempting to display all your professional credentials instead and hope that a prospective client will be wowed with the magnitude of your magnificence. After all, you spent time and money getting these credentials and one of your motivations was to use them as a means to impress others. There's a time and place for that, of course, but it is an inefficient use of ad space to put it in your EFT web site ad.

Think about it! These prospective clients are reading your ad on the EFT web site. Many have read through our impressive case histories section. Some may have downloaded the EFT manual or bought our video sets. They want to know what you can do for them with EFT. That's where they are coming from so that's where you should meet them. How obvious can this be? Don't dilly-dally down the high fashion shoe aisles by telling them about your other skills and accomplishments. You can do that later. Instead, TELL THEM WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH EFT.

Lay it out for them in clear terms with statements like....

• "My greatest successes with EFT have been with traumatic memories, fears, grief and self image. I must admit I was skeptical at first but became a believer after witnessing, over and over again, dramatic client improvement. "
• "I've seen headaches disappear, nightmares vanish and I've even taken care of several cases of dyslexia in less than 3 sessions."
• "I'm proud to have aided Vietnam war veterans who now lead normal lives without their flashbacks and nightmares. If we can do THAT with EFT, we can handle almost any other emotional issue."

Let me repeat...you MUST meet the client at their point of interest.

3. BUILD A BRIDGE INTO YOUR OFFICE THAT IS EASY FOR THE CLIENT TO WALK ACROSS: Here are some sample bridge building statements you may want to adjust or include within your ad...

• "Healing is a personal experience and so we probably need to chat awhile before making any decisions. Tuesday afternoons are usually pretty good for me. You can call me then. No charge."
• "I have a 20 page brochure entitled, 'EFT Success Stories'. It's free. You can either call my office or email me and I'll send one right out."
• "If you would like referrals, I have a list of EFT clients that have volunteered to speak with you first hand. Chances are, some of them have had successful resolution of the same problem you are facing now. Just ask for our EFT client list and I'll send you the names and phone numbers right away."
• "Every Thursday evening I have group EFT sessions for 2 or 3 hours. EFT works very well in groups and we usually make impressive progress for everyone. The first session is free so you can come and see how you like it. After that, the cost is only $50 per session. I usually have 20 or 30 people so it is easy to blend in. Private sessions are available too, of course."
• "If you want, we can arrange a "guaranteed results" payment arrangement. That means we can agree on a specific result and, if you achieve it, you pay the agreed amount. Otherwise, no charge."
• "I've had great success doing EFT over the phone and so you might want to do it that way--saves you some driving time and it's really convenient. Give me a call and we can spend 15 minutes or so on a specific issue of yours. No charge."

4. THE FIRST SENTENCE OF YOUR NARRATIVE ACTS LIKE A HEADLINE. If it doesn't speak to them, they are less likely to read further. Get to the point right away. Put the punchline up front.

Examples:

• "Call me for a free sample phone session."
• "Anxiety, trauma and fears are my EFT specialties."
• "Let me suggest 3 ways to use EFT painlessly."
• "Have you tried the EFT Tearless Trauma Technique?"

5. KEEP REVISING YOUR AD UNTIL YOU GET THE RESPONSE YOU WANT: I don't know anyone who consistently gets an ad "right" the first time--including me. The reason, as I have said many times before, is that only the marketplace can tell you whether or not your ad is "right." So write your ad and wait for the marketplace to respond. Then change one thing about the ad (like the first sentence) and wait for the marketplace to respond again. Then change another thing and notice your response. Keep records. Sooner or later you will discover the "right" ad through trial and error.

This is one of the main advantages of our new referral pages. You can modify you ads as much as you want AND you can do so for free. Further, your response (or lack thereof) shows up right away. You don't have to pay for an ad and then wait days or weeks for it to be published. This quick turn around allows you to frequently test your ad and keep revising it.

So, if at first you don't succeed....

Hugs, Gary

Addendum message to the EFT email support list

Hi Everyone,

Our do-it-yourself facility that allows EFT'ers to put their listings/ads directly onto our web site is working nicely. Many of you have used it successfully. The few that have had problems either didn't read the directions carefully OR have older computer systems that need upgrading.

I realize that most healing practitioners spend their time diligently improving their skills and thus have not had much experience in the business world. This is grounds for improvement, of course, because the finest healing practitioner in the world is useless if no one knows of their existence. There must be some form of effective advertisement or promotion if clients and practitioners are going to come together. That may seem "crassly commercial" to some and, if that's you, I invite you to get out your tapping finger tips and repeat after me..."Even though I'm still in the 19th century......"

Our website is fertile ground for such advertising. Tens of thousands of prospective clients peruse our referral pages each month in search of someone who might help them. If you aren't getting many responses it is NOT because no one sees your ad. It is because they are ignoring it.

The principle advantages of using our website for advertising are (1) it's free and (2) you can test and change your ad all you want. It's also advantageous to clients because they can freely browse through the listings of many practitioners and easily contact (via phone or email) those whose listing interests them. They can also click right over to a practitioner's web site (if available) to find out more.

I wish to emphasize the importance of being able to modify your listing whenever you choose. This allows you to test several versions (one at a time) and thus assess the "pulling power" of each one. If you are having little or no success, you can make changes in a few minutes and without cost. Then sit back for 3 or 4 weeks to see what happens. Keep records as to which versions do best. Keep refining it until you get one that works well.

I have a few suggestions for improvement that came from my briefly "eyeballing" some of the recent listings.

1. While most of them exuded enthusiasm (that's good), some came across as "trying too hard." As a result they weren't believable. They were overdone and came across as hype or oversell and weren't really "welcome messages." You might, for example, wish to replace words like "amazing" with "substantial" or "high quality."

Along these lines, which of these statements sounds more believable...?

a. "Wow!! This EFT stuff is better than an orgasm."

OR

b. "I have been continually impressed with the quality of my clients' progress with EFT. So far, it has surpassed any other technique I've come across in the past 20 years of my professional career."

The second one is more down to earth, more believable. It contains enthusiasm but it's not so "in your face" as to be a turnoff. As a result, it is more likely to generate a positive response from the reader.

Go back and read your listing again with these thoughts in mind. Read it objectively and assess how it might sound to someone who doesn't know you. Read the listings of other practitioners and assess your gut reactions to them. Model from those that come across well.

2. Some of you did really well with the first line (effectively, the headline) of your narrative. As you may recall, the headline is a critical element in an ad. It is, in effect, the ad for the ad. A good headline invites people to read further. A poor one is often snubbed. For example, which of the following headlines is more likely to get your attention...

a. "My training includes NLP and Touch for Health."

OR

b. "Let's chat first, no charge. 555-1234"

The first one doesn't build a bridge into your office EXCEPT for those very few people who know (and care) what NLP and Touch for Health is. Otherwise, it's a candidate for the "Snore of the Month" award. The second one builds a bridge. It offers an open hand, a no-cost opportunity to explore further. This is the type of headline that invites the reader to keep reading.

3. Another item that goes along with the headline is "putting the punch line up front." I mentioned this in a previous message. Essentially, one should take the most enticing part of the narrative and use it as the first line (headline). This is the big interest getter and is most likely to draw attention to the body of your listing. Some of you left your punch line at the end where it is less likely to be read.

4. Also, despite my previous suggestions to the contrary, some of you insist on dedicating several lines to the prominent display of your various credentials and trainings. This may have great meaning to you and you may think it impresses prospective clients. However, please remember that the people seeing your ad on our web site are CURIOUS ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH EFT. If you list everything else you do, you run the risk of confusing the client. More importantly, you are sending a message that says, "I'm not really as proficient with EFT as others. I do a lot of other things." If that's what you want to say, fine. But don't expect a maximum response.

5. Finally, some of you did not read the directions carefully regarding paragraphs. It was clearly stated that the coding between paragraphs should be <BR><BR>. Many of you only put in one <BR> while others put in <Break><Break>. Neither of these latter efforts produced satisfactory results. I know some of this stuff can be a bit technical but the directions are quite clear. Please read the directions carefully. Failure to do so is the number one cause behind those having problems with this do-it-yourself facility.

Hugs, Gary

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