Human Interest Marketing – Part 7

In dentistry, I recommend that your blog is published once a week.

Please don’t only publish blog posts about how to floss, the dangers of periodontal disease and how implants work.

Can we remind ourselves of that old phrase:

people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care…..

Back to human interest.

Your audience for the blog is:

  • existing patients who may be curious to buy more and/or share your posts with their social community
  • potential new patients who may have visited your web site but who are not yet ready to buy
  • existing and potential referring GDP’s

Your content for the blog is:

  • stories about patients whose lives have changed for the better because they met you
  • stories about team members whose lives have changed for the better because they met you
  • stories about charitable and community causes that you support
  • stories of human interest about other people in your community
  • every now and then, stories about people who have changed other’s lives on a national or international scale
  • your opinions on matters to do with healthcare, your local community or, occasionally national and international issues (but be careful around politics, religion, sexuality and relationships)

Probably the most widely read blog written by a dentist in the UK is Colin Campbell’s, which rose to prominence when he courageously shared the day to day horrors of a Fitness to Practice investigation which left him professionally unscathed but emotionally scarred.

Colin also talks about the evolution of digital workflow in his clinic, his Academy Courses and about movies, books, music and his fitness and family.

I doubt that many will equal Colin’s readership or the frequency of his posts (that’ll be 365 a year) but the principle remains the same – that you are giving your audience the opportunity to check in with your core values, your vision, mission, role and goals – so that they can make a future decision to connect with you.

This triages out the patients that you don’t want to see and acts as a comforting magnet for those who you do.

New patients (and, in my case, clients) will sometimes contact you months or years after following you.

I’ve used WordPress as my platform since 2004 and have found it to be easy to navigate and always reliable.

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Chris Barrow

Chris Barrow has been active as a consultant, trainer and coach to the UK dental profession for over 20 years. As a writer, his blog enjoys a strong following and he is a regular contributor to the dental press. Naturally direct, assertive and determined, he has the ability to reach conclusions quickly, as well as the sharp reflexes and lightness of touch to innovate, change tack and push boundaries. In 2014 he appeared as a “castaway” in the first season of the popular reality TV show “The Island with Bear Grylls”. His main professional focus is as Coach Barrow, providing coaching and mentorship to independent dentistry.