It’s no secret that I love Facebook marketing for dentists and using dental marketing funnels to grow your dental practice. That said, some of my favorite marketing strategies are local marketing strategies. So, when I hear about ways to make local networking even more effective, such as by using ground marketing strategies, I pay attention.
The term ground marketing essentially means building relationships with companies to earn business from their employees and customers. My friend Michael Arias, who coined the term, calls it a more sophisticated way of guerrilla marketing.
Strategic alliances and host beneficiary programs are two examples of ground marketing strategies, although Michael takes it to a whole new level with his teaching. If you’re a member of Dental Profit Academy, you might be familiar with Michael from the ground marketing training in there.
If not, here are three steps to start using ground marketing to start getting patients in bunches.
Identify Key Businesses
Any hotels, restaurants, gyms, banks, or apartment buildings in your neighborhood? Those are great targets because they not only tend to have many employees, they also have many customers. They’re prime targets for strategic alliances, host beneficiaries, or other ground marketing strategies.
Ask a Team Member to Contact One of the Businesses
Michael and I did a Facebook Live in my free Dental Marketing and Profits Facebook group when he was launching his Ground Marketing Course. He suggested having an outgoing team member lead your ground marketing initiatives. I totally agree. If you don’t have an outgoing team member currently, you could do things yourself for a while. You could get some part-time help, too. Once you know who will lead your efforts, have them reach out to businesses.
Michael shared the example of an apartment complex on our Facebook Live, so let’s use that for this post. After all, there are a lot of people who live and work in apartment complexes. Call the complex and ask for the building manager. Have your team member introduce themselves as calling from a local dentist from down the street. That’s often all you need to say to get the manager on the phone.
Ask the Manager About Employee and Customer Benefits
When you get the manager on the phone, reintroduce yourself, and ask about benefits they provide to employees or customers. For example, many apartment complexes give new tenants move-in packs. Others hold tenant events, such as happy hours and holiday parties. Some do both.
Ask to Participate and Offer Incentives
When you learn about the benefits they offer, ask to participate, and offer additional benefits for employees or tenants. For example, if the apartment complex offers move-in packs but nothing else, you can ask to participate and offer the same benefit to employees. A simple “I’d love to participate by offering all tenants a free teeth whitening. In fact, if that’s something your employees might like, I’d be happy to drop off a sign-up sheet this week and offer it to anyone who signs up this week. I’ll swing by at the end of the week to pick it up so everyone has an opportunity to sign up.”
Let them know many businesses find that these offers make them look good by getting their customers or employees benefits that don’t cost the company anything.
When they say yes, bring a flyer and sign-up sheet explaining the offer. That gives you a chance to get in the door and collect emails. It also puts a deadline on the offer so you don’t have people asking to sign up after your ground marketing efforts have filled up your schedule!
Follow through on your offer for their tenants, and you’ll be well on your way to earning patients by the bunches. Free services for new patients can be effective ground marketing offers. Free toothbrushes and toothpaste can be helpful in some situations, too, such as if you set up a table at a tenant-appreciation event.
Get Ready to Get Patients in Bunches
Are you just opening your office and don’t have a lot of money for marketing? Are you expanding your practice and need to fill your schedule fast? Or are you struggling to get patients and want a low-tech solution to get started?
Ground marketing might be the solution for you. For more ground marketing strategies, sign up for Dental Profit Academy and take the ground marketing training in there. You can also connect with Michael Arias directly next time he opens the doors to his full Ground Marketing Course for Dentists if you’re ready to go all-in with ground marketing.
This post originally appeared at DeliveringWow.com
This article originally appeared on DeliveringWOW.com