Furthermore, you were trained to be professional and that self-promotion is in conflict with your values of serving others. You are also very uncomfortable with some of the marketing strategies used by some companies today which feel aggressive and manipulative.

Hence, you have come to feel quite negative about marketing, and therefore, don't feel motivated to do it.

To help you overcome these negative feelings about marketing, I offer five simple ideas that will liberate your marketing.

1. Choose a set of simple, effective things to do and do them consistently.

You may think there is some hidden secret to marketing your professional practice. The process may seem mysterious or overwhelming to you.

The real key to successful marketing is choosing just a few simple, effective things to do, and then doing these things consistently. This is how you build your business more quickly by doing less. Instead of spreading yourself thin with a dozen different marketing strategies, you could simply do some networking with physicians with consistent follow-up, give talks to some targeted community groups and follow-up with those you meet, and that would be it.

Trying to do too much or starting something and not doing it consistently may be sabotaging your marketing efforts.

2. Rely on persistence, not magic.

If you limit your marketing efforts to what you can realistically do well and move purposefully in a specific direction, you will be exercising persistence. Positive intentions alone won't work. There is a direct connection between purposeful marketing and the results you get.

For example, if you make ten calls a week, every week, you will get more clients.

3. Choose a niche and become known for it.

You may be reluctant to choose a niche for your private practice. I know you don't want to limit yourself and having a niche doesn't limit you; it focuses you. Of course you can still choose to work with anyone who shows up at the door of your practice.

But to be effective in marketing, you need a focal point for your activities. The world is too big to market to all of it.

Your niche can be a target audience, a specialty or both. When you choose a niche you become known in it and clients start calling you.

Follow the first rule of choosing a few simple things to do and do them consistently. If you focus on one defined niche, your marketing is completely within your grasp.

4. Market the results of your work, not the process you use.

If you're not telling clients about the results of your services and the benefits they will get from them, they will never see the value of them. Your clients and prospects are simply not interested in hearing about your clinic, how long you have been in business, and the processes you use.

Whenever possible, market the benefits of physical therapy so that your clients can place a value on them, even a dollar value. You could talk about healthier lifestyle, or give them the answer to an essential need they have.

5. Ask people you already know for help.

This one simple habit may bring you all the clients you want: telling everyone you know what you are doing and asking for their help. Go through your address book and count up how many people you know who aren't aware of what you do. Begin reaching out to these people and let them know what you do. Have a network of people out there working for you so you don't have to work so hard.

I do hope you have found these five ideas helpful.

Prosperous Physical Therapy
Copyright @2008 by Erika Trimble All Rights Reserved