Walter Hailey and Steve Anderson talk about...
What do things go better with? Coke. Number One in car rentals? Hertz. Who tries harder? Avis. What toothpaste fights cavities? Crest.
Given enough help from marketing, we’ll ask for a Kleenex when we really mean a tissue or a Xerox when we really mean a copy.
Most people don’t think for themselves. They’ve got enough to do already! They tend to repeat what is told to them. For this reason, giving an easy-to-remember Compelling Benefit Statement (CBS – check out last week’s article) is a good idea. It not only creates powerful word-of-mouth, but it helps people distinguish this car manufacturer, this marketing group, this dentist, from all others.
You have to watch what you tell other people because what you say about yourself and your dental practice will be repeated by others. – often word for word, if it’s simple and catchy enough.
Privately, after a conference we’d given in Philadelphia, we described our firm to a participant as “one of the 500 fastest growing companies of its kind in the United States.” Ten minutes later we overheard that very phrase used by another participant to a different group of people.
Don’t assume people know what you do. Give them help.
What’s the most useful thing you can do?
People learn how to talk about you by listening to how you talk about yourself.
Roger Cameron and Rene Brooks, owners of Cameron Brooks, the top Fortune 500 recruitment firm of its kind, told us they had taken this idea so seriously that they changed the way they described their company. They began calling it what it actually was, “a world class recruiting organization.” Within weeks, people they had never met before were addressing them on the phone with that very same expression.
Use people’s natural tendency to circulate information to your advantage. Give them something to talk about that is unique and memorable, something worth repeating that places what you do in a new spot in their minds.
Marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products or services. If your message indicates that you lead or excel in a particular category, it helps a lot since no one is likely to remember an also-ran in abroad category. Better still is to narrow what you do down to a phrase that captures in the prospect’s mind the essence of what your dental practice does that separates you from the rest.
You can get yourself started by answering these simple questions:
What phrase best indicates the uniqueness of what your dental services provide?
Imagine that you could overhear the most complimentary remark about you or your dental practice. What would it be?
Now start saying it to others!
If you would like to learn more about Dental Boot Kamp (www.dentalbootkamp.com) or the Crown Council (www.crowncouncil.com) contact gregs@dentalsuccess.net or call 800-460-3838 x106.
