As a physical therapist, you know how important it is to stay connected with your patients. But with the hustle and bustle of everyday life, it can take a lot of work to keep in touch with everyone. That’s why email marketing is such an effective tool for physical therapists.
Email marketing is a sub-niche of digital marketing that lets you quickly send out information about your practice, upcoming events, special offers, and more—without having to pick up the phone or write individual emails.
Let’s take a closer look at how physical therapists can leverage email marketing.
Getting Started With Email Marketing
The first step in email marketing is setting up an account with an email service provider (ESP). An ESP will provide you with the tools you need to create beautiful emails that get opened and read by your patients. It will also track your results so that you can see exactly which emails are performing the best.
Once you have set up your account, it’s time to start building your contacts list. You can do this through various methods, including offering incentives for signing up, encouraging referrals from existing customers, or simply asking people at the front desk of your office if they would like to receive updates from your practice via email.
The Benefits of Email Marketing to Physical Therapists
Marketing to your existing and potential patients is key to increasing revenue if you’re a physical therapist. This outreach must become part of the plan if getting more clients through your door is on the agenda. Don’t just expect them to show up out of thin air– get proactive!
Email might sound like a relic of the past, but don’t let it fool you! Stats show that email is still alive and kicking. Let’s dive in and look at what they say
It looks like the older generations still have us beat when it comes to staying connected. According to Hubspot, Baby Boomers are most likely of all groups –
- 74% of them prefer email when getting communication from brands and businesses
- as opposed to Gen Xers at 72%
- Millenials 64%
- and Gen Z’s 60%
Email marketing is a powerful tool for physical therapists, increasing their reach and allowing them to reap many rewards.
The utilization of email marketing for physical therapists may result in several advantages, such as:
- Introducing new patients to your practice
- Engaging with existing ones
- Boosting the appointment count.
- Obtaining recommendations from contented clients.
There are plenty of possibilities waiting in every inbox!
Creating a Physical Therapy Email List
There are methods to construct your email list. Here are 3 approaches to promptly and effectively gather names and addresses.
Request an email address from your new and current patients.
Add an email address field to your new patient intake forms. For current patients, instruct your front desk to request patients for their email addresses to receive a free newsletter and be the first to know about promotions.
Use a website lead generator.
Generate more leads for your PT business using a lead capture tool on your website. Reap the benefits of increased engagement and an expanded customer base.
A lead generator tool on a website is a software or platform that helps to capture potential customer information such as name, email, phone number, and more. The goal of a lead generator tool is to collect leads (prospective customer data) and provide them to the business owner or sales team for follow-up and conversion into customers. These tools are usually integrated into the website and often appear as forms, pop-ups, chatbots, and more.
Ensure Prompt Collection of Patient Information at the Front Desk
Your front desk is your first impression and a golden opportunity for conversions. Make sure they’re primed for success – ensuring that on every call, the patient’s name, telephone number, and email address are obtained right away in case of any dropped calls.
It shows commitment – if someone called you interested but was still getting ready at that particular time or price point. Connecting with them through email can lead to future conversations (and potential sales).
Essential Automated Email Campaigns for PT Clini
Automated email campaigns can be a huge help for your business – they don’t require you to do any work and make sure relevant emails go out right on schedule.
Imagine the benefits of never having to hit “send” again while keeping patients engaged, finding new leads, or achieving whichever marketing goals are most important! It’s like having an assistant that works even when you’re not around – automagic!
Establishing Website Triggers for Effective Follow-Up
An eBook download might be the first step in a journey for potential patients – one example of success could be when those downloading get converted to book a free consultation.
It’s an effective lead generation follow-up that helps nurture prospects along their path!
Comprehensive Welcome Email Series
The welcome email series can improve retention rates for new members and patients. In the first of a series of emails, you’ll introduce yourself to prospective patients and list how their physical therapy treatment will improve their lives.
Such emails inform patients about upcoming events, workshops, health tips, and other ways they can become involved with your office.
Nurturing Relationships with Past Patients
Want to make sure past patients stay engaged, and referrals keep pouring in? Keep them informed with helpful content specifically tailored to their needs.
For instance, you can provide resources or advice on pain relief techniques for your arthritis patients or proper running form for your athlete clients.
Nurturing campaigns give your past patients something to look forward to with monthly digital newsletters. Mix things up and delight them by switching between campaigns, promotions, discounts, and offers – all tailored for the ultimate experience.
Reactivation/sales campaign
The aim of this email marketing initiative for a physical therapy clinic is to re-engage patients who have received treatment there but have yet to return recently.
Creating Engaging Content For Your Emails
Now that you have built a list of contacts, it’s time to start crafting engaging content for your emails. Ensure that each email contains valuable information that will make recipients want to open and read it.
You should include helpful tips about physical therapy exercises or share stories about successful cases at your office.
Whatever content you choose to include in your emails should be exciting and relevant for readers.
If you’re a physical therapy clinic owner, chances are your patient base is full of Baby Boomers. That means it’s time to put email marketing into play – and trust us, that’ll be way more than what you initially expected!
- Keep it Short & Sweet
When writing emails, it’s essential to keep them concise and to the point. You want to convey your message without overwhelming your reader or boring them with long paragraphs of text. Aim for emails that are no more than 2-3 sentences long, and make sure to include only the most relevant information.
- Personalize Your Messages
Nothing says “caring professional” like personalizing your messages! Take the time to add details like names, dates, and other relevant information whenever possible.
This will show your patients that you care about them as individuals and not just another number on your list of clients. This small gesture could make a massive difference in how they view you and your services!
- Use Visuals Whenever Possible
Sometimes words just aren’t enough when trying to convey a particular concept or idea—especially regarding physical therapy instructions!
To help keep things interesting (and give yourself a break from too much typing) try using visuals whenever possible such as pictures or diagrams illustrating what needs to be done or exercises that need to be performed.
This will go a long way in ensuring that patients understand exactly what is expected of them and how their progress should be tracked over time!
Email marketing provides physical therapists with an easy way to stay connected with their patients while still being able to manage their time effectively.
By setting up an ESP account, building a contact list, and creating engaging content for each message, physical therapists can leverage the power of email marketing.
It can help increase engagement with their patients while improving patient retention rates over time. So what are you waiting for? Start leveraging the power of email marketing today!
