Everyone wants their marketing to be memorable and engaging, but let’s face it, creating a message that people remember can be difficult. Even when you’re the most qualified clinician in your city, often your practice can still be overlooked. It’s frustrating. How do you find the right words to better stick in patients’ minds?

Memorable marketing forms around a simple concept: storytelling.

If your marketing features a list of services, where you attended dental school, or your new CEREC machine, it’s likely to be forgotten. While those things are important, what gets remembered more is a story that engages your potential new patients, and keeps your practice front-of-mind.

So what even is a story, and how does it relate to marketing?

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The Story Gap‍

Sally knew she couldn’t be late for the first day of her new job, but she couldn’t find her car keys anywhere.

Put simply, a story opens with a problem and ends with a solution. If it’s compelling enough, audiences will get hooked on the problem presented and wait with eager anticipation as the author guides them to the solution. The gap between, the path from a problem to the solution, that’s storytelling.

‍After looking all over the house, Sally noticed her daughter’s picture on the mantle. Of course! She swung open the fridge, and found her keys sitting on some Tupperware with a sticky-note, “For mommy’s big day.” She wouldn’t want to forget the lunch her daughter had so kindly packed for her.

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Your Story is Your Patients’ Story

While the story of how you founded your practice is beautiful, it is not the driving force of your marketing. The story that captures your patients’ attention is their own.

This doesn’t mean you are excluded, though. You play the most important role of all! Without you, they may never even make it across the gap.

Your story is a bridge between your patient's problem and the solution.

Ask yourself what problem your patient is facing. When you identify their problem, and ultimately link it to a solution, positioning yourself in the middle is easy.

To better understand the common problems patients have, check out our article: 3 Things Patients Want.

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Story-Driven Marketing

Let’s dive into an example…

“I’m an orthodontic practice looking to attract new patients,
but don’t know how to shape my practice in a way that tells a story.”

We recently worked with an orthodontist in Livingston, NJ who was looking to set herself apart. We started by identifying the biggest problem she saw her patients having: a lack of confidence.

She believed that every patient deserved a beautiful smile because everyone should have equal opportunities in life.

After identifying the core problem of her patients (a lack of confidence) and the solution (a chance at equal opportunities) she was able to find her story.

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This simple, yet powerful statement established her as the bridge from one side to the other.

Her message continues – she wants to tear down the walls that make care inaccessible. Her judgment-free office, flexible hours, and affordable payment plans all serve her story of giving patients a chance at opportunity.

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Your Story is Worth it.

A story is powerful, but it takes work to find it. We get it. We’ve helped practices across the country discover their story so they can stand in the gap for their patients.

Send us a message – we’d love to help you discover yours!