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Utilising Online your desired clientele. For example, you may

want to expand your male market, so invite
10 men who could be potential patients to

Content Marketing
attend a focus group. You can then ask them
about what online content they would find
interesting and why they would click and
follow your clinic.”
Aesthetics sits down with clinic owners and Similarly, aesthetic practitioner and clinic
marketing professionals to find out how to create owner Dr Qian Xu believes that connecting
with your target audience in person can be
and promote the most relevant online content to extremely beneficial when gauging audience
attract patients requirements. She states, “I’m targeting
professional women. By going to business
Right now, ‘content marketing’ seems to be the frequently used buzzword when it comes networking events to meet potential patients
to growing your brand online. The Content Marketing Institute, a resource for information on in person, I can find out what their concerns
content marketing, defines it as a ‘strategic marketing approach’ concentrated on generating are and they will tell me what advice they
‘valuable content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience’.1 The premise of content look for, which will identify what content I
marketing is not to directly advertise your services; instead its aim is to offer patients useful should be posting.”
content that answers their questions and shares your expertise to encourage ‘profitable Hutchings also advises that linking current
consumer action’.1 However, why should you choose this approach over traditional digital events that are relatable to patients into your
advertising? This article will look at why blogs and video content are two of the most valuable blog posts can improve their shareability. She
forms of online content marketing to your existing and potential aesthetic patients and how you states, “You should showcase procedures
can get this material across in the most successful way. and results, describing how they’ve been
achieved and offer treatment information
Starting with a strategy in the form of downloads to develop your
An online content strategy is defined as the piece of a marketing plan that details how brand’s authority and add value for your
a brand will develop and manage both written and visual media forms.2 In his blog post patients. Always include useful content to
entitled ‘How to Develop a Content Strategy’, founder of business lead generation your readers; a blog should be seen as a
platform, Justin McGill, recommends considering the following for developing a successful source of information. In the same sense
content marketing strategy:2 that people use Google or look on news
apps, your blog can be utilised as a voice of
• What questions will your content answer for your audience? authority in the sector by readers.”
• How unique will your content be?
• What formats will you focus on? Producing your content
It is useful to consider the subjects your
Senior digital marketing consultant, Gina Hutchings, believes that what digitally active users blog will cover and how best they can
want is useful information that applies to them. She states, “The best content comes in the be conveyed. The professionals advise
form of trustworthy and authoritative pieces that are relatable to your audience; things like case using blog posts and video hosted on your
studies and solutions to issues.” Hutchings adds, “Practitioners should be prepared to offer website as the main format for your online
their audience something for free before they invest in your services.” content, which can then be distributed
Consultant plastic surgeon and clinic owner Mr Taimur Shoaib believes aesthetic businesses and shared through your social media and
will benefit from creating an online content strategy that is patient centred. The professionals email channels. They recommend breaking
interviewed note that at the heart of an online content strategy should be the aim of answering down your longer posts into more digestible
questions that patients may have; for example, queries on the recovery time or potential risks chunks that can be read quickly and easily, or
associated with specific treatments. sharing short video snippets, with hyperlinks
It is also beneficial for both your business and patients that this is done in a unique and to your website to read or view the content
shareable way. Mr Shoaib explains, “The patients that we’re trying to engage with in aesthetics in full. The aim of this is to generate more
generally want to know about themselves; for example, why would you do this treatment for visits to your website and entice potential
me and why am I turning to this page for information? If patients are interested then they’ll click patients to visit other pages, building trust
to find more information on how you can help.” in your levels of professionalism through
your content and brand, before eventually
Gauging audience requirements converting to paying patients.
Interviewees all note that producing content that is appropriate for your target audience is
vital for driving your business’s growth. However, getting to know what specific material your Blogs
potential patients are looking for can seem like a daunting task. Written blogs can be utilised in a variety of
Hutchings suggests that deciphering what form of content and subject matter is of most ways and may prove to be better suited to
interest to your audience can start with a simple poll or survey that can be shared online and your aesthetic business compared to video.
in clinic; for example, asking what types of treatment they’re interested in learning more about. For example, communicating complex
Additionally, she notes that, at times, interactions such as focus groups can lead to the most or longer-form descriptions, examples of
fruitful results. Hutchings advises, “Choose a cross-section of people you think would make case studies, explanations of the latest

Reproduced from Aesthetics | Volume 5/Issue 11 - October 2018