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Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

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Obviously, effective marketing is crucial for plastic surgeons looking to avoid pitfalls when attracting new cosmetic patients. However, navigating the complexities of marketing is challenging because its gotten so technical, complicated and expensive. 

Additionally, this leads to making mistakes and wasting a ton of time, money and energy, so here are the 5 most common marketing mistakes, as well as insights and strategies to help you avoid them and optimize your marketing efforts.

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Mistake #1: Underestimating Patient Confusion

August Blog 1–1 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

One of the most significant challenges in marketing for plastic surgeons is underestimating how confusing and overwhelming the cosmetic patient journey can be. Patients follow a convoluted path when they are trying to find and choose the right surgeon for them. 

For example:

A patient might first hear about you from a friend. That piques their interest and they want to learn more.

So they oftentimes check out your social media first and that’s what leads them to your website. However, if your website is not user-friendly, lacks enough  information, or is poorly designed, they may get frustrated and leave.

But let’s say they like what they saw, so now they check out your reviews and before/after photos showing them tangible proof you are as good as you say you are. 

But now they check out your competitors to compare their social media, website, photos and  reviews.

NOW they have seen enough and are finally ready to contact you via direct messaging, email, phone calls, or filling out your online form.

Yikes, that’s a lot of twists and turns to get to you so here are tips to help:

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Tip:

Be sure your website is user-Friendly. It needs to be intuitive, mobile-friendly, and easy to navigate. Include clear information about procedures, pricing, and your credentials.

August Blog 1–2 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

Optimize your content so search engines (especially google) make it easier for patients to find you. Use relevant keywords, meta descriptions, and alt text for images.

Now include detailed content on the procedures you offer, including FAQs, blog posts, and educational videos. This helps establish your authority and educates the patient.

Encourage your happy patients to leave positive reviews on platforms like Google, Yelp, and RealSelf. Regularly monitor and respond to reviews to build and maintain a strong online reputation.

Use social media (especially Instagram) to build up your persona. Share patient testimonials, before-and-after photos, and educational content to engage with your audience. Add your personality so the patient sees you as a surgeon, but also as a great boss, a family man, etc.

Then be sure to offer ways for patients to contact you the way they want to communicate, such as phone, email, text, chatbot, or direct message you from social media. And set up processes to respond quickly. 

August Blog 1–3 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Mistake #2: Lack of Focus on Marketing Efforts

Another common mistake is lacking focus when marketing their practice. They try to promote every service they offer, from plastic surgery to skincare to skin cancer, without prioritizing. 

This “jack of all trades, master of none” approach can dilute your message and make it difficult for potential patients to understand what sets you apart. It’s also very expensive to market to everybody and the results are less than stellar because when you try to market every service you offer, your messaging becomes unclear. 

Potential patients can’t tell what you specialize in, so they are confused and that leads to distrust. 

And today’s patients are diverse in age, gender, ethnicity, and needs. Trying to cater to everyone can result in generic messaging that resonates with no one.

August Blog 1–4 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

So, spreading your marketing efforts across all services can stretch your resources thin, and that hurts your results so please focus your marketing efforts. 

For example, identify Your Ideal Patient. The one you love working with and would love more of the same.  Define the characteristics of that ideal patient, such as age, gender, and specific aesthetic concerns. Now tailor your messaging and marketing strategies to just that group.

Or specialize by highlighting 1 or 2 specific procedures you excel at and that are in high demand. For instance, if you specialize in facial rejuvenation, focus on promoting facelifts and rhinoplasty or, if you like bodywork, specialize in breast aug and tummy tucks.

This makes it much easier for you to develop a clear, concise message that communicates your unique value proposition and addresses your ideal patient’s pain points and explains why you are the best choice to solve their problems.

August Blog 1–5 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

You also want to produce content that speaks directly to your target audience’s needs and concerns. This includes blog posts, videos, and social media posts that answer common questions to showcase your expertise.

And lastly, use Targeted Advertising tools like Google Ads to reach your specific audience to ensure your ads are seen by the right people.

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Mistake #3: Not Utilizing Video Content

Like it or not, video content is THE dominant marketing tool for online marketing. It’s visual and highly engaging and can capture the attention of prospective patients more effectively than text or static images. It allows you to showcase procedures, explain complex topics, and build a personal connection.

And videos featuring patient testimonials, behind-the-scenes look at your practice, and introductions to your staff helps build trust with potential patients. They get to see your personality, professionalism, and the quality of your work.

Video content also improves your website’s SEO and videos are more likely to be shared on social media and other platforms and that increases your online visibility.

So, please embrace video. For example, 

Create educational videos that explain the procedures you offer, what patients can expect during and after surgery, and common FAQs. Use simple language and visuals to make complex information understandable.

Patient Testimonial videos are golden so direct the patient by asking questions and have them share their experience. These testimonial videos build credibility and trust.

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Tip:

Videotape behind-the-Scenes Content by showing off your practice’s daily operations, tour of your office, introduce your staff, and capture “ a day-in-the-life video of a surgeon”. 

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There is no shortage of content when you ARE the content since every day is different with different patients coming and going. 

It’s also important to create short, engaging clips for social media platforms. These can include before-and-after transformations, quick tips, or highlights from longer videos.

And lastly, you can even host live Q&A sessions on platforms like Instagram or Facebook. This allows you to interact directly with potential patients, answer their questions in real-time, and address any concerns, but it’s helpful to have a pretty good following first so you’re sure to have lots of interaction.

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Mistake #4: Ignoring Metrics and Analytics

In marketing, data is invaluable. However, many plastic surgeons overlook the importance of tracking and analyzing their marketing efforts, and that’s why they complain they spent too much and didn’t get great results. 

Because without tracking, it’s impossible to know which marketing channels are delivering a return on investment (ROI). You may be wasting money on ineffective strategies.

So, the numbers help you identify trends and patterns in patient behavior, allowing you to adjust your strategies accordingly, tweak your campaigns, budget more effectively, and get better results.

August Blog 1–7 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

You start by setting Clear Goals, whether it’s increasing website traffic, generating leads, or boosting patient consultations.

Then you track Key Metrics called key performance indicators (KPIs) such as website traffic, conversion rates, cost per lead, and overall ROI. Use tools like Google Analytics, social media insights, and a CRM system to gather data.

And monitor these numbers weekly and monthly and quarterly and then compare these numbers against each other so you see if you are trending up or down. When you do it regularly, you can shift gears before you waste any more money on something that’s not working. 

You also make better-informed decisions based on facts rather than emotion or guessing. 

And lastly,

Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid Mistake #5: Focusing Solely on New Stranger Patients

While attracting new patients is essential for growth, focusing solely on attracting new stranger patients can be a costly mistake. The stats show that it costs up to 12X more to attract a new patient than it does to keep a current patient coming back for more. 

Your existing patients are a valuable resource that should not be overlooked because existing patients are more likely to return for additional services and refer their friends and family. That increases your conversion rates because a referred patient is way more likely to convert to a paid procedure compared to a new stranger patient who doesn’t know you.

August Blog 1–8 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid

And, since your current patients know, like and trust you already, they are more likely to help you grow your practice by not only returning and referring, but also reviewing, approving their B/A photos and sharing you on their social media channels and this lowers your marketing costs.

So, a great way to nurture these relationships and turn your patients into your practice ambassadors is to implement a loyalty program to reward your patients, as well as stay in touch through newsletters, emails, text and/or events.

I actually have a proprietary KiSS Loyalty Club where we nurture your current patients for you and do all the marketing so you don’t have to.

Schedule a consultation to learn more.

Kiss loyalty club, August Blog 1–8 Marketing Pitfalls to Avoid
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TESTIMONIALS

Rated 5 out of 5
"Catherine outlined a plan that put key metrics in place, gave us a clear plan to follow throughout the year and trained our staff to increase their conversions by at least 10%. Since engaging with Catherine, I’m happy to report that revenues are up 15% over the last three months - 22% in the last month alone! I highly recommend Catherine’s consulting services to any practice looking for “best practice” additions to their operation."
drsigal 3
Robert Sigal, MD
"I have finally tapped into the most efficient way to grow my cosmetic practice and that is to “fish in the pond of my own patients”. When patients return to my practice, over 85% will purchase another service, product, or procedure. Not only was it worth over $200,000 in revenues this past year, it also reminds my patients I’m still around so they don’t wander off to my competitors. Catherine’s group has far exceeded our expectations and goals we had set up for them to achieve."
Victor Ferrari, MD
Victor Ferrari, MD
"Our consult conversions were running at 40-50%. Then we attended Catherine’s online training and implemented her strategies. They immediately increased conversion rates to 75-80%."
Anthony Corrado, MD
Anthony Corrado, MD
"I know how to run a profitable practice; however, it was not without major staff issues, inefficiencies and unproductive drama. With Catherine's guidance, I reorganized staff, set up processes for them to carry more of the workload and hold them accountable so I have more time to focus on patient care. The changes we put in place and the staff training to convert more callers and consultations will easily increase my revenues by 15% as well as save us time, money and costly mistakes. "
Evan Sorokin, MD
Evan Sorokin, MD
"Working with Catherine and her team has been very profitable. We’re only half way through the year and I’m up $200K and I’m booked out for the next 2 months even though we typically go into our slow summer months now. Her recent promotion brought in an extra $63,782 with more surgeries scheduled. I never realized how much money was sitting in my patient list but I’m a believer now!"
Plastic Surgeon Consulting Services
Robert Langdon, MD
"Catherine Maley has one of the best Marketing Minds in the aesthetic industry, bar none. She understands the aesthetic patient and she also understands the challenges and frustrations we face as aesthetic surgeons. You will benefit from Catherine's tools whether you are new in practice or a seasoned professional.Turn to Catherine for guidance - she knows what she's talking about."
Edwin Williams, MD
Edwin Williams, MD
“Catherine’s Cosmetic Patient Marketing Service has been a great addition to our practice-building overall plan. While we still invest in our online presence, we also found immense value in the internal marketing efforts. We especially like that all results are tracked so we know we are getting a great return ... last year it was 1,148% and no staff time was used. That’s a much easier way to grow my cosmetic practice.”
Mark Mason, MD
Mark Mason, MD
"Catherine Maley turned our practice around. We converted more consultations in one week than we did in an entire month. Our practice went from a painful 50% no show rate to a remarkable 85% show rate. Even more impressive was our close ratio - from 35% to 80% and still increasing. We would recommend her to any practice that’s looking to not only increase their profits today, but sustain a healthy flow of income for many years to come. Thanks Catherine!"
Sam Assassa, MD
Sam Assassa, MD
"Catherine found me the best patient care coordinator I could have asked for. She worked out a payment plan that was fair to me and motivating to my coordinator. She also provided training tools to help my coordinator convert better, even though she was already experienced. The results have been phenomenal. So good, in fact, that my income increased 250% and I’m booked out for 3 months. Don’t waste any more time or money doing it yourself. Outsource to someone you trust!"
Andrew Lofman, MD
Andrew Lofman, MD
"Since we’ve been working with Catherine and her team for the past 5 months, we’ve brought in $79K in surgeries and have booked an additional 17 surgical procedures and 20 non-invasive body procedures since then. This does not include the additional new patient referrals and revenues we are seeing from the on-going nurturing of my current patient database."
Verne Weisberg, MD
Verne Weisberg, MD
"I had given my staff the goal to convert at least $35K per week in surgeries AND I gave them the tools to help which was Catherine’s Online Learning Center at More Patients Academy. They watched Catherine’s modules and implemented her strategies and converted $80K! That equaled a 2,550% ROI. Nice!"
Adam Stein, MD
Adam Stein, MD
"Catherine outlined a plan that put key metrics in place, gave us a clear plan to follow throughout the year and trained our staff to increase their conversions by at least 10%. Since engaging with Catherine, I’m happy to report that revenues are up 15% over the last three months - 22% in the last month alone! I highly recommend Catherine’s consulting services to any practice looking for “best practice” additions to their operation."
Robert Sigal, MD
Robert Sigal, MD
"I have finally tapped into the most efficient way to grow my cosmetic practice and that is to “fish in the pond of my own patients”. When patients return to my practice, over 85% will purchase another service, product, or procedure. Not only was it worth over $200,000 in revenues this past year, it also reminds my patients I’m still around so they don’t wander off to my competitors. Catherine’s group has far exceeded our expectations and goals we had set up for them to achieve."
Victor Ferrari, MD
Victor Ferrari, MD
"Our consult conversions were running at 40-50%. Then we attended Catherine’s online training and implemented her strategies. They immediately increased conversion rates to 75-80%."
Anthony Corrado, MD
Anthony Corrado, MD
"I know how to run a profitable practice; however, it was not without major staff issues, inefficiencies and unproductive drama. With Catherine's guidance, I reorganized staff, set up processes for them to carry more of the workload and hold them accountable so I have more time to focus on patient care. The changes we put in place and the staff training to convert more callers and consultations will easily increase my revenues by 15% as well as save us time, money and costly mistakes. "
Evan Sorokin, MD
Evan Sorokin, MD
"Working with Catherine and her team has been very profitable. We’re only half way through the year and I’m up $200K and I’m booked out for the next 2 months even though we typically go into our slow summer months now. Her recent promotion brought in an extra $63,782 with more surgeries scheduled. I never realized how much money was sitting in my patient list but I’m a believer now!"
Robert Langdon, MD
Robert Langdon, MD
"Catherine Maley has one of the best Marketing Minds in the aesthetic industry, bar none. She understands the aesthetic patient and she also understands the challenges and frustrations we face as aesthetic surgeons. You will benefit from Catherine's tools whether you are new in practice or a seasoned professional.Turn to Catherine for guidance - she knows what she's talking about."
Edwin Williams, MD
Edwin Williams, MD
“Catherine’s Cosmetic Patient Marketing Service has been a great addition to our practice-building overall plan. While we still invest in our online presence, we also found immense value in the internal marketing efforts. We especially like that all results are tracked so we know we are getting a great return ... last year it was 1,148% and no staff time was used. That’s a much easier way to grow my cosmetic practice.”
Mark Mason, MD
Mark Mason, MD
"Catherine Maley turned our practice around. We converted more consultations in one week than we did in an entire month. Our practice went from a painful 50% no show rate to a remarkable 85% show rate. Even more impressive was our close ratio - from 35% to 80% and still increasing. We would recommend her to any practice that’s looking to not only increase their profits today, but sustain a healthy flow of income for many years to come. Thanks Catherine!"
Sam Assassa, MD
Sam Assassa, MD
"Catherine found me the best patient care coordinator I could have asked for. She worked out a payment plan that was fair to me and motivating to my coordinator. She also provided training tools to help my coordinator convert better, even though she was already experienced. The results have been phenomenal. So good, in fact, that my income increased 250% and I’m booked out for 3 months. Don’t waste any more time or money doing it yourself. Outsource to someone you trust!"
Andrew Lofman, MD
Andrew Lofman, MD
"Since we’ve been working with Catherine and her team for the past 5 months, we’ve brought in $79K in surgeries and have booked an additional 17 surgical procedures and 20 non-invasive body procedures since then. This does not include the additional new patient referrals and revenues we are seeing from the on-going nurturing of my current patient database."
Verne Weisberg, MD
Verne Weisberg, MD
"I had given my staff the goal to convert at least $35K per week in surgeries AND I gave them the tools to help which was Catherine’s Online Learning Center at More Patients Academy. They watched Catherine’s modules and implemented her strategies and converted $80K! That equaled a 2,550% ROI. Nice!"
Adam Stein, MD
Adam Stein, MD
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Catherine Maley

Catherine is a business/marketing consultant to plastic surgeons. She speaks at medical conferences all over the world on practice building, marketing and the business side of plastic surgery. Get a Free Copy of her popular book, Your Aesthetic Practice: What Your Patients Are Saying View Author Profile.

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