{"id":956,"date":"2016-05-18T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2016-05-18T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.orthorank.com\/?p=956"},"modified":"2016-05-18T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2016-05-18T12:00:00","slug":"how-to-make-orthopedic-content-marketing-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/inboundmd.com\/how-to-make-orthopedic-content-marketing-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Part III: How to Make Content Marketing Work for Your Medical Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"

Note<\/strong>: This is the third and final post in our series about content marketing for medical\u00a0practices. Click here for Part I<\/a> and Part II<\/a>. This post covers the topic of how to make content marketing work for your practice.<\/em><\/p>\n

One of the keys to content marketing is consistency.<\/p>\n

And the key to consistency is planning ahead of time.<\/p>\n

One of the best ways to make sure you publish regularly is to create a monthly or quarterly content calendar to keep your content marketing on target.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Content Calendar<\/h2>\n

Your calendar can include social media posts, email blasts, blog posts, and other types of content you think your audience would find valuable.<\/p>\n

To start with, find a calendar that works for you. If you\u2019re a paper and pen person, an old school desk calendar works just as well as online calendars.<\/p>\n

We’re fans of the WordPress Editorial Calendar plugin<\/a> which offers a more integrated approach, allowing you to draft articles directly on your calendar.<\/p>\n

As a side note, an online editorial calendar is part of the InboundMD\u00a0platform and something that we provide for our clients to help them get a quick overview of upcoming projects and to stay on track.<\/p>\n

Content Marketing Mission Statement<\/h2>\n

Once you\u2019ve found a good calendar, determine what your content marketing will look like.<\/p>\n

It may be helpful to craft a mission statement that defines what types of content you\u2019ll publish and some of your goals.<\/p>\n

Goals that are attainable and measurable work well, like scheduling a certain number of appointments through your website per month.<\/p>\n

Brainstorm Content Topics<\/h2>\n

Next, brainstorm a list of topics. Google Keyword Planner is a great tool to help you come up with topics.<\/p>\n

For instance, the keywords \u201chand pain\u201d generates other topics like \u201csurgery carpal\u201d and \u201csymptoms carpal\u201d.<\/p>\n

Some of those would have to be broken down into subtopics, but you could write a good blog post on different types of surgery to treat carpal tunnel or on common symptoms of carpal tunnel.<\/p>\n

Another way to brainstorm topics is to recall questions patients have asked in your office.<\/p>\n

Frequently asked question articles would be helpful to all your patients. Once they\u2019re written, you can refer patients to your online articles to help answer their questions.<\/p>\n

After you\u2019ve created a topic list, assign those topics a publish date on your content calendar. Remember to put seasonal or holiday-related topics in the appropriate months.<\/p>\n

Posting Frequency<\/h2>\n

Don\u2019t overload yourself by trying to schedule a post every single day unless you\u2019re sure you can do it.<\/p>\n

Writing thorough blog posts is hard work and may take more time than you have.<\/p>\n

Start off by scheduling posts once a week or even once a month. If you have more time, you can always ramp up the number of posts you publish later.<\/p>\n

Why Is Content Marketing Important?<\/h2>\n

Consumers (i.e. your patients) have gotten pretty good at tuning out advertising noise.<\/p>\n

They only see content they consider valuable, ignoring magazine and newspaper ads, billboards, yellow pages, and online advertising.<\/p>\n

With 80% of Americans searching online for medical information and 20% of those searching for a specific doctor, it\u2019s more vital than ever for your content marketing to be up to par.<\/p>\n

Reasons why content marketing is important:<\/p>\n