Greetings!

Wow, the year's more than half over already. Hopefully you are more than halfway to reaching the goals you set for 2014...
 
In my last email, I mentioned how to create a free profile on Google that can show up on the first page of a local search, and how to avoid getting ripped off by unscrupulous marketing companies. Now I want to jump into a topic that will be dominating Private Practice Marketing for years to come:

The Move to Mobile

Accessing the Internet - and therefore accessing your online presence - is moving to mobile devices - smartphones and tablets - faster than anyone predicted. I'll show you what's happening, and then discuss the takeaways for your practice, along with TWO CRITICAL THINGS you can do right now to stay ahead of the mobile curve. (Note: you may already be doing these things, but 90% of therapists I talk to are NOT). I'm always testing out new trends and ideas in my practice, and will only show you what I have found works to generate more referrals.

But first the background story... 

  

Already here in 2014,
  • smartphones that can access the Internet and email account for 2/3 of all new cell phone sales   

  • 66% of emails are now first opened on smartphones or tablets (an increase of 80% from a year ago) 

  • Adults in the US now spend more time on mobile devices than watching TV (First Time that's ever happend)

  • There are more mobile devices on earth than there are people!  (First TIme that's ever happened)

  • Mobile search volume will surpass desktop/laptop searches for the first time in 2015

  • Mobile web traffic has tripled since 2012
So what factors are responsible for this massive shift in screens? A couple of things:
  • Screen sizes are getting larger - Samsung started the trend toward larger smartphone screens, and even Apple is joining the party this Fall with one or possibly two models of a much larger iPhone 6 coming out. People love the larger 5 to 6 inch screens, and as a result they can see more information more clearly.

  • Graphics chips inside smartphones keep getting faster, and can handle more complex computational tasks that could only be done on larger computers in the past.

  • Voice input is getting faster and more accurate - the biggest pain about looking for information on a smartphone has always been typing on the virtual keyboard on the screen. Now with Apple's Siri and Google Voice Input, searching for information has gotten much easier. 
Other Important Data:
  • So who is the 600 pound gorilla in the mobile space? Why Google of course,with 91% of all mobile search (they only have 67% of search on desktops and laptops). So yes you better have a solid presence on the Google system, because mobile is quickly going to take over search as we know it.

  • But search is losing ground to social, and Facebook of course is the other big player in the mobile space, with 70% of their users accessing their news feed on smartphones, news feeds now sprinkled with ads precisely targeting user's demographic characteristics, family income and interests. Facebook has been able to monetize mobile very effectively and represents a major challenge to Google's main revenue stream (ads!) as mobile takes over the Internet. Ignore Facebook at your peril.

  • Apple is continuing its attempt to divorce Google, even making Bing the default search engine on the next version of their mobile operating system, iOS 8 which comes out this Fall. So it's a good idea to make sure you have a profile on www.bingplaces.com .

  • 70% of mobile searchers click to call a business directly after a Google search on a smartphone  
Ok Joe Enough Blather -
What Are Those Two Things You Said I Need to Do? 

  

1) CRITICAL THING TO CHECK/DO #1
More people are going to find your website on a mobile device. In many parts of the US, 35-45% of searches for therapists are now happening on smartphones. And what's the best thing visitors can do on our websites? CALL US. So make sure your phone number is CLICKABLE on mobile devices. Meaning, can I touch your phone number ONE TIME with my index finger and initiate a phone call to your office? And is that true EVERY place your phone number shows up on our website? If not, you will lose the potential call. Why? Because as impatient people are online, with very short attention spans, people on mobile devices are even MORE impatient and have even shorter attention spans than someone searching on a desktop computer.

  

So if I can't initiate a phone call on your website with one click of my index finger, I'm surely not going to write it down or copy/paste it. No sir, I'm going to another site which is more mobile-friendly.

  

So do this simple test right now: Get an iPhone 5 or Android phone like the Galaxy S5, go to the web browser, type in your website, and scroll down to your phone number. If you can't initiate a phone call to your office with one touch of a finger, you or your web person needs to install the following HTML programming code on your site everywhere your phone number shows up:

  

HTML CODE FOR A CALL:

<a href="tel:12349554123">(234) 955 4123</a>

  

2) CRITICAL THING TO CHECK/DO #2

These days you have NO IDEA which form of contact people prefer, between phone, email and texting. Texting is the new kid on the block that has become a favorite of many people, and you definitely want to include that as an initial contact option for visitors to your website. Most people have a favorite from those 3 - so by offering the choice of all 3 on every page on your website, you greatly enhance the possibility of a visitor to your website making an appointment. I get 5-8 texts per week from potential clients since I added a texting option to my website. And again make sure people can initiate a text to you with one touch on a smartphone, by using the following HTML code:  

  

HTML CODE FOR A TEXT:

<a href="sms:1-1237955145">123 795-5145</a>

 
If you don't want to use an actual cell phone for this purpose, you can use Google Voice for free with any area code you want.

TIP: When you get a text, DO NOT TEXT BACK - call them. Your conversion rate to an appointment will be 7 times greater with a call vs. a text response.

* * * * * 
So there you have it. Two things you need to do now to take advantage of this rapid move to mobile, that will DIRECTLY result in more referrals. Take action soon.

To Your Success,


Joe

  

800 940 0185
 
P.S. - in my next email I'll discuss how you can keep up with all the rapid changes happening in the Internet/technology space which will directly affect your referrals in the months and years to come