The digital realm is constantly changing, but with constant change comes many learning opportunities and experiences – especially for the pro-life movement. Below we’ve outlined the top 9 things we learned about pro-life marketing in 2017.
1. How to combat Expose Fake Clinics Week
In the event of Expose Fake Clinics Week (or any emergency crisis), it’s important to be prepared with a plan. While it’s impossible to imagine everything that could possibly go wrong, having a basic plan of rectifying the situation is a crucial first step. This means having a plan of attack that briefs your team, volunteers, potential supporters and stakeholders on how your organization will be taking action when something goes wrong. Next, make sure you’re managing your online reputation. Be active in professionally responding to all reviews, even the bad ones. You should know how to get your mugshot off the internet to maintain a good reputation. When people see that you’re handling the situation with grace and politeness, they’re going to support your side and, most importantly, trust you.
Learn more about our tips for crisis management here.
2. Geographical cultures are different and matter in campaigns
What’s the difference between a PHC in Boston and a PHC in Hawaii that offer the same services? The people! Culture matters – people were raised differently, have different customs/religions, different socioeconomic backgrounds etc. It’s especially important to keep this in mind when crafting messages and images for your target audience. Be cautious not to include things that would not resonate with your geographic culture. For example, don’t include pictures of women on the beach if your geographic location is surrounded by land or is in a big city.
3. The benefits of being a part of the conversation and not the noise.
Don’t just talk about it, provide solutions! If you are going to capitalize on a trend or talk about something that’s going on, make sure you’re adding to the conversation rather than cluttering timelines. Women are going to trust and rely on organizations that are active, provide solutions and add to society. Be careful about what conversations you participate in and ask yourself if engaging in this conversation makes sense for your brand. Don’t alienate or confuse potential clients or donors.
4. The abortion-minded woman looks like you, me and others.
Effective marketing does discriminate. We promote target marketing so that we remove all of those who are irrelevant to the services… sometimes it’s obvious like those who don’t live in your area, and sometimes you have to think more critically about who wouldn’t use your services, like men and much older women. To appeal to your target audience, make sure they can see themselves in your messaging. It’s unlikely that everyone in your audience has brown hair and green eyes or is of one ethnicity. Use diversity in your marketing efforts, especially in images, so that while you’re being specific, you’re also being diverse.
5. Be a BOLD center, piercings and all.
We all like to be understood, right? Don’t be afraid to appeal to the women coming into your center. Use bold statements and imagery that reflects your target audience. Being bold adds a sense of approachability and a personal touch to your PHC. As long as your target audience gets it (and they will if you correctly evaluate them) you will have memorable and personable content.
6. If word of mouth is your top referral, then you need to be on Facebook.
Facebook is an accelerator of word-of-mouth marketing. It’s about awareness and being top-of-mind to your target audience, meaning it’s not necessarily about getting conversions. Many PHCs find that most of their clients hear about their center from friends and family, so why not amplify that message on an online, targeted platform to reach more women?
7. If your center is in a college town, take advantage of Instagram.
The majority of Instagram users are in their end teenage/early adulthood years. In fact, 55% of all 18-29-year-olds use Instagram. In addition, this age group prefers to see things that are visually appealing. Luckily, Instagram is perfect for that. Take advantage of this media-rich platform to appeal to college-aged women with appealing visuals.
8. Mobile continues to be important across all digital channels.
Is your website mobile-friendly? If so, you’re in good shape. While desktop use is becoming less and less common, using mobile phones for searching and information seeking is becoming much more common. This phenomenon is so relevant, that even Google will decrease the placement of your listing on the search engine results page. This means that your competitors, who do have mobile-optimized sites, are going to show up on the search page before you.
Beyond search ranking, it’s important to think about the user experience. If a potential client is trying to access your mobile-unfriendly site, they’re going to have a hard time navigating the page that’s made to fit desktop screens. Giving your users an easier experience will result in more time spent on the site and hopefully more conversions.
9. Text message and message integration on your site increase conversions.
Many people in this digital age don’t like to make phone calls anymore. Adding text messaging features on your website is an easy and much more convenient way for your target audience to get the confidential information they need. In addition, they’re going to feel much safer and more secure communicating with you with the confidentiality that texting offers.
If you haven’t taken advantage of all these digital marketing tactics to elevate your PHC branding, now is your time! If you have any questions, need assistance or want someone to manage your digital media, contact us for a free quote.
