If you’re a physical therapist looking to take your marketing efforts to the next level, video is a great option. Not only does video have the potential to reach a wide audience, but it can also be highly engaging and offer a great return on investment.
Without question, YouTube is the largest video marketing platform, with more than 69 billion visits per month, competing only with Google for the website with the highest traffic, according to SEMRush. It’s also a great place to get started.
Creating a successful YouTube channel for your physical therapy practice doesn’t have to be complicated or time-consuming. By following a few simple steps and putting in some effort upfront, you can create videos that will engage and inform your patients while helping to grow your business.
Here’s what to know and how Surefire Local’s business intelligence marketing software can help you master video production and advertising.
The Benefits of Video Marketing for Physical Therapists
There are numerous benefits of video marketing for physical therapists, especially on a platform as large as YouTube. Below, we discuss several in detail.
Reach
A video marketing campaign can help you reach a wider audience than other marketing channels. The Social Shepherd estimates that videos have a global reach of 92% and that in 2022, 82% of worldwide web traffic will come from videos. This is because videos are easy for people to share across social media and other online platforms.
This makes video marketing an essential tool for physical therapists who want to stay ahead of the competition. An effective video marketing campaign can help increase local awareness of your brand and reach potential patients across social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok.
Engagement
A well-executed video marketing campaign is a great way to connect with potential customers on a deeper level and begin building strong, loyal relationships with them. Producing and advertising quality videos is hard work, but well worth the investment and effort.
Videos can be an effective way to introduce yourself and your practice, explain what sets you apart from the competition, and give potential patients an idea of what it would be like to work with you. They help users put a face to your name, which can humanize you and your physical therapy practice.
ROI
Video marketing is a significant driver of new traffic for businesses in all verticals, not just the medical field. Responses to a HubSpot survey indicated that over half of business owners believe that video marketing generates an average return on investment and 41% believe that video generates a high return on investment.
The survey also found that video marketing is less expensive than other marketing tactics, with 86% of respondents spending less than $7,000 per year on video ads. With a low overhead cost and a high return, this puts video marketing at the top of the list for physical therapists in 2023 and beyond.
Steps to Create a YouTube Channel For Your Physical Therapy Practice
Step 1. Create a YouTube Account & Start Your Channel
First, you will need to create a YouTube or Google account if you don’t have one already or you want to make a new one exclusive to your practice. Once you’ve done that, go to www.YouTube.com and click “My Channel” in the top right-hand corner. From there, you can create your channel by entering some basic information about your practice.
You’ll need to choose a channel name, which can be your name or the name of your business, as well as a channel description, which will appear below your channel name on your YouTube page. Then, you’ll create a channel icon, which is the image that will represent your channel on YouTube. Most of the time, businesses use their logo for this.
Step 2. Learn about your target audience
Before you start recording videos, you need to understand who your target audience is. Who does your practice provide services to the most? What are the individual needs, problems, and pain points of the people who are most likely to be interested in physical therapy and wellness treatments?
Ultimately, having a good idea of your audience and their personas can help you create optimized video content. You can learn about your target audience by conducting market research or by reaching out to your current patients for feedback.
Step 3. Research Your Local Competitors
Once you understand who your target audience is and what kinds of content they’re looking for, it’s time to start looking at what other physical therapists in your area are doing on YouTube. Who are the big players in your niche and what kind of content are they creating? Is it getting engagement? Why or why not?
You don’t want to copy anyone else’s content exactly, but it’s important to see what’s already out there so you can create something unique that will appeal to viewers. Ideally, you’ll be able to identify a gap in the market that you can fill with new, authoritative content.
Step 4. Learn From Your Favorite Channels
Once you’ve done some research on other YouTube channels, take a closer look at the ones you like the most. What do these channels do that keeps you engaged? Is it the information they provide, the attractiveness of their setup, or the quality of the production value?
Make a list of all the things you like about physical therapy and even other YouTube channels to see what you may want to replicate on your own channel. This will help you to develop a clearer idea of what you want your channel to look and feel like for your viewers, so you can tailor the user experience.
Step 5. Create Engaging Video Content
There are many different types of videos you can create as a physical therapist, including but not limited to:
- Educational videos
- Exercises or stretches
- Patient testimonials
- Behind-the-scenes vlogs
- Q&A
- Tips and advice
Whatever type of video you decide to create, make sure it’s high quality and engaging. Pay attention to details like scripts, setting, and lighting, and make sure you’re producing the best video you possibly can within your practice’s video marketing budget.
Step 6. Upload & Optimize Your Videos
After putting the finishing touches on your videos, you should upload them to your channel and optimize the titles and descriptions for search engines (SEO). This means using keywords in the title that relate to your location, the services you provide, and general hot topics within the physical therapy niche.
You can also add tags to your videos, which are similar to keywords but are not visible to viewers. SEO optimization is key to helping your videos get found by users who are already interested in the topics you’re covering.
Step 7. Optimize Your Channel
Your YouTube channel is like a mini-website for your physical therapy practice. Not only do you need a logo, cover photo, and description that accurately represent your brand as mentioned above, you should also create playlists of your videos so that viewers can easily find related content. This keeps them on your channel watching videos for longer periods of time, which research shows boost search visibility and lead conversions.
Step 8. Share Your Videos On Other Platforms
To get the most out of your video marketing efforts, make sure to share your YouTube videos on other platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Think about what you could recycle between platforms as well as something unique you can offer on each to give users an incentive to follow your practice everywhere.
You can also copy a snippet of HTML and embed your videos on your blog or website. This will help you reach more ideal patients within your target audience, helping to drive more traffic and leads.
Tailor Your YouTube Video Marketing Strategy Today
Understanding that video marketing can help physical therapists reach a wider audience, engage potential patients, and generate a higher return on investment than other forms of marketing is just the beginning. Many practices find it difficult to successfully use video marketing to attract leads while they’re busy taking care of patients, making it necessary for marketing professionals to offer helpful services.
Schedule a Demo of Surefire Local’s Business Intelligence Marketing Software
Surefire Local’s business intelligence marketing software allows you to track your video views, analyze viewer demographics, and review engagement metrics. It also allows you to create custom reports to measure the ROI of your video marketing campaigns, so you can determine whether or not your video marketing efforts are paying off. Using this information, you can adjust your video marketing strategy accordingly to ensure that your content is reaching and engaging your target audience.
Schedule a demo with Surefire Local today to learn more about our marketing management software and how our innovative advertising and analytics platform can help you fine-tune your strategy and results. Call now at (703) 884-8442 to speak with one of our physical therapy marketing experts.