How to Create an Effective, Authentic Acupuncture Social Media Marketing Strategy

You know marketing is important. But beyond just throwing everything at the wall and seeing what sticks, what’s your actual strategy? It pays to have one. It’s another way of directing the qi of your acupuncture practice. But it can also be an incredible treatment for your practice. How? Because a good marketing strategy will boost the vitality of your practice by helping to bring the just right kind of patients for YOU. Resonance. Flow. Healing. That’s what we are all about, right?

Authentic marketing is how you start good, high quality relationships with future patients

Relationships are the cornerstone of a healing experience. And you can't build healthy relationships with your patients if they don't know how you can help them. Or that you exist, to be honest. This is the the most important aspect of developing a good social media marketing strategy for your acupuncture practice. Let people know HOW you can help them! It's one thing if you KNOW patients will really get results, get what you do, get your whole THING. But first, they have to be compelled to reach out. Right? 

In any form of marketing, there's an important concept of building a bridge of "know, like, and trust" in order for someone to purchase something from you . Yes, your patients are purchasing a healing process, rooted in your education and expertise!

My Annual Marketing Bundle is specifically crafted to nurture the "know, like, trust" bridge to your future patients. Here's a bit more about this proven marketing strategy specific to acupuncture clinic owners:

KNOW

If patients don't KNOW what you can help them with, why would they EVER reach out to you? Even when they have excruciating back pain, painful periods, night sweats, depression, IBS. So, the first step in marketing, is to let them KNOW what you can help them with. KNOWING what you can help patients with is the medicine your future patients are seeking. They want to KNOW that you understand what they are suffering from, they want to KNOW that you have a solution, and they want to KNOW what to expect in terms of the process and results. This does NOT involve explaining TCM terms or theory. Why? Because your patients don’t know that. Talking about Liver Qi Stagnation is just going to alienate your patients. The majority of your posts (65-70% of the posts!) are letting people KNOW what you can help them with. 

Here's an example of a post that lets people know you can help them with their FATIGUE (not their Kidney Yang Deficiency, not their Dampness, not their Shaoyang Disharmony. Their FATIGUE.).

WHAT DOES YOUR FATIGUE MEAN?

Fatigue can have so many causes!!!! Here are some common sources of fatigue that I see in my clinic every week: 

• Insomnia – literally, you aren’t sleeping enough

• Breathing problems – your lungs aren’t working efficiently

• Hormone imbalances

• Digestive issues

• Constipation

• Emotional weight blocking your energy – things like grief, frustration, bitterness, anger, fear, worry. 

• Pain – chronic and acute

• Gallbladder issues

• Post viral syndrome

• Poor fluid metabolism, aka “water retention”

• Lack of exercise or movement

• Too much exercise

• Stress

• Medication side effects

Now, your fatigue is unique to YOU. And what Chinese Medicine excels at is addressing YOUR system, in a highly personalized, made just for you, treatment approach. When we work with our patients, we get to the root of the issue so that the end result is that your symptom of fatigue…just dissipates. Suddenly, you’ve got energy. You’ve got resources. You’ve got LIFT. You're not even thinking about your fatigue any more because it's not screaming at you every day.

Link in our bio to schedule your free 15 minute consultation, or your Initial Consultation to get started on your journey to feeling better. Or, give us a call / text at XXX-XXX-XXXX to have our office help you find the perfect time to connect with us to learn more about how we can help. 

Let’s get you feeling more energized, clear headed and ready to face the world again.

LIKE

Liking you is the next step, and in order to do that, you share some HUMAN parts of yourself. My Annual Marketing Bundle has pre-written content that you finesse with specific details (not starting from absolute scratch--how stressful is THAT?!). You share some things about you, so that patients can begin to understand you as a human being! 

There, you don't have to just go perform yourself online. You get to fill in the blanks, and have a bridge of LIKE built with very little stress around taking about how great you are! ;) With one post per week designed to let patients get a glimpse of WHO you are ARE, and what YOU are about, you call in the just right patients for you.

This is also how you call in patients with whom you have great resonance. If your patients don’t have any idea of who you are as a person, how can they trust you? This is human medicine. Be human. Share things that you might share with patients in a treatment room. Like the fact that you nerd out on birds. Or that you are a fiend for cooking. Or that you love sci fi. These things matter. Because it’s how you connect with the human element of this medicine.

TRUST

Finally, potential patients have to trust that you can help them with their condition. This is where posts like 

• "here's a helpful hint to help with XYZ"

• A quote from a patient that you've helped

• Expertise mentioning the Western Medical conditions associated with symptoms (for example, mentioning things like "low ovarian reserve, high FSH, decreased sperm motility, PCOS" when talking about infertility shows your patients you know their landscape. 

By building in Know, Like, and Trust into your Social Media Strategy, you are building relationships with potential patients before they even contact your office. That bodes well for a good long term, healthy therapeutic relationship. Which means good results for your patients, and the happy side effect of a full schedule for you. 

How your organic social media strategy supports your paid advertising strategy

Are you someone who relies on paid advertising to get new patients? A strong organic social media strategy goes a long way in enhancing the effectiveness of your ads! Why? Because there's more of an opportunity to build "know-like-trust" and people who see your ads have an opportunity to make that crucial decision to get help with YOU when you've got that infrastructure built in--not just "hey, come see me!" You know that when someone clicks your ad, they want to know if you are “legit”. A good organic social media strategy provides brand legitimacy to your potential patients. Together, they create a solid bridge for patients to feel confident in their decision to work with you.

So--marketing as medicine for your practice. Relationship medicine. Patient building medicine.

How does a good social media strategy contribute to having a nourishing, sustainable, profitable acupuncture practice?

By calling in the right patients for YOU, you have less “draining” patients. You look at your full (because of your good marketing) schedule and smile because you genuinely look forward to seeing each patient that day. They’re cool. They get how this medicine works, because you started talking about THAT in your marketing. They have reasonable expectations in terms of treatment length because you also talk about THAT in your marketing. When a new thing comes up, they reach out, because they understand how comprehensive your toolbox is with Chinese Medicine. They refer people to you, because they trust you. THIS is how a solid social media marketing strategy is a key factor in growing a heart-centered, authentic, and ethically full acupuncture practice. No sleazy sales tactics. Just you being honest, clear, and real about how you can help people and who you are.

If you are ready for marketing support, I provide Seasonal and Annual Marketing Bundles of done for you acupuncture marketing content. I also help acupuncturists grow thriving practices that are congruent with their personalities, their ecology, and their goals. No cookie cutter approaches here! You can learn more about my coaching services here.

I help acupuncturists with small solo practices to leaders with teams of clinicians and administrative support, and every practice size in between. And, we do it all in an ecology where you'll be growing and thriving with peers that have the same issues. I also offer 1:1 coaching for folks with unique considerations who prefer working 1:1. When you are READY to commit to having your practice nourish you--financially, qi-wise, and with a great schedule--let's connect so we can both learn more. 

How to earn $250k a year as an acupuncturist (or $135k, or $175K)

It’s currently late Summer in Chinese Medicine—and that means damp, sticky, stuck.

AKA messy season. 

In the midsts of all that messy, I like to create clarity with concrete numbers. AND with recommitting to how I want to FEEL in my life and practice. 

And, as a profession, the conventional wisdom is that it’s hard to earn a living wage as an acupuncturist. I’d like to clear up some misconceptions around that and share what’s ENTIRELY possible. For you. With numbers.

These are the numbers I've identified as "sweet spots" for owning a practice. Income, patient numbers, expenses, time off, hours worked each week. By “sweet spot” I mean, everything is optimized for you to flow, easefully.

The real magic is in marrying these numbers with how you want to FEEL in your practice, and in your life. Because you practice Chinese Medicine, this isn't a business that's going to feel good with you "on the grind" all the time. (Also, that’s just bad medicine).

We want flow. Nourished, resourced flow. In every area. 

Honoring the numbers, the qi, and your time is what makes practice magic. 

So here are my "sweet spot" numbers, in terms of annual income (that’s what YOU take home!):

• $135K:  solo practioner, no admin support

• $175K: solo practitioner, admin support

• $250K: practitioner with one Associate and admin team support

That's YOUR annual income (AFTER expenses!!).  And they are ALL possible working about 32 hours a week.

ALL of these real life scenarios are for a practice where the average return visit price is $95 (cash or insurance), and the practitioner takes six weeks off per year. (For REAL!!--because “qi math” engenders money math). The weekly schedule for seeing patients is 3.5 days a week, or about 28 hours of patient facing time. This allow for 2-4 hours a week of admin / meeting times outside of patient facing hours. So, a 32 hour a week job. Because I don't think anyone should work 5 days a week!! 

Here’s the breakdown, so you can understand what’s possible for YOU to earn as a successful acupuncturist:

1. Solo Practitioner: $135k / year income

• Number of rooms: 2

• Number of patients per week /average: 45

• Number of patients per day: 13 on full days, 6 on half day

• Breaks: one 30 minute break blocked off for lunch. 

• Average Shift: 8:45-5:15, with a 15 minute buffer before first patient, and 15 minutes after last patient leaves

• Average Acupuncture Income: 45x95=$16,031.25 / month average(working 45 weeks a year)

• Average Herbs / Supplements sales: 33% of patients purchase herbs / supplement /  topical at $30/ product, 15 per week, $1688/month average

• TOTAL Clinic Revenue  AVERAGE: $17,719.25

• Average Monthly Expenses $6400: $475 CC processing fees, $1800 rent, $200 malpractice, licensing, CEU's, $350 utilities, $1800 supplies (needles, office, supplements, accounting, EHR software), $1200 coaching, $575 marketing

• Average Annual Income: $135,828 (pre-tax)

2. Solo Practitioner with Admin Support: $175k / year income

• Number of rooms: 3

• Number of patients per week /average: 70

• Number of patients per day: 20 on full days, 10 on half day

• Breaks: one 30 minute break blocked off for lunch. 

• Average Shift: 8:45-5:15, with a 15 minute buffer before first patient, and 15 minutes after last patient leaves, first patient at 9, last patient in at 4

• Average Acupuncture Income: 95x70=$24,937 / month average (working 45 weeks a year)

• Average Herbs / Supplements sales: 33% of patients purchase herbs / supplement /  topical at $30/ product, 21 per week, $2363/month average

• TOTAL Clinic Revenue  AVERAGE: $27,300

• Average Monthly Expenses $12,695: $685 CC processing fees, $2500 rent, $250 malpractice, licensing, CEU's, $400 utilities, $2500 supplies (needles, office, supplements, EHR software, QB online, accounting services), $1200 coaching, $1000 marketing, $4160 / office manager front desk ($24/hour, 32 hours/ week)

• Average Annual Income: $175,260.00 (pre-tax)

3. $250K: practitioner with one Associate and Admin team support

• Number of rooms: 4

• Number of patients per week /average: 125 clinic total

• Number of patients per day: 25, 3 days for Clinic Owner, 2 days for Associate

• Breaks: one 30 minute break blocked off for lunch. 2 15 minute breaks, one in am and one in afternoon

• Average Shift: 8:45-5:15, with a 15 minute buffer before first patient, and 15 minutes after last patient leaves

• Average Acupuncture Income: 125x95=$45322.92 / month average, Clinic Director seeing patients 45 weeks a year, Associate seeing patients 47 weeks / year with 2 weeks of paid time off, 3 weeks unpaid

• Average Herbs / Supplements sales: 33% of patients purchase herbs / supplement /  topical at $30/ product, 15 per week, $4807/month average 

• TOTAL Clinic Revenue  AVERAGE: $50,129.92

• Average Monthly Expenses $29,266: $1254 CC processing fees, $3600 rent, $500 malpractice, licensing, CEU's, $550 utilities, $6000 supplies (needles, office, supplements, EHR subscription, accounting services), $1250 coaching,  $2000 marketing, $5070 Office Manager, at $26/hour, 36 hours a week, $1620 part time office assistant, 18 hours a week at $18/hour, $7422/ month for Associate, including their paid time off for the year. 

• Average Annual Income: $250,367.04 (pre-tax)

These scenarios are not the ONLY way to do it. However, I share these with you to see that there IS A WAY TO DO IT! It's a matter of mapping out what you want, and then structuring your time, qi, and systems to SUPPORT you in getting there, sustainably.

Numbers are no scarier than pattern differentiation in Chinese Medicine. If your numbers aren't adding up to a vital practice, figure out where they are off, and treat the pattern. (If you have a hard time figuring out where to start with "treating the pattern" of your practice, my kind of holistic business coaching may be for you.) 

The same thing goes for your business qi. 

If you are feeling drained, look at the math and see where you can tweak things, simply by playing with the number so that you have a more nourishing practice. 

With paid time off. With hours that support you and your life. With support in house. With marketing help.

I recognize this is WAY easier said than done. 

I mean, this IS why I'm a coach. 

Because there's emotion there. And emotion is important--it's qi after all. But sometimes the emotional pattern IS the root of the issue. 

Patterns like: "I'm not good enough" "I don't deserve it" "If I did this...then...my practice would fall apart." 

I help my coaching clients forge a path forward so that their practices are BEYOND what they dreamed. I LOVE helping people find the way forward in having it all make sense. Not in a formulaic way, but in a highly personalized, just right for you way. 

In a way that leads to best case scenarios:

...Like having a 61.9% increase in patient visits over last July, WHILE taking a personal week off and being down a clinical team member in July. 

...Like having the July be their most successful month in business, EVER (I heard that quite a few times in the past week!!!)

...Like taking meaningful vacations with loved ones and NOT have their clinic and team fall apart while they were gone for over 2 weeks, out of the country. As a matter of fact, the clinic did great, and she's on to the next level of leadership, knowing that she can trust her team and herself to thrive without burning out. 

...Like moving into a beautiful new space and getting EXACTLY what she dreamed of in a bigger, more supportive space. 

...Like hiring their first Associate, who is a just right fit. 

...Like being present and RESOURCED even when big life events--unexpectedly losing a team member due to relocation, family health issues, major growth curves that show up in growing a team, moving to a bigger space, and consistently showing up for a solid patient schedule. 

These are literally just examples of what my coaching clients have experienced IN THE PAST WEEK! This is not unusual. When I work with coaching clients, transformation happens in our collaboration together. The internal work we do shows up in their practice, in their life, in them stepping more fully into their potency. 

I'm here for that. 

Are you ready for a practice transformation, that will support YOU as you grow?

I have three spaces in my Lifeflow Leadership Program, for practitioners who have, or want to hire, clinical team members. This is a program for thoughtful leaders who are ready to grow beyond the treatment room and into greater intentional leadership while ethically maximizing profits. All while designing a healthy, thriving team culture happy while delivering excellent Chinese Medicine. 

I have four spaces in RECALIBRATE, my small group coaching program for practitioners who want to 1. see more patients per hour OR increase your patient numbers from your usual number of 25-35 patients a week 2. hire admin team members 3. move into a bigger / more supportive clinic space 4. are curious about revamping their business to make it more nourishing, sustainable, and profitable. You don't need to do ALL of these, but if 1-2 of these resonate, RECALIBRATE is right for you. 

Are you ready to do things differently, in a way that honors the systemic whole, your unique life, and your vision? 

This is my mission. 

I've got space on my calendar for a free 20 minute Q&A call if you are interested in this kind of transformation. (If you don't see a time available, you can fill out this brief form and we will find one that works for both of us.)

Your'e already working--together, we can make it feel better, all around. 

I believe in you. And you doing you, thriving. Nourished. Resourced. Profitable. Heart Centered. 

In deepest care,

Julie

Curious about my coaching approach? Check out my private FB group and follow me on Instagram for daily inspiration, insight and new practice perspectives.