What chiropractic’s campaign can do for you

This issue of Chiropractic Economics is dedicated to high-tech solutions to solve your office’s productivity problems.

Technology is a great thing. It can allow you and your staff to get more done in a shorter period of time, often with fewer people.

But it is a low-tech effort that may help solve one of your key challenges — filling your waiting room with patients. That low-tech solution is the advertising campaign launched in July by the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress (F4CP).

I hope you saw the print ads in the four national publications: U.S. News & World Report, Sports Illustrated, USA Today, and Newsweek. The ads feature Ms. Fitness 2006, Sarah Harding, who says, “Chiropractic care literally changed my life.” An injury to her lower back nearly ended Harding’s gymnastics career. Chiropractic let her avoid surgery and brought her back to health. What a testimonial!

That testimonial and more like it are planned throughout the next 12 months, according to F4CP’s new chief executive officer, Garrett Cuneo. The F4CP Board has pledged to invest all money it receives from vendors, individual practitioners, colleges, associations, and anybody else into the PR effort.

The goal is to put a consistent, positive message about chiropractic in front of millions of consumers and raise their awareness of what chiropractic can do for them.

A positive PR campaign can work. It can turn around the public’s perception of chiropractic.

As I’ve written in the past, if you doubt the power of public relations, just look at the success the dairy industry has had with its “Got milk?” campaign, and the pork industry with its “Pork: The other white meat” message.

How did those industries turn around their images and create demand for their products? In three words: Good public relations.

Look for the ads. Hang them in your office. Point them out to your patients.

In other words, show your support for the campaign.

The most supportive action, of course, is to contribute to the Foundation. It’s easy to do; just go to our home page (www.ChiroEco.com) and click on the Campaign for Chiropractic banner.

You’ll see what chiropractic’s campaign can do for you.

Until next time,

Linda Segall, Editor-in-Chief