‘People buy from people that they know, like and trust’—Bob Burg
It is a fact that, as human beings, we are much more likely to purchase (and continue to purchase) from those we are familiar with, whom we align with from a value perspective and who we believe to be trustworthy. Further, never is this truer than in the field of aesthetic nursing. After all, patients put their absolute faith in aesthetic nurses to help them achieve their individual cosmetic goals, as well as committing a considerable amount of time and hard-earned money.
Nobody willingly buys from someone they do not trust. Even if they have in the past, it most likely was not a comfortable experience or one that would be repeated. Building and sustaining trust is one of the most effective and proven ways to grow an aesthetics business—not only by converting those all-important leads into patients, but by ensuring that they become loyal to you, your clinic and your brand long into the future, even if a more appealing offer comes along.
So, what factors are involved in developing trust?
Show yourself
Building trust begins with you. Prospective patients want to know exactly who they are dealing with, what you are all about and who they would be seeing if they came to you for treatment.
According to a study by Ipsos (2021), doctors and nurses are the second most trustworthy professionals in the world, second only to scientists who scored just 4% higher on the trust index.
Consideration must be taken for how trust can be built from the start. Websites are one of the first things that individuals check when deciding what to buy and who to buy from, so it is vital that they show the real you. All too often, I see websites proudly promoting how a clinic offers a very personable and personal approach for patients but, in fact, include very little (sometimes none) information about themselves.
For people who want to buy into who you are, using stock images of perfectly polished people in a generic clinical setting will not help build that trust, as they offer viewers no real insight into your personality or clinic. Additionally, it may even give the impression that you are potentially not who you claim to be.
To build trust effectively, use genuine images to connect with people on an emotional and subconscious level. Provide visitors to your website the opportunity to see you as they would if they were physically in your clinic by showing them photos of you wearing your uniform, undertaking a treatment (taking into account patient confidentiality) and working alongside your practice team. Also consider including brief biographies of you and your team to showcase to potential patients who you are, what you do and why you do it.
Additionally, do not forget about the power of the moving image. A talking head-style video introducing your clinic and the treatments available gives individuals another opportunity to get to know you and find out what you can offer them. Show them around your treatment rooms, your equipment and even your reception areas, so that they can gain a real insight into what your clinic is like and the experience that they would get if they chose to come to you (or come back).
Communicate effectively
Keeping in touch with patients (and prospects) is essential if you are to maintain the trust you have worked so hard to build. The ways in which you communicate with those who matter most to you can make or break a relationship, so ensure that any messaging you are sharing with the wider world is impactful, meaningful and consistent.
» Another effective way to communicate with patients and prospects is via the sharing of advice and guidance.
Provide them with something of real value that can either be kept as a reference tool or can support them in their decision of who to trust with their aesthetic requirements «
Communicating directly with your patient database through regular emailers and/or newsletters can help significantly in cementing the trust individuals have in you. Keeping them up to date with what is going on in your clinic (this could be anything from new team members or new treatments) demonstrates that you care enough about them to share important information and, ultimately, you have their best interests and experience at heart.
Another effective way to communicate with patients and prospects is via the sharing of advice and guidance. Provide them with something of real value that can either be kept as a reference tool or can support them in their decision of who to trust with their aesthetic requirements.
Consider what your patients and prospects truly care about, what their core drivers are in selecting a clinic or practitioner and what factors are involved in choosing the right treatment(s). Think about putting together a guide outlining the ‘Top 10 questions to ask your potential practitioner’ or an overview of ‘The latest aesthetics treatments and what they can do for you’. You could upload these documents to your website and encourage downloads (which would also give you crucial data for future marketing).
To ensure that all communication is carried out with a real purpose and that there are benefits from using a variety of methods (such as marketing collateral and mailouts, emails, website updates and social media), your strategy needs to be tracked. Without one, you will never really know what is working and what is not. For example, think about when your contacts were communicated with, track email open rates and website clicks, when and how they were followed up and by whom.
For example, if you find that you are getting a lot of people unsubscribing for weekly emails, make sure that the content is absolutely appropriate and relevant to your audience and information of real value is being shared, rather than simply bombarding individuals with sales messaging. Track and adapt by using different approaches and compare the numbers until you get very few people unsubscribing, and lots of positive enquiries coming through.
However, make sure that the people who you are communicating with are your type of people. If all you are sharing is added value advice and guidance and the occasional update about your clinic but they are still unsubscribing, it is likely that they were not your ideal patient in the first place.
Reap the rewards of reciprocity
Reciprocity and gift-giving are both hugely valuable to any aesthetic clinic and can play a significant role in building and maintaining trust.
Essentially, reciprocity is when a person responds to a positive action with another positive action. Offering patients a gift as a way of thanking them for being loyal to your clinic can go a long way, as you are effectively building a level of understanding and respect that will make them feel more inclined in the future to do something for you in return. Of course, it is a gift without any ties (otherwise it is more of a bribe—and that can very quickly sever any meaningful, trustworthy relationship). However, it is a gesture that can be followed up with a request.
As humans, we tend to respond positively to a gift—even if we did not actually ask for or, indeed, want it. In essence, we naturally feel indebted to the gift giver. This can work wonders for your clinic. For example, providing loyal patients with a gift in the form of a discount towards their next treatment, a free aftercare product or even a card on their birthday makes them feel special and can help encourage a favour in return. Some of the positive returned actions from patients could include repeat business, eagerness to try alternative (or higher level) services that are offered, referrals to your clinic and sharing positive feedback, such as testimonials and social media ratings.
» Offering patients a gift as a way of thanking them for being loyal to your clinic can go a long way, as you are effectively building a level of understanding and respect that will make them feel more inclined in the future to do something for you in return «
Another technique is to ask something of someone else that requires more effort, for example, a two-page case study (which would be great news if they said yes). If they say no, rather than retreating and accepting the no, respond with another, smaller request, perhaps one that you were really interested in all along, such as a one-paragraph testimonial quote for an online review.
This tactic works because, if you make a genuine concession, the person feels like you have done them a favour (reciprocity) in asking them to agree to do less. So, it is an absolute win-win-win for you, your clinic and your now hugely loyal and trusting patient base.