(4 of 4) I went looking for an acupuncturist. Here's what happened.

And we’re here! The final post in my series on four common ways private-practice acupuncturist websites can go astray, and what you can do instead. 

Today, we’re talking about: 
4. Mood + Tone (When bliss blends in).

Joining in now? 
You can binge read here: Missing Messaging, Predictable Photography, and The Unfamiliarity Trap.

I hope by now you’ve noticed that while we’re seemingly talking about the text + imagery on your website, we’re actually talking about so much more.

It’s about refining the kind of practice you want to have and explaining that effectively to the world, so you can help others on their healing journey while working fewer hours. 

The object: more impact and income, in less time.

My work with clients is all about this refining. (And defining, for those starting out or undertaking a major pivot.)

I believe health is central to our common-wealth, and that belief drives my work. 

I know that my clients already possess skillful excellence, in terms of diagnosis and treatment. Our work together builds on this base.

I’ll now step down from the soapbox (ever committed to this point of view), so we can examine together the final common way acupuncturist websites can go astray—and what you can do instead.

Here I’m talking about taking a clear-eyed look at the general mood or tone of your website. Today’s teaching is concise, but incredibly important for your ability to create the kind practice you want, and that can support you.

If I had to describe the general mood or tone of the typical acupuncture site in a single phrase, I’d call it peaceful bliss. (Soft colors, a reassuring tone, and images of clients, with or without needles, in quiet, spa-like repose.)

On one level I absolutely get it. I’ve enjoyed (and benefitted from) the centering calm that acupuncture can induce—and that's part of its healing work. This emphasis on serenity also makes sense as an antidote to the needle anxiety that prevents folks from giving acupuncture a try.

The caution I’d add here is that using any trope or motif that is common in your field will make you blend in more than stand out.  

And this holds true not just for acupuncturists, but for any private-practice health practitioner.

Before you can help someone, they need to become a client—for that to happen they need to notice and remember you and your work.  

This means being mindful about how you adopt or incorporate “serenity” in your website.

So what to do here?

Draw inspiration from within:
Can you blend a little more of yourself into the mood or tone of your website, so that you don’t blend in with others in your field? For example: if you have a playful quality, or even a certain badass-edge to your work, bring some of that into what you do—from the name of your practice, to your copywriting, conversation, content marketing, and offers. To begin, ask yourself: how are you personally different from other practitioners in your field?

Draw inspiration from outside of your field:
Challenge yourself to draw inspiration from outside your particular healing modality, and even outside of the health field altogether. While I stay up to date on the health field, I make sure to have a deep well of inspiration outside of health: art, creativity, the zero waste movement, for instance. And I also follow experts in membership communities, the business of software engineering, and personal growth—so that I’m able to cross-pollinate ideas.  Many of the monthly edits I share with my email list, come from this wider well of inspiration—and it’s part of what distinguishes me from other communication + marketing specialists.

Your Turn
Identify the common mood or tone of websites in your field. Be able to describe it in a phrase or two, so you can...

Be intentional about the mood or tone you want to create or leverage.

Think about what makes you unique, and how you could use that to your benefit to reach out to more of the right clients who you love to work with.

Apply that uniqueness in your conversations, your practice, and yes in the copy + design of your private-practice website. Drawing out what makes you unique (and reflecting it back to you in a way that feels fresh and invigorating) is a favorite part of my work.

And of course, share with me here.

If you’d like support here sorting out how this might look for you, so you know what to do and how to do it, please reach out by phone or email. We can chat to see if we’re a good fit, and how I might help you create the practice you want.