The High Price of Creating Free Ads

You're between something of a rock and a hard place. Just like Heinz

" But these companies have found that inviting consumers to create their advertising is often more stressful, costly and time-consuming than just rolling up their sleeves and doing the work themselves. Many entries are mediocre, if not downright bad, and sifting through them requires full-time attention."

I've had my fill of looking at terrible medspa and plastic surgeon ads. It seems like a good idea at the time to let the magazine, newspaper, or whoever, create the ad for free. And it might be for some who are scrambling for every dollar.

But there's something to be learned from Donald Trump in this situation. He's not the first to have said it but he has said it and I'll repeat it here since it makes the point.

"Dress for the job you want, not the job you have."

Patients don't want their plastic surgeon pulling up to the clinic in a VW bug. They want to feel that they're not stupid for choosing you. Help them along. If you're claiming that you're the best, you're going to have to dress like it. That means that the image you're putting out had better not be something that an $8 an hour hack at the newspaper did for you in fifteen minutes.

Just so I don't insult anyone I know I won't list any of the names that I'm thinking of as I write this. But they're out there.

Want to attract cheap patients? Advertise that way and that's just who you'll get.