Content Marketing Storytelling for Rehabs

Reach Audiences and Drive Revenues with Recovery Narratives

In the world of substance abuse treatment, it takes a certain type of brand story and outreach proposition to attract the right client base. These individuals have to be at the exact stage of being prepared to enter recovery, in addition to building enough trust in your organization and belief that you can help them.

This is assuming that you provide the type of treatment they require in the first place. One of the most powerful strategies to bring solutions to this challenge is content marketing storytelling. Using this content marketing strategy, you can speak to your clients with a ‘good story,’ allowing your brand narrative to build rapport as it resonates with clients, addressing their needs on an emotional level.

In this article, we’ll dive into content marketing storytelling and how you can leverage this powerful strategy to connect with future clients!

Understanding Storytelling as a Strategy

In the last half-decade, the balance of power has shifted regarding the most impactful strategies to use for marketing. Currently, victories go to the organizations that best communicate their values and goals through the use of a powerful brand story.

So what’s the connection between the incorporation of storytelling in your content marketing and alcohol and drug rehab marketing efforts?

Establishing an Atmosphere of Trust

It’s not exactly easy to make the connection for an addict looking for help. There are massive gaps that stand between the user and the ultimate goal of entering recovery – so many that, for most, making it over these hurdles seems all but impossible.

However, when you’re able to demonstrate your brand values through avenues like video marketing, articles, and podcasts – you create a direct line of emotional connection and communication between you and the target audience.

In the end, this storytelling content strategy builds trust between you and potential clients. It’s this trust that should never be understated – it’s this trust that often leads users directly into recovery. The only constant they’ve had in their lives throughout use is the drug itself. In addition to feeling as if they’ve been left behind, there’s a breach in their ability to trust anybody or anything.

The right storytelling strategy allows you to knock down these walls and forge nearly impossible relationships that wouldn’t be possible otherwise.

How Powerful is Storytelling In Content Marketing?

Storytelling is the life force behind the success of any content marketing. In the case of substance abuse treatment facilities, this becomes a powerful tool that allows you to make the change that turns you from a foe into a friend.

When someone struggles with addiction, things go on beneath the surface that even the user isn’t aware of. Many people look at treatment as solely a means of clinical support. And while on the surface this is true, the real miracle happens from the bonds forged between the parties involved with recovery.

Telling stories and sharing powerful testimonials also paints your treatment facility in a more positive light among those in the community. Over the years, rehabs have unfortunately garnered a negative stigma regarding their treatment of clients. It’s critical to convey a message of compassion to establish grounds of trust between the facility and potential clients.

When you engage in proper storytelling, it becomes more than just a transfer of information. You’re fostering a relationship that potentially lasts a lifetime between you, the client, and the community around you.

Understanding Your Target Audience

Identifying your audience, or target market, is one of the first and most important steps when crafting your content marketing efforts.

Identifying the Right Audience for Substance Abuse Treatment Content

Who do you want to speak to when you convey your message regarding substance abuse treatment? How can you deliver a message when you don’t have an audience? This is the mistake that many of those make who don’t succeed in their marketing campaigns.

There are a few important dynamics you MUST consider before deploying your storytelling marketing campaign. It helps to create an avatar – or a mockup of the person you’re looking to reach. You need to know:

• Age
• Gender
• Cultural background
• Age

By answering these questions, you can directly meet the needs of those who need help the most. But this still doesn’t drill down specifically enough – it’s just an initial step to distribute broad awareness.

What About the Personalized Needs for Treatment?

Obviously, everybody with an addiction has a need for therapy – a need for counseling. However, this umbrella term is too large a generalization to make an impact in the grand scheme of things.

It’s not as simple as just “overcoming an addiction.” Vital challenges exist at the core of any addiction that drives further substance abuse. Mental health disorders, bipolar and anxiety challenges, fear, trauma, and isolation are all strong dynamics at play that create hurdles to finding appropriate treatment.

What are some other personal issues you can address to better reach clients through storytelling? Things to consider include:

• The fear of withdrawal
• The fear of change
• Fear of being alone
• The guilt of admitting addiction
• Guilt over people they’ve hurt
• Trust issues with past trauma
• Failing at past attempts at rehab
• Codependency

Telling Stories and Creating Empathy

The primary dynamic at play when you’re attempting to reach a potential client is empathy. How do we define empathy?

Empathy is an understanding of what the client is going through. Having the right amount of empathy can turn an atmosphere of distrust into a deep, personal relationship. Empathy says:

• I understand what you’re going through and I want to help.
• I know you’re struggling and I’m not here to judge you.
• I know you’ve had past traumas – I’m not here to hurt you.
• I know you’ve made mistakes but everyone deserves forgiveness.

It’s through empathy that we relate to those we’re speaking to. One of the most critical elements of empathy is avoiding any atmosphere of harsh judgment.

Users already judge themselves enough. Believe it or not, most addicts beat themselves up constantly. If judgment and blame are the approaches you take to reach them, the connection is broken before it even begins. Pay attention to:

• The tone of your content
• Using generalizations
• Making assumptions

Crafting Compelling Stories

Once you’ve discovered personalized needs and decided the best action to take for making a connection, it’s time to begin putting your story together.

Remember that stories inspire us all, and think of some examples that have shown through in your life experience. Often, such real-life stories can form the basis of powerful tales, even when used as analogies or part of an overarching theme.

What Makes a Powerful Narrative?

When authors write books, the foundation of the book is crafting a narrative. This narrative includes every element of the story, including information about the characters, the conflict, the resolution, and the forming of a bond.

• When a reader/viewer digests your content, they should look at a character and say, “Hey! I’ve been there!” Triggering these emotions between users and even family members creates engagement from the start.
• What is the major conflict? What’s the problem the story is dealing with/addressing? Typically, this is the roadblock that stops the user from entering active recovery. It can be a fear of relapse, a lack of insurance, or a lack of liquid money – the possibilities are endless.
• After identifying the conflict you can roll out the resolution. This usually ties into your Call to Action and gives them the information they need to solve their issues.

Real Life Examples

One of the most powerful strategies in any brand story is painting a picture of real success stories. Sometimes they’re called testimonials – sometimes they’re called case studies.

Regardless of the terminology, it’s an organic example for potential clients to see your program working in action for people just like them. However, ground rules exist that you should be mindful of as to not be too “over the top” with your testimonials:

• Present different perspectives. Not everyone speaks from the same platform and has the same experience.
• Document the start and the finish. Before and after examples are a VERY powerful strategy that highlights the progress that’s possible for clients who attend your facility.
• Probably the most important is to make it legit. The last thing you want is a video with tons of filters, bells and whistles, and smoke and mirrors. Any testimonial should be raw and true to life for a potential client. Use video content when at all possible. Video content gets far more engagement and gains traction as each day goes by.

Choosing Your Platform for Brand Storytelling

Where do your clients hang out online? What social media apps do they engage with – what websites do they read? Do they have favorite blog posts?

Despite the popularity of video, there is an ample amount of power in good old-fashioned written content. These written efforts can be broken into distinct categories:

• A formal, journalism-style piece that provides technical information can be effective with the right audience. This is typically better reserved for the family of clients and not necessarily the user.
• Ask your past clients if they’d be willing to write up a guest post or craft a personal narrative. To “hear it from the horse’s mouth” is still an impactful way to convey information. This is another emotional tactic that forges bonds between your facility and the reader. This doesn’t have to be limited solely to past clients. Even employees can get involved with these pieces, as hearing anything from those directly involved can be a powerful driving force toward recovery.
• Going for the old-fashioned color brochure still breathes life into your marketing efforts. Charts, graphics, and now infographics, are a powerful way to demonstrate vital information and statistics to users and other potential readers. This strategy can be equally distributed between potential clients and their families as well. The impact of these forms of literature may actually surprise you, considering the high impact of any graphic content.

What Can Graphics Do for Your Marketing Strategy?

In our current marketing world, the go-to is always graphics – video, photos, or any other visual assistant will typically garner the most positive results. Why is this?

For starters, attention spans are smaller than ever. Visual content can easily be scanned (photos), allowing readers to get the main takeaway without much critical thinking. Video content is more demonstrable, and even adds an entertainment factor that holds attention much longer.

Visual Narrative Structure: Setting the Stage

How can you get creative with your visual content? Consider using the following:

• Galleries and video carousels are always a favorite. It keeps clients engaged longer because it’s a series of photos instead of just one. You can also tell a story much easier with a carousel of photos, ensuring you provide a small caption with each one.
• Perhaps the most powerful visual content is a video testimonial. This correlates with the authenticity factor, but can also forge trust between you and the client. Anything that creates a more compelling, authentic experience will always shift your efforts into fostering a more positive outcome.
• One of the newest and most underserved forms of visual content is a virtual tour. Don’t you think potential clients want to know about their surroundings? If you have an upscale rehab, this is definitely a must-have as part of your visual arsenal.

Podcasts and Oral Stories in Content Marketing

Podcasting is one of the most powerful, and also one of the most underutilized forms of search engine marketing strategies. With the potential for so many different formats, you have dozens of different avenues at your disposal to reach your target audience.

You can produce a podcast series that keeps listeners coming back, interview experts in the field to demonstrate authority, and even invite past clients to speak as part of your testimonial strategy.

Building Credibility Through Storytelling

Cornerstones exist that help to build your brand’s credibility with the storytelling process. You must be transparent over anything else. The last thing you want in today’s world is to seem like you’re baiting and switching clients. It’s important to maintain a “what you see is what you get” atmosphere.

With this transparency should also come openness. Remain open for questions, inquiries, and overall interaction from clients and members of the community. The more you’re available and forthright with the dynamics of your program, the more comfortable people feel about giving you a shot.

Dispel Misconceptions With Your Content Marketing

Unfortunately, there is a ton of misjudgment and misconception that goes along with addiction and addiction treatment. Using storytelling and your brand identity can be an excellent way to combat the negative assumptions associated with addiction and treatment facilities.

This also shows your clients you’re willing to step up to bat for them and you care about them being treated as basic human beings.

Demonstrating Your Authority

This is actually a fun way to get your staff involved in the process. How do you demonstrate your authority through storytelling?

Interview your staff. Producing short content that highlights the specialists at your facility is not only exciting for your staff but also insightful and informative for potential clients and their loved ones. With this, you’re also adding to the feeling of transparency.

Create staff profiles or even a blog for your team to update everyone on their experiences and share motivational blurbs. This is also the perfect way to showcase your credentials and the individual accolades of your staff.

Remaining Compliant With Your Content Marketing

You’re already aware of the regulatory compliance involved with addiction treatment, with organizations from LegitScript to the Joint Commission, CARF, and others adhering to their own guidelines and edicts.

Now isn’t the time to overlook the importance of compliance.

Even during advertising and marketing, there are rules you must adhere to to ensure you’re operating on the right side of the law. Keep the following in mind AT ALL TIMES:

• Get familiar with federal and state laws governing substance abuse marketing. Make sure none of your content crosses the lines or borders violating these regulations. Post these in a place where your staff can see them.
• The American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) also has a set of guidelines that facilities are expected to abide by. These normally cover things that protect clients, like being honest and providing proper care. If you run a proper facility to begin with, all of these things should fall into place for you without much effort.
• One of the most important things to remember is to never oversell your services or make promises you can’t keep. Don’t tell the public you provide a specific form of therapy or treatment if it’s not available. This is a misrepresentation of goods or services and could cost your business significant amounts in fines or legal fees.
• Clients who are taking this leap should never have to worry if what they’re looking for is actually going to be available as advertised. Be real, be forthcoming, and don’t overstate what you bring to the table.

Stick to Realistic and Evidence-Based Benefits

The last thing you want to be is a snake oil salesman. Remember, you’re not in the business of providing a miracle cure. Your treatment center’s online content and the marketing efforts you employ shouldn’t be too over-the-top or make promises about having access to the next big thing.

As a general rule, you should avoid using the following language:

• “Exclusive, never-before-seen anywhere else”
• “Miracle, overnight cures”
• “Guaranteed to work”
• “Nobody else has this form of treatment”
• “The best kept secrets in the business”

Additional Privacy Matters to Remember

This goes without saying, but all of your content must be HIPAA compliant. If for some reason you’re not aware, HIPAA outlines patient privacy and the provider/patient relationship. In the simplest terms, nobody should know anything about the treatment your client is receiving unless expressly stated by the client that it’s okay for you to divulge this information.

What does this mean to you as far as content marketing goes?

First and foremost, all of your testimonials must be 100% anonymous. You must draft a disclosure form that your clients sign that highlights the fact that, first, they have your consent to produce the material, and second, that you won’t provide the public with any information about them.

Even if the client is okay with it, we would suggest your facility never uses full names or personal details in your content.

A Team That Understands the Power of Narrative

At Ads Up Marketing, we can help with all of the dynamics mentioned above. From start to finish, we’ll ensure you draft compelling content, make it seem as realistic as possible, ensure it’s constructed in the right way, and finally – ensure that all regulatory measures are satisfied and no issues exist with client rights.

We handle video marketing, written content marketing, social media, and more. We can help you craft compelling stories and make sure you’re on pace with the most successful marketing campaigns in the business. We drive home brand values and help present personal stories that communicate the core message through your content marketing.

Reach Out and Let Us Help Share Your Story Effectively

Let’s put your company culture and core message on display for everyone to see. Our storytelling skills and your quality facility will create brand loyalty for years to come.

For more information on how we can help you achieve your goals, contact us today for a complimentary consultation. Let’s get to know each other, and see where we can help your story shine today!