Some of us have literally no desire to be noticed. We just want to do a good job, have a successful career, and enjoy our lives. We do not dream of seeing ourselves on TV, in magazines, or having tons of followers on social media. Then there are those of us who do. TSLMS membership is made up of both types; and this edition of our blog is really meant for both.
Why You Really Want Celebrity Dr. Status
Celebrities get more business of a higher paying clientele – and they have their medical advice followed more. So says, BMJ:
Economics literature shows that celebrity endorsements act as signals of credibility that differentiate products or ideas from competitors and can catalyse herd behaviour. Marketing studies show that celebrities transfer their desirable attributes to products and use their success to boost their perceived credibility. Psychology shows that people are classically conditioned to react positively to the advice of celebrities, experience cognitive dissonance if they do not, and are influenced by congruences with their self conceptions. Sociology helps explain the spread of celebrity medical advice as a contagion that diffuses through social networks and people’s desire to acquire celebrities’ social capital… The influence of celebrity status is a deeply rooted process that can be harnessed for good.
Literally, if you can become a celebrity doctor you can write your own ticket and make your own mark on medical science. Sure, you may not want ALL of the things that come with celebrity status in your life. It takes a lot of time and energy to keep up with being a “personality” – and it is a lot more expensive as well. We illustrate some of the pros and cons below. However, even for those who do not choose to pursue celebrity status, there are real reasons that you will want some recognition and kudos. This will inevitably help you with your businesses marketing; which in turn will lead to a more successful practice and there are so many reasons why we all want that.
The question, then, is what do you need to do to accomplish this? It is not hard, but it does take commitment.
How To Get Celebrity Status
While giving advice on this topic is not necessarily our forte, we certainly have experience in helping to propel a lot of people from their day jobs into being recognized as teachers, practitioners and celebrities. These leaders frequently present at (and even headline) SCALE Music City, where they have a platform with the public and others working in the field. One notable example includes Dr. Doris Day, celebrity NYC dermatologist, who we featured in our Meet the Doctor Series. Dr. Day is truly a superstar among doctors. She is frequently in the news and even a highlight of the social columns. Doctors like her accomplish this through a combination of personal effort and being open to the opportunities that can turn on celebrity status.
Traditionally, in order to attain this type of celebrity one needed to either attract earned media, or pay for media. Earned media is essentially publicity. It is the media and attention that is generated by something that is not paid for or produced specifically by you. It happens when the media seeks you out as an expert, or you happen to be in the right place at the right time and get quoted. It also falls into the realm of social media.
Earned media is the creme-de-la-creme of getting attention for you and your services. It is incredibly effective, as noted by HubSpot Marketing. Probably more effective than even the billboards and commercials that our colleagues in the legal field have perfected as a tactic:
Today’s consumers are influenced greatly by family, friends, and what they read and see online. People no longer share the good, the bad, and the ugly of brands exclusively at the water cooler — they share it with everyone they’re connected with online, which can include hundreds, thousands, or maybe even millions of people.
And a lot of those people listen and use those stories to make buying decisions. In fact, according to HubSpot Research, 57% of people in the U.S. trust what they hear from friends and family the most when they discover a new product. About one third of U.S. buyers prefer what information they can find from a Google search.
As digital marketing and social media continue to evolve, so will earned media — and departments other than public relations, like marketing and customer service, will become more responsible for capturing earned media attention.
FInding your way into good earned media opportunities will propel you towards being one of the practitioners that people know about, are talking about, and seek out.
The Pros and Cons of SuperStar Status
The biggest con of being a celebrity is the lack of privacy and anonymity. If you can handle living in the limelight and being recognized everywhere you go there are not too many cons to being in our industry and being a celebrity. Your business will grow enormously because, as noted by MinnPost.com, “It seems that we as humans are biologically, psychologically and socially hard-wired to trust celebrities’ health advice… That halo that glows from celebrities is so powerful that we just can’t resist following whatever they say.”