Once you complete your doula training, it’s time to find families to support.
You have all of the knowledge and training that you need, along with a burning desire to get out there and start serving pregnant people and new families. However, it can be challenging to get started and actually find the people who need your help.
Here’s some tips on where to start.
1. FRIENDS & FAMILY
Start with the people who know you and your doula heart best - your family and friends. Reach out to people who know you well and know that you’d be an amazing, nurturing & supportive doula to anyone who has the blessing of working with you.
Tell them about your new doula career and how you will support people in your new role. Ask them to please spread the word to their friends and family who may be expecting.
This is also a great chance to work on your “elevator pitch” - a short and sweet description of what a doula does (that you would say to someone in a brief elevator ride). The more you talk with your friends and family about your new career, the more authentic, concise and impactful your elevator pitch becomes. Now you’re ready to expand out into talking to people beyond your inner circle!
Marketing tip: This is even more powerful if you have a website or, at the very least, a Facebook business page for them to pass along. Which leads me to the next tip…
2. GET SOCIAL ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Start your social media accounts and website ASAP (even if you’re not fully trained or certified yet! Seriously! The sooner the better!). Make sure your social media “handles” match your business name so that your brand is consistent and easy to recognize. (It’s confusing if your website is www.awesomedoula4you.com and your Instagram is “Darcy_17xoxo”.)
The sooner you have a social media presence, the sooner you have somewhere to send potential clients and birth professionals whom you connect with while networking.
Having an internet presence also makes you “legit” and it’s vital that people can find you online. Even if a friend or former client shares a glowing recommendation, that person is probably going to check you out online before contacting you. If they can’t find any record of your existence, they will be more hesitant to hire you.
Social media is a great way to promote your doula services in your community, but also don’t overlook the power of social media as a networking tool as well. Local birth professionals will see your posts as well and can share with their audiences. Connect with and comment on the posts of other local birth professionals that you find on Facebook and Instagram.
The key to success on social media is to post consistently, not constantly and to BE SOCIAL!
3. NETWORK. NETWORK. NETWORK.
Reach out to anyone who is working with birthing people RIGHT NOW - the birth doulas, providers, prenatal yoga teachers, childbirth educators, acupuncturists, lactation counselors etc.
Ask how they are serving people right now because of COVID and ask if you can share that with your audience. Then politely ask if they will also pass along your offerings to their clients.
4. FACEBOOK GROUPS
Join any local Facebook Groups for birthworkers in your area (if one doesn’t exist - create one!) Be proactive - introduce yourself and your services. Ask if anyone is up for a virtual Zoom coffee date/intro meeting so that you can get to know the providers in your area. Also respectfully ask that they consider referring clients your way. Share the best way for them to contact you.
Also, join any local “mom groups”. Be conscious of the Mom groups rules in terms of promoting yourself. But you can start to establish yourself as a local expert by answering questions with evidence-based information and a positive attitude.
5. JOIN (OR CREATE!) A FREE MEETUP EVENT
Is there a Doula Tea or Meet the Doula event in your area? If so, find out what you need to do to join. If not, create your own. The key here is consistency. This won’t work if you host one and give up if no one shows up.
Pick a consistent date and place (the first Thursday of the month at XYZ coffee shop). Invite other birthworkers to join you and help you spread the word. It may start slow, but if it’s a consistent offering - it will be easy for others to help you advertise it. Soon you’ll have all the prenatal yoga instructors in town saying “Check out the Doula Tea that happens every month…”
6. WRITE BLOGS & ARTICLES
Write a blog post or article on pregnancy and/or postpartum during the pandemic. As you’re networking with other professionals, ask if you can mention their COVID offerings in your blog post/article. (they are sure to say yes to free promotion!)
Write a blog post or article on pregnancy and/or postpartum during the pandemic. As you’re networking with other professionals, ask if you can mention their COVID offerings in your blog post/article. (they are sure to say yes to free promotion!)
Post on your own website (if you have a blogging option), share on social media and be sure to tag all the businesses you mention so that they can comment and share too. This will really increase the virtual reach of your post.
You can also submit articles to local news outlets, local mom bloggers, local mom/calendar websites. They are all looking for content right now!
Be sure to include your contact info and offerings with an easy way that people can connect with you.
It can be hard to put yourself out there and promote your doula services. My favorite quote about marketing is from Michael Hyatt who says, “Marketing is really just about sharing your passion.” When you tap into the passion that inspired you to train as a doula when you talk about your doula work, promoting yourself gets so much easier.
Need more tips on how to get clients? Watch my free, on-demand webinar on How to Get More Doula Clients.
The Doula Darcy, PCD (DONA) has 11 years of postpartum doula experience AND 10 years of experience of working in advertising and marketing before her doula career began. For more tips on marketing your doula services, join her FREE Facebook Group: The Doula Marketing Group
https://www.facebook.com/groups/963734733801940
https://www.facebook.com/groups/963734733801940
She offers marketing mentorship to doulas in her membership community - My Doula Village. Learn more at www.thedouladarcy.com
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Are you a birthworker who supports new moms? Use BeHerVillage to help your clients pay for your support. Create your free profile here and you can be the best baby shower gift a mom will ever get!
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