The Healthcare industry is changing fast. Before, it used to be volume-based centered around the healthcare provider. But now, it is more about the patient and providing high-quality services. If you look around, you’ll see multiple healthcare practices present in your region extending similar services. With marketing, you can make your practice stand out from the crowd.
Healthcare Can’t Do Without Marketing
What you need to do is be more visible than the competition which is rising. And to quickly keep up with the digital trends is the need of the hour. What is required is extensive marketing which works two-ways. It does not just attract patients but also the most professional healthcare experts (nurses, doctors, other specialists) to your clinic. This will make it easier for a marketing recruitment agency hired by you to recruit professional healthcare experts to work for your clinic or practice.
Your Patients Search You Online
Did you know five percent of searches on Google are related to healthcare? Among these individuals are not just patients but average users who out of habit for learning about a particular disease run a little Google search. Whenever they have a question, before even contacting a doctor, they look into Google.
77% of your patients do research online before making an appointment. If your practice shows up in the results, they might consider you. On the other hand, if your name doesn’t appear at all, they will never know you exist.
It’s not just a web presence that counts, social media presence is of notable importance as well. Patients are in touch with their physicians and medical providers via Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, etc. for daily tips on improving their health.
This is a promising age and time to work on the digital presence and marketing of your health practice.
Top Marketing Practices for Healthcare Practice
Healthcare marketing is an investment. It demands a well-crafted marketing plan to make your practice attractive to patients. These are some top marketing strategies a healthcare clinic or practice can employ:
Develop a Consistent Brand
Every healthcare provider, hospital, or doctor has the expertise that sets them apart from others. To patients, all white coats look the same so you have to convince them that yours is different. To do that you first need to figure out what brand image you want to portray. Begin by telling them what is unique about your sort of network. Similarly, let them know how you treat your patients and what kind of environment you provide. So take all the time you need to figure out what works for your brand. And learn how to represent your brand the best way to attract the audience.
Create an Online Presence
A decade back, no one bothered about checking the web page of a hospital or health care provider. Now, it’s the first thing a patient checks. So that means, it’s the new front door to your practice. If your website doesn’t exist or it’s optimized, it may be the last time they consider your practice.
When working on your online presence, put yourself in your patient’s shoes. Don’t just focus on making the website look good, focus on the patient’s experience as well. Pay special attention to the contact us form/page.
Build a Responsive Website
Your healthcare website must be able to adjust to the size of the screen automatically. The patients must have the same experience whether they are accessing your site from their smartphone, tablet, or PC.
Even search engines give importance to those websites that are optimized for mobile users. Responsive sites work well for the healthcare industry. If you already have a responsive website, check it again. Check the images, content, and load time on mobile devices to ensure it works well.
Ask For Patients Reviews
Online reviews have a huge role in motivating patients to do business with you. Encourage your patients to leave feedback about the visit to your clinic. Before the patient leaves, ask them to rate the quality of service on a scale of 1 to 10.
In case of a poor score, do not be disappointed instead it should be welcomed as an opportunity to improve your services. Get to the heart of the matter and ask how you can improve their experience.
Consider Traditional Media Options
Don’t be afraid to invest in traditional marketing opportunities. These include billboards, TV, newspaper, radio, flyers, etc. These are major investments therefore, be careful about where you spend your money.
To make sure your ads are seen by the right audience at the right time, use the services of healthcare media buyers. Market your services to the audience that presents your average patient to maximize the ROI.
Final Words
Healthcare marketing establishes goodwill and brings more patients to your practice. Just like streamlined employee onboarding requires work beforehand, so does an invitation to new patients and retention of the existing ones. It all starts with creating the right marketing plan.
