Innovative marketing of medical practice has gone beyond advertising in phone directories, yellow pages or local newspaper. The growing use of internet among a large population, online as well as on the mobile, has made it imperative for the healthcare providers to start using it to reach their patients. But the use of such media aggressively has also given rise to competition and having a website is not enough to attract a steady flow of patients to a doctor’s clinic.
Search engines like Google and Bing index so many pages that it is extremely difficult to have any one medical practice stand out among others, without much efforts. Having a website is a good beginning but in absence of robust optimization and smart marketing strategies, the website will be just another online brochure that a doctor has.
I am using this blog to share what I think are important things to keep in mind to market a doctor’s practice online:
The initial step is to ensure that your web developer makes a search friendly website and optimizes it for popular search engines like Google and Bing. This involves on-site and off-site strategies. Smart web developers know the strategy to use keywords that target the specialty and geography in search. The Search Engine Optimizer (SEO) must know the rules of the search engines and comply with them rather than taking short cuts to ensure a long term benefits.
A doctor must encourage his / her patients to write testimonials. This will help in building online reputation, which in turn builds credibility. This is what people are looking for when they are searching for their doctor online. Smart way to do this is to use multimedia e.g. Videos. This will ensure your patients have confidence on what to expect when they visit doctor’s clinic for consultation and / or treatment. Also, Video which is tagged with the right set of keywords helps in search.
A word of caution: People write both positive & negative reviews. So a doctor must keep monitoring the website or any such social media networks online where the doctor may have registered, to keep a track of such reviews, which could be counter-productive.
The doctor must start using the pull strategy to build awareness of the online practice / website. This involves using social media strategies like Blogging, Micro Blogging, Social Networks, Videos etc. to help bring target users to his / her own website. Social networks like Facebook and micro-blogging websites like Twitter are effective in engaging with patients. They can also be used to project the doctor as an expert in a particular area. Example: If a doctor specializes in Cochlear Implants, a blog on Cochlear Implants will establish the ENT doctor as an expert that specific area.
I have also observed that FAQ’s and myths play an important role in a doctor’s website. This can be effectively used in answering questions in massage boards or even specific products like Yahoo Answers or even in the LinkedIn groups.
I personally feel it is becoming increasingly important for the doctor to start engaging with the patients using the web 2.0. This can be effectively done on the doctor’s website itself, social media platforms like Facebook or on mobile. One of the ways of doing this is by building applications. These online & mobile help a particular doctor effectively stand out among others medical practitioners and establish a continuous & strong connect with the doctor’s practice / clinic. Example: a small medicine reminder service using SMS everyday is an effective way for a doctor to tell the patient that “We care”.
There is no one better that the doctor himself / herself to manage the continuous update of the website or social platforms, but then doctor’s are pressed for time. It is a good idea for a doctor’s to engage with Digital Media Companies or Consultants who understand healthcare domain to professionally manage the updates and build online reputation & engagement online using new media technologies. There are tools to help in doing so, but then someone needs to manage these tools as well and it is best left to experts.
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