Marketing for Medical Practices has changed quite a lot in recent years.  Today, medical practices are far more sophisticated with digital marketing that includes well-designed websites, social media, and email outreach.  Everyone searches online reviews. But every medical practice seems to take the same approach, and, just like in the past, sound the same.  So what can you do to show help those who need you see how you’re different, and how you can help them?  Should you just try more than just digital marketing for doctors?

Marketing for Medical Practices is more than digital

Your medical practice is in a constant process of attracting, helping and holding on to patients.  Patients are the reason you’re in practice: they’re the reason you gained your expertise, and the reason your practice survives.  They’re the lifeblood of your practice.

The Patient Experience

Everything you do must be focused on the patient, and the “patient experience.”  A first step is understanding their needs…but the next (and often neglected) step is showing them that you understand them. In today’s time-sensitive healthcare visit, your interaction with each patient is limited.  So how can you reinforce the message that you “feel their pain”?

Use every opportunity

You have a few distinct opportunities to reinforce your reputation for compassion and how you understand your patient’s needs, so it’s important to deliver your message every chance you get, including:

1. You can improve your “online profile” by simply creating a professional and “patient centered” Facebook profile, creating a LinkedIn profile, setting up a “Google My Business” page, and use all of them to promote your Blog Posts.
2. Yes, Blog Posts.  Posting regularly (at least weekly) helps you gain a reputation for your expertise and specialties, and your success in treating your patients.  It helps your patient understand and appreciate you in the same way that long doctor-patient conversations used to.
3. The way you answer your phone: busy medical practices can’t always answer all their calls “personally,” so most rely on a “automated answering system.”  That’s actually okay, because we’ve learned to accept them.  But make sure that the recorded voice that answers their calls is
   1. Human, and not a robot
   2. Pleasant
   3. Professional
4. When your callers must wait on “hold.”  Again, your patients have come to accept this, but you can make the experience a good one, by replacing the old “music on hold” with something better: information about your practice, your specialties, and how you help your patients.  A professional message on hold can be a marketing tool that can help grow your practice, increase consults, and improve your patient’s experience
5. Your office staff.  When a patient walks through your door, you have an opportunity to make their experience a good one, or the last one you’ll have with them.  You’d be surprised at how much of the patient experience depends on your support staff, and not just on the time they spend with you.

It’s time to understand Marketing

Marketing your medical practice is crucial to your long term success, and continuing to help your patients.  These five ideas can help you succeed, and you can see the results in just days.