Practice Management
July 2023
by Fielding Emmott
Online search engines offer boundless information to users in every country on the planet. It follows that many of the queries relate to a top concern for all people: health. People go online to search for health products, facilities, and services. In fact, nearly 100% of internet users ages 18–49 search for health information online.1 Ophthalmology is no exception. Google has earned the trust of the common internet user by offering quick answers and solutions to health issues: “Why do I feel pain in my right abdomen?” “Am I getting a cold?” Receiving more than a billion health-related queries per day, Google’s authority in healthcare impacts how users receive, perceive, and utilize health-related information in the modern age. For ophthalmic businesses, this means it is crucial to be active and present where potential patients are searching online. Accomplishing this, be it a practice or an ASC, is done by promoting the brand through online platforms and channels.
Ophthalmic businesses will recognize healthier return on investment when investing in a carefully constructed online branding strategy.
Strategizing and executing an effective online campaign can be daunting, but myriad of tools and applications are available to make this job easier. For a practice or ASC, the following are necessary: a website, a Google profile, active social media channels, and reputation management. These help brands develop, distribute, and communicate to targeted users, all while staying on-brand.
Some ophthalmic businesses may be too preoccupied with perfecting the website while leaving other opportunities untapped or insufficiently utilized. For some, this selective usage may be adequate. However, businesses that don’t pursue and utilize online tools can be missing out on brand growth. When used collectively, efforts within an encompassing online campaign should be designed to complement each other. Ophthalmic businesses will recognize healthier return on investment when investing in a carefully constructed online branding strategy.
The website
The website serves as the core to an online branding strategy. This is where the other tools in the campaign direct traffic. This tool is necessary for all ophthalmic businesses. Some businesses can get away with using a Facebook page as their website. Medical practices do not have this luxury. Users expect more from businesses these days. If a user cannot quickly find a potential provider and explore the website, the provider loses credibility and (likely) a potential patient.
Via engaging, branded content, the website allows businesses to position themselves as a trusted source, a medical authority. Offering users relevant, helpful information is the first step in persuading users of this authority. For ophthalmology businesses, this requires incorporating educational information about the services offered and the eye conditions they treat into the pages of the website. To rank higher on search engine results pages, websites should weave relevant keywords throughout the site. This will contribute to attracting more organic traffic.
Digital advertising
Traffic can also come non-organically in the form of advertisements. Digital ads can be effective at driving users to the website, particularly new or first-time visitors. Google’s advertising platform can help marketers connect with users at each step on their journey to purchase. Ads themselves have evolved to sophisticated, multimedia formats. From video advertising on YouTube to search ads, Google advertisers utilize many ad types to attract leads, grow sales, engage customers and patients, and increase brand awareness.
Social media
Many modern internet users love the ability to express themselves online, and social media is where much of this expression exists. Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Instagram are platforms that are most commonly used as conversation starters. These can be especially useful for ophthalmic practices as it allows them to share their personalities and interact directly with patients. These can also offer honest patient feedback and how the outside world perceives a brand.
Reputation
As practices grow their online branding efforts, reputation management should be a high priority. Reputation management is the act of managing public perceptions about a business or brand.2 Following a patient experience, the practice may not know what reviews that patient is leaving online. Modern apps and software allow practices to track, reply, and manage review sites across the internet. Some specialize in healthcare reviews, collecting data from all known medical review sites. These can be combined to formulate a score or grade for the practice. These scores can be further sorted and scored at the individual doctor/facility level. A flawless online score is unrealistic, but by utilizing reputation management software, practices can actively protect the brand and respond appropriately.
Creating a website, Google account, social media pages, and reputation management are only the beginning of a comprehensive online branding campaign. Web design should be constantly analyzed, social media pages should be sharing fresh content, advertising efforts should be optimized, and reputation management requires daily engagement. Prior to investing in these tools, a practice must develop a logical strategy and fully commit to the executables. Practices that do this will be best positioned to achieve maximum return on investment.
About the author
Fielding Emmott
Copywriter
Medical Consulting Group
Springfield, Missouri
References
- 1 Billion Searches a Day: How Your Patients Look for Medical Information Online. Evok Advertising. evokad.com/healthcare-marketing-statistics- google.
- Forsey C. Reputation Management: How to Protect Your Brand Online in 2023. HubSpot. blog.hubspot.com/marketing/reputation-management.
Contact
Emmott: femmott@medcgroup.com
