In the past, doctors typically had to rely upon word-of-mouth marketing to help drive more patients to their practice. However, in this modern digital age, informed consumers are taking to the World Wide Web to seek out healthcare providers for their various needs. Whether they want an optometrist for their eyes, a pediatrician for their children, or a general practitioner for their whole family, the information they search for is how they’re going to find you. This means that if you don’t have a solid online presence, you could be letting these patients slip through your fingers.
But what is SEO (search engine optimization) and why is it so important to your practice? In the simplest of terms, SEO is a means of bringing your website to the front page of the more popular search engines, such as Bing and Google. If you want to have a reliable online presence, then it’s essential to not overlook the numerous benefits of proper optimization of your website. As a healthcare provider, this marketing tool not only allows you to educate your current patient base, but it can also help you in the process of building up a new one, as well.
Gone are the days when patient referrals would keep your exam rooms full. These days, patients are using the internet to scout out a medical provider for themselves and their loved ones. Recent studies reveal that greater than 75% of people are now taking to the internet to find a doctor, and if you’re not online – or your page’s inadequate presence doesn’t draw them to your website – then they just may wind up going to your competitors instead. To avoid this, make sure your website is the one they land on first, and ensure that it also contains your contact information in a visible location.
Taking the time to make sure your website is accurate, modern, and has the right SEO implemented can make or break its presence online. Patients today want answers from a trusted and reputable source, whether they are concerned about the difference between “angina vs heart attack” (a concern which should always warrant a medical appointment) or they simply want to know which dentists near them take their insurance. Answering their questions is a smart and effective way to get their eyes on your website and their feet through your office’s door.
When a potential patient doesn’t have a family member who can refer them to you, then they’ll need to take the time to learn more about you online. Your information is out there on the internet, and these would-be patients are going to be reading it. However, if your website has the information about you that they seek, as well as glowing reviews from all of the happy people you’ve had the pleasure to treat, then they’re going to choose you to be their doctor. With their confidence intact, you can care for them and their family – and maybe even have them refer a friend or two to you, too!
There are many ways you can try to draw patients to your office. Perhaps you may want to renovate your office suite, or maybe you want to eventually make the shift to electronic health records (EHR) or other types of digital documentation for your practice. While these all have key benefits in and of themselves, they can also be a somewhat costly endeavor and the benefits may be uncertain. However, an online presence with good SEO in place is a surprisingly economical and effective way to capture leads and build your practice up.
Ultimately, not having a website can spell disaster for your practice. While you may be able to maintain your patient base for a little while without it, not attracting new patients to your clinic may lead to you facing an empty exam room and lost revenue. Whether you’re a recent graduate or you’ve been practicing for decades, taking the time to create an SEO-friendly website is always going to be an intelligent business decision – and it’s one that you’ll be grateful to have year after year, with new and old patients alike.
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