Are you looking for a way to improve the overall performance of your medical practice? If so, then you need to make sure that you are investing in medical digital marketing. It’s fair to say that this can be your secret weapon when you are trying to attract new patients and retain existing ones. The right digital marketing strategy can provide you with a competitive edge and ensure that your medical practice stands out in the crowd.
It’s important to note that there are various different sections of a digital marketing campaign. You need to make sure that you understand what digital marketing is, why it can be effective and why it is crucial for a medical practice.
What is Digital Marketing?
Digital marketing is about promoting your business online. This can include both local and global marketing; however, for a medical practice, the focus will usually be on local. Through digital promotion, you can ensure that your medical practice is seen and known to the widest audience possible. It can help improve your reach and ensure that more patients find your company. Digital marketing covers a wide range of different platforms and solutions including:
• SEO
• Content marketing
• Social media
• Email marketing
• Web design
Web Design
One of the most crucial elements of a digital marketing campaign is going to be your medical business website. You can think of a website as the home hub for your company. It provides all of the information that patients need on your business and ensures that they know who you are and what you can offer. It can also provide key information including the staff working at your business, the location of your practice and the services that you offer. When a patient searches for a medical practice online, they expect to find a website. If you don’t have a website, potential patients will likely make snap judgments about your business. They might decide that it is poorly funded or unable to handle all of their needs and requirements. They will also be wary of a business where it is a struggle to get the information that they want or potentially could need.
Content Marketing
Content marketing involves everything from blogs to emails and beyond. Here, you create content to promote your medical business and ensure that your practice gets more attention online. With engaging content, you can also provide value to potential patients. You can represent your practice as a leader in the industry and ensure that they know that your advice can be trusted. You can offer advice, support and the solutions they require. Essentially, this can lead to indirect promotion, which also benefits potential patients.
Social Media
With social media, you will be able to promote and publish the content that you create. At the same time, social media ensures that your business is more accessible to potential patients. It shows the human aspect of your business, which is always going to be crucial for a medical practice. The key trick here is to make sure that you are engaging with potential patients online. Get to know who they are and what they need, and then show them what you can offer. This is crucial for successful social media marketing. You can also provide updates and keep current and potential patients in the loop.
SEO
SEO, or search engine optimization, is about building areas of your brand online to ensure that they are completely optimized for search engines. This will allow you to rank higher, leading to more traffic to your website and a higher level of brand recognition.
SEO can be both local and global. Since your patient base will most likely be local, this is the form of SEO you may need to focus on. Various elements will impact your ranking online including customer reviews. More positive reviews in Google will likely lead to a higher ranking online.
Paid marketing is an option where you can pay to get your business represented in the sponsored results. This works on a bidding format. It is not widely used by medical practices, but it can be beneficial in an area where there is a high level of competition.
Why is Digital Marketing Effective?
You might be wondering why digital marketing is more effective than other promotional methods that you could use for your medical practice. Well, there are a few reasons why this is the ideal method.
Digital marketing allows you to tap into a massive audience. Even if you are appealing to a local audience, the demand is going to be there. Everyone is online these days, and most users are searching for products and services. You need to make sure that they find your medical practice. The only way to do this is to heavily invest in the right digital marketing solutions.
Radio and TV advertisements are simply not as effective because they are no longer heard or viewed by a large audience. This has become even more of an issue with streaming and the ability to fast forward through live TV. The likelihood of your advertisements being seen or heard is slim.
Another big benefit of digital marketing is that you can control who you target. You can determine who you want to appeal to depending on the services you offer. Perhaps you want to find patients that are parents, or you could be looking for Millennials. With online marketing, you will be able to devise a marketing campaign that appeals directly to these individuals based on real data.
Of course, marketing your business online through digital marketing solutions will also ensure that it is more accessible. It will allow you to show the people behind the practice and reassure potential patients. It can even lead to a greater level of referrals with people across social media recommending your practice to friends, family members and followers.
Why is This Crucial for Medical Businesses?
It’s fair to say that digital marketing will benefit virtually every business. But it will have a significant impact on medical companies. Why is this?
One survey has found that 72% of users are now searching online for answers before they contact a medical health professional. With the right digital marketing campaign, you can provide the answers they’re seeking through engaging content. This will then allow you to promote your business and ensure that it is discovered. So, after getting the answer, they’ll contact your practice. 66% of users are looking for information on specific medical diseases and conditions. So, this is what you should focus your content around. Address the signs, the symptoms and when it’s time for them to visit a doctor.
Another 77% are accessing a search engine to find the right medical practice for them. This means that they’re not simply heading to the practice that’s close by. They’re checking information, exploring reviews and finding the best option for them. They might even choose to travel farther if they find a medical practice with the right brand profile.
You might be wondering why medical practices aren’t simply paying for ads to appear. Surely, this is one of the most effective ways to get the word out about your business, right? It would be, but hundreds of millions of people now use some form of AdBlocker. There’s a good chance that your ads aren’t going to be seen at all. As such, this isn’t going to be cost-friendly or effective.
You can think about using email marketing. This is yet another way that you can reach patients and connect with them. Once they sign up with your practice, you can send them valuable email content that is going to help them stay connected to your business.
More research has shown that 50% of people completing a mobile search will visit the company they find that day. This means that if you have the right mobile strategy in place, you are going to see results. This is why it’s absolutely crucial that you have a beautifully designed website that is mobile-responsive. This ensures that it will be completely accessible to users regardless of what device they are accessing it on.
Getting Started with Medical Digital Marketing
If you want your medical practice to succeed, it’s important to understand the benefits of medical digital marketing and why it should be a key part of your promotional strategy. Cost-effective, medical digital marketing can help you rise above your competition while reaching patients that you would otherwise miss.
Don’t forget that a key part of digital marketing is also data. You can use it to ensure that you access data that will allow you to learn more about your patients and change your marketing strategy accordingly. With big data, you can significantly increase your ROI and even provide a far better service to your patients. Rather than simply focusing on the promotion, you can build value, and this will ultimately help grow your reach online and with your local audience.
If you’re ready to reap the benefits of medical digital marketing, reach out to the professionals at Crystal Clear Digital Marketing. Learn about our process and how we can help you find, serve and keep more patients profitably. Contact our office today to get started!
