11 Great Ideas To Help Market Your Doctors Office To New Patients

11 Great Ideas To Help Market Your Doctors Office To New Patients

 

Reaching out to new patients, or even being able to retain your current ones, can sometimes seem like a struggle. Worrying that you won’t be able to attract new patients, or waking up in cold sweat that one day your schedule will be bare, is a constant concern for doctors and physicians. However, it needn’t be.

To help you to promote your business, here are 11 great ideas to help market your medical practice:

1. Have A Professional Website Built

The internet is your shop window to the world, and to be able to compete in the digital age; you need to have a comprehensive online presence. The most effective way to do this is to have a professional website that offers information about your services, as well as easy to find contact details, patient testimonials, and a blog page to help build SEO for your medical practice.

2. Be A Part Of Your Community

As a provider of health care services, it is vital that you are seen as helping your community where possible. Being active in your city could be as simple as sponsoring an annual event, or something on a grander scale, like organizing a charity ball or fundraiser. You could also have a mobile booth that can be set up at health fairs, community gatherings or even sporting events to tell the community about your doctor’s office.

3. Make A Donation

Following on from the above, a great way to get your name out there is to donate something for free. This could be a coupon for free treatment or a promotional discount. Donating a free service to a local charity will not only attract new customers, but it also helps to promote you as a leading benefactor in your neighborhood.

4. Understand your Patients

To market your business successfully, you need to know exactly who you are marketing it to. Understanding what makes your potential new patients tick is key to engaging with them. Build up a profile of your typical patient, including how much they are willing to spend, how they pay and how often they return, to see what kind of patient is attracted to the services you offer. You can then undertake some basic research that will help you find the best ways to reach them. For example, affluent older patients might be best reached using upscale magazines, while younger patients could be more accessible using social media like Facebook or Twitter.

5. Hold An Open Day

You may have potential new patients in your neighborhood that have heard of you but don’t know much about the services you offer. You could hold an open day or reception and invite the public, colleagues and other healthcare providers that provide referrals to your event. Have your most experienced medical staff on hand to discuss the treatments available at your office, and answer any questions about them.

6. Use Email Marketing

Most doctors offices ask for an email as part of their data-capture procedure. Using a regular, but not intrusive email marketing campaign you can keep them up to date with new procedures, special offers, and promotional events via email.

7. Introduce A Referral Program

Finding a good doctor is vital to anyone looking for effective, reliable and affordable healthcare. If you offer your existing patients an excellent service, they become a walking, talking advertisement for your office. If they look amazing thanks to the surgery you have performed or feel brand new thanks to your medical care; you can guarantee they will be happy to recommend you.

8. Become An Expert In Your Field

Everyone uses the internet for research these days, and often turn to Google before making initial inquiries in person. Blogs are a great way to offer information about your own expertise (you are reading one now, after all), and you can show your prowess by writing informative, engaging pieces about your specialism. You could go even further and submit articles to online and prints publications, talk at seminars or offer your own V-log YouTube channel.

9. Offer A Customer Survey

Sometimes a patient will walk out of your office full of praise, but maybe wishing that a part of their visit had gone differently. Offering a customer survey gives patients the opportunity to voice their opinions on paper, which many people find easier to do. Please take note of their suggestions, and act on them where possible. When you do make changes, be sure to tell your patients about them using your email marketing campaign.

10. Build Your Brand

Finally, you can be the best doctor in the world, but if the service you offer is inconsistent and uninspiring, your patients will quickly be enticed by a doctor with better bedside manners! You and your team should prioritize customer service at all times, from the first inquiry to the last aftercare appointment. Be professional, of course, but also be helpful, courteous and personable. Let them get to know you, and become their trusted medical provider.

11. Tell The World Your Story

The way to market your doctor’s office is to give it a voice and a personality all of its own. Unless you offer a service that is unique, you will always face competition of some kind.

By offering a personal service, with a strong brand ethos behind it, your patients will return to your time and time again. Be transparent, never promise more than you can deliver, and take the time to listen to your patients’ needs.

Getting to know your patients, as well as providing consistently high levels of customer service and clinical excellence, will build trust and quickly transform your practice from just another doctor to a trusted professional.

A satisfied patient will always be your most effective and believable marketing resource, and if you continue to deliver, they will always be your greatest asset too.

Are you looking for more ideas? Contact Telos Digital Marketing to set up a brainstorming session!

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Devin McHatten, MBA

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Devin McHatten, MBA

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