How do you get new leads for your business?
Dentists, doctors and other medical professionals have the assumption that their patients will come running back to them for more treatments, regardless of how many good reviews they wriate online, how many ads they run on Google, Yelp, or Facebook, or how high they rank in search results.
But if you want to start getting new patients, especially ones from Google, Yelp, and Facebook, you have to motivate them to choose your business. You need an incentive, something that makes your business seem more valuable or attractive than your competitors.
Let’s take a deep dive into methods and strategies that you can implement immediately to attract more people to your business online.
1) Stay active online
Getting new patients into your practice can be difficult. To grow your medical practice, you have to build a strong online presence through doctor-ratings and reviews, a user-friendly website, on social media, and more.
When your current patients “like” or “share” your content on social media, their entire social circle sees it. That can direct user traffic to your page and may help generate leads. The trick is to share informational content that is relevant to your target users so that more people feel motivated to share your content.
2) Invest in Local SEO
Local SEO is a term used to describe the process of optimizing websites so that they rank higher in search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, when users type keywords related to local businesses.
When potential patients search for doctors or medical services online, you want your practice to come up with the first few on top. Having your practice website appearing in the top five slots of a search engine is essential for attracting new patients.
Learn more about medical SEO services →
How can you optimize your local site?
Use Keywords
Keywords are words that users type into search engines when looking for information related to your products or services. These keywords are also known as “search terms”. For example, if you sell shoes, you may want to target the keyword phrase “shoe stores near me”.
Include Location Information
Location information is very important when it comes to ranking well in search engine results pages. Search engines understand that people searching for a cardiologist near me are probably located within a certain radius. So, I should make sure that my location details are accurate and relevant.
Optimize Images
Images play a big role in determining how high a page ranks in search results. When optimizing images, focus on making them clear and concise. Also, ensure that all images are optimized for mobile devices.
Add Social Media Links
Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, etc., are great places to promote your business. Adding social media links to your website allows visitors to share your content via these platforms and find more information about your business.
Link Back to Other Websites
Another way to boost your rankings is to link high quality authoritative websites in your niche. This is done by adding a link to another website in your blog posts, press releases, and articles.
Promote Your Website using PPC
Promoting your website is another way to attract traffic and build brand awareness. PPC advertising plays a huge part in modern marketing strategies. Combining the PPC with the listed above methods, can generate stunning results for your business
3) Use email marketing
Email marketing is a powerful tool for businesses looking to build relationships with customers and prospects. You can use emails for sending reminders, promotional offers and general updates about your practice to your existing patients.
But email marketing doesn’t just happen; it takes planning and strategy
4) Start a blog
Blogging is a fun and effective way not only to share information, build relationships, and make money, but also a great source of organic traffic from search engines. Consistently posting relevant and original content on your blog shows that you know your practice and are happy to keep your patients informed. You may provide wellness tips, announce local events and share updates about your practice. You can use it to engage with existing and potential patients.
Here are some tips to make sure you’re staying active online:
Be Consistent With Blogging
In order to stay relevant online, you must constantly update your content and interact with your audience. Blogging consistently is essential to keeping your blog fresh and interesting.
Interact With Readers
Responding to comments and questions shows your readers that you care about what they think. You can’t expect to build a relationship with your readers if you don’t respond to comments and questions.
Create Content Regularly
It takes time to research topics and write quality posts. But if you don’t produce content regularly, you can lose your audience.
Promote Your Posts
Promoting your posts increases traffic to your site and improves search engine rankings. Use social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to promote your posts.
Add Links To Other Sites
Links are vital to SEO. They allow Google to find out more about your topic and rank your page higher in search results.
Don’t Forget About Email Marketing
Email marketing is another effective way to connect with your audience and drive traffic to your site.
Include Images And Videos
Images and videos attract attention and encourage engagement. People love to share images and watch videos.
5) Ask for references and reviews
The simplest way to ask for references is to inform your existing patients that you have room for new patients or that you are adding new services. Don’t hesitate to ask for recommendations and don’t forget to thank them for referrals.
Monitor your online presence:
If your practice has some negative reviews, make sure you respond to both positive and negative feedback to show that you care. The more positive feedback you can collect, the more calls you’ll get from potential patients.
6) Post real pictures
Personalize your practice website
Instead of using stock and generic photos on your website and social media profiles, post real-life pictures of your team and office. Real-life images will add some personality to your practice website.
Building trust with potential new patients is important. Many new patients may feel anxious, which will not allow you to build trust. Showing potential new patients photos regularly of injuries and you are treating relaxes their mind and helps you build that trust quickly.
7) Optimize Your Website
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is essential to the success of any company, but particularly so for healthcare practitioners practicing in such a highly competitive field. Every business needs a website, and every business site needs Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to ensure prospective customers are easily able to find a site on Google searches.
SEO for doctors is a very important concern for modern healthcare providers as 81% of Americans research doctors online, and 43% of Americans never consult a new doctor after finding out about them online. SEO is one of the most important factors that new doctors need as they begin practicing medicine. SEO helps doctors rank higher on Google for their location and services offered. This improves discoverability for new patients searching for doctors in their area
8) Pay per click advertising
PPC (pay per click) is a form of internet advertising in which an advertiser pays a second party when the ad is clicked. It is commonly associated with keywords that buyers type into a search engine, accompanied by an advertisement based upon their search query. PPC advertising can be accomplished through both “organic” search engine optimization (SEO) and paid online advertisement. PPC has consistently been used to get higher conversions and more sales. The benefits of PPC advertising for businesses of all sizes and all types of businesses who choose to advertise online, vs. those who don’t, is blatant: PPC advertising makes it much cheaper and easier for businesses to attract new prospects.
For example, If you are a drone operator who allows Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs) and other businesses to hire you to do some aerial work, you might want to increase the visibility of your business by promoting your business online. To increase the visibility of your business on Google, Local and Maps Results, you can create a Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising campaign. A PPC advertising campaign can help your organization establish itself as a trusted brand with access to the aerial services that matter the most by answering customer demand almost instantly.
9) Strong relationship with your patients
In order to build a strong relationship with your patients, you must first understand the importance of having a personal connection with your patients.
Here’s a checklist of things to remember when establishing a rapport with your patients:
Be yourself
You may think that being yourself is a bad idea since you want to establish a professional relationship with your patient. However, being yourself is actually the best way to connect with your patient. Being genuine and authentic allows you to relate to your patient on a deeper level.
Show interest
People like to feel appreciated, especially when they’re sick. When you show interest in your patient, he/she feels valued and cared for. Patients appreciate feeling heard and understood. They also enjoy knowing that you care about them.
Listen
Listening is an essential part of communication. Listening shows that you value your patient and his/her concerns. By listening, you demonstrate empathy and understanding.
Ask questions
Questions allow you to learn more about your patient. Questions give you insight into your patient’s life and background. Asking open-ended questions gives you information that you can use later. For instance, asking about hobbies, interests, or favorite movies can provide valuable insights into your patient’s personality.
Provide reassurance
Reassuring your patient demonstrates that you care about him/her. Reassurance lets your patient know that you are aware of his/her situation and that you are here to support him/her.
Express gratitude
Gratitude is another powerful tool in building trust. People tend to respond well to expressions of appreciation. When you thank your patient, you let him/her know that you recognize the effort he/she put forth.
Give praise
Praise builds confidence in your patient. Praise encourages your patient to continue doing what s/he is doing. When you compliment your patient, you acknowledge his/her efforts and encourage him/her to try harder.
10) Make Your Website Load Quickly
If your website finds it difficult loading because it is a heavy website with complex codes, then you won’t get the preferred traffic. Your potential customers won’t want to wait for the slow-loading pages to load, Visit if your website takes more than 3 seconds to load. If your website takes more than 3 seconds to load, you stand a high chance of losing potential customers. Your competitors will have an advantage over you, since their websites will load faster, giving them an edge over you.
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