When it comes to online marketing for medical office staff, they may run into a few challenges. What if a patient's coverage doesn't cover the medication that the office has prescribed, or appointments are missed? Medical offices are often plagued with marketing troubles that you don't often see in more obviously marketing-heavy industries. Here are 7 easy tips that supply you with methods to smooth out your medical office marketing strategy.
1. Set up reminders via automated messaging.
One of the larger challenges to a medical practice is that people have to keep their appointments in order for the office to make any money at all. People often forget appointment times or plan other things, however. So offer an opt-in when patients book their appointments to have SMS, email or voicemail reminders go out before the appointment day, and then again the morning of. This will help to reduce cancellations, and thereby increase the revenue for the office. To boot, it will also improve the relationship between patients, medical office marketing staff, and doctors so you can better understand their needs.
2. Perform follow-up campaigns for patients who require new routines.
From diabetes to a new medication to surgery recovery, medical office marketing technology can be used to set up campaigns that remind patients to perform their appointed tasks at home once every couple days, and check in with them to see if the method assigned is working, and if they still require the reminders. This helps the office maintain a connection with patients, and care for them without needing weekly appointments. Patients don't have to constantly be coming in, the communication process is more convenient for them, and you have more time for other patients. It also lets them know that you're still there for them, and that they can rely on you for sound advice even when they're not in the office.
3. Engage the community with basic health tips and preventative education via social media.
When you open a medical practice, you want to become a part of the community as quickly as possible. To that end, you want to engage the community both by being a part of local events and by being a part of the digital community. Using medical office marketing tools, you can set up trivia games, offer health tips and tricks that can help them out, even supply them with preventative education such as diet changes they can make to eat healthier. Engaging social media content helps draw in new patients and is a huge part of an online marketing for medical office strategy. Be sure that there is some incentive for liking or sharing your social media posts in the first place.
4. Design a referral program that works efficiently.
A big problem with referral programs is that often those referrals never actually make it in to the office, or are otherwise lost in the cracks somewhere in the process. Design an automated referral program that will clearly mark referrals for the office, and also track where they are coming from. This will allow you to moderate the referrals you can take, the ones you can't, and improve communication with the people or practices that refer to you. Using a landing page or a signup form would be an effective way to improve your marketing strategy when it comes to medical referrals.
5. When someone is referred to you, educate them.
When you get a new referral, you can use a medical office marketing platform to send a greeting email sent out to them, letting them know that they've been accepted to your practice and you look forward to seeing them. As well, offer them education on what you're able to do. This process helps create an engaged relationship with a new patient, and also ensures that they know precisely what you can do for them.
6. Have a web page for your practice and keep it optimized.
Part of maintaining a growing customer base is maintaining a constant web presence so that people know that you're there for them, and trust that you're the best at what you do. Having your own website goes a ways toward that, but you want to be sure that your office is checking details surrounding that website. How many searches does your website turn up in? What is the quality of your content? Try running a blog talking about new medical research and what it means from your place in the medical community. Medical offices can benefit from e-marketing just like anyone else.
7. Make your experience memorable.
It's easy to present reminders and updates in a bland, clinical fashion but people don't just want medical professionals. They also want people. So when you write to your clients, use bright templates, use conversational English, talk to them like people and not objects. Make them feel like you took some time to create this series of messages for them, and that you want them to be interested and engaged in their own well-being. After all, people want their medical office marketing staff to be interested in their health, right? A good patient experience is a marketing cornerstone.
These tips are just a few of the many that help with online marketing for medical office staff. And these can all be set up using marketing automation as well, giving you more time for your patients while still allowing you to be personal, and communicating with your patients quickly and effectively. Online marketing for medical office staff doesn't have to be a mystery, even for newcomers.
Ready to try online marketing for medical office staff?
Try SimplyCast's automated medical communication software today, or contact us for more information!
