If you are a healthcare provider, you have faced struggles to get more patients to visit your hospital or clinic.
Now, the reputation of your healthcare practice is the most important to generate business.
There is no shortcut to creating a reputation as a doctor. You know providing quality care is the only way.
Let’s figure out how to get more patients in this blog..
How to Get More Patients?
A simple question – “how to get more patients?” doesn’t come with a simple answer.
You must understand that it is a process. Let’s walk through the steps :
1.Identify Your Target Patient and Address Their Specific Needs
The first question that the doctors need to ask themselves is – who is more likely to step into my clinic? Who will be the ones that need my services the most?
Of course, a part of the answer lies in the specialization itself. Say, a pediatrician needs to reach out to young couples and a geriatric surgeon needs to reach out to the older population.
You may have heard of patient personas that help in identifying the typical patient and their troubles. Patient personas is a composite profile that uses deep research and market segmentation.
Once the motivations and needs of the average patient are identified, you will be able to design a treatment plan that can be tailored to suit the unique needs.
2.Strengthen Your Digital Footprint
By definition, a digital footprint is everything you do online. Anything that you post, that may or may not necessarily involve a marketing goal, is still a part of your digital footprint.
There are ways you could strengthen your digital footprint. And some of them are :
1.Network and Collaborate : Join professional groups on LinkedIn or other healthcare platforms.
Participate in discussions, share your ideas, and work together with others to learn and grow your network.
2.Professional Branding : It is important to improve visibility, however, what is even more important is branding your services.
Healthcare Branding allows you to be easily recognizable and creates a recall effect every time your healthcare service is mentioned. This, in turn, lets you have more patients.
3.Embrace AI : AI is modern. AI is rapid. AI is efficient. So, if you are wondering how to improve your digital presence, one of the factors that makes all the difference is Artificial Intelligence.
There is a huge gap between doctors that use technology and those that don’t. Studies reveal that doctors who use tech in their practice are more likely to get more patients.
3.Gain Patient Confidence Through Effective Content Strategies
Knowledge is power. One of the most obvious things you need to know about healthcare is that if patients are engaged online, there is a higher chance of them visiting your clinic and taking your service. Therefore, a good content strategy works wonders for you.
Patient education programs help people take charge of their health by imparting knowledge and skills. Some topics are : disease management, prevention, and lifestyle changes.
Workshops and webinars can demonstrate your intellectual resources. Print materials and online resources can be distributed to reach a segment of patients.
When patients understand their conditions and feel confident in managing their health, it leads to better outcomes and greater satisfaction.
4.Utilize Social Platforms to Connect and Engage Your Audience
Your healthcare service must have a strong social media presence to attract customers and stay afloat.
Social Media and Healthcare Marketing work together to improve patient acquisition. So, integrating social platforms into your strategy is a proven way to grow your practice.
The benefits of social media arise from the fact that there is an opportunity to interact with your audience and you’d be wise to leverage that.
Posting images, videos, and polls can allow you to connect with your audience.
Another major advantage of social media is that you get to hear your patient’s side of the story.
It is an opportunity for doctors to demonstrate that they genuinely care about their patients.
5.Elevate the Patient Journey with Better Service
Healthcare is all about empathy and how your patient feels. A patient journey refers to the overall experience a patient has with the healthcare provider.
The patient journey begins once the patient decides to visit the doctor’s clinic on sensing symptoms.
Key elements of patient’s journey are:
1.Recognition of the symptoms
2.Appointment Scheduling with the healthcare provider
3.Non-medical interactions with the healthcare facility
4.Consultation or admission
5.Diagnosis
6.Treatment
7.Discharge
8.Follow-up care
It is important to ensure that there is very little to no hiccups during these stages, broadly classified as : pre-visit, visit, and post-visit.
The service needs to be timely. At the end of the day, the patient must feel comfortable and healed.
6.Implement Referral Strategies to Grow Your Patient Base
- In every service, there is a node or a person that acts like a reference group.
- The reference group is a person that recommends a particular healthcare provider. This is usually a doctor.
- A doctor is able to refer a patient to another doctor, who is more suited to their condition.
- A good referral strategy takes networking and collaborating with people in the industry.
- Good data collection and market segmentation needs to be done to grow your patient base.
7.Strengthen Your Community Connections through Outreach
- Outreach programs are not just a way to grow the patient base, but also to create goodwill.
- If you are looking for a way to serve the community, then outreach is the way to go.
- Outreach programs foster trust within diverse populations, particularly in marginalized communities.
- Marathons, health checkups, and fairs are some examples of outreach programs.
8.Monitor Your Efforts and Adjust for Continued Success
- Marketing is an evolving process.
- Track which strategies bring in patients and which fall flat.
- Google Analytics can help measure website traffic and engagement.
- Regularly reviewing your performance helps you refine your approach and stay effective and relevant.
9.Host Health Webinars or Virtual Events
- Virtual events serve as an effective means to engage with prospective patients.
- Organizing webinars on popular health issues or prevalent concerns can be beneficial.
- For instance, a cardiologist could address the importance of heart health awareness, whereas a nutritionist could provide insights on effective meal planning.
- Such webinars foster trust and highlight your professional expertise.
10.Develop a Regular Email Newsletter to Keep Patients Informed
One of the best ways you can retain the interest of your patients is by developing a Newsletter.
These are the top benefits of email newsletters :
1.Flexibility : With email newsletters, you will be able to pick the content you need and customize based on the subscribers.
2.Keep a track of growing interest : Newsletters are an excellent way to track the interest generated around your content and keep the readers engaged.
3.Save print costs : The newsletters are sent online and are paper free. The print costs and mail costs are saved as a result.
4.Drive website traffic : Newsletters can have links to your website that drive interest in your website content.
5.Build loyalty : Newsletters help maintain relationships and build patient trust.
11.Implement Retargeting Ads to Re-engage Potential Patients
Retargeting advertisements are digital promotions displayed to patients who have previously engaged with you but did not finalize a specific action, such as scheduling an appointment.
The objective is to remind these individuals of your clinic and motivate them to take action by delivering targeted advertisements across multiple platforms, including Google, Facebook, and Instagram.
Leads that have previously heard of you and interacted with you are called warm leads.
Retargeting Ads can be used to convert these leads into business for your healthcare service.
12.Launch Paid Campaigns to Boost Visibility and Attract Patients
- Paid ads on platforms like Google or Facebook help you reach a wider audience quickly.
- Target the correct demographics. For instance, an orthopedic clinic might focus on older adults or athletes in their area. This is known as market segmentation.
13.Optimize Your Online Presence to Rank for Voice Searches
Voice SEO has emerged as the new benchmark for optimal optimization practices overall. So it is crucial to optimize for voice search in healthcare to attract a larger audience
More than half of all internet searches are conducted through voice activation, and this figure is expected to rise as an increasing number of individuals acquire smart speakers and utilize voice functionalities on their mobile devices.
One significant reason for this trend is that it offers a more convenient and faster alternative to traditional typing for conducting searches.
It is to be noted that voice searches use a system no different than text search.
14.Participate in Local Health Events and Expos to Promote Your Practice
A health expo serves as a platform for professionals to showcase their medical instruments and services, conduct demonstrations, and engage in discussions and debates regarding the latest advancements in healthcare.
These medical expos offer a unique opportunity to explore innovative medical breakthroughs, devices, and technologies that have the potential to enhance healthcare standards and save lives worldwide.
15.Run Local Community Ads
- Local advertising helps you target people in your area.
- Use community newspapers, local radio stations, or even bulletin boards to spread the word about your services.
- This is especially effective for practices catering to specific neighborhoods.
16.Leverage Patient Reviews and Testimonials
When a customer experiences a high level of satisfaction with their purchase and is eager to communicate the reasons behind their positive decision to choose your business, their testimonials can serve as an invaluable asset in marketing.
Incorporating the reviews of satisfied customers into your marketing and advertising efforts is an effective strategy to leverage the goodwill and trust that your company has established.
Conclusion
In today’s competitive world, growing your patient base is about connecting with people, understanding their needs, and building trust.
You need to :
- Strengthen your online presence
- Foster local connections
- Use effective marketing strategies
Every effort plays a role in expanding your reach and challenges in healthcare marketing. Be patient-focused, adaptable, and innovative.
Of course, there is no replacement to providing quality care, but certain marketing activities cannot be neglected.
