Patient Acquisition For Your Medical Practice
As a medical professional, you want to provide the best care possible to your patients. You want to serve your community, and the only way to grow your medical practice is if you connect with and acquire new patients.
Even if your medical practice is thriving, you already know how difficult it can be to acquire new patients. When numbers are down, you may ask yourself questions like:
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Is my healthcare marketing strategy reaching the wrong audience?
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Am I missing out on a valuable audience segment looking for a specific service my healthcare offer provides?
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Do I need to improve my website content to speak to my audience more effectively?
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Should I use Facebook Ads or Google Ads to reach my audience? How can I use those ads on a tight marketing budget?
Many leaders at private medical practices across the U.S. need help with patient acquisition. That is why we developed this blog post to provide insight into our top tips and tactics that you can use to acquire more patients and help your medical practice thrive.
What Is Patient Acquisition?
Patient acquisition refers to attracting new patients to your private medical practice. This process not only helps you meet your annual revenue goals, it also helps you improve your existing services and build a loyal customer base.
In an increasingly competitive healthcare landscape, private practices must focus on patient acquisition to maintain growth and financial stability. With patient expectations on the rise and a growing number of options available, private practices face challenges in standing out and attracting new patients.
By addressing these challenges and implementing effective strategies, private practices can improve their patient acquisition efforts and ensure a thriving practice in the long run. Let’s dive into the seven patient acquisition strategies many healthcare providers utilize to build their medical practice.
Our 7 Favorite Patient Acquisition Strategies
In this fast-paced, digital age, private practices must stay ahead of the curve and employ innovative strategies for attracting new patients.
To help you navigate this process, we have compiled seven of the best patient acquisition tips that will boost your practice's visibility and foster trust and lasting relationships with potential patients. Implementing these tactics can effectively grow your patient base and ensure a thriving practice.
1. Optimize Your Google Business Profile
Google Business Profile (GBP) is a free tool that allows businesses to manage their online presence across Google Search and Google Maps.
Your medical office must have a Google Business Profile because it helps increase your visibility in your geographic area. As more people search for your services, an optimized Google Business Profile will showcase positive patient reviews and provide information to your audience to drive more phone calls and online appointments.
An optimized Google Business Profile can significantly impact your practice's online discoverability, making it easier for patients to find and choose your services. Here are some actionable tips to help you get the most out of your Google Business Profile:
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Claim and verify your Google Business Profile: Ensure your practice's information is accurate and up-to-date by claiming your profile and completing the verification process.
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Add keywords to your description: Use keywords that potential patients may search for, such as your specialty, services, and location. These terms help Google and your audience know what your office provides and if you are a good match for their needs.
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Add photos and videos of your practice: Visual content can make your profile more engaging and give potential patients a sense of your practice's atmosphere and professionalism. Include images of your doctors, nurses, and staff to make a connection with potential patients in your area.
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Encourage patients to leave reviews: Positive reviews can significantly impact a potential patient's decision to choose your practice. Ask your satisfied patients to leave reviews, and remember to respond to them, demonstrating your commitment to patient satisfaction.
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Update your profile regularly: Keep your profile up-to-date with any changes in your practice's hours, contact information, or services offered. Regular updates show that your practice is active and attentive to patient needs.
2. Run Targeted Facebook & Google Ads
Paid marketing, also known as online advertising or pay-per-click (PPC) marketing, is an essential component of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. This form of marketing utilizes different platforms like Facebook and Google, where you pay to have targeted ads displayed to a specific audience.
Since you pay Google and Facebook each time someone clicks on your ads, you need to do everything you can to optimize your settings and ads so only the right audience members will engage with your ads.
Here are some tips that you can use to optimize your Facebook and Google Ads to acquire more patients:
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Define your target audience: Identify your ideal patients' demographics, interests, and healthcare needs. This will help you create relevant ads, reach the right audience, and prevent your advertising budget from going to people not interested in your services.
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Choose the right ad format: Experiment with various ad formats like images, videos, or carousels to find what works best for your practice. PPC marketing gives you access to lots of user data, so be sure to constantly check and test your performance to utilize your advertising budget as efficiently as possible.
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Craft compelling ad copy: Write engaging headlines and descriptions that highlight your practice's unique selling points and resonate with your target audience.
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Focus on your geographic area: If you are a traditional healthcare office, then you need patients to drive to your location to receive treatment. Because of this, you will want to only target potential patients in a local geographic area.
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Use eye-catching visuals: Include high-quality images or videos that showcase your practice, team members, or services.
3. Make Your Website Content Useful
Your patients spend a lot of time researching a healthcare professional before they call or book an online appointment. You can establish your brand and expertise by creating helpful content on your website that answers questions and helps potential patients find the services they need.
As people look for healthcare providers that serve their needs, they will find your website, and you can build a relationship with the reader to guide them toward booking an appointment with you.
While it may sound easy to create great content for your healthcare website, there are many factors you need to consider. Here are some actionable tips to help you optimize your website content and drive more patients to your office:
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Identify your target audience: Determine the demographics, interests, and health concerns of your potential patients to tailor your content accordingly. If you service children, then you may want to write content around the needs of children and parents, while you may want to discuss health issues concerning the elderly if you are a Geriatrician.
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Address frequently asked questions: Compile a list of common queries and concerns your patients have, and create content that provides informative and accurate answers. You can write notes from questions that come up during your appointments or talk to your front desk staff and nurses to understand the most common questions asked by your patients.
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Showcase your expertise: Write in-depth answers to the most common questions that you found in the previous step. You can write blog posts that answer specific questions or create videos that show how to alleviate common medical concerns for your target audience.
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Use relevant keywords: Along with helpful content, you will also want to incorporate keywords related to your practice, services, and location to improve your website's search engine optimization (SEO) and make it easier for potential patients to find you.
4. Build Trust With Social Media Content
Social media marketing for private practices involves leveraging social media platforms to engage with potential patients, raise awareness about your services, and, ultimately, drive patient acquisition. A recent study by Digitalis shows that 95% of consumers said that social media was one of the most effective ways to reach patients.
There is no denying that social media is important for your patients. You can use social media to connect with your audience, showcase your expertise, and build trust with potential patients as they look for medical answers online.
Building a successful social media strategy can be difficult for any medical practice, and here are some tips to help you create an online presence that leads to more appointments.
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Choose the right platforms: Select the social media platforms where your target audience is most active, such as Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. Think about where your preferred audience goes to consume social media content and then produce content on those platforms.
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Share valuable content: Post informative, engaging content that showcases your expertise, such as health tips, industry news, or behind-the-scenes glimpses of your practice. Be sure to use different types of content like videos, webinars, and text-based posts to share your information online.
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Engage with your audience: Social media is meant to be social, so be sure to respond to comments and messages as quickly as possible. You should also engage with other channels in your community to provide helpful information and build your following on the platform.
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Be consistent: Maintain a regular posting schedule to keep your audience engaged and ensure your practice stays top of mind. Find out what days and times your content is engaged with the most and stick to a schedule to build a dedicated following.
5. Create A Referral Program
A referral program is an initiative that encourages your existing patients to recommend your private practice to their friends, family, and acquaintances. By leveraging the power of word-of-mouth marketing, referral programs can be a cost-effective and efficient way to attract new patients, strengthen relationships with existing patients, and enhance your practice's reputation.
As a member of the community, you rely on a positive reputation to grow your firm. Since you already offer great services, you can use your reputation to grow your business. Here are some tips to help you build a referral program to help you acquire more patients.
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Develop clear program guidelines: Establish the referral process, rewards, and eligibility criteria to ensure a smooth experience for both patients and their referrals.
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Offer attractive incentives: Provide valuable rewards, such as discounted services, to motivate your existing patients to participate in the referral program.
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Make it easy to refer: Simplify the referral process by offering online forms or referral cards, making it convenient for patients to share your practice's information.
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Promote your referral program: Increase participation by informing your patients about the program through in-office displays, newsletters, and social media.
6. Collaborate With Local Businesses
Collaborating with local businesses is a powerful strategy for private medical practices to expand their reach and acquire more patients. You can use your local network to connect with local businesses to hold events, share information on their website, and even appear on their social media channels.
Business collaboration refers to forming mutually beneficial partnerships with other local businesses or organizations to promote each other's services, increase visibility, and, ultimately, drive patient growth. By tapping into the networks and customer bases of these local entities, private practices can efficiently reach potential patients in their community.
It can be difficult to get a start with networking, and here are some ideas that you can use to build your local network:
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Identify potential partners: Look for businesses or organizations that cater to a similar target audience or complement your services, such as gyms, pharmacies, or wellness centers.
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Develop co-marketing initiatives: Work together to create joint promotional materials, such as flyers, social media posts, or email campaigns that highlight each other's services.
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Offer exclusive discounts or incentives: Provide special offers for customers or members of your partner businesses, encouraging them to visit your practice.
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Host joint events or workshops: Collaborate on educational seminars, health fairs, or community outreach programs that showcase your expertise and services while also promoting your partners.
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Maintain open communication: Keep in touch with your partners and regularly evaluate the success of your collaborative efforts, adjusting strategies as needed to optimize results.
7. Offer Online Booking
Your patients are busier than ever, and they need a convenient method to book an appointment with your healthcare office.
This digital feature enables patients to schedule online appointments, providing convenience, flexibility, and efficiency for patients and medical staff. In a competitive healthcare market, online bookings can be a powerful differentiator, attracting new patients and retaining existing ones.
It can be difficult to set up an online booking option that meets HIPAA standards, but here are some of the advantages that an online booking system provides your office:
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Enhance patient experience: Online scheduling allows patients to book appointments conveniently, reducing wait times and making the process more enjoyable.
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Improve accessibility: With 24/7 availability, patients can schedule appointments anytime, anywhere, increasing the likelihood of reaching more potential clients.
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Streamline operations: Staff can focus on other critical tasks, as the online booking system manages the appointment schedule automatically.
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Reduce no-shows: Automatic reminders sent to patients decrease the chances of missed appointments, optimizing clinic schedules and resources.
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Capture valuable data: Online systems provide insights into appointment patterns, enabling better planning and decision-making to enhance the overall patient experience.
Conclusion
Patient acquisition is a vital aspect of private medical practice growth. By implementing these eight tips, practitioners can enhance the overall patient experience and solidify their market presence.
By embracing these approaches, private medical practices can not only attract new patients but also ensure the loyalty and satisfaction of their existing clientele, leading to long-term success and stability.
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