The healthcare industry is always changing.
And so are the ways that patients find new providers and facilities.
It’s vital that healthcare organizations and medical offices find ways to meet their target patients where they are – online and through the search engines.
That’s where a healthcare marketing strategy comes into play.
If you want to reach and engage more patients, you will need to include a variety of tactics in your strategy to ensure that your brand is visible when and where patients are looking for practices like yours.
Below, there is a list of 6 of the best healthcare marketing strategy ideas that you can start using today for your facility.
1. Start your PPC medical marketing with paid search ads.
People look for more than just consumer products online.
Often, if they need to find a new healthcare provider or medical facility, they’ll take to the search engines to find a practice near their location.
If you want to bring those potential patients to your facility, you’ll need to increase visibility on the search engines.
One way to get more immediate results on search engines like Google is by including pay-per-click or PPC ads as part of your healthcare marketing strategy.
These ads appear at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) when people type in search terms relevant to your practice.
Unlike SEO, which can take some time to work its magic, PPC medical ads generate instant results.
With many patients looking for healthcare providers close to home, it’s vital that facilities use PPC ads to attract some of this traffic.
Many patients search for medical facilities near their home, work, or current location, and PPC ads can be a great to generate more local traffic.
By targeting keywords and phrases that include the city or region that your practice is located in, you can help bring more local patients to your website.
2. Improve your healthcare SEO strategy to increase search rankings.
Search engine optimization (SEO) helps you rank higher on the search engine results page so that your facility is more visible to the patients who need you.
More and more patients are starting their search for healthcare facilities and medical practices online, making SEO all the more important.
Healthcare SEO involves making changes to your site layout and content to make it more attractive to the search engines.
By optimizing your site for searches that potential patients are performing for healthcare services, you improve your changes of ranking higher on the search engines.
If you want to rank on the first page of Google, you’ll need to work consistently to improve your SEO.
This requires an in depth knowledge of both your industry and SEO best practices.
Not only is optimizing your site a time-intensive process, but it should also be done on an ongoing basis as keywords and best practices will change over time.
3. Use healthcare social media to build your brand online.
Think social media marketing is just for brands that sell consumer products?
Think again!
Healthcare providers are using social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to reach potential customers and engage their current patient population.
Healthcare social media marketing can help healthcare providers improve brand recognition and drive more leads.
By marketing your facility across multiple social media channels, you can work to get your practice’s name out there in the local community and connect with new potential patients.
Through your profile, the content you post, and the reviews that your patients leave, new customers can learn a great deal about your facility and the value you provide.
Including social media content in your healthcare marketing strategy can help drive more people back to your website.
Many patients look for healthcare providers on social media channels like Facebook.
When they find your facility on a social platform, they are given an easy path back to your website.
That’s where they will be able to learn more about your services and even make an appointment.
4. Develop engaging healthcare email marketing to keep your patients up-to-date.
Speaking of engaging patients…email marketing is one of the best ways that you can keep your patients engaged and stay at the top of their minds.
Email is an excellent digital marketing channel for sending informative newsletters, industry news, appointment reminders, and more.
With marketing emails, you can work to build trust with potential patients as well as current customers.
By providing your email subscribers with valuable information about their health and your facility, you can work to create and foster positive and long-lasting patient relationships.
Newsletters with information that helps patients better understand their health or stay up-to-date with changes at your facility are a great way to stay top of mind.
One of the greatest benefits of healthcare email marketing is the ability to send targeted messages that resonate best with different audiences.
By segmenting your email list, you can create separate lists of patients with similar interests or concerns.
This allows you to send more targeted and relevant content to your email subscribers.
The more relevance and value you can provide, the more likely readers will be to come to your facility when they need help.
Emails can also make a positive impact on patient retention and customer service.
You can use emails to remind patients of appointments or send important documents that they need to fill out before their appointment.
This simple convenience can go a long way in keeping your patients happy and thus getting them to come back.
5. Create a healthcare content marketing strategy to inform and engage patients.
It’s no secret that the medical industry can be downright confusing sometimes.
Whether it’s looking for the right type of healthcare facility or getting more information on a complex medical condition, many patients need help making the right choices.
That’s where content marketing comes in.
Healthcare content marketing is essential tactic to include in your healthcare marketing strategy.
It allows your practice to educate potential patients through engaging, relevant, and informational content.
This content can come in the form of a blog on “how to choose the right healthcare provider” or a longer, more in-depth eBook on a certain condition that your practice specializes in.
No matter what type of content you’re creating, the goal is to provide relevance and value for your leads.
The top 3 content marketing goals for healthcare organizations are brand awareness, engagement, and patient loyalty.
Content marketing is a great tactic to use in combination with search engine optimization.
Your facility can create content that is focused on certain keywords and phrases that your patients are using to find facilities like yours online.
The more great content you have on your website, the more likely your site will be to rank higher on the search engine results page.
Content marketing is also an effective way to establish your practice as a leader in your industry.
By creating content about the latest advances in your field or the most up-to-date information helps demonstrate your practice’s knowledge, training, and expertise.
Not to mention, your content can also help reflect your professionalism and desire to help patients.
6. Use a professional medical website design to make the right first impression.
Almost every aspect of your healthcare marketing strategy leads back to your website.
Your website serves as your first impression for new patients.
If you want to make the right first impression, it’s vital that you make sure your site design is easy to navigate and gives visitors the information they need to make a decision about whether or not your facility is right for them.
The goal of your website is to give new and potential patients the information they need and to address their questions before they even enter your office.
You can do this through well-written and engaging website content that helps the visitor understand the value your facility provides and how they can get started and become a patient.
Make it clear which types of services you provide and who they might be right for.
Website content isn’t the only important element of an effective healthcare website.
The design of your site also plays a vital role in how patients perceive your practice.
Your site should be attractive without being too busy.
Everything from the colors and images you use right down to the style of font should give visitors a positive impression about your facility.
Another vital element of healthcare web design is your navigation.
If your site is hard to navigate, people will click away very quickly.
Use a simple navigation menu that makes it easy for visitors to find what they are looking for as quickly as possible.
It’s also important for your website to be responsive to all devices.
Individuals will use the most convenient device to search for a medical provider of facility.
That often means that they may be using their smartphone or tablet, especially if they are on-the-go.
If your website isn’t optimized for mobile devices, you may turn potential patients away from your site.
Also, remember that people searching for healthcare providers online will often use a smartphone.
Start Developing a Healthcare Marketing Strategy
Now that you know which tactics will help you reach and engage potential patients, it’s time to develop your healthcare marketing strategy.
Remember, just as the healthcare industry changes over time, so do the best practices and strategies for finding and attracting new patients.
That’s why if you want to grow and maintain a thriving healthcare practice, you’ve got to stay up-to-date with the latest in healthcare marketing.
