The Power of Testimonials
- Posted on: Jun 4 2015
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Marketing is an investment that can be costly if not fully prepared to reap a strong Return On Investment. It’s one thing to spend money on marketing; it’s another to provide your patients with the information they are looking for so they can make the decision to invest in you. The good news is that providing your patients with the information they want is not costly and offers a high ROI.
First, patient testimonials are a must for patients to view while in their decision making process. This means having a before and after book in your office just as much as you have patient testimonials online through multiple resources. This includes your practice website, your social media outlets, your blogs and third party sites such as directories and review sites. It’s important to note that you want to select those online outlets that are located in top ranking positions on Google in the organic listing section of search results pages for specific relevant key words, such as, “liposuction smallville”. This is very important because consumers don’t usually search past the first three pages and are more likely to focus on the top ranking search results. Review sites are very valuable. Today, the vast majority of patients rely on reviews to make decisions about their physician. Patients may obtain a referral from a friend to your practice, but the last thing they do before contacting you is go online to research you. Maintaining a positive online reputation is crucial to your marketing program. Patients today also view many websites, search for before and after photos read blogs on topics that interest them. They also read testimonials. They know what they want to see. Now, it’s up to you to provide that for them. And they want easy access. They don’t respond to email communication today. They prefer their own independent searches, review sites, and social media outlets. They require a personal touch when it comes to gathering a patient testimonial. After all, you run the risk of an unhappy patient which is far more likely to post a negative review about your practice. It’s like a bad restaurant. People tell 10x more people about their bad meal experience. They may even tell you it was a good meal. Instead, consider the IPad. If you train staff to hand a patient an iPad at the end of their journey with you, it takes seconds and is much easier to gather a good testimonial for your practice.
An IPad may be an investment, but it’s an investment in your reputation. If you close one or two cases in a year it pays for itself plus. As a business consultant I look at it as investment not an expense like training and marketing.
