58% of Smartphone owners download and use Mobile Health apps. And you are one of them!

Literally, health is at your fingertips!

The healthcare industry is continually pursuing the next technological advancement-catching up with the digital ‘pulse’ of branding.

What is Digital Marketing for Doctors, Hospitals & Clinics?

As a doctor you have enough going on in your daily routine to think about your patients than look at your Facebook page performance. Digital Marketing for healthcare experts is a confusing prescription as their handwriting! Today, people browse ailments, book appointments and read review before visiting a hospital. Thus, digital marketing for doctors, hospitals, and clinics is to build a strong and authoritative online presence via social media channels, tools and techniques.  

Digital marketing brings several benefits to doctors and medical professionals. It advertises their services to a wider range of public and helps in better managing their brand image, attracting new customers to their business. Digital marketing also enables the doctors’ clinics to access a host of new tools and techniques to serve the patients and healthcare seekers in a professional and more efficient manner.

Doctors can now get tremendous exposure and reach millions of people through social media, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing and content marketing in comparison to the traditional advertising methods.

Also Read: A Healthcare Digital Marketing Guide: 8 Ways To Get More Patients With Digital Marketing In 2020

 

13 Benefits of Digital Marketing for Doctors, Hospitals & Clinics?

Deloitte conducted a study and found that 52% of consumers search online for information about treatment options or more generally to learn about health concerns/care providers. Thus, it clearly states that healthcare marketing strategy tends to encourage and strengthen the relationship between doctors, hospitals and the clinics.

Digital marketing is an effective tactic to utilize in branding and advertising of the hospitals and build their online presence. There are a lot of tangible benefits of healthcare digital marketing and below are the best of them!

Here are top 13 amazing benefits and importance of digital marketing for doctors, hospitals and clinics:

1. Improve Audience Reach And Service Awareness

The health industry is becoming hypercompetitive. If you want to retain a healthy flow of customers, it is important that you spread awareness of the services you provide. Google found that 44% of the visitors choose to make their appointment online or by calling after taking number from websites before visiting the premises.

This, it shows us a particular trend of the prospects who do online research before choosing a hospital, clinic, or a doctor. Using digital marketing for your healthcare service gives a wider audience reach and creates a good branding of the healthcare services you provide.

2. Easier Access To Patients

Many healthcare services and medical practitioners avoid any kind of marketing service, considering it an inappropriate practice. Digital marketing for hospitals actually helps in making things more convenient and accessible for patients.

Say, having a website, and a social media page helps in providing the patients easier access to the healthcare providers and saves them from unnecessary service research. Patients very well remember a more user-friendly experience.

3. Display Your Services

The internet gives your practice a great platform for showcasing your service offerings. Whether it’s showing a service section on your website or highlighting health packages on social media platforms, digital marketing makes it all easier. With a simple few simple clicks, your potential patients can see what you have to offer.

There is no limitation of exploration for them, they don’t need to wait outside your clinic to know the timings. An online presence is an extension of your brand that never sleeps. It’s 24×7 access is what helps a patient or a potential consumer.

 

4. Provides Accuracy

Digital marketing for hospitals is more of a mandate than an option when it comes to promoting accurate information. If you’re not watchful of your online repute, it will allow the wrong information to spread like a viral. It affects one, spreads to all in its proximity. This can gravely affect your reputation and consumer base.

When you carry out a careful digital marketing strategy, it ensures that no negative word of mouth or misinformation takes place online. Your social media channel acts as an notice board of information.

5. Build Patient Loyalty And A Positive Referral Base

You’ve been told that you have excellent consultation approach and that you really take the time to listen to your patients. Allow your satisfied patients to tell others how much they appreciate your services by creating a space for them to post reviews.

Digital marketing for doctors isn’t just about creating a social media page, it’s also about creating a space for patients to sing your praises. Ask patients to leave a review on your social channel, on your website, or on any review website before they exit your premise. You can do this subtly without nudging their privacy.

6. Easy To Market Your Brand

Websites and social media platforms are excellent cost-effective marketing tools, sending out information to thousands of people. Online marketing is extremely important for all businesses, including medical practices, because it has a huge influence on the way people make decisions.

There’s a new tactic that’s being used in the healthcare industry known as “geoconquesting,” an offshoot of “geofencing.” Geoconquesting, however, is the tactic of delivering your ad to an individual who lies outside the geofenced radius of a competitor’s location. This is a relatively recent strategy, but an effective one.

7.Customizable Marketing Strategy

Marketing isn’t all about making attractive promotional videos and posting flashy ads. The benefit of using digital marketing for hospitals is that you can customize it as per your need. There are several tools and formats that you can use to market your service. Content marketing, for instance, is highly effective in maintaining a strong online presence and keeping the audience well informed about your service.

If your product demands only PPC advertising, it can be done so and likewise. Digital Marketing cannot be a ‘one glove fits all’ approach. Its unique and different for all, just like fingerprints of hands.

8. Accurate Monitoring

Digital marketing also provides marketers with the ability to track their profits from their investment in advertising and customer satisfaction. One of the biggest advantages of your practice in the digital era is the ability to track and analyze your results with the help of digital analytics.

This is a luxury that you do not enjoy with traditional marketing because there simply isn’t an option. Since you are no longer guessing about what’s working and what isn’t, you can reduce unnecessary expenses and focus to improve your ROI.

9. Great SEO benefits

Healthcare brands have the ability to maximize their online presence and brand themselves through the use of search engine optimization (SEO). SEO allows doctors to be found higher in search engine results. For example, patients who are conducting a Google search for doctors in their local service area will be able to find the doctor’s office much faster than having no SEO used at all.

SEO isn’t just for hospitals at large. Many patients are searching for local practices online, and these searches eventually lead to a potential patient. In fact, according to Google, 28% of searches for something nearby result in a gain/purchase. Local SEO or optimizing your website for local search results, can also be a valuable digital marketing tactic for practices that operate in specific geographic locations.

Also Read: 7 SEO Techniques Your Healthcare Website Needs

10. Gives Chances Of Interaction

Health authorities working in the healthcare field are a valuable source of information about all kinds of health concerns. Imagine a spokesperson from your hospital or clinic is constantly chatting and answering common queries. Wouldn’t it be great for your prospect to trust you and spread a good word of mouth for your services?

Social tools offer creative ways for healthcare professionals to address common questions. For example, the government of India developed a Facebook Messenger chatbot. It can answer questions, direct citizens to the right resources, and counter misinformation.

For example, see below screen shot –  

11. Citizen Engagement

Healthcare issues can be tricky to talk about, even with doctors. That’s especially true for subjects seen as private or embarrassing. This can get in the way of effective care. With digital marketing, patients have the privacy to ask a few questions and concern via chatbots or video call with a doctor.

These tools give the much deserved freedom and privacy which lacks when you visit a doctor. However, much can be discussed in case if the patient is from other city or country even. Can you imagine how much ease it can bring to a patient?

12. Improved Conversion Rates

Converting a patient online is just a few clicks away. Did you ever think that it’s now a possibility? Instead of a patient having to drive to the clinic or wait for an appointment, they can make an appointment from the comfort of their home.

Website conversion rates average around 2%. For every 100 visitors, you can expect to only get 2 customers. And honestly, that’s a pretty good conversion rate. Many sites only have a 0.1 to 0.2% conversion rate. That takes 1000 visitors to get 1 customer. Get started on your digital marketing strategy by utilizing marketing automation to start reaching patients online now.

13. Paid Advertising For Better Targeting

One of the greatest benefits of PPC is having your message placed in front of people who are actively searching for your services. Because online ads have such extensive targeting options, you’ll be able to reach your exact target market. Instead of mailing out flyers to everyone in the neighbourhood, you’ll be reaching patients who are actively searching for your services.

This gives you a better chance at success, and it gives your target market the best chance of finding your practice when they need you!

 

Ready To Grow Patients Through Digital Marketing?

As you can see, there are many benefits of digital marketing that will transform the way that your practice can engage with your patients. Digital marketing is the best way to reach your patients when they are most likely to be searching for services just like yours.

It’s important to have a sound digital marketing strategy before you jump into creating and distributing content or launching digital ad campaigns. Consider what your overall business goals are and create digital marketing goals that align with these objectives. Then, determine which digital marketing strategies you will use, and develop a plan for implementation and measurement.

Grow Your Patient Base With The Best Digital Marketing Agency

For doctors who want to grow their patient base and expand their reach, contact InnoServ Digital today. We are one of the best health care digital marketing agencies in India helps you create a customized digital marketing plan for tangible results and improvements in your practice’s bottom line.

We know you’re busy and that the idea of increasing patient engagement and communication seems like more work for you, but it is critical for the growth of your practice and for attracting new patients. By allowing us to handle your marketing, you can enjoy the benefits without the headache.

Contact us today, and let us give your marketing plan a clean bill of health!