As the world continues to plug into digital technology, it’s imperative for the healthcare industry to keep up with web trends to survive. Whether it’s adding online forms with HIPAA compliance to your organization’s EHR system, or developing a strong marketing website to grow your practice, going digital is the wave of the present and future.Many of our healthcare customers believe building a stronger marketing website has heavily contributed to their organization’s growth, so grab your surfboard and let’s ride the healthcare marketing wave together.
What is Healthcare Marketing?
Your website is your surfboard, a sturdy tool that hoists your healthcare organization above the competition to attract and retain more patients. Designing a website that grabs the user’s attention and details business practices and HIPAA compliance is the building block to successful healthcare marketing. Here are a few tips to keep in mind when tackling your healthcare marketing website:
UX
Also known as user experience design, UX is increasingly important for healthcare websites. According to Peter Morville, a pioneer in the UX field, products that are usable, useful, findable, accessible, credible, valuable, and desirable are more likely to succeed; therefore, the design of your website should compliment these aspects. What makes your healthcare practice usable? Highlight it. What makes you credible? Showcase provider credentials and security compliances. Desirable? Design a site that says, “we’ve got what you’re looking for, and here’s why.”
Pro tip: Utilizing web forms in your UX design will help patients directly answer the important questions for you, like contact details, what healthcare information users are seeking most, or appointment setting. Stay on that surfboard—the possibilities of web forms are as limitless as the ocean.
Content
Did you know that nearly 3 in 4 consumers use search engines to research healthcare treatment? Developing SEO-friendly content that answers patients’ questions is a great way to pop up in these searches, while also developing a certain level of trust with readers. The best way to kick off a strong content marketing campaign is to set clear goals. Are you trying to drive volume to a specific service? Is landing at the top of certain searches front of mind? Setting goals will help you create relevant content, often garnering return visits and potential leads.
Video
Incorporating videos on your site is a powerful and upward trend. At the start of 2018, Wyzowl published results from their fourth annual state of video marketing survey, which found that the average person watches 1.5 hours of video a day. That’s a lot of video! Many healthcare organizations take advantage of video with doctor interviews, testimonials, or “meet the staff” series.
Live Chat
The primary purpose of live chat is to immediately help the user seeking information. They’re on your site and ready to take action, so communicating with them live is a great way to establish trust and confidence in your practice. A challenge to live chat is having to employ enough experts to take on the task of answering questions. If that’s not something your organization is prepared to do, you can also consider a chatbot, which gives medical practices the opportunity to automatically answer simple questions, providing a more personal website experience.
Social Media Marketing
Social engagement provides various avenues to connect with patients. As social media continues to gain traction, patients find it as a convenient way to seek information and make informed decisions about their healthcare needs. A thought-out social media marketing plan gives you multiple channels to share your content, have real-time connections with patients, and build meaningful relationships that supplement word-of-mouth marketing tactics.
Pro tip: Add social media sharing buttons to your website to help supplement your content and social media marketing campaigns.
Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)
Why take on the task of building a healthcare marketing website without testing and tracking your progress? Seems like a one step forward, two steps backward scenario, which is why we offer our online forms Conversion Kit with UTM tracking, Google Analytics, partial submission data collection, social autofill, and more! Don’t hold back when it comes to CRO. Whether it’s A/B testing your online forms or tracking your website statistics, adding CRO to your healthcare marketing strategy is like having a state-of-the-art surfboard leash to reel it back in when it takes off on the marketing waves.
Interested in how a HIPAA compliant online form builder can help with your healthcare marketing? Click here to learn more about Formstack's healthcare offerings.
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