Marketing for health providers is constantly evolving and changing, but nothing has made it change faster and more drastically than the last two years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Patients are in the driver’s seat with what kind of care they want and when they want it, and it’s time that health providers get on track. Health care services are quicker than ever and are also more digital than ever. We took a look back at what isn’t working anymore, and the changes that people want to start seeing in healthcare marketing. Keep reading to learn more about marketing for health providers and our top 5 tips for elevating your clinic’s success in 2024.

Marketing for Health Providers: Maximize Local Traffic

Whether you’re a healthcare clinic or a tire shop, you are a local business that needs to learn the ins and outs of local marketing in order for your area to know you’re around. You’re likely aware of all the must-haves, such as SEO, keywords, and PPC. However, each of these has elevated to a new level, and it’s time to upgrade for 2024. Maximizing your local traffic isn’t just about targeting your ideal audience, it is about getting in front of as many eyes as possible and keeping people aware of you at all times. Think of it as omnipresence: Whenever they’re ready to make a decision down the line, you will have already been engraved in their brains.

Directory Listings

You’re probably on all the classic local directories such as Google Places, Facebook, and Yelp. However, it’s time you take it a step further with placement in other directory listings. We can secure good, visible placement for your practice with health-specific services like Vitals, DrScore, DocSpot, and Wellness.com, to name a few. Navazon Digital also partners with the world’s leading digital networks to extend the reach of our client’s brands, allowing you maximum visibility. The more local directories you are in, the better chance you will have of people in your area finding you when they need you.

Voice Search

With innovations such as Alexa, Google Home, and Siri, more people than ever are using voice search, and the number just keeps on growing. Ranking high on voice search is an entirely different beast than ranking high on web search, and it takes essential SEO knowledge such as relevant content, blogging, and schema to get you up there. Our savvy digital marketing team gives you a strong presence with flourishing voice-enabled services so that when consumers search out special deals or local finds, your name will be front and center. Whether it is an informative, keyword-rich blog or a well-produced video, we can help you.

Gaining Trust and Comfort

It can take a lot of courage for someone to pick up a phone and call for help, even for a simple medical procedure. This is why gaining trust and comfort needs to be front and center with marketing for health providers, and 2023 is proving that, yet again, video production and client testimonials (AKA “social proof”) are leading the pack.

Video Production

If you don’t think your clinic needs video production, think again. There are so many reasons every business needs video production, including:

• YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine, and having videos will boost your SEO tremendously
• You will make your potential clients feel more familiar with you and your office
• Becoming the forefront of your industry by being informative and authoritative
• Client testimonials on video go a long way for potential clients

Some simple ways you can make videos include:

• Video Storytelling. How long has your clinic been open? What is your background? What makes your office the best one to visit in the area?
• Look-Ins. The more comfortable someone is, the less the unknown will scare them. Show off your office, staff, what a visit entails, and how a procedure is done.
• Q&A Sessions. Turn the FAQ section of your website into a video. This will help current and prospective clients get all their questions answered, allowing them to feel more comfortable before seeing you.
• Show Your Personality. Platforms like Instagram and YouTube can allow you to be a little more casual and fun. You want to be seen as an authoritative, trustworthy figure—but you also want to seem human and relatable. Get a new plant or piece of furniture for the office? Show it off! Did your college’s football team win this weekend? Brag about it!

Gathering Testimonials

Client testimonials are worth their weight in gold, especially if they are on video. Ask all your current clients if they would be willing to participate in a video testimonial for your office. You may be surprised at how many will say yes, especially if you offer them a discount on a future visit. You can also gather testimonials and social proof by encouraging clients to tag you in posts on the various social media platforms, then reposting them yourself.

Invest in Email Marketing

If you’re not taking full advantage of your email marketing capabilities, you’re leaving a ton of money on the table. No, we’re not talking about the email newsletter your receptionist puts together and sends out every month. We’re talking about fully sophisticated email marketing funnels that generate leads.

Offering informative blog posts and valuable downloadable PDFs is essential, but now those are considered just the bare minimum. You need to be savvier than just attracting brand new clients and think where a potential client might be anywhere in the funnel. Whether they just found you or have been following you for six months and are about to book the appointment, you need different email marketing material to cater to them and speak that specific language. A blanket email newsletter just doesn’t cut it anymore!

Yes, You Need Social Media

Asking family or friends for a health provider recommendation in your area will always exist, but social media has seriously leveled it up. Just because you are a small local clinic that may never get more than a few hundred followers doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be on social media. It isn’t about how many followers you have for many businesses on social media, but rather a new and different way to advertise your business.

Rather than asking your mom or best friend who they go to for their care, people are asking the internet and letting it speak for itself. Think of it this way: If you have a healthy social media account with tons of value and testimonials and your top competitor does not, it can be just the thing for people to choose you instead of them

Not sure what to post about? Here are some ideas:

• Patient testimonials
• Ratings and reviews on sites such as Yelp, Vitals, HealthGrades, and more
• Q&A series, whether they are video or branded infographic slides
• Involvement in your community
• Engaging posts such as fun “This or That” games
• Showing off your office, staff, and services

Expand Your Digital Offerings

Marketing for health providers in 2024 needs to be as digital as possible. It should come as no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic has made people afraid or more skeptical of going to a doctor’s office than they usually would. If it is something that doesn’t require them to be in the office physically, they’d rather have telehealth.

In addition, you want to make booking an appointment as easy as possible and capture them right in the moment of their decision. If it comes down to them needing to pick up the phone and call you for an appointment or just picking a date on a calendar and clicking “Book Now” on a competitor’s website, you will more than likely lose out every single time.

Some simple ways you can elevate your digital offerings for 2024 include:

• Offer live chat that is HIPPA-compliant and can answer simple questions
• Integrate two-way texting for patients to quickly and easily book, cancel, or reschedule appointments
• The ability for the clinic to send out appointment reminders via text and email, instead of calling to leave a voicemail, to maximize employee productivity
• Consider offering telehealth appointments on a video platform as an option for appointments that do not require the patient to be in the clinic, such as consultations or follow-ups.

Upgrade Your Website

The most important way to expand your digital offerings and be on top of marketing for health providers in 2024 is by upgrading your website. Having a space on the internet is essential, and you can’t get by with just the bare minimum anymore. Some things you can improve include:

• Make sure your website is easy to use across all devices—you never know what your next potential client will be searching for you on, and you can lose out if it’s not right
• Develop a professional editorial calendar for marketing content with the help of a digital marketer and content creator
• Fix your site structure and navigation to make it as simple and easy-to-use as possible. Keep important things, such as Book An Appointment, at the very top right
• Improve your website’s messaging, content, and design with professional copywriting and graphic designers
• Consider being available 24/7 with tools such as bots, email support, two-way texting, and support videos
• Fully optimized for search, including voice search schema, blogging, relevant keywords, rich content, and an optimized backend
• ADA compliance for accessibility
• Keep your essential offerings as clear as possible. For example: If you offer COVID-19 testing and it is a large part of your revenue, make that option as easy to find as possible.

About Navazon Digital

Marketing for health providers is such a rich niche on its own; it can be almost impossible for a local clinic to keep up on all of it themselves. Instead of taking away from what you are good at with your clinic, Navazon Digital can help you with the marketing legwork.

Navazon offers:

• 100% complete and accurate listings on directories
• Listing of your products and services using proper keywords to increase ranking
• NAP synchronization to ensure high data accuracy, resulting in higher rankings
• Monthly posting of special offers, coupons, and events onto directories and social media platforms.
• Professionally designed and branded social media content for your business.
• Professionally designed and branded special offers, coupons, and events for your business.
• Branded social media posts for special calendar days like Independence Day, Christmas, and New Year.
• Complete transparency with monthly reporting of results.

​​Sure, business owners can create their business listings, social media posts, and special offers. However, with so many directories and social media platforms, it can be challenging to synchronize your business information across all directories and keep your listings fresh. And, let’s face it: As talented as you are, you’re not a skilled graphic designer, SEO expert, or marketing copywriter. Businesses that have used Navazon Digital for their local listings and social media management report significant overall savings and lower customer acquisition costs. We are here to help you, too.

For more information on marketing for health providers and getting started with us today, get in touch with us.