Business Talk: How Valuable is My Web Site?
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How did your practice do last month? Just average, or was it one of your better months? Well, guess what? Your answer probably applies directly to your web site traffic as well. The traffic to your web site is strongly correlated to the number of patients you see in your practice. We've seen this correlation for many of our client's sites. It shouldn't surprise you that the two are so closely linked. Your web site and your practice should be a reflection of each other. Just as you see more patients in the practice, you should have more visitors come to your web site, so too if you attract more visitors to your web site, it should result in more patients in your practice - provided of course, your web site has a compelling reason for patients to contact you, or better yet, have them request an appointment directly from your web site. That's how Practice Management Consultant Dr. Gary Gerber of the PowerPractice views the two. Dr. Gerber cautions against expecting your site to work wonders for you all by itself. "Don't expect to just turn on your web site and instantly start saving money and getting new patients." says Dr. Gerber "you have to make existing patients aware of your site AND give them a good reason to visit." Sounds like straightforward advice, but Dr. Gerber remarks that there are still quite a few practices who don't have their web site address on all their letterhead, bills, signs, advertising, and business card. "Every time you drive an existing patient to your site, you recognize cost savings, and increase patient satisfaction ... but only if the information they're looking for is on the site!" That's the next piece of advice that Dr. Geber offers, "Make sure your site has contact forms, feedback forms, patient registration / history forms and answers to all the basic questions they might ask about your practice". New patients are a different story, and can have a big positive effect on a practice's bottom line. Many practices expect new patients to automatically find them online, just because they have a web site. "But that's not really the way it works online" warns Dr. Gerber, "A new web site is like an unlisted phone number ... nobody finds it, nobody calls you unless you promote it." There are many ways to promote your site, such as being listed highly in the search engines, pay per click ads, paying for web ads online, and using traditional print media. "They're all valid forms of promotion", but Dr. Gerber suggests that the average Doctor get some advice before spending money with online advertising. "You really have to know what you're doing to get the most targeted, effective awareness solution for your practice". "An EyeCarePro site will already win you half the battle", says Dr. Gerber "the other half is making your site work for you." Dr. Gerber offers a wealth of practice management advice, including how to get the most out of your web site. Feel free to contact Dr. Gerber, through his web site, at http://www.powerpractice.com, which by the way, was built using Eyecarepro.net! (Now accepting suggestions for future interviews - email danielr@eyecarepro.net) |
“The rewards will follow, so start encouraging your patients to use your web site today.”
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