Modernity has us completely immersed in the digital world. People spend long hours browsing the Internet whether it is for entertainment, seeking answers to their questions, or to find the service or product they are needing. Regardless of the profession, it is crucial to be on the web and the most important thing is to be easily found on it. This is why it is so important to start and develop a good digital marketing campaign.
In the health services area there is a lot of competition, this forces doctors, dentists, psychologists to be updated with everything related to digital marketing. It is important to make yourself known properly and that your information reflects your professionalism, which helps to attract and / or retain patients.
The conventional marketing methods used by the health professionals in Colombia are:
- Advertisements in print media such as magazines, newspapers, etc.
- Use of business cards
- Patients refering other patients
In this article we will focus on digital marketing strategies and how these can be used by doctors in Colombia.
The most effective and known means for promoting a doctor or health professional in Colombia are:
- Google
- Website
- Medical Directories
- Google My Business
- Social Networks
- Email Marketing
- Youtube channel
GOOGLE FOR DOCTORS
Google is the most popular search engine at the moment. Being in the top positions of the search is what will make you visible. It is important to understand how search works so that you really know the importance of being in the first place. First, the person will search for a general term, also known as a keyword. Depending on the results that appear on the first page, the person will start to change a term or word to something more specific.
For example, if someone writes Dermatologist, it is possible that the first searches will be Wikipedia with its definition. If within the first 5 or 10 results you do not find what you are looking for, it is unlikely that you will go to the second page to continue searching, what the person will do is try a more specific word such as "Dermatologist in Bogotá". By making this change, the results will surely change and pages such as directories and web pages will begin to appear dermatologists located in Bogotá.
3 key sites for doctors to be visible on Google
- Websites for doctors
- Directories for Physicians
- Google my business
Websites for doctors in Colombia
Creating a website is an excellent digital marketing strategy. Having a website allows doctors a space to have a cover letter about themselves.
What should a website for doctors have?
- Contact information: It sounds logical, but there are many pages that you cant find this information easily. It is important to have the address, city, and country. Include the telephone numbers, the email (if you don't want to make it public, it is advisable to have a contact form.) Placing this information in the header and footer is the most recommended since it would appear on all the pages of the website. < / li>
- Professional photographs: Having professional photographs of the doctor helps a lot to build confidence. Using templates with stock photos (models) does not build credibility by displaying photos that are fictitious.
- Biography of the doctor: Include studies, experience and associations to which he is a member.
- Services provided and equipment it used .
Remember that for a web page to function properly, it must be optimized so that Google places it in the first position of searches. If your website is not found, only people who have your domain (www.example.com) will find it. The costs of having a website for doctors vary. You have to take into account the cost of design, hosting (paid annually), domain (paid annually), search engine optimization and maintenance.
Directories for doctors in Colombia
Medical directories in Colombia are an excellent option for health professionals. MedicosDoc.com is a perfect example of a medical directory in Colombia. Among its benefits are:
- It can replace the need for a web page as it contains all the information a patient needs to schedule an appointment (all the info that you would put on your web page would be in the directory).
- It is optimized to appear on Google.
- It has thousands of monthly visitors for you to be seen by potential patients.
- Another benefit of digital directories such as MedicosDoc.com has to do with the convenience and ease it offers patients when it comes to quickly locate a doctor and scheduling an appointment.
- Its price is lower than that of a web page since it includes all the services in one.
If you have a website, being in a directory also helps, as you would have twice the chance of being found on Google when someone searches for a term or keyword. Remember that within the directory is the link to your web page where it will send you traffic and this will help to improve the positioning of your web page.
Google my business for doctors
Google has a very interesting and effective tool that is Google My Business. This allows you to register your business on the Google map. You can register there with all your information. Google in its last registration step verifies that your business is "real" therefore they make a call or send a code through a physical postcard to your office. This process is simple but sometimes the postcard does not reach Colombia.
We at Medicosdoc.com help our clients to register in Google My Business in case you are not there yet or have any difficulties.
SOCIAL MEDIA FOR DOCTORS
People spend most of their free time on social networks, which is why it is essential that you as a doctor be part of them. We like to divide social media into two types of doctors:
- Active doctors: Here are the doctors who post every day, who like to appear in photos, videos, showing their day to day, etc.
- Not very active doctors: have their social networks and they post some content of interest a few times a week.
Which of the two is better? It depends on what you want to achieve with your social networks.
If you want a large number of followers and to be popular on the web it is important to be active. If you want to have an account to have a cover letter and you do not have the time, or budget, or have an outgoing personality to be active, you can be from the second group.
Both groups can work. So don't worry if you only have 100 followers and your competition has 10K.
5 tips that a doctor should consider for their social networks
- Have the contact information . It is essential to state in which city and country the doctor is located so that people know if they can make appointments with her.
Publish information of interest: helps the doctor to demonstrate that he is an expert on the subject.
- Post before and after photos or testimonials . Before and after photos work very well for medical practitioners such as plastic surgeons, bariatric surgeons, cosmetic doctors, dermatologists. For other types of specialties such as cardiology or neurologists, patient testimonials are a very good option.
- Responding to messages and comments. This, in addition to helping interaction, shows the doctor's interest in her patients.
- Hashtags: It is important to use # to help you be found in case someone searches for your specialty or your services through the hashtag search engine on the social network. Example: #acne #dermatologobogota Remember not to publish too many, use only those that are related to the publication that is being promoted.
There are health sectors where networks can be used to attract patients, but there are others where the role of social networks is more to position the brand and gain market authority for the specialty being exercised. In either case, never forget how important it is to create content that is engaging enough to attract the attention of the potential patient.
Read topics to post on social networks
EMAIL MARKETING FOR DOCTORS
A marketing campaign for doctors can include email marketing. For this, it is required to have a database of emails from your patients with the authorization to send them emails.
What kind of emails can a doctor send to a patient?
- Remind you of the annual checkup
- Send messages the month of your birthday
- Send you information about a specific procedure
- Information about the new technology acquired in the office
- Recommendations of the procedures performed.
- Remind you to bring the results of the diagnostic aids
YOUTUBE CHANNEL FOR DOCTORS
Creating a YouTube channel is beneficial to promote a doctor in Colombia because it is the second most consulted search engine in the world.
What kind of videos should a doctor make to promote himself?
- Explaining a procedure
- Answering frequently asked questions from patients
- Explaining some technology
- Recommendations for disease prevention
- Recommendation for before or after procedures and / or surgeries.
You should bear in mind that when adding a video you must put a title and a description mentioning what it is about. Also, add contact information in case a patient wants to make an appointment with the doctor.
There are different means to promote a doctor in Colombia through the Internet. There are some more effective methods than others. Remember that all the information that you have available on the internet is an additional possibility of being found. You must bear in mind that any organic result takes time and is a work of perseverance. If you want immediate results, you can try advertising in ads on social networks, in Google adwords, in specialized directories, among others. The union of all efforts will make you visible and recognized on the web.
Remember that search engines, like Google, are very effective in attracting patients because everyone who is searching is because they need you. Social networks are ideal to create and retain an audience (of patients or potential patients) by publishing content of interest.
We hope this manual will help you get started promoting your practice digitally. If you want digital marketing advice for doctors in Colombia, do not hesitate to contact us. At MedicosDoc.com we have the solution to make it visible on the web.