What Makes a Practice Website Effective?

You’d be hard-pressed to find an ophthalmologist in 2018 who doesn’t have a website. However, upon further inspection, you might suspect that many in the medical community don’t care about their website or online reputation: their website isn’t responsive, pages are out of date, it’s hard to navigate…the problems can go on and on.

Everybody claims to know that a good website is an essential element in a marketing plan that attracts new patients and fosters growth, but if you want to realize that growth for your practice, you first need to know the elements that make a website good.

In this article, we’ll explore 10 key ways in which your website is important than you think.

1. A good website increases exposure.

When you promote your practice online, the goal is exposure. The more patients that can see your practice, the more patients you will attract. A well-built practice website will give your practice exposure and help potential patients discover your practice and what you have to offer.

2. A good website promotes a coherent brand.

If you want to stand out in a crowded market, you need to have a brand that is clear, coherent, and cohesive across all platforms. Ideally, your website will bring all elements of your brand – your physical presence, your social media, your paid advertising, and your content marketing – under one roof to tell a coherent story. Patients resonate with clear and authentic stories, so utilizing your website as a platform to tell your story will elevate your brand in the minds of your patients.

RELATED: MillennialEye LIVE Talk – Building Your Practice Brand

3. A good website will be a valuable marketing tool.

A good website should serve as your main marketing tool when seeking to reach potential patients. Your website should contain many opportunities for patients to connect with you online, request more information, and take action on marketing messages they see.

4. A good website is flexible.

Technology is constantly changing, and your website is no exception. A good ophthalmic practice website will remain relevant and up-to-date with the latest technological advances, giving you an advantage over practices whose websites aren’t well- maintained. Having a website that works on a variety of devices, is easy-to-navigate, and is flexible to the needs of the patient will go a long way in helping to win the trust of your patients.

5. A good website is should provide a competitive advantage.

Chances are your market is crowded. Having a good website will give you a competitive advantage over those competitors who haven’t paid close attention to their online reputation. This means not only having a well-designed website but making sure you’re showing up at the top of search engine results so that when patients search for ophthalmologists in their area, they find you.

6. A good website will be locally targeted.

As a physician with a physical practice, it’s important to be attracting local patients. A good ophthalmic website will help bring local patients to your door through valuable content, SEO best practices, and a focus on your local market. Making sure your practice website is hyper-local is one of the most important things you can do to grow your practice and attract new patients.

7. A good website will contain valuable content – and lots of it.

You’ve heard it said, ”Content is King”…and there’s a reason that statement rings true. Especially in ophthalmology, where patients are confronted with medical jargon, the unknown, and the prospect of surgery, the more information, the better. Having a website that’s chock-full of content and information to set patients’ minds at ease is a must.

8. A good website facilitates conversation.

What good is a website if patients can’t contact you for more information? Lack of easy-to-find contact information is one of the biggest reasons patients abandon websites without ever scheduling an appointment or requesting more information. A good ophthalmic practice website will provide patients multiple opportunities to contact the practice for more information or to schedule an appointment. Having clear, easy-to-find contact information is key.

9. A good website is educational.

As we’ve mentioned, the field of ophthalmology can be scary for outsiders who are wary of going to the doctor. Hence, having educational content throughout your website will go a long way in easing patients’ fears and helping them understand what their condition or procedure entails. Chances are a more-educated patient will make your life easier…and if you want to see more educated patients, you’ll need to take a look at your website.

10. A good website reinforces a good brand image.

It’s easy to measure the effects of conventional marketing with statistics, return on investment, and myriad analytical tools. Your practice image is a bit more nebulous, but it’s still important. Your website is a crucial element in helping you build a good image for your business. Your brand doesn’t exist outside of the minds of your patients, so it’s important to make sure that you’re putting your best foot forward everywhere. A good website will help with this by presenting your practice in a positive light, making your message easy to understand, and facilitating conversation with patients.

It’s not always easy to create a good, useful website that serves your business needs and goals while reaching more patients, but as you can see from these 10 aspects of a good ophthalmic practice website, it’s incredibly important.

Getting your practice website right is by far one of the most valuable things you can do as an ophthalmologist to attract more patients and grow your practice.

Want to improve your practice website? Contact us for a free website report today.