As a medical professional, you’ve spent years of your life going to school and becoming qualified to treat the patients you see every day at your office. However, what you may not have spent as much time learning is how to best market your practice and get more patients through your doors.
For many doctors or medical professionals, the thought of spending even more of your precious time on your business is overwhelming. From the time you spend at the office, completing paperwork and running your business, it can seem like there isn’t time left in the day to devote to marketing efforts to bring in more patients. So to help you out, here are some simple ideas for marketing your business with little time and money.
Market Yourself to Other Doctors to Get More Referrals
While you likely naturally get referrals from other doctors within your community, you may not realize how much this helps you from a marketing standpoint. The more doctors you can get to refer their patients to you, the less work you have to do marketing yourself directly to those patients.
To help encourage as many referrals from other physicians as possible, Jeffrey J. Denning of Medscape.com gives four ways you can help yourself make the most of your referrals and continue to get referrals. These ways include getting to know other physicians, seeing the referred patient quickly, treating your referred patients with respect, and reporting back to the referring doctor quickly. By doing this, you can help yourself get more referrals than ever.
Volunteering Within Your Community
Although you may not feel like you have the time to volunteer, taking just a few hours a month out of your busy schedule can work wonders for the marketing efforts for your practice. By placing yourself at prominent places in the community where you have the chance to use your medical knowledge, you’ll quickly develop a positive rapport with community members who may be looking for a new physician.
Not only will you get the chance to speak face-to-face with prospective patients, but Alison Ritchie of Medical Economics shares that volunteering in the community also helps medical professionals to be happier with their career, making this marketing effort beneficial on multiple fronts.
Take Advantage of Social Media
Social media can work wonders for your online presence if you know how to use it correctly, but keep in mind that it’s using it correctly that’s key. Your professional profile on social media should always be used in that fashion: professionally. Don’t use your professional social media profiles to facilitate communicate with personal friends or to push your own non-medical agenda.
Dr. Mike Sevilla shared with MedScape.com that his use of social media to combat innaccurate medical information online as well as to connect with patients and promote good health have all been extremely beneficial to marketing his medical practice. Consider using some of these same techniques when using social media to market your practice as well.
These above mentioned marketing ideas don’t have to require a lot of time or money that isn’t already devoted to your practice. But by strategically using some of your current business options and having an attitude focused on marketing your medical practice, you can easily find ways to bring in more patients and see your practice grow.