How to Start Digital Marketing for Hospitals Effectively?

When you utilize online strategies to promote healthcare services, doctors or your hospital as a brand in order to reach wider audiences is called digital marketing for hospitals.  

In this rapidly growing digital world, where everything has shifted online and the needs of the people are efficiently being fulfilled with just one tap then how does your hospital or the healthcare industry afford to stay behind the race?

In today’s digital era, being relevant while building trust, engaging your prospects and maintaining strong relations will help you stay ahead of the competition.

Why do you need Digital Marketing for hospitals?

To remain on the competitive edge, hospitals must utilize digital marketing using various strategies because it will help hospitals to

1. Build trust & Credibility– patients usually prefer hospitals with positive reviews and feedback as it plays an important role in deciding to book a consultation. They rely on trust and credibility factors when it comes to health.
2. Being found online- A potential patient chooses the hospital or the specialist appearing on top of the list while they are searching for their needs online.
3. Be in touch with your patients- if you are already available online then sending follow-up messages and emails will make them feel seen and heard demonstrating the caring nature which eventually draws patients towards you.
4. Attract new patients- when your hospital starts to generate educational content that provides value to the patients then there are higher chances that they will book appointments which may be converted into a lead.
5. Take data-driven decisions- with the help of analytic tools, a hospital can drive insights about the effectiveness of its marketing campaigns and adjust the campaigns to draw desired results.
6. Provide virtual care- you can offer online consultation through your websites or calls to your patients who prefer to get treated being in their comfort zone. This will lead towards patient retention as you will be able to be there for them all around the clock.

These are the top benefits that your hospital will experience in the long run when it prefers digital marketing. And these are the reasons why digital marketing for hospitals is increasing rapidly.

Now you must be wondering why only digital marketing and why not consider traditional marketing.

Why not traditional marketing?

The major issue with traditional marketing is that it is a costly and time-consuming procedure and you won’t be able to have measurable insights about the results. It is more like aiming for a fish with eyes closed.

How you can implement Digital Marketing for your hospital?

By now, it is clear why digital marketing is important for your hospital and to what extent it will take your hospital to new heights. It’s now time to know how you can implement digital marketing for your hospitals.

1. Develop Website – A strong SEO-optimized and user-friendly website is a must for your hospital to appear at the top of the search list. Make sure to have easy navigation, excellent responsiveness, clear information about the services, and relevant keywords.

      Bonus tip- Include the “Book Appointment” tab for your patient’s ease.

2.  Strong Social Presence- set up social media accounts across various platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn to effectively create engagement with your patients. Keep your prospective patients informed and engaged by sharing health tips, upcoming events or sharing patient testimonials.

3. Create Quality Content– the content could be in any format, video, blog post, or downloadable content. Write high-quality articles and blogs covering a wide range of topics and services that your hospital offers. It could be about addressing health issues, the latest treatments available and safety measures.

4. Including Paid Advertising– this is the method that drives you the fast results. With targeting on specific demographics like age, location and based on interests you can run a specific ad focusing on a relevant group.   

5. Incorporating E-mail marketing- sending personalized emails that directly land in the patient’s inbox is a proven effective method of retaining patients. You will be able to take the follow-ups, and feedbacks, send reminders about the checkups, inform about upcoming events and much more.

6. Target on Local SEO- registering with local directories and using location-based search terms will help you to be found in your locality. And then slowly expanding your reach to nearby areas.
7. Consistency is the key- whatever approach you are following, without consistency it will not yield the desired results. So always be consistent across all the platforms and keep updating your patients with content to maintain relevancy and interaction.

Things to Keep in Mind

But before you even start to plan digital marketing for your hospital, you need to keep a few important things in mind:

1. What is your Goal
2. Who are your competitors
3. Who is your target audience
4. What will be your budget allocation

Upon addressing these key areas, you will ensure that your digital strategies are not only effective but are ethical and are aligned with your patients needs. It will act as the foundational strength to your digital presence.

Tools and Platforms to get started

We have reached the stage of discovering the tools and platforms that will help you get started with the journey of taking your hospital online through digital marketing.

Here are the top platforms and tools for you to get started-

1) For Websites– WordPress, Wix or Squarespace

2) SEO tools- SEMRush, Ahrefs, Google search console, Yoast-SEO(WordPress plugin)

3) Social Media Management – Canva (for graphics)

4) Paid Advertising- consider using Google Ads, Meta Ads

5) Email Marketing- Mailchimp

6) Analytical tools- Google analytics

These are the ways in which you can take your hospital online and start digital marketing for it. But by any chance, if you feel stuck anywhere then don’t worry, we are here. At NovaTales, we have a team of expert digital marketers who are specialized in making your hospital a brand.

From web optimization, content marketing, and graphic designing to paid advertising we have a cover for all your digital needs. Just leave us a message and our expert team will solve your problems. Visit us at NovaTales.