#121: 3 Tips to Get More Patient Reviews (and Why They Matter for Your Healthcare Practice)

PODCAST TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to this week's edition of the OMD TV Video & podcast show.

In this video, we’re talking about patient testimonials and reviews and why they matter to your marketing.

By the end of this video, you’re going to learn some tips to get more reviews from your patients, and discover free tools available to help you generate even more. We’ll even give you some tips on where to use these for maximum effect.

If you don’t already know me, I'm Huyen Truong, founder and search marketing director of Online Marketing for Doctors. My team and I have been working in medical marketing for over a decade, helping over 100 clinics grow.

Not only have we experienced the power of testimonials for our clients, but we’ve seen how they’ve helped our own agency grow too. We value them so highly that they’re a core step of our proven patient generation system too.

So why does your clinic need testimonials and reviews? Let’s get into it.

They’re are your secret weapon

Testimonials and reviews do a number of things to support your business. Reviews on platforms like your Google Business Profile help prospects early on in their research, whereas more detailed testimonials on your website can later in the process.

Here’s the top 3 reasons we love them:

• They build trust and credibility. When you’re looking for a new restaurant, or a new hotel to stay in, you probably checked the reviews right? Now think about potential patients who are looking for a trustworthy clinic for a medical procedure. Showcasing your positive reviews is critical to quickly establish that credibility.
• They provide social proof. According to industry research, 50% of people trust online reviews as much as recommendations from friends and family, demonstrating how effective they are compared to word-of-mouth referrals. Once a prospect finds you, they help turn them into a lead.
• They support your SEO. Search engines like Google love to see positive reviews, and they'll often reward you with better rankings, making it easier for potential patients to find you.

So now that we’ve established why they’re important – here’s how you can get more of them.

Tip 1: Make it part of your standard operating procedure

Every time a patient walks out your door, make it a habit to ask for their feedback. A simple survey can do the trick, or you can send a quick email or text message. Most happy patients are thrilled to share their experience, and you might even get some golden quotes for your website.

For reviews, Google offers an easy tool to generate a link directly to your review submission.

Go to your Business Profile. Learn how to find your profile.

To find your review link, click Read Reviews and then Get more reviews.

This will generate a link which you can send to your customers directly.

Another great option here is to turn that link into a QR code. You can print this off and ask your front-of-house team to ask patients leave a review, with as little friction as possible,

We’ve linked a free QR code generator down below, just input your review link and generate a QR code.

Tip 2: Incentivise your team

Your team is your secret weapon when it comes to getting reviews. A QR code linking directly to your Google listing makes it really easy to gather reviews, and incentivising your team to gather them can help close the loop. You can create a healthy competition and give a monthly award for any team member who manages to get the most reviews for your clinic, this strategy can significantly and quickly increase the number of reviews.

This should help supercharge the number of reviews within a few months, as well as help with our next tip, which is…

Tip 3: Identify your hero success stories regularly

Your hero success stories are your best examples of your work. Perhaps one patient was a great example of your clinic’s core offering, or a patient was particularly happy with the results.

These are excellent examples of patient or client stories presented in a diary format. While creating such videos requires effort, the return is well worth it. They can be used for social media ads, particularly for remarketing to prospects during the consideration stage of their decision-making process.

You should be highlighting these successes across your marketing, and identifying them is the first step.

Make a habit of doing quarterly reviews, or working with your practice managers to discover the best options.

Once you identify these success stories, reach out to the patient and ask them if they’re willing to provide a testimonial. You could even ask them if they’re willing and record a short-form video testimonial. If you need help creating those videos, check out our other video on that very topic.

Creating a bank of these assets will have great return on investment for your marketing.

When we work with our clients, we use them across a range of their channels, from organic social media posts, their website homepage, their online ad campaigns, and their Google Business Profile – the options are endless.

Like I said earlier, they’re so versatile and important that they form a core part of our Patient Blueprint Generator which has helped hundreds of our clients grow.

If you want to learn more about Online Marketing For Doctors, please reach out to us and book a free 15-minute discovery call. We'll conduct a comprehensive audit and a 360-degree overview of your website, and discuss marketing strategies for you. I’ll leave a link to it in the show notes below.

Thanks for joining us this week, and we look forward to seeing you again soon!