Making an impact over the holidays

If you are discouraged by all the people who have full page ads, multiple television and radio commercials, don't worry.  Even with a reduced advertising budget you can compete with these other practices.


Don't worry- 80% look online before making a decision and 98% choose a company/practice/service/product based on who is on the first page of a search engine. What that means is if you are appearing on the first page of the search engine- it doesn't matter who paid for that expensive newspaper ad or television commercial- YOU will benefit from it!  


If you have a strong presence on the internet- especially if you show up in the # 1-3 position on the first page, you have a immediate advantage over your competitor.   Have you ever had someone tell you they "heard you on the radio" and you didn't have a radio ad?  That's the beauty of it- while I'm driving around town, in my car, I hear lots of radio ads.  I don't stop the car to write down the name of the company, their phone number or any other information- I wait until I get home, and look them up on the internet. Sometimes I can't remember the exact name of the company, and sometimes- even if I remember the name, I am interested in another company because they have a stronger presence on the internet.

How do you get a stronger presence on the internet? There are many different ways- appropriate metatags, quality back links, targeted content, and many web 2.0 strategies.  Don't waste your money on radio, TV and the paper- work to get your website to the top of the search engines for the most cost effective way to promote your practice.


Talk again soon,


Shirley Cress Dudley, MA LPC NCC
FACMPE
Consultant for Performance Online Marketing Services

AMA releases policy on physicians and Social Media

Did you read the press release from AMA?  They have established a policy for physicians on social media.

Here are some of the main points this new policy focuses on-

• Use privacy settings to safeguard personal information and content to the fullest extent possible on social networking sites.
• Routinely monitor their own Internet presence to ensure that the personal and professional information on their own sites and content posted about them by others, is accurate and appropriate.
• Maintain appropriate boundaries of the patient-physician relationship when interacting with patients online and ensure patient privacy and confidentiality is maintained.
• Consider separating personal and professional content online.
• Recognize that actions online and content posted can negatively affect their reputations among patients and colleagues, and may even have consequences for their medical careers

(information taken from AMA press release.)

How does this effect you, as a physician?    Really, not at all. This policy is a great reminder that physicians need to protect their private lives, keep them separate from their public lives. It also reminds us of the privacy policies created for our patients, and how you should continue to protect them.

Does it make participating in social media more difficult?  Not really. You should have been following this guidelines, on your own, anyway.  

Should I participate in social media, as a physician?  Definitely!  The world is on the computer, looking for your practice. The best way to find you is with an optimized website, regular blogs, and participation in social media such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.  If you are hiding in your office, the world will still post comments about you on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin (and hundreds of other sites) but if you are actively participating along with them, you can see what's being said about you and respond to it.

Social media is here- join it.