Is Online Reputation Management Worth It?
When a person Googles your business, do you know what they’ll find? 80% of Americans go on the internet these days and read reviews, look at ratings, and comb through social profiles when looking for a healthcare provider. Your website, local listings, and social media profiles play a critical role in how your business is going to grow and perform.
It’s important to think about your online reputation and how your healthcare practice appears to potential patients. If your online presence is non-existent, outdated, or filled with negative ratings and reviews, it could be costing your business a lot of money.
Unfortunately, negative reviews are not completely avoidable. There will always be a disgruntled patient who feels the need to air their dirty laundry online – visible for everyone to see. But it’s how your practice handles it that will go a long way in affecting your reputation.
What is Online Reputation Management?
Online Reputation Management is when you, or a third-party management company, takes control of your business’s public image online by replying to negative comments, keeping your local listings and social media profile information up to date, and improving your brand reputation.
By actively monitoring your digital footprint, you minimize negative feedback and keep your online presence as positive, and controlled, as possible.
Is it Worth It?
For a healthcare practice, online reputation management is beneficial in many ways. Earning and keeping a patients’ trust is crucial for growing a successful practice. This is one of the main benefits of having an online reputation management strategy. When your reputation is strong and positive, patients will trust your physicians and continue patronizing your practice.
With a management company working to bettering your reputation, growth is attainable in a very positive way. A good online reputation can help your healthcare practice in a number of ways:
- Build Trust: People look at reviews and online ratings to determine whether or not they trust a business. When a healthcare practice has positive reviews and testimonials from their customers, it attracts attention from potential patients. This is refered to as user-generated content, and it’s more effective than any type of paid marketing campaign.
- Increase Sales and Revenue: Healthcare practices with more positive reviews and a good online reputation have more patients, therefore make more revenue. Good reputations generate more revenue.
- More Profit: Companies with outstanding online reputations typically spend less on other marketing campaigns and expensive advertising to reach their target audience. This not only increases their profit but also increases the practice’s return on investment when hiring out a third-party management company.
Make Your Practice Look Good Online and In-Person
In a world when first impressions are everything, it’s important to guarantee that your business looks good in-person and online. Think of your website and online listings like your digital brick-and-mortar. How it appears online says a lot about how serious you are and the services you offer. Representing yourself, your practice, and your business in the most professional manner online and in-office goes a long way in protecting your online reputation.
A company specializing in online reputation management should be on your priority list. A well-implemented strategy can be one of the best things you can do for your business. Managing and replying to reviews and ratings, keeping your local listings up to date, monitoring your social media profiles take a lot of time away from doing what you love best – providing care for your patients.
Talk to the team at Valet Health to learn more about reputation management. Learn how we can work to get your local listings fully optimized. A shining online reputation is worth it.
