Marketing is hard, especially when you are running a hospital. There are many factors that come into play when trying to attract new patients, but with some creative thinking and a little bit of effort, it can be done! Today we’ve put together some hospital marketing tips to help get your practice back on track.

1. Improve your online presence

Online visibility is vital for any business, and it’s especially important for hospitals. Patients are using the internet more than ever before to research medical issues and connect with doctors. This means that if you don’t have a strong online presence, patients might not be able to find your hospital when they need it most.

Luckily, there are plenty of ways to improve your online presence and make sure that people can find your facility when they need it most.

Here are some simple steps to get started:

• Make sure all of your information is listed on Google Maps
• Add photos and videos to your website or social media pages
• Set up an appointment booking system that allows patients to request appointments directly from their phone or com

2. Focus on referrals from other local businesses

It doesn’t matter if you have a small practice or a large one; the first person who comes into contact with a new patient is going to be an employee at another business in the area. This means that it’s important for you to build relationships with local businesses that can refer patients to you — not just for specific services like physical therapy, but also for general health care. If your office is close to a pharmacy or grocery store, these might be good places to start building those relationships.

3. Target your audience

Your practice may be a big part of your life, but it’s not the only one. Your patients have lives outside of your office and they have interests that extend beyond what happens within its walls.

It’s important to know who your audience is and what they care about. This gives you a better idea of what kinds of marketing materials will resonate with them. If you know that your patients are interested in sports or art, for example, then you can target them with sports tickets or art shows at local galleries or museums. You may even find that some of these activities help bring people into the office who were previously reluctant to come because they didn’t think their health was an issue until they saw one of these events advertised and decided to attend out of curiosity alone.

4. Optimize your website for mobile devices

If you have a website, it’s likely that some of your visitors will be coming from mobile devices. In fact, Google Analytics shows that over half of all internet users are now accessing the web from a mobile device.

If your website isn’t optimized for mobile devices, your patients might have trouble finding what they’re looking for on your site. If this happens too often, they’ll be more likely to give up and go somewhere else.

The good news is that it’s easy to optimize your website for mobile devices. Simply add a few lines of code to the header section of each page on your site and you’ll be set!

5. Use up-to-date marketing tactics

The internet has changed the way that we market our products and services, but many medical practices still rely on old methods such as print ads, billboards, and television commercials. While these tactics may have worked in the past, they are no longer as effective as they once were. The best way to market your practice today is through online marketing strategies such as search engine optimization (SEO), social media marketing, and web design. For example, if you are running a marketing campaign for your nursing home, then you should focus on optimizing your website for search engines and creating a social media presence. This will help potential patients find your business and make it easier for them to contact you.

6. Create a compelling story

A compelling story is one that resonates with your target audience and inspires action. It’s not about what you do, but why you do it. People don’t buy products; they buy the benefits of those products. A great way to get started creating your story is by asking yourself these questions:

• What do I want people to think about when they hear my name?
• Who am I? What makes me different from my competitors?
• What pain points do my customers experience? How can my product or service solve their problems?

7. Be visible in your community

You can’t go wrong with a website and social media presence, but you also need to be seen out in the world — especially if you want to build relationships with potential patients.

Join or start a chamber of commerce group, attend charity events and volunteer at local schools or hospitals. You don’t need to be an expert on everything, but having an open mind and being willing to learn new things is essential for building relationships and networking with other professionals in your community.

Takeaway

Marketing is key to a hospital practice’s success, so don’t overlook any of your options. Identify the right marketing tactic for your practice and put it to work, and you’ll be well on your way to improving patient numbers.