Websites are so vital these days because they can generate a lot of new patients or clients for your practice if well done. And there are hundreds of thousands of website designers and “experts” available, but they are not always properly trained in marketing and PR. While our company does not design websites, we are trained in marketing and PR and guide our clients on what is good, new, current, etc. to ensure they get the best bang possible from their websites.
One key element that is often overlooked as important is the “About Us” page. Many websites have very rudimentary statements about the owner and the staff and as such, miss a great opportunity to attract more business. I always read these before I choose a new healthcare professional as it tells me about them and I feel a connection (or not) because now I know something about him or her.
Here are some of the most common errors:
1. No picture of the doctors and staff.
I just went online and looked at a very upscale website and it has two doctors with descriptions but no photos of them! I checked some more that have paid to be at the top of the search, and again no photos. As a patient, I would skip to another website till I found a picture of an owner who is a “real” person.
2. Pictures that are poor quality.
The hair is messy, person is standing against a wall, and so on. These should be professionally done photos. They do NOT need to be done at the office but rather could be in a family setting, or something that is talked about in the description of the person.
3. They don’t usually include “why” the doctor became one in the first place. Why did they choose their profession, what is their passion, love for what they do, etc.
4. Also, there should be something personal about them.
How many kids they have, or what sports they like, personal hobbies, volunteer work, etc. Really, anything that makes you more of a person that a new patient could connect with.
5. Typos and poor grammar are the most obvious and frequent errors.
6. There are technical or big words used that cause the reader to shut down because they lose the connection when they can’t understand something. Use simple, everyday English words (or French if you want French speaking people in your practice).
I hope you get the idea. The more real you are by pictures and words, the more connection a potential patient or client will feel and therefore the more likely they are to appear in your practice.
Do a little research online to see examples of what other doctors have put on their About Us page. Find ones that impress you about them as a person (not their technical qualifications as you already KNOW they are a professional).
Be creative but truthful as they will be meeting you one day if you do a good job of this.
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