Your Ultimate Tools for Generating Leads and Improving Your Online Reputation

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Your Ultimate Tools for Generating Leads and
Improving Your Online Reputation
Like healthcare itself, healthcare marketing
presents an ever-changing landscape of
possibilities. The best marketing strategies from
yesterday may not be the best options for today
or in the future, especially when it comes to
what healthcare marketing companies like to call
lead generation. You might think lead
generation is just marketing jargon until you
realize what its really about, which is patient
prospecting and patient attraction. In healthcare
terms, lead generation allows practices to
nurture potential new patients (prospects) until
they make appointments and visit those
practices. Currently, the two best lead
generation tools available are online reputation
management and blogging. This article will
discuss both tools in greater detail and show how
they can be used to help you attract and engage
more new patients.
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What is online reputation management? Online
reputation management in healthcare is the
practice of developing strategies capable of
influencing the public perceptions about you and
your health practice. As with traditional
reputation management, its all about perception.
And, as you know, perceptions can change rather
quickly. Todays healthcare consumers are
accustomed to sharing their experiences, both
good and bad, online. They do it on social media
and they do it on the many review sites that are
now available to them. Your online reputation
management services should help build a positive
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• public image so that anyone interested in your
  healthcare services will gain confidence in you
  by reading reviews and articles that mention you
  in a positive light.
• What are the benefits of online reputation
  management?
• You can expect numerous benefits from having a
  positive online reputation. Youll gain positive
  consumer feedback that you can use to your
  advantage, including
• Following up on positive comments, thus improving
  relationships
• with patients and prospects
• Implementing user-generated content, which is
  more trusted by other consumers
• Turning your most engaged patients into practice
  ambassadors
• Posting your best user-generated reviews on your
  website
• When you manage your online reputation, youll
  receive a goldmine of insights that can transform
  your practice. Specifically, youll gain
• Data-based decision making
• Having all the relevant information removes the
  guesswork, meaning all your business decisions
  are data-driven and effective.
• Audience insights
• Gaining a deeper understanding of your target
  audience means you know which platforms, content,
  topics, and online influencers they prefer so
  you can optimize your marketing strategy
  accordingly.

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Market research When you conduct market research
using a media monitoring tool, you can better
evaluate how receptive your target audience of
prospective patients might be to a new service or
new technology in your practice without the
hassle of surveys or questionnaires. Link
building As you monitor your reputation, you will
likely see articles that mention you without
linking back to your website or referencing you
as a source. Simply contact them and ask them to
add a link to your website or give you a credit
in their marketing material. Lead generation You
start generating leads by identifying potential
engagement, attraction and conversion with those
prospects. This personalized outreach responds
directly to the needs of your target audience
prospects.
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• How does your online reputation enhance lead
  generation?
• The dashboards of online reputation management
  services present you with all the conversations
  relevant to your practice. They help you easily
  identify leads from
• People seeking recommendations or advice about
  services like
• yours
• People interested in one of your services
  specifically
• Dissatisfied patients who use your competitors
  services
• Potential patients from beyond social media
• Relevant influencers who can help you attract the
  new patients you desire
• Remember that a whopping 97 of consumers check
  ratings and reviews before making a decision. So
  pay close attention to what people are saying
  about you on the Internet.

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Why is blogging a great tool for lead generation?
According to Simple Marketing Now, 70 of
consumers prefer getting to know a healthcare
practice from its blog posts over paid ads. To
generate leads, a medical practice blog should
have relevant content that prospective patients
will read and share. Great content will create
inbound links to your website that can also
dramatically improve your search engine
rankings. According to Hubspot, nearly 70 of
businesses attribute their lead generation
success to blogging. How to turn your blog into
the ultimate lead generation tool? Start with
your ideal patient in mind. What are their
interests? What subjects or topics will resonate
with them? What kinds of questions do your
current patients ask? What health challenges do
they face? Once youve identified some blog
topics, then Limit your focus Focus on one topic
or health issue per blog post so you can help
address your prospects problems. This will also
help with search engine optimization (SEO),
particularly if relevant keywords are included in
your blog. Blog frequently and consistently Resear
ch shows that posting two to four blogs every
week, all year long will have a dramatic impact
on your SEO results, provided you use the right
keywords for the right topics.
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Format blogs for improved readability Break up
the content with bold subheadings, short
paragraphs, user- friendly graphic images,
numbered or bulleted lists, generous white space
and a strong call to action (CTA) at the end.
Your call to action should tie into your topic
and suggest what you want the reader to do next.
When CTAs are closely connected to the topic,
they increase relevancy and lead conversions. Do
keyword research Research has proven that
relevant content helps attract qualified leads.
This is why research for relevant keywords is
critical to effective blogging. In other words,
using the keywords that your target audience is
typing into search engines to find content like
yours. Sprinkle relevant keywords throughout your
blogs. This will help your blogs rank higher on
search engines.
Conclusion
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Consistent blogging will surely help you generate
more leads that just about any other healthcare
marketing activity currently available. According
to Hubspot, marketers who prioritize blogging are
13 times more likely to enjoy positive ROI. If
you really want to attract more new patients
(generate more leads) and grow your healthcare
practice with a positive ROI, focus on reputation
management and blogging strategies. Focus on
improving your online reputation and your blog
posts for better results. Or hire an expert who
can help you achieve both. Since most healthcare
providers lack the time and resources to write
blogs and manage their online reputation, they
typically partner with a reputable healthcare
marketing agency with expertise in both
strategies. In the end, youll generate more
leads, enhance your online reputation and improve
your search results.