2 Email Content Ideas to Grow Your Practice

Last time out, we talked about the challenges that face doctors as they try to get more patients (and get the same ones to come back when they should).

It’s hard to build a relationship with someone you only see (maybe) once a year, and convince them to schedule that next checkup, or have their chronic headaches checked out. People come up with all sorts of reasons to just stay away.

So what’s a business-minded M.D. to do?

Let’s look at ways you can use email to build relationships with your patients, reinforce the need for them to come see you, and grow your practice.

Idea: Make It Quick & Painless… Even… Enjoyable? (Gasp!)

One of the objections people have to visiting their doctor is that they’re used to it taking forever to get checked in, see you and get back out the door and on with their lives.

Streamline this process, and then promote your office’s efficiency in your emails! Track how much time passes between:

• Patients’ appointment times
• When you actually see them
• When they check out

When you can say “80% of our appointments start right on time,” or “6 out of 7 patients are in and out of our office in less than 30 minutes,” you’ve got a huge competitive advantage. Just be clear that you’re not sacrificing quality of service.

One avoidable time-eater when we’re in your office is all the paperwork we have to fill out. Give us the option to complete that before we come in (send us a copy or a download link via email)!

Not only does this streamline the check-in process, it gives us the feeling that we’re partly responsible/in control of how quickly we get in and out.

And don’t forget comfort, either (especially if your patients aren’t in and out especially quickly):

• Make the time pass quickly — stock your waiting area/s with reading material and snacks.
• Offer secured WiFi in the waiting area, or set up a couple of desktop computers w/Internet access (if you’ve got a website, make that the browser’s home page and put an opt-in form on it :)).
• Take pictures of your waiting area/s and talk about how you make patients’ visits pleasant, from start to finish.

Idea: Tout Your Credentials

One of the points I made last time was that people like to think that they don’t need doctors (at least, not for anything less than a broken arm). We’ve got access to tons of medical information online, so we wonder why we need you.

Medical school’s hard (right?). And then there’s research, residency and all of the other professional challenges that you’ve overcome to get to where you are.

Remind us that you’re the expert! Tell us about:

• The medical school you attended
• How many years’ experience you have helping people live long, healthy lives
• What professional organizations you participate in
• What journals you read/how you’re keeping up with modern medicine

All of this helps to establish you as the authority, and someone we need to see.

I know what you’re thinking - you don’t want to brag, because this isn’t supposed to be about you, it’s supposed to be about the patient. But “If you done it, it ain’t bragging” (W. Whitman).

As long as you focus your message around how you’re qualified to help us, we’re not going to be put off – rather, we’ll be reminded of the fact that we’re not physicians ourselves.

More to Come

These certainly aren’t the only ways you can use email to connect with your patients.

Next time, we’ll cover a couple more ideas on how you can grow your medical practice through targeted email marketing.

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See Also

Why Physicians Must Market More

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