Last weekend at Vision Expo West in Las Vegas, I talked with many optometry business owners about their online marketing strategies. It was eye opening. Many optometrists are hesitant to make investments that will grow their business.
An investment of $1,500 per month for online marketing will not only grow your business by adding patients, but it will improve the quality of care that you offer your current patients as well.
Investing online yields these dividends:
- New patients. At $300 per patient visit, a practice would need only five new patients each month to pay for investing in online marketing. If your practice is ranked #1 on both organic searches and map searches, you will easily make this goal. Even if your practice is listed somewhere on the first page when a search is done, you will get new patients.
- Enhanced patient satisfaction. When you have a website that is easy to navigate and is mobile friendly, you provide a convenient place for existing patients to find answers for questions they may have about eye exams and everything associated with the practice.
- Continued dominance of the market. When an optometry practice is ranking high on both organic searches of Google and on the maps, it becomes harder to “dethrone,” because clicks on the optometry office reinforces what Google has found to be a good search. If people click to your website and spend time there, this reinforces that it should be number one. Thinking you can catch up later is a mistake, act now by hiring someone that understands optometry.
Whether you use my favorite optometry website company, iMatrix, or you use a competitor, it’s important that as the owner of your optometry business you invest in the right services and products. Online marketing isn’t a stock that will guarantee a return, but I have found my investment has more than paid for itself and the dividends are new patients coming through the door of the office.
