Beginners Guide to Digital Marketing for Plastic Surgeons
As a plastic surgeon, you are in a highly competitive field. With so many options for patients, it’s important to have a strong online presence to attract new clients and stand out from the competition. Digital marketing is a powerful tool to help you do just that, but it can be overwhelming to know where to start. That’s where we come in! In this guide, we’ll explore the various digital marketing tactics that can help you grow your plastic surgery practice.
SEO – Optimizing Your Website for Search Engines
Search engine optimization (SEO) is a crucial aspect of digital marketing for plastic surgeons. By optimizing your website for search engines, you can increase your visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs) and attract more patients to your practice.
Conducting Keyword Research for Plastic Surgeons
One of the first steps in optimizing your website for search engines is to conduct keyword research. This involves identifying the keywords and phrases that potential patients are using to find plastic surgeons in your area. Once you know what your target keywords are, you can incorporate them into various elements of your website, including your page titles, meta descriptions, and throughout your content.
For example, if you are a plastic surgeon in Los Angeles, you might target keywords like “Los Angeles plastic surgeon,” “best plastic surgeon in Los Angeles,” and “plastic surgery in Los Angeles.”
Optimizing for Mobile and Page Speed
Another important aspect of SEO is to make sure your website is mobile-friendly and loads quickly. In today’s mobile-first world, more and more people are accessing the internet on their smartphones, so it’s essential that your website is optimized for mobile devices. This includes ensuring that your website is responsive and that it loads quickly, as search engines take these factors into account when ranking websites.
Building High-Quality Backlinks
You should also focus on building high-quality backlinks to your website. Backlinks are links from other websites that point to your website. These links are important because they signal to search engines that other websites consider your content to be valuable and relevant.
Creating Quality Content for Your Website
In addition, you should work on creating high-quality, informative, and engaging content for your website. This can include blog posts, videos, infographics, and more. By creating valuable content, you can attract more visitors to your website and show potential patients that you are an authority in your field.
Tracking Your Progress and Making Adjustments
Finally, it’s important to track your progress and make adjustments as needed. By using tools like Google Analytics, you can track your website’s traffic, bounce rate, and other key metrics. This will help you understand how your website is performing and identify areas where you can make improvements.
In summary, SEO is a process that requires ongoing work and attention, but by following these best practices, you can improve your website’s visibility in search engine results pages and attract more patients to your practice.
PPC – Pay-Per-Click Advertising
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising is a way to get your website in front of potential patients quickly, by paying for your website to appear at the top of search engine results pages (SERPs) when certain keywords are searched.
Choosing the Right Keywords for Plastic Surgeons
One of the most important aspects of PPC advertising for plastic surgeons is choosing the right keywords. This involves researching the terms and phrases that potential patients are using to find plastic surgeons in your area. Once you have a list of keywords, you can create ad groups, or categories of keywords that you want to target with your ads.
Some examples of keywords that a plastic surgeon might target include “breast augmentation,” “liposuction,” “rhinoplasty,” “plastic surgeon near me,” “best plastic surgeon in (city),” etc.
Creating Effective Ads for Plastic Surgeons
Once you have your keywords and ad groups set up, you’ll need to create effective ads that will grab the attention of potential patients. Your ads should be clear, concise, and include a call-to-action (CTA) that encourages the user to click through to your website.
You should also include your target keywords in your ad’s headline and in the ad’s text. This will help your ad stand out and ensure that it is relevant to the user’s search query.
Measuring Success of Your PPC Campaign
To measure the success of your PPC campaign, you should track metrics such as click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and cost-per-conversion. These metrics will help you understand how well your ads are performing and identify areas where you can make improvements.
By tracking and analyzing your PPC campaign’s data, you can make adjustments to your ad copy, targeting, and budget, to optimize your campaign and get the best return on your investment.
In summary, PPC advertising can be a powerful tool for plastic surgeons looking to attract new patients and stand out from the competition. By targeting specific keywords, creating effective ads, and measuring the success of your campaign, you can optimize your PPC efforts and get the best return on your investment.
Content Marketing – Educating and Building Trust with Your Audience
Content marketing is about creating and sharing valuable, relevant, and consistent content that attracts and engages your target audience. As a plastic surgeon, you can use content marketing to educate potential patients about the different procedures you offer, the recovery process, and the results they can expect.
A blog is a great way to share content and provide value to your audience. You can also use infographics, videos, and social media posts to share information and answer common questions.
Email Marketing – Staying in Touch with Your Patients
Email marketing is an effective way to stay in touch with your patients and keep them informed about your practice. You can use email to send appointment reminders, share information about new procedures or promotions, and ask for reviews.
When it comes to email marketing, it’s important to build a quality email list and segment it according to the different stages of the patient journey. This will ensure that your emails are relevant and targeted to the right people.
Social Media – Connecting with Your Audience on Popular Platforms
Social media is a powerful way to connect with your audience, build trust, and attract new patients. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are great for sharing information, answering questions, and showing the human side of your practice.
Recently TikTok has emerged as a popular platform for plastic surgeons to connect with potential patients. You can use TikTok to share before-and-after photos, answer frequently asked questions, and showcase the personality of your practice.
Video and YouTube – Showcasing Your Skills and Services
Video is a great way to showcase your skills and services as a plastic surgeon. Platforms like YouTube and Vimeo are perfect for sharing videos of procedures, testimonials, and other patient-focused content.
provide a virtual consultation, take patients on a tour of your office, or simply introduce yourself and your team. Video is also a great way to build trust and show potential patients that you are an expert in your field.
SMS Marketing – Staying Connected with Your Patients on the Go
SMS marketing, or text message marketing, is a great way to stay connected with your patients on the go. You can use SMS to send appointment reminders, special promotions, and other important information to your patients.
SMS marketing is also a great way to reach patients who may not be as active on email or social media. It’s a quick and easy way to communicate with your patients, and the open rates for text messages are typically much higher than for email.
Google My Business and Local SEO – Boosting Your Visibility in Your Community
Google My Business (GMB) is a free listing service from Google that allows you to manage your practice’s information on Google, including your business hours, address, and contact information.
Local SEO is the process of optimizing your website and GMB listing to rank well for local search terms. This is important for plastic surgeons because most of your patients will be searching for a plastic surgeon in their own community.
When it comes to local SEO, it’s important to make sure your practice’s information is accurate and consistent across all online platforms, and to encourage patients to leave reviews on your GMB listing.
Here is a step-by-step guide on how to set up a GMB listing for your plastic surgery practice:
- Go to the Google My Business website and sign in with your Google account. If you don’t have a Google account, you can create one for free.
- Click on the “Start Now” button and enter the name of your business. If your business is already listed, you can claim it by clicking on the “Claim this business” button.
- Verify your business by choosing one of the verification options provided by Google. This can be done by postcard, phone, or email.
- Once you have verified your business, you can start adding information to your GMB listing. This includes your business hours, address, phone number, website, and photos.
- Make sure that all the information you provide is accurate, consistent, and up-todate. This is important for both your patients and for search engines, as it helps to establish trust and credibility.
- Add categories to your listing that are relevant to your business. For a plastic surgery practice, this could include categories like “Plastic Surgeon,” “Cosmetic Surgeon,” and “Medical Spa.”
- Encourage your patients to leave reviews on your GMB listing. Positive reviews can help to improve your visibility in search results and build trust with potential patients.
- Use GMB Insights to track the performance of your listing. This will give you valuable insights into how many people are finding your practice through Google, how they’re engaging with your listing, and which actions they’re taking.
- Optimize your GMB listing by adding photos and videos that showcase your practice, staff, and services.
- Finally, make sure to keep your GMB listing updated with accurate information, including your business hours, address, phone number and respond to reviews regularly.
PR – Building Your Reputation and Visibility in the Media
Public relations (PR) is the process of building your reputation and visibility in the media. This can include getting coverage in local and national publications, as well as on television and radio.
PR is a great way to build trust and credibility with your patients, as well as attract new patients who may not have heard of your practice before. You can use PR to share information about new procedures, highlight your experience and expertise, and showcase your patients’ results.
Tips for Plastic Surgery PR
- Develop a strong media list: Identify the publications, television shows, and radio programs that are most relevant to your target audience and create a list of key contacts at these outlets.
- Create a press kit: A press kit should include a list of your qualifications, a statement about your practice, and high-resolution images of yourself and your practice. This will make it easy for media outlets to feature you in their stories.
- Pitch to the media: Use your media list to reach out to journalists and pitch your story ideas. Be sure to tailor your pitch to the specific outlet and journalist you are reaching out to.
- Share your expertise: Offer to be a resource for journalists on stories related to plastic surgery and offer to provide quotes or expert commentary for relevant articles.
- Follow-up: After you have made initial contact with a journalist, be sure to follow-up with them to ensure they received your materials and to see if they need any additional information from you.
- Leverage social media: Share your media coverage on your social media accounts to increase visibility and credibility among your target audience.
- Share your patient’s stories: Share your patient’s before-and-after photos and stories on your website and social media profiles. This will help to establish trust with potential patients and show the positive impact you have had on your patients’ lives.
- Respond to negative press: If you receive negative press, respond professionally and factually to correct any inaccuracies.
Start Marketing Your Practice Today
As a plastic surgeon, digital marketing is a powerful tool to help you grow your practice and stand out from the competition. By focusing on SEO, PPC, content marketing, email, social media, video, SMS marketing, Google My Business, and PR, you can attract new patients, build trust with your audience, and stay connected with your patients on the go.
At Winston Digital Marketing, we specialize in helping plastic surgeons like yourself navigate the digital marketing landscape. If you’re ready to take your practice to the next level, contact us today to schedule a consultation. Let’s work together to help your practice thrive!