Today, the majority of healthcare consumers start their journey by finding and comparing providers online. Among these healthcare consumers, those researching optometrists are among the most likely to use search engines. With this in mind, marketing– especially digital marketing– is an extremely important component of your optometry practice’s overall success.
In this article, we’ll discuss the many benefits of working with an optometry marketing consultant and go over the most important assets and strategies to include in your marketing efforts. Joining PECAA is one cost-effective way to access professional optometry consulting regularly, including industry-specific marketing consulting, business consulting, practice valuations, billing and coding support, and countless other services.
What is an Optometry Marketing Consultant?
An optometry marketing consultant is a marketing professional with a specialized understanding of optometry and previous experience in the field. Instead of having to hire a full-time, in-house marketing professional, a consultant is a seasoned expert that you can consult with as needed. They can help audit your current marketing efforts, identify opportunities, and put together a high-level plan and specific strategies to guide your marketing efforts.
Reasons to Hire a Marketing Consultant
As the owner of an optometry practice, you probably aren’t a marketing expert, but marketing is an essential component of your practice’s success. Perhaps someone on your team can handle some of the marketing fulfillment (like posting on social media or sending out newsletters), but without a strong strategy to guide them, they’ll be wasting precious time and resources. This is where a professional marketing consultant comes into play.
A marketing consultant can help you develop a clear marketing plan and specific campaign strategies to set you up for success. These essential marketing assets will save you time and ensure the most efficient use of practice resources. In the long run, an optometry marketing expert will help you increase patient loyalty, reach new patients, and compete in an increasingly crowded marketplace. Plus, working with a consultant is a flexible commitment– one that you can leverage periodically, as needed. This is a more cost-effective option than hiring someone in-house to handle your marketing, and a professional consultant will be more experienced and savvy.
Important Elements to Optometrist Marketing
In the ever-evolving digital era, marketing is about so more than just business cards or flyers. Here are some of the most important marketing elements to help you establish and grow your optometry practice:
Branding & Messaging: Your brand is essentially how your optometry practice is presented and perceived. Your logo, color scheme, and messaging strategy are all part of your practice’s branding. All your marketing materials and assets should be on-brand to help with brand awareness and recognition.
Website: A professional, clear, actionable, and user-friendly website is an essential marketing asset in today’s digital world. Your website should have a clear call to action and be optimized for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to help with your authority and organic traffic. An SEO-focused blog can help you rank for specific keywords and draw traffic to your practice’s website. Remember to make your website mobile-friendly, as nearly half of all website traffic comes from mobile phones and tablets these days.
Social Media Marketing: Regularly posting on social media will help your optometry practice stay top of mind for your community. With so many different social media platforms to consider these days, it’s important to prioritize based on your target audience. A marketing consultant can help you develop a social media strategy, create a content calendar, and put together social media advertising campaigns.
Reputation Management: Positive online reviews are invaluable to your optometry practice; they are one of the best ways to demonstrate social proof and build trust with potential customers. In fact, a whopping 94% of healthcare patients use online reviews to evaluate providers before making an appointment. Check out our guide to getting reviews for your optometry practice for ideas and strategies on how to build your online reputation.
Email Marketing: A monthly email newsletter is a great way to increase patient loyalty and grow your community. You can share current promotions, offer helpful information and tips about optometry, and reinforce your brand identity. In addition to a general newsletter, you can also develop automated email marketing campaigns to help welcome new customers, follow up with patients, generate reviews, send appointment reminders, etc.
Paid Advertising: Paid advertising is an effective way to generate new leads in the short term (while other marketing efforts like SEO are more long-term). A consultant can help you determine your target audience and set up your campaign for maximum ROI.
Marketing Plan: Last but certainly not least, a marketing plan and strategy will help you tie all these different marketing elements together and make sure they work in cohesion. A marketing plan should include these key components: your mission and values, clear KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), an overview of your target market/ideal patient, an analysis of your competitors, specific campaign strategies (content, social media, etc.), a detailed budget, roles, and responsibilities.
Of course, these are not the only marketing elements and assets your optometry practice should consider; when it comes to marketing, one size does not fit all! You may also require event marketing, direct mail marketing, printed marketing materials (like business cards), a sales funnel… the list goes on. Consulting with a professional will help you prioritize based on your goals and ensure all your bases are covered.
Finding a Qualified Optometry Marketing Consultant
One of the biggest things to look for when hiring a marketing consultant for your optometry practice is someone who understands your field and has specialized experience in optometry marketing. As a member of PECAA, you will have access to a wide range of specialized optometry consulting services– including optometry marketing consulting– that you can leverage to establish and grow your practice. Other benefits of PECAA membership include networking opportunities, staff training resources, human resources support, coaching, group discounts, loyalty rebates, and so much more.
Join PECAA today to catalyze your marketing efforts!
