PRACTICE MANAGEMENT | PATIENT TESTIMONIALS |
LET YOUR PATIENTS DO THE
TALKING
BEST PRACTICES FOR USING
TESTIMONIALS TO PROMOTE YOUR CLINIC BRAND
Patient testimonials can significantly enhance a clinic’s reputation and it is
important to share them with the wider public. Wendy
48
Lewis explains how you can put procedures in place to gather valuable marketing material from your patients
July/August 2014 |
prime-journal.com W
WENDY LEWIS is President of Wendy Lewis & Co Ltd, Global Aesthetics Consultancy, author of 11 books, and Founder/ Editor-in-Chief of www.
beautyinthebag.com. She is a contributor to a number of trade and consumer publications in the USA and Europe.
contact
wl@wlbeauty.com
HEN WAS THE LAST TIME THAT YOU booked a hotel or made a restaurant reservation without checking it out on Tripadvisor or Toptable? Testimonials, ratings, and reviews are the new word-of-mouth. People want to hear from real people — other patients, customers,
and clients. Testimonials can influence potential patients to choose your practice or to choose someone else. One of the challenges of marketing is the basic human instinct of
skepticism, our inclination not to believe sales claims. This defence mechanism goes on high alert whenever we are hit with a marketing message. One reason for this reaction is that consumers are bombarded with hundreds to thousands of marketing messages at every turn. Billboards, television and radio adverts, magazines and papers, texts to our mobile devices, and even the back of taxis surround consumers in a never-ending stream of messages that say, ‘CHOOSE ME’. It is only natural that people are forced to tune most of them out. Another reason for our defences going up is that we have all had less than perfect experiences at some point and have lost trust. Consumers are programmed not to believe your claims. They need something more convincing that just words. They need someone who they can relate to and who can help them overcome their aversion to being sold. It is your responsibility to provide that person (or his/her words) who will soothe your prospect’s anxieties and concerns. If you don’t, and another clinic does, then you could lose a new patient. One way to do this by having someone who is just like them, who
once had the same problems they now have say to them, ‘Hey, this is a great place. You can trust them. They are honest and will help you.’ Patients will tell their family and friends how you made them feel.
Collecting patient testimonials is an effective way to fight back against negative or fake reviews. They are an effective and powerful tool in
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56