Choosing a good LASIK practice can be difficult. It’s definitely different from choosing the best donut or burger when you are hungry. People pay attention to their health, and it’s perfectly normal. 

In today’s digital era, an increasing number of individuals rely on online sources to assess healthcare providers. They often explore other websites and peruse online reviews.

How Can You Build Your Reputation?

Some LASIK practices are already well-established and attract many new patients. But that’s not enough in this modern digital era. 

While some reviews may naturally occur based on the strength of your brand, relying solely on organic growth may result in a prolonged wait for noticeable improvements. Without proactively encouraging positive reviews, negative reviews may dominate your online presence. Unaddressed, this negative feeling can significantly impact your digital reputation.

To counteract this, here are the main essential components of a foundational online reputation program. This framework aims to generate a higher volume of patient reviews, enhance the online reputation across various channels, and prevent unfavorable reviews—or a lack thereof—from dissuading potential new patients. Let’s start:

 

#1 – Build and Manage Your Online Profiles

When it comes to reputation management in the digital realm, it is crucial to begin by understanding your online presence. This entails identifying the various online profiles, websites, and listings associated with your brand, whether actively maintained or not. Understanding where your healthcare consumers read about your brand is essential. Typically, this list comprises the following channels:

1. General healthcare review websites, such as RateMD, ZocDoc, or Healthgrades.
   
2. Other websites on healthcare, medical, and healthcare groups, but also insurance groups.
3. Google Maps, and other online map or location services
4. Google My Business, as well as review sites like Yelp, or social media profiles like Facebook Business
5. Social media networks, like Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, or YouTube.

You can effectively manage and enhance your online reputation by examining and understanding your current digital footprint across these channels.

Once you have conducted a review of your online presence, it’s important to devise a comprehensive plan to deal with problems, prioritize necessary updates, and establish a complete review plan. Here is specific guide to help you understand what you have to do:

1. Building and Managing Listings:

• Ensure you have consistent and up-to-date listings, including general healthcare review websites, specialization-specific review sites, provider listings on healthcare networks, and Google/Bing Maps.
• Designate a responsible individual or team to monitor and update these listings regularly.
  

Review Monitoring and Response:

• Appoint a designated person or team to monitor and respond to reviews across all channels.
• Establish clear guidelines for responding promptly and professionally to positive and negative reviews.
• Develop a system for tracking and documenting review responses for future reference.
  

 

Handling Negative Reviews:

• Respond to negative reviews with empathy and understanding.
• Address specific concerns raised by the reviewer and offer a solution or an invitation to discuss the issue offline.
• Avoid getting into arguments or disclosing confidential information publicly.
  

Responding to Positive Reviews:

• Express gratitude for positive reviews and acknowledge the reviewer’s experience
• Personalize responses whenever possible to enhance the connection with the reviewer.
• Encourage reviewers to continue sharing their positive experiences with others.
  

Incorporating Positive Reviews into Digital Strategy

• Regularly monitor and identify compelling positive reviews or testimonials.
• Integrate selected reviews into your broader online strategy, such as sharing them on social media, including them in email newsletters, or showcasing them on your website.
  

Adding Approved Reviews and Testimonials to Website or Social Media:

• Establish a process for collecting and approving testimonials and reviews.
• Design a section on your website dedicated to showcasing these approved testimonials.
• Utilize social media platforms to highlight positive reviews and testimonials.
  

Soliciting Reviews from Patients:

• Develop a patient feedback program that includes requesting reviews from satisfied patients.
• Train staff members to ask for reviews during the patient check-out process or via follow-up communications.
• Provide clear instructions on the preferred channels and methods for patients to leave their reviews.

By implementing these guidelines, you can effectively manage your online reputation, respond to reviews, and leverage positive feedback to strengthen your overall digital strategy.

#2 – Ask for Reviews 

A consistent stream of reviews over time holds more value than a one-time wave of reviews. Simply accumulating a large number of reviews at once and then ceasing to generate new ones is less impactful. The reason behind this is that people tend to trust recent reviews more than those from a couple of years ago. Therefore, a steady flow of reviews is essential to maintain credibility and demonstrate ongoing customer feedback.

However, it is essential to note that the number of your reviews still holds significance. According to a NRC Study, approximately 75% of patients require a minimum of seven-star ratings before they trust them. Additionally, around 77% of patients want to see seven positive comments that reinforce a particular trend before believing it.

To implement a successful review solicitation strategy, consider the following core principles:

1. Pay attention to review requests and where they come from: Identify the moments in the patient journey where individuals are most likely to be receptive to leaving a positive review. This could be through transactional emails, automated messages, mobile apps, or even phone calls
   
2. Train your employees to ask for reviews: Provide your employees with clear guidelines on how, when, and where to ask for reviews. Equip them with a script or talking points to confidently request feedback from patients
   
3. Share your review link widely: Actively promote your review section in various communication channels – this helps the patients who want to leave reviews. Consider adding the review form to email messages, social media, SMS text communications, and high-traffic web pages to convince more patients to leave good reviews
   
4. Automate the review solicitation program: Leverage reputable reputation management tools can integrate review solicitation with email, social media, SMS, or regular mail

 

By implementing these strategies, you can systematically and effectively solicit patient reviews, improving your online reputation and gaining valuable insights into the patient experience.

#3 – Your Website As A Reputation Source

Patients want to find relevant information and compelling content on your website that solidifies the decision to choose your healthcare services. Make sure to do this:

• The About page of a healthcare website should be more recognized and valued. However, it presents a valuable opportunity to connect with potential patients and showcase your team’s experience, reputation, and background. It is a platform to introduce your healthcare professionals, share their stories, and provide insights into your LASIK practice’s origins and core values.
  
• Talk about your mission – talk about your mission and your values; be as honest as possible and try to be open to your potential patients; focus on how you can help them and improve their vision
  
• Talk about your positive reviews and positive impact on the community – make sure you showcase positive reviews, testimonials, and patient stories on your website to establish trust and reinforce your reputation as a healthcare provider. Prospective patients want to see feedback from individuals who have had similar experiences.

#4 – Pay Attention to Friction

Pay attention to negative reviews, customer service case volume, and identifying common issues to uncover areas of friction and opportunities for improvement.

Here’s how healthcare brands can turn user feedback into actionable data:

1. Analyze Negative Reviews: Pay close attention to negative reviews and identify recurring themes or issues patients mention. Look for patterns and common pain points that hinder the patient experience. For example, if scheduling appointments is a recurring complaint, it indicates a need to evaluate and streamline the appointment scheduling process.
   
2. Monitor Customer Service Cases: Review customer service case volume and identify common inquiries or complaints. This data can shed light on areas where patients encounter difficulties or confusion. Address these concerns proactively to reduce the need for support calls and enhance the overall patient experience.
   
3. Prioritize Areas of Improvement: Based on the insights gained from analyzing user feedback, prioritize the areas that require closer scrutiny and improvement. This could involve optimizing appointment scheduling systems, simplifying registration processes, enhancing communication channels, or addressing any other pain points identified through feedback analysis.