The Real Value of Online Reviews
Our specialty lies in helping our clients keep their fingers on the pulse of the healthcare industry, tracking developments and trends to help them better connect with their audiences. But just as important as knowing what is happening in your industry is knowing what is happening with your clients.
Client reviews are incredibly helpful for determining how you are performing for your clients, but their value goes far beyond the ability to gauge the success of your services. They can help you generate growth and cultivate a better online presence in several ways.
1. Online Reviews Build Credibility
Client reviews help bridge the gap between a product or service and their intended audience, creating a personal connection to a firm’s offerings without the need for purchase or possession.
With a staggering 88% percent of people trusting online reviews for products and services, the presence of positive reviews has the potential to sway an undecided client in your favor heavily.
Additionally, verified reviews grant insights into the more minute details of a product or service, helping to highlight features of more niche services.
This is especially helpful for businesses that offer more specialized work, as detailed reviews will help potential clients get a better look at a firm’s projects, and evaluate if they fit their particular needs.
Make sure to distribute these reviews across the major sites, such as, Google, Yelp and Facebook. But to build high levels of credibility focus on industry-related websites as well.
A great example is if you are a facial plastic surgeon. Growing reviews on a site like Real Self for your rhinoplasty is a great way to build credibility with patients searching for that service.
2. Boosting Local SEO with New Online Reviews
Complemented by their ability to boost credibility, verified reviews can also help increase the visibility of your business in many digital spaces. Among the top factors that determine a company’s search ranking, company reviews are one of the most important.
Additionally, many of the top verified ratings and reviews platforms for businesses are free to get a listing on.
The most essential being Google My Business. This is Google’s review platform where patients can leave reviews. This has the highest level of influence on your local medical SEO than any of the third party listing sites including Facebook, Yelp, Healthgrades and more.
Make sure to start today make it an essential focus of your practice to ask patients for reviews. Whether you leverage the use of a reputation management for doctors software or go the old fashion way and request via word of mouth.
Make it a priority now. If you do not, you are losing ground daily in local search to your competition.
The value of a more prominent presence in search results, as well as the value of quality and positive presence on a reviews site, are both well worth the brief time and effort it would take to register your business.
There are very few opportunities to increase your marketing presence for free, and this kind of improvement is a fantastic opportunity.
Image what you could do with 100s or 1000s of new local visitors by ranking higher in local search queries for your most critical keywords? Reviews are one of the most important ways to accomplish this.
When someone searches for “juvederm near me” and the local three pack of results are returned. 9/10 times one of the top three spots with have a review with the keyword mentioned in it.
Therefore, if you want to rank well over time, you need reviews, and you need them to contain those critical keywords.
3. Customers LOVE Online Review
I know we have already brushed over this, but the main reason online reviews matter in 2022 is because customers cannot get enough of them.
It is one of the most critical deciding factors when they make a purchase online or visit a storefront.
92% of consumers read and utilize online reviews when they are looking for a local business. That is amazing — 9 out of every 10 people.
Google understands this fact the thus has put a significant priority on making reviews a front and center focal point of their search experience.
When you do a localized search for nearly anything, several of the top results are directories with reviews and rating at their core such as Yelp.
Make sure to put extra emphasis on your niche related review websites. For example, as a medical provider, patients flock to Healthgrades and Vitals to find local physicians.
If you search for a specific provider by name or specialty chances are Healthgrades will rank on the first page. Meaning you need to pay extra close attention to these niche sites.
Not only will they help you improve visibility and credibility, but niche sites can also help dramatically improve your overall site rankings.
Wrapping Up
Online reviews both on your website and on third-party websites such as Google and Facebook have become an essential focus of your medical marketing strategy.
From local SEO to building credibility the fact is 70+% of patients are turning to online reviews before every booking an appointment.
Whether you like it or not reviews are here to stay because Google has spoken.
But there is more to online presence than what your clients have to say about you, don’t forget to develop a unique voice for your brand.
Our passion is sharing our marketing expertise with healthcare businesses across the country. As always, drop us a line if you want to grow your online reputation, or if you just want to talk shop about healthcare marketing ideas. We are always happy to hear from you, and we are excited to hopefully form a long-lasting partnership built on trust, growth, and success!
