Potential patients are now looking for more than an attractive ad campaign in their local newspaper. More than ever, word of mouth is exceedingly one of the most important ways new business is acquired.
So how do you get people talking? First and foremost you must simply ASK! More often than not when a patient is happy with the services you’ve provided they will not hesitate to give a testimonial. Unfortunately, most are not going to reach out to you to give a testimonial. It is up to you and your practice to ask!
Once you’ve acquired testimonials, what is the best way to present them?
Wrong Way
Effective testimonials are all about the way they are presented. We’ve all seen this before; a testimonials page blinking from a homepage. It says “Look at me! Look at me!” instead of, “Read me and trust me to do as good of a job for you as I’ve done for these clients.”
Also, don’t limit yourself and forget that patients are not your only source for testimonials. Expand your testimonial network and get testimonials from other physicians, employees, members of society, etc.
Right Way
Testimonials should be included in your website and your print and ad materials. The trick is to weave them into the copy in a manner in which they validate your statements made. This may be difficult and require professional help, but will garner more trust and appreciation for your business than a random testimonial on a bottom of a brochure. Other ways to increase your leads through testimonials include:
- If possible, place an image or recording of the person giving the testimonial. Potential clients are more likely to trust a statement made by someone they can see, versus something that could have been written by anyone or even potentially curated by the office.
- Make sure the testimonial and client image/video matches your target market. For example, if you primarily service children yet are showing images and video of how well you performed on adults, you’ll ultimately create marketplace confusion instead of trust and possible leads.
- Go for quality versus quantity. Having a testimonial on every page, about every single thing you’ve done won’t necessarily increase your leads. Most often, testimonials by relatable, notable and correctly customer segmented individuals are the greatest lead generators.
What Should They Look Like
One of the most effective ways to present testimonials is allowing your patient to briefly describe their problem and how you and your practice solved it. Ask additional questions on what they particularly found different about your practice than others, what they liked, who they dealt with etc.
As with any patient information, follow HIPAA regulations and be sure to obtain in writing their approval for you to use their name and likeness.
Testimonials can be a significant source of power in your practice’s marketing. Successfully gathering and correctly displaying these testimonials could be the marketing tipping point for your business to go from good to great.