If you have made the decision to adopt a social media marketing strategy for your healthcare practice, you have probably run into an application called Foursquare while researching popular social media trends. Foursquare is a mobile-based application that allows its users to "check in" to certain places and businesses and see where friends are located. Since the advent of smart phones and mobile social networking, Foursquare - like many other location-based applications - has been rapidly growing in popularity. What makes it different from similar sites like Yelp and Google Places is that it......READ MORE

The potential for clinical auditRadical changes are about to take place within the NHS. Patients will become at the heart of everything that a Trust will do and there will be much more emphasis on research and analysis to help increase productivity and efficiency within the Service. At the same time, the NHS is tasked with improving its efficiency and has the goal of reducing management costs by 45% over the next four years.However, compared to other sectors, healthcare is in its infancy in putting the patient first. Clinical audit has a role to play in identifying and achieving improvements......READ MORE

If you have made the decision to adopt a social media marketing strategy for your healthcare practice, you have probably run into an application called Foursquare while researching popular social media trends. Foursquare is a mobile-based application that allows its users to "check in" to certain places and businesses and see where friends are located. Since the advent of smart phones and mobile social networking, Foursquare - like many other location-based applications - has been rapidly growing in popularity. What makes it different from similar sites like Yelp and Google Places is that it......READ MORE

There are many leaders in health care environments - each with an opportunity to exert positive influence on those who follow them. If you're in a position to guide and shape the behaviors of those around you, here are some specific things you can do to help foster exceptional patient experiences: Set the expectation. Leaders may have a strong internal commitment to the patient experience, but they sometimes fail to explicitly convey that commitment, along with their expectations. Don't assume that your staff knows what is expected of them. You need to clearly communicate your expectations. ......READ MORE

Every relationship starts with that first phone call, that first meeting between your practice and your potential patient. First impressions can help make or break your healthcare marketing strategy. This is common knowledge, yet many practices find that business is slipping through their fingers every time the phone rings. If your practice is finding itself in this situation, it may be time to reassess the way telephone inquiries are handled. If you want to ensure that each call your practice receives becomes a marketing success, here are some things to keep in mind.Does your front desk staff......READ MORE

Health is one of the most valuable things to any individual. As someone who has an impact on a patient's well being, lending a listening ear to fears and concerns is important for you to remember, because it is one of the most direct ways to grow your practice. Unfortunately, it's not always the easiest thing to do. But just as there are many different sorts of patients, there are many different ways to open up patient dialogue, and some of them are easier than you would think!Recently I had a chance to witness an impressive display of sensitivity by a physician. This doctor was alone at a......READ MORE

When I was growing up, like most kids I did not look forward to going to the dentist. My dentist was nice -- that was not the problem. The receptionist was friendly. And his waiting room was pleasant. I remember it was stocked with loads of fun magazines for kids that I enjoyed. I actually really liked reading Highlights magazine there. I did not have that magazine at home (until one day I bought a lot of back issues at a community book sale). There was also a box of toys for young kids to play with, although I was past that stage. None of those things were the problem.My concerns were......READ MORE

This is the time of year when censuses at hospitals and wait times at doctor's offices go up, up, up. Wintertime and springtime are when ailments such as colds, allergies, and the flu hit patients hard. Though your workload may be increasing, did you know that this is an ideal time to make the most out of your medical marketing strategy? Many patients do not know that when they visit a specialist, such as an ophthalmologist or ENT physician, they can be treated for more than just dry eye or allergies. As physicians, it is up to you to take initiative and market these services in order to......READ MORE

Return on investment (or ROI) is a familiar concept to nearly every business owner. It is the measure of the effectiveness of a marketing strategy, represented as a percentage of positive or negative growth. In the traditional world of economics, ROI refers to a formula which subtracts the amount of marketing expense from the gross amount of a company's profit (or "return") and then divides it by the marketing expense (or "investment"). By this definition, it may seem easy to put your medical marketing ROI into concrete figures. Just take a look at your accounting records. It's all there in......READ MORE

Since the advent of social media, users across the planet have become addicted to sharing information online, whether it is news, media, or opinion. There's something subtly attractive about having the freedom to express one's opinion in a place where countless others can see. But if you think social media is all about personal gossip and status updates, think again. In recent years, social media has become one of the top resources for users looking for information about businesses, products, and services. More often than not, opinions shared via social media will make or break a customer's......READ MORE