How Search Engines Impact Case Acceptance
I heard a loud “thud” outside of my door one morning last week and was prompted to investigate. No, it wasn’t a newspaper – it was the long-awaited annual delivery of the latest Yellow Pages phone books.
I personally cannot think of a bigger waste of paper for any purpose than this; my copy went immediately into the trash bin, as did last year’s version, and the one the year before that. In fact, it’s been at least five years since I have used a phone book to look for anything, and I know that I speak for most people. Perhaps they should pass a law making it illegal to kill trees for the production of Yellow Pages.
In the days before search engines, finding an orthodontist was a cumbersome and largely uninformed procedure; you would go to the yellow pages, find the practices listed, write down phone numbers, and call to make appointments with little to no information about the practice.
My, have times changed.
Now, you can simply type in “Orthodontist – your town” on Google and be instantly presented with pages of practices, complete with website links, Yelp reviews, even video testimonials. A doctor that I am working with this week observed that, as a result, most people have a ‘front runner’ already selected online before they begin the visitation process, and he’s absolutely right. And why wouldn’t they? All of the information needed to pick a favorite is right there in front of the interested buyer.
If you aren’t taking steps to proactively harness the power of search engine selection, you are going to lose a significant amount of business to competitors that do. What are you doing to enhance your online presence? Do you have a unique differentiation approach or are you a “me-too” practice in the eyes of potential patients doing research online?
One final point I would add to my client’s is that many, if not most, people will not select just one orthodontist from a list of unfamiliar options, and only see that one practice. This means that you are likely being flooded with shoppers.
What are doing to address that change in the landscape?
