Why Plastic Surgeons Need Reputation Management Now More Than Ever

In today’s society, seamless web accessibility means plastic surgeons and physicians need to adopt new reputation management practices in order to grow and maintain their business. In the healthcare industry as a whole, exercising a patient-first mentality is crucial for sustaining high retention rates and securing a strong reputation for your brand. 

So, how do you stand out among competitors in such a highly saturated marketplace? By managing your online reputation. Patients truly have the power to make or break your medical practice – they leave online reviews and ratings, use social media to give referrals, and delve into every little detail about their experience for all the internet to see. From how the staff treated them to how knowledgeable they felt the plastic surgeon or doctor was, without an effective reputation management system in place, the results could be disastrous for your healthcare practice. 

Since SEO and online reputation building is time-consuming and requires a high level of expertise, many healthcare practices and plastic surgeons are partnering with reputable outside agencies to oversee these efforts. If you’re wondering why you should care about online reputation management, we dig into the details below. 

Reputation Management for Medical Practices - Why it Shouldn’t Be Overlooked

Collectively, patients are building a community of voices – one which essentially dictates how your practice is perceived by others. And in the healthcare arena, your reputation ultimately defines how successful you are. It is everything. When patients are electing to get cosmetic surgery or find a new healthcare provider, they hop online and do extensive research before choosing who to go with. RealSelf, Google, and Facebook are just a few of the many resources prospective patients can use to determine your value. 

Crafting an online personal brand requires intentional skill, purpose, and consistency. Having a clear vision of your values and what you’d like individuals to know about you will become the driving force behind how you build your presence online. A high-quality reputation marketing company will help spread awareness, use impactful techniques to draw in your target audience, and exercise control over what prospective patients see about you online. 

SEO Reputation Management Tools

It should come as no surprise that companies who appear on the first page of Google search results receive a majority of consumer interest and business. However, getting to the top requires consistent, strategic initiatives with a keen eye on successful healthcare SEO practices.

To accomplish this feat, you’ll need to partner with a reputation management company that also specializes in SEO for medical practices - ensuring your practice dominates Google in your local area. Why? Because Google frequently alters its search algorithm. 

Keeping your website ranking high calls for a team with the expertise necessary to monitor and implement regular changes to ensure you’re staying abreast of the latest SEO best practices. If there’s one thing everyone can agree on, it’s that no one wants their competitor’s leftovers. 

Medical Review Management - Proactive vs. Reactive

Once something is on the internet, it’s out there for good. We’ve witnessed how single tweets from years ago have resurfaced and ruined careers. Maintaining up-to-date information about your medical practice and proactively taking charge of your online reputation will ensure your business is received in both trustworthy and credible light.

Why Your Plastic Surgery Practice Needs a Review Generation System

Watch Mandy's video then download our reputation cheat sheet and learn the 7 steps you need to implement right now to increase your online reviews.

If you only have a strategy in place to “react” to negative reviews, it’ll wind up becoming a more time-consuming and expensive undertaking than if you were to proactively manage your online footprint and address all the possible outlets that dictate how you’re perceived by a potential client.  

Mod Girl client, Dr. Bill Kortesis, sat down with the Plastic Surgery Channel team to discuss the power of online reviews and how they impact plastic surgeons in this interview.

HIPAA Compliant Reputation Management

With all the rules and regulations surrounding secure patient data, it’s important to align with a reputation marketing service that’ll ensure your medical practice is operating within compliance standards. There are a plethora of applications, like patient review software, that a reputation management company can navigate while still remaining HIPAA compliant. 

Let’s not forget: the internet is crawling with criminals and cyber extortionists. They can attack your reputation by publishing negative things about your practice, and then force you to hand over money in order to have the information removed. A reputation marketing company has the tools necessary to stay in front of these situations. They’ll have your back and safeguard you from undesirable outcomes – all while establishing an online reputation you can be proud of. 

Can Doctors Respond to Patient Reviews?

The short answer is yes. However, keeping up with negative (or fake) reviews, maximizing your website visibility via strong SEO practices, and managing your online reputation is extremely time-consuming. Not to mention, it requires an immense amount of skill. Rather than squandering a bulk of your day on the complexities of reputation management, you should be spending time with patients, who require your attention the most. The rest of it can be left to a professional marketing agency.  

As a healthcare provider or plastic surgeon, managing your online reputation and patient reviews is a crucial facet of growing and sustaining your practice. Just because it should be a leading initiative for your business, doesn’t mean you have to shoulder all the weight – that’s what a reputation management company like Mod Girl® is for. Plus, a vital part of retaining patients requires your care and undivided attention (a.k.a. what you’re passionate about). Also, do you really want to spend your days stressing about your online reputation and patient acquisition? 

Of course not. That’s where Mod Girl’s strategic consulting and innovative marketing programs come into play. Your brand not only deserves to be represented in a powerful and impactful light, but your practice can also enjoy a steady stream of new patients to continue fueling your growth.  

In our internet-driven world, your online reputation means everything. Without it, you’ll drive prospective patients straight into the arms of your competitors. Let the ROI speak for itself and send us an email to learn more today.