In today’s world of technology and social media, practices without a website will struggle to achieve success.
Websites can not only bring more patients into your practice but can also keep existing patients by providing them with valuable education and engagement. Building a great website can help you create a thriving practice for years to come.
Valuable asset
Although it may not be at the forefront of your mind, a highly effective practice website can keep your current patients coming back and attract new patients to chiropractic.
Timothy Kinsella, DC, owner of Kinsella Chiropractic Clinic, didn’t have a website for a long time before realizing the value of having one.
“I was lagging behind because I was so busy building my clinic. It came time where I needed to be available to my patients even when I wasn’t in the office,” he says. “My website is packed with great information to help educate my patients if they choose to learn more.”
Education first
One advantage of having a website is that it allows you to continue to educate patients outside of their visits to your practice. Jeff Ludwick, DC, owner of Camp Hill Family Chiropractic, had a new website built with patient education in mind.
“The new website has brought me more new patients and provides more education to patients and prospective patients,” Ludwick says.
Having a great website can provide existing patients with the motivation they need to continue with your chiropractic care and can also help potential patients decide whether to visit your practice.
“My website opened another door for patients to learn about me and see if our practice might be a perfect fit,”
Kinsella says. “I know patients have said they enjoyed going through my website and learning more about chiropractic and health.”
Professional help
As a doctor of chiropractic, building a website might not be in your wheel- house. After all, you work with the human body, not code, so the thought of building one may be intimidating. Thankfully, there are services out there to help you build your perfect site and greatly boost your marketing muscle.
Ludwick originally had a website that he built himself using a template. “The website service I used made it more visual and less cluttered,” he says.
Your first priority should be with patient care so having a service build a website for you means that you can continue to keep your focus where it should be.
Marketing matters
Another advantage of using a website service is that it can also provide digital marketing, such as newsletters that you may not have time to put together.
“The company that built my website sends out newsletters on [my practice’s] behalf,” Kinsella says. “With a busy clinic and a family, it would be very difficult for me to come up with a personalized newsletter on a weekly or monthly basis. I get a lot of positive feedback on them and it keeps us relevant.”
A website service can also optimize your site for search engines, meaning that you rank higher when potential or current patients search for chiropractic practices in your area.
“The service I used did all the optimization for my site and it went to No. 1 in all major search engines for major keywords,” Ludwick says. “They also offered me a choice of categories and they did it quickly, in about two weeks.”
Custom fit
One advantage of using a good website service to build your site is that it will be customized to your needs and to your practice.
“My service can take any template and make it unique so that it does not look like other DCs’ sites,” Ludwick says. “I was able to design my own unique look and when I wanted corrections or additions, they did them quickly.”
Adding your own personal touch to your website also means that patients will respond more positively to you and your chiropractic goals.
“Take an active role building your site. Find what you are most passionate about and make that the most important part of your website,” Kinsella says. “Otherwise, it’s going to be a cookie-cutter website and patients can see through it. If they see your passion, then it will inspire them to follow.”
Ludwick also recommends that other chiropractors stick to what they know and provide the best possible patient care, leaving the website to the pros.
“My advice to other DCs who are debating whether to change their websites is to let the professionals do it,” Ludwick says. “Pick a company that has incredible service and quality.”
Upward growth
Having an effective website for your practice can add a lot of value to your practice. Not only can you provide current patients with helpful education and continued care through a great website, but you can attract new patients to your practice. Building a website doesn’t have to be intimidating if you can find a good company that can build you a custom site to fit your needs and provide extra marketing tools such as newsletters. Let a great website take you and your practice to the next level.
Casey Nighbor is the associate editor of Chiropractic Economics. She can be reached at cnighbor@chiro.com, 904-395- 3389, or through ChiroEco.com.
