Top 7 Creative Marketing Strategies for Eye Doctors

Have you put off creating a digital marketing plan because you’ve been too busy with patients? Even if your practice is fully booked for the next few weeks, having marketing strategies in place is always a good idea. Practices with a digital marketing plan and defined goals are more likely to succeed in growing their practice and retaining patients.

To help you get started, we have compiled seven of our most creative marketing ideas for eye doctors just like you. By implementing these marketing ideas, you can increase your practice’s revenue and see more patients while retaining your current ones.

1. Develop a High-Quality Eye Care Website Design 

If you want to make a good first impression, you need a website that lets users know exactly who you are, what you do, and what specialties you offer. Along with providing content that will educate your prospective and current patients.

If people are searching for an eye doctor in your area, you’ll want your website to appear at the top of Google’s first page, and having a poorly optimized site will not make that happen. 

As an eye doctor, your practice should provide resources that can be used by existing and potential patients. This is where they can access information on your business hours, your practice’s email address and phone number, your services, and advice regarding eye health, tips, and best practices.

You can attract new patients to your eye care website by adding promotions, freebies, and discounts. You can also mention specials on eye care products like contact lenses, frames, eye drops, and more. 

The Importance of your Call-to-Action

One thing to not miss when creating an eye care website is your call to action! Encourage your patients to set an appointment, purchase a product or give you a call. You want one CTA per page. Do not bombard your web visitors by having too many calls to action. Ensure that your CTA’s are small and easy to understand, for example:

• First Visit Discount – CLICK HERE
• Fill Out this Form for a Free Contact Lens Exam
• Book Your Appointment Online – CLICK HERE
• New Patient Specials: Free Eye Exam
• Your First Pair of Glasses are 50% Off
• $1,000 Off Any LASIK Procedure –  Redeem Offer 

Finally, ensure your eye care website loads quickly and is optimized for mobile devices!

If your practice’s website doesn’t function well on mobile devices, then you need to fix it immediately. More than half of internet traffic is on a mobile device.

You don’t want half of your visitors to have a poor experience and in today’s online culture, you have less than 3 seconds for your site to load or people will leave it. Click here to check the speed of your website and what you can do to improve it. 

Another way to get a good idea is to check your website on your personal mobile devices or tablets to get a first-hand experience of how your website loads on different devices.

Learn More: Your SEO Guide to Optimizing Your Optometry Website

2. Build Your Online Reputation & Grow Your Practice 

Remember prospective patients are looking for eye exams, prescription glasses, contact lenses, and other eye care products and services on the internet. Adding your local business listing is a sure way to improve your search engine performance in your area. The first step is to claim your Google My Business account and to: 

• Add your current hours of operation and location address
• Include your practice’s front desk phone number and any other contact information people might need
• Respond to every business review on Google and other top review sites like Healthgrades, Vitals, CareDash, DocSpot, Doctor.com, and more 

Positive online reviews are a big factor when it comes to attracting patients to make a decision about which optometry practice they will visit. If you want to present a strong online presence then gaining positive reviews from loyal patients is a must.

Ask for a review if your patient mentions how great their visit to your office was. It’s a pretty simple concept that can be overlooked. Additionally, you can add a ‘review us’ section at the end of your emails or surveys to encourage patients to leave a comment. These reviews will appear on your local business listing to anyone who comes across your practice online.

Learn More: How to Encourage Clients to Leave Feedback and Strengthen Your Online Reputation

3. Send Post-Visit Surveys to Your Patients 

Understanding and measuring patient satisfaction can help you identify ways to improve your practice, resulting in better care and happier patients. Here are some questions to ask your patients: 

• How easy was it to schedule an eye appointment with us?
• How would you rate our receptionist’s efficiency and courtesy?
• How would you rate the overall care provided by your eye doctor? 
• How likely are you to refer a friend or family member to our practice? 
• How do you feel about the cleanliness and appearance of our facility?

Take this opportunity to learn not only what your patients think of your services, but make notes on things you can actively improve around the office to enhance your patient experience.

4. Get Active On Social Media & Engage With Your Followers

More than 2.7 billion people use Facebook monthly – that’s almost 13 percent of the world’s population. Businesses today need a social media presence because it builds their brand,  attracts more potential patients, and keeps their followers updated on all things related to their practice. 

Engage with your audience by sharing helpful eye-care content. You’ll be amazed by how much of a community you can build on Facebook once you start having conversations. Here are the types of content you should post on your social media channels:

• Seasonal or Celebratory Posts – these posts are timely or relevant for your audience, and they keep your page fresh and updated. Examples include Healthy Vision Month, Diabetic Eye Disease Awareness Month, and Glaucoma Awareness Month.
• Client Education – these posts can be used to inform your clients on a variety of eye care topics from general health to a detailed surgical procedure. 
• Preventative Care – these posts raise awareness and encourage patients to schedule eye exams.

To give you a head start, we have prepared social media posts that you can use on your channels right away. The kit includes informational and seasonal eye care posts you can share with your social media followers. Click here to download your free social media kit. 

Learn More: 10 Eye Care Social Media Mistakes to Avoid

5. Post-Educational Eye Care Content 

Your patients and prospective patients are looking for answers, tips, and best practices for eye health online. Make sure your website is their one-stop shop for all eye care content. This will build your credibility online and website visitors will trust your practice and the content on your site. Try these content ideas to promote your practice: 

• Is your child in need of glasses?
• When can kids start wearing contacts?
• How can eye muscles be strengthened?
• Why is reading harder as you get older?
• What are the options for reducing digital eye strain?
• How are reading glasses different from prescription glasses?
• What smoking does to your eyes
• The connection between sleep and vision
• What are the best frames for my face shape?
• Contact lenses versus prescription eyeglasses 
• What to expect during your eye examination

Don’t forget to insert easy to rank for and specific keywords into your content, meta description, search engine optimization (SEO) title tag, blog title, headings, and image alt-tags, and avoid keyword stuffing.

Learn More: Writing Website Content for Beginners

6. Email Newsletters to Existing and Prospective Patients 

Email newsletters provide a direct channel to patients and prospective patients because they: 

• Keep your practice top of mind and constantly engaged
• Interact with patients and remind them to consider eye exams, eye checkups refills for contact lenses, etc. 
• Offer you an opportunity to share best eye health practices and advice
• Allow patients to easily forward eye care information about your practice to friends and family

Sometimes they’re interested in learning more about your practice or interesting articles you’ve written. You will be able to collect patient demographics based on your website visitors. This will help you with list building for who will receive your newsletters via email. Newsletters are great a great way to ensure results and generate a steady stream of leads online. 

Learn More: Simple Strategies to Improve Your Newsletter Open Rates

7. Set Up a Referral Program for Patients 

When you build your eye care marketing plan, the goal is to get new patients and earn conversions for your practice, so you can generate more revenue. By implementing a referral program, you are ensuring practice growth by using your existing patients to expand your outreach.

Here is a tip you want to gain attention with one short sentence and explain the benefits of joining at the same time, your customers will be intrigued.

Imagine it as a kind of reward for your customers. They become more engaged with your brand when they know they are appreciated. Here are some headlines you can use to generate more patients: 

• Get 50% Off Your Next Pair of Glasses When You Share With Your Friends 
• Spread the Love, & Have Your Eyes Checked for Free!
• Invite Your Friends and Earn $100 On Contact Lenses 
• Refer a Friend Get a $50 Starbucks Gift Card 

Let Us Help You Implement Your Eye Care Marketing Strategy 

Finalizing and executing all these strategies while also trying to run the daily routines of your practice can take a lot of work and be frustrating. However, it doesn’t have to be. Our digital marketing experts are here to ensure your online success! 

Call us at 800.792.8384 or click here to learn more about our digital eye care marketing solutions and available marketing programs.