There was a time, not so long ago, when outstanding qualifications and references were all that was required to get patients in the door and run a thriving business. Then there were the days when all you needed was a website containing your practice’s information and offerings. Then came a great era when the beauty of a location triumphed over all. Those days, however, are no longer.

The internet is rapidly changing, expanding, and moving. Everyone now has a website, and the majority of them are both informative and attractive. The most successful websites are those that take advantage of the web’s ecosystem, which includes design, user experiences, content, search, information, and, more importantly, trust factors.

Let’s look at the eight most important characteristics of a medical website that not only attracts users but also turns them into paying customers.

Characteristic 01 | Strategy

Examine yourself in the mirror

STOP BEFORE YOU EVEN GET STARTED. Taking a minute to look in the mirror and understanding who you are is the most Critical step in strategizing your website construction. Take some time to consider what you want your website to portray to your clients about yourself and your practice. What is the name of your company? What is the tone of your voice? What distinguishes you from the competition? What are your USPs (unique selling propositions)? What distinguishes you from the competition?

 Targeting

Take some time to figure out who your audience is once you’ve figured out who you are. Simply said, if your website does not communicate to your target demographic, you will lose. Investigate the kind of clients who will be visiting your practice and ensure that your website is designed with them in mind. A Medical Spa, for example, would not design their website with masculine colours, typefaces, or artwork…

Set Your Goal 

Yes, we understand that the purpose of any medical website is to attract new patients to the clinic. A well-defined website strategy, on the other hand, goes further. It’s critical to know what your websites’ objectives are. Perhaps it’s to serve as an informative resource for your visitors and thereby convert patients. Perhaps it’s creating a simple website whose primary goal is to attract visitors to contact you. Perhaps it’s creating a website with the sole purpose of displaying prizes, certifications, before and after photos, and so on. Make certain that the most critical goals for your medical practice’s website are identified.

Planning & Execution

The exciting part is here! And no, we aren’t joking. Consider this the “honeymoon phase” of the website-building phase, as it is far from easy. Everyone is pumped up, enthusiastic, and buzzing with ideas! It’s critical to channel your enthusiasm into planning your website and the entire process from conception to launch. This is the time to create mood boards/style guides, plan out your pages and content, wireframe your layouts, and, most importantly, schedule your projects.

Characteristic 02 | User Interface (UI)

Website design nowadays is about a lot more than just aesthetics. There are numerous design components that must be considered to ensure that your website not only impresses but also converts! According to Stanford University research, 46.1 percent of individuals feel the design of a website is the most important factor in determining whether or not a firm is legitimate. So it’s critical that your design is professional, but it’s even more crucial that your site incorporates a few key components to provide the best user experience and maximum conversion rates.

Mobile First

Mobile internet usage has surpassed desktop usage, and it continues to rise on a regular basis. It is no longer a choice to design a website with mobile in mind; instead, every website should be built with mobile in mind first! It’s critical that your site’s look is just as beautiful (if not more) on mobile as it is on a PC, and it’s even more critical that the user experience is built around the millennial generation’s taps and swipes.

Layout 

It’s not just about aesthetics when it comes to the design of your medical website; it’s also about converting. Every web page generated has one goal: to move a potential patient down the buying funnel. Every page layout should take this into consideration. Understanding how to appropriately organise each piece, such as heat maps and website visitor habits, can help you develop a comprehensive understanding of how to guarantee that the potential patient gets everything they need and is pushed towards CTAs and contact forms.

Aesthetic

Always ask yourself whether there’s a way to make a website easier when you’re designing it. The end effect is more appealing to the eye, and it nearly always leads to higher conversion rates. Minimalism is about developing a design that is uncomplicated and minimises distractions, not just reducing alternatives.

Branding 

One of the most crucial components of establishing a website that creates a big effect on your visitors is brand image. Your logo, colour palette, typography, and style are all part of this. It’s critical that each of these is distinct and, more importantly, consistent. Because 65 percent of people learn visually, make sure your branding sets you apart from the competitors.

Characteristic 03 | User Experience (UX)

A website’s design alone will not carry it; the complete user experience will determine whether you lose a visitor or earn a lead. The difference between maintaining and losing a visitor once they arrive on your site is wafer thin. A website’s user experience can easily make or kill a business. Users nowadays expect a website that is lightning quick, easy to navigate, responsive to each input, and interactive. Visitors will stay on your site for the same reason that people stay at Disneyland for the day (or days).

Navigation 

To create a positive user experience, a predictable and basic layout is critical. Phone numbers, for example, are normally in the top right corner, whereas logos are at the top left. Calls to action (CTAs) should be prominently displayed or put in strategic locations along a visitor’s trip. Most significantly, ensure your website’s navigation bar is always accessible and follows a clear and logical path to the pages it leads to.

Speed

Slow load times can cost you a user (and a potential lead) before they even begin. However, load speed is not the only factor to consider. Minimising user input in relation to the amount of clicks (or taps) required to achieve the destination is among the cornerstones. With people’s attention spans shrinking, the faster you can attract and hold their attention, the better!

Responsiveness 

We’re simply too far into the twenty-first century for any website to be unresponsive to various devices, sizes, and browsers. Your website must be completely responsive to mobile devices, tablets, and laptops of all sizes.

Interactivity  

Your site may be seen as a digital prospectus, but that does not imply that it should function as such; websites are designed to be engaging. When hovering over any clickable buttons, make sure they respond. But, more significantly, that every input has a corresponding output. Consider what would happen if your “Call Now” button accomplished nothing. Goodbye, lead!

Characteristic 04 | Content

You’ve probably heard it before, but content reigns supreme. It’s one of the few aspects of a website that has stayed constant since the dawn of the internet. Many people associate content with words (or writing), but content encompasses much more. All of the textual, auditory, and visual aspects published on a website are referred to as content. No matter how amazing the design is, content can make or break a website, therefore it’s critical to know your target audience and create material that speaks to them and provides an engaging experience.

 Written

The written content of a website should be clearly analysed and written. We live in an era when teaching your users is significantly more beneficial than trying to sell them something. Ensure you’re making the effort to successfully deliver the answers they’re seeking for, and that every word on your site adds value. Keywording is also crucial, but more on that later.

Illustrative

Every great website has at least one illustrated feature, if not more. Cycling between text and photographs is tedious and dated. Branded images, graphics, or forms are a vital part of establishing breaks in your website to make it easier to navigate and easy on the eyes.

Media 

It doesn’t matter if you’re the best doctor in the world if your prospective patients can’t see the work you’ve done. Before and after photos are one of the most powerful pieces of information a practice can provide on its website. Visitors no longer want to view stock images of desired outcomes; they want to see real results. Video is becoming increasingly significant in addition to static photography. Video headers are a terrific method to make an initial impact because users respond better to movement. In this day and age, films on your medical website are essential for providing a glimpse into your clinic, educating on procedures, telling patient experiences, and more.

FAQ’s

Yes, almost every website on the internet has a FAQ page, but that doesn’t negate its significance. In reality, this is yet another excellent technique to establish your authority on the subject you know best. Actual answers to critical questions for prospective patients are provided by good FAQs, and the responses come from you.

Characteristic 05 | SEO 

Simply said, it doesn’t matter if your website can’t be found. You need to make sure you’re at or near the top of search results when individuals are looking for a provider like yours. Presently, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is one of the most important aspects of any website. There are numerous components of SEO that are critical to ensuring that your site performs highly in search results, but here are a few of the most crucial to consider while developing your medical website.

On-Page

In other terms, this refers to everything you can do ON your website to improve your search engine ranking. This covers things like title tags, internal linking, meta tags and descriptions, URL structure, body tags, image optimization, and ensuring your website has all of the necessary keywords and keyword density. It may appear to be a jumble of “tech jargon,” but it is one of the most vital factors you can do!

Off-Page

This refers to everything you can do OFF your website to improve your search engine rankings. This involves social networking, blog submissions, link building, and submissions to business directories, among other things. Essentially, everything you can do to get someone to recognize you, link to you, cite you, or make you more visible on other sites and sources.

Keywords 

This is where written content is useful again. Your content should not only be genuine and instructional, but it should also include keywords that are relevant to what a potential visitor could be looking for. This includes any term modifications or extensions, such as your location or specific therapeutic usage. “Cardiac Doctors in Ontario,” or “Prostate Cancer Treatment Options at Maryland” for example.

Linking Strategy

Although this is technically part of on-page SEO, its significance warrants more discussion. Internal links connect your content and provide search engines a sense of how your website is structured. They can help you create a hierarchy on your website, allowing you to give the most important pages more weight and the less important sites less. Internal linking done correctly can have a significant impact on your SEO.

Characteristic 06 | Practice Information

Although design, user experience, and SEO are all critical, we must also ensure that visitors have access to all of the information they require to learn about the practice, its personnel, and its offerings. Make sure there’s lots of information about the doctor and his or her staff, as well as any special prices or events that a current or future patient would be interested in. Finally, double-check that your contact information is accurate, up to date, and easy to discover! It’s all for nought if the user reaches the end of their journey and can’t figure out how to contact you.

Contact Info

Although it should go without saying, most people are astonished to learn how often the practice’s contact information is wrong, out of date, or hard to find. Check (and test) your contact information on a regular basis to confirm that the address, contact information, and emails are correct. Also, make sure your contact information isn’t limited to your “contact” page. It should also be present in the bottom and other important and relevant areas of your website.

Doctor Info 

Before making an appointment, over half of all new patients look up information on specific doctors or providers. As a result, a medical website must make sure that all of their providers are listed on the site. Furthermore, viewing a photo of the doctor or doctors might assist potential patients gain trust and feel at ease.

Services

Each of the procedures and treatments you provide should have its own page on your medical website. That page should be chock-full of information (and keywords) about the service, as well as a FAQ section that answers any of the most often asked questions by patients. It should include some Q&As about the service and a CTA for patients to contact you somewhere on the page.

Specials & Events

It’s not enough to simply publish your promotions on social media; the vast majority of website visitors will never visit your social media pages. As a result, any special offers or events you have may go unnoticed. Make sure to promote important deals or events on social media, your specials page, and even the main homepage banner on your website. Just remember to take them down once the promotion or event has ended.

Characteristic 07 | Trust Factors

People are seeking trust in greater numbers than ever before. We also live in a time when the majority of purchasing decisions are made online. As a result, it’s more important than ever that your website conveys the trust that your doctors and practice have worked so hard to earn. Patient testimonials, doctor accreditations, technique case studies, and answers to frequently asked questions are all excellent trust builders that should be included on your website.

Reviews

Patients can write feedback on a variety of channels, including social media. A guest, on the other hand, is unlikely to look for them. As a result, it’s critical that you collect at least a fraction of your online reviews and save them somewhere on your website. Also, never be afraid to ask your patients for feedback — follow-up text marketing, emails, or review cards are perfectly permissible and a fantastic opportunity to obtain feedback while the experience is still fresh in their thoughts.

Awards & Certifications 

Unless you can get those plaques through the door, no one will see them on your practise wall. Because the majority of patients begin their purchasing trips online, those same accolades and certifications should be displayed on your digital wall (your website). You worked so hard to get those accolades and certificates, and they make a tremendous impact in a potential patient’s decision-making process; now is your moment to brag, so take use of it!

Show Your Work

Remember what we said earlier (see “targeting”): you should always be viewing your own website through the eyes of your target audience. You would want to see as many instances of your potential doctor’s work as possible if you were a prospective patient. This includes before and after photographs, as well as photos and videos on your treatment pages. Show off your skills if you’re good at them.

Case Studies

This is another opportunity for visitors to see real results from patients, similar to testimonials. Case studies have the advantage of allowing you to delve deeper and educate a potential patient on successful treatments you’ve conducted, thereby building trust and demonstrating your knowledge.

Do you have any concerns about your medical website?

Atlas SoftWeb has worked with several Medical & MedEd brands like Radcliffe Cardiology, Touch Medical Media, Triad Of Health and many more. We have been their IT partner for several years and have developed their brand in the medical field through our robust development solutions & digital marketing strategies. 

If you are a medical practitioner, or a leading doctor wanting to rebuild your website and brand, Atlas SoftWeb is your next stop! 

Contact us to get a free consultation of your MedEd or Medical website today!

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