The Art of Getting a Great Review

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by Dana Fox, President

It’s a hostile environment out there lately! Every time you turn around someone is posting a critical review and it’s often not about the surgical outcome or the doctor. Patients and sometime even “non-patients” feel it is their obligation to destroy your online image because they didn’t get exactly what they expected.

In this economic and competitive environment your practice simply has to rate as a truly superb customer experience within the first 60 seconds of the first call. And then, that same level of experience must be maintained throughout the patients’ entire interactive process with your practice.

Anyone who has ever taken a patient history can attest to the fact that patients do not necessarily exhibit loyalty based on a good surgical result. They are sitting in your office for a facelift when only three short years ago they had a tummy tuck from doctor “what’s-her-name” just five miles away. Why aren’t they sitting in her office? They had a good outcome, they liked the doctor, and so what is the problem?

We have come to expect something “special” from whomever we deal with regardless of what we are purchasing. Whether it’s buying a tummy tuck or a car we have never had so many choices than we do today. What helps us to feel good about writing a check in your office is largely due to how we “feel” about our experience with you.

Do you like me? Do you care about my outcome?

Are you kind and reassuring at every step of my procedural walk with you? It’s very simple on one hand and very complicated on the other, because you cannot afford to miss these crucial details.

There are some very significant rules for providing great customer service and most of us take notice when we encounter this rare experience. It’s not always something that you can put your finger on when it’s not part of an experience, but when it is present you know exactly what it is that makes this particular event memorable in a good way.

It’s often surprising when someone really goes the extra mile for us. I had a recent experience with a phone company employee that was so good, that I’ve actually thought about it several times and now I’m telling you about it. The employee took the time to research the problem, identify the next step and then helped me avoid the automated robots with multiple prompts. He actually stayed on the line with me until I was in the right place and speaking with another human.

Customer service training for your staff is an investment that will pay off immediately. If this is something you think might benefit your practice, give us a call at 800-800-8314.

The Only Free Cheese is in The Trap

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Free website and SEO assessments are on the rise. It seems that almost every company with a product to sell now has a consultant team knocking on your door. Most are very well educated and knowledgeable professionals for sure, but here’s the lowdown from our perspective on how to maximize these opportunities.

“Remember, free advice – if you decide to act on it – has little or no accountability to get results.

Everyone is an SEO expert regardless of their hands-on experience, time in the field or behind the scenes knowledge of your web site and its traffic or conversions. No one company knows everything, even us. We calibrate and learn from our colleagues just like you do.

The reality is the science of Internet marketing is only a few years old. It appears that pretty much everyone in the field is self-taught and the rules change as rapidly as ice cream flavors at 31 Flavors. So, who can you believe?

At Strategic Edge we think the most important things to look at when you are making critical decisions are the data and secondly, the relationship you have with your internet marketing team. How resilient and flexible are they? How much do they know about your practice, and for my money how much do they care?

Data…King of the Hill

As you might guess we hear a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth when it comes to the money that goes into Internet marketing, but it’s all relative. Only a few years ago doctors were spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on print advertising and yellow page ads and never knew where their patients were coming from. Internet marketers have found universally that we are either heroes or bums depending upon the month, the economy, the weather and why someone isn’t #1 on Google for every procedure.

Hold on! Before you think we are starting a pity party, we of all people understand how challenging this Internet chess game is and how difficult it is for our clients to have blind faith in us month after month.

It is a wickedly changing industry on a minute-by-minute basis and we fully embrace your need to continually evaluate your options. After all you are in a very competitive business and you’ve got to ensure your dollars are producing.

How we ensure your return-on-investment

Every month we look at our clients Google data. It doesn’t lie. It is by far an objective source, a rational source for you and for us to make marketing decisions. Instead of responding to a “drive-by” SEO consultant or your gut or the time of day you happen to be surfing the Internet ( because things shift continuously), schedule a report call with the SEO team, or anyone of the executive team who can address your marketing goals and better yet has an idea of what your practice is about and where it stands juxtaposed to your competition.

When we go through your Google scorecard and analyze trends, we search intensely for areas to improve, but we also know when nothing should be done and a client should simply stay the course.

Internet marketing has become a game of calculated changes based on statistics. Combine that with a consistent practice strategy focused on long-term results and you’ll surely succeed. But here’s the rub – very few people want to be patient.

Just as you can’t fool Mother Nature, you can’t fool Google. Clever SEO practices that try to outsmart the system are eventually discovered and sent to the bottom of the pack. In a future edition we’ll cover what it means to get a good Google Spanking, but for now there are a few safe ways to nudge the system and sometimes make things happen a little more quickly.

–Dana Fox

Plastic Surgery 2009: Strategic Edge Partners With ASPS

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Plastic Surgery 2009 was a great success for all of us at Strategic Edge and our new partners, the American Society of Plastic Surgeons. The meeting gave us a chance to connect with ASPS members and offer expanded WebGOLD services in the future.

Strategic Edge president Dana Fox, and VP of internet marketing Eva Sheie both gave presentations on topics such as “Practicing in a Fickle Economy” and “Advanced Internet Marketing.” We hope those who attended were able to gain something from these discussions.

The new endorsement by the Society to assist their membership is an honor, and we all look forward to helping ASPS members grow their practices through our unique brand of marketing.

Why Strategic Edge was chosen to partner with ASPS.

During the course of the meeting, several people expressed their curiosity regarding just how this partnership was formed. The partnership stems from the relationship that Dana Fox has developed with ASPS over the years. She has cultivated trust among those at the top of the organization as well as those who work directly in our field of web marketing.

During discussions with them, it became apparent that we had a common vision.

It was clear that the benefits Strategic Edge could add to the WebGOLD program would be beneficial for ASPS members – not only those who have been in practice for many years, but also those who are still in process of becoming board certified.

Strategic Edge is a dedicated company, focused specifically on the development and efficacy of our clients’ websites. We’ve gathered an excellent team of marketing professionals, and because of our research and industry experience, we are able to truly refine the opportunities a website can elicit for our clientele. The originality and innovation of Strategic Edge is perfectly in line with the ASPS desire to move forward with WebGOLD.

We take pride in producing websites that actually work for our clients and believe that our work is ultimately about them – not about us. For example, if a client can’t afford everything they’d like to have on their website initially, we enjoy working with them and supporting their growth over time, adding elements to their sites as they are needed in order to help them grow.

Enhanced WebGOLD services

The existing Internet-based program ASPS has made available to their members was deemed worthy of being continued and even improved upon for the benefit of the membership.

The programs we have developed allow members to retain the cachet of an association with ASPS, while gaining the advantage of wonderfully robust content and technical prowess, all at a price that is affordable. Our meetings with doctors have made it clear that they appreciate being able to utilize the content we offer and the technical mechanisms we have put in place to increase their web prominence.

WebGOLD Until Now….

During the meetings, we had the pleasure of working with Mary Sikorski, who has done a yeoman’s job all by herself handling nearly 200 accounts. What she has been able to accomplish on her own is nothing short of incredible, but to handle the inevitable increase in work – in marketing, web development, and tech support – she knew a change would be necessary.

She needed a team that could build upon the excellent foundation she has developed and maintained over time. Mary’s value to us and the ASPS is obvious; she knows each account intimately and has been generous in helping Strategic Edge as we transition.

We hope ASPS members will take advantage of the opportunity that is before them because it stands to benefit them significantly.

The Right and Wrong Way to Create a Cosmetic Surgery Billboard

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Billboards advertising plastic surgery seem to be popping up more frequently as of late, and they’re getting attention. Unfortunately, for many of them it’s the wrong kind of attention.

The folks out there who aren’t acquainted with your services may have some reservations about cosmetic surgery , which will be made public if you offend the most vocal persons of that group. For many practices, the ability to market cosmetic surgery in a tasteful manner doesn’t come naturally and they implement campaigns that offend. Others are probably steered in the wrong direction by well-meaning marketing consultants.

Case in point : this billboard in rural Wisconsin. Aside from the illogical nature of the message (noted by the City Pages ), it may be received as too risqué and distasteful. In other words, the billboard is a likely target for “not in my backyard” syndrome.

The relationship between online marketing and billboard advertising can be very close and even work in sync, but that doesn’t mean the two can be identical. A billboard speaks to those who aren’t seeking your services, while online marketing caters to those who are – a difference that necessitates a more reserved approach for the former. However, we wholeheartedly advise that you integrate your web design (as a part of your brand) in your billboard and by all means – put the URL on it!

Minnesota dermatologist and cosmetic surgeon Dr. Patrick Carney, recently had this billboard designed.

The design closely resembles his website, the content is discreet, and the URL is clearly posted. Job well done!

Why should cosmetic surgeons write their own blog?

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Blogging is a great way to create a dynamic and effective web presence.

You’ve heard about it and you’re probably wondering what the big deal is. Isn’t blogging just sharing your personal journal with the world? It may have started out like that, but today, blogging is a highly versatile method of maintaining a web presence and being competitive.

The cosmetic surgery practices that are able to connect with patients online at the most authentic level, as if they’re speaking face to face, are reaping huge marketing benefits. Strategic Edge’s President Dana Fox says that “because many doctors tend to be scientists first and communicators second, this is no easy task. Patients are craving experiences with authentic people. The more real you are, the more your patients will feel like they have made the right choice. A blog is a great way to connect.”

You need “bedside manner” on the Internet too.

Doctors now have to work harder than ever at communicating warmth, approachability and sincerity. “Social Media” has taken over and everything online is affected: how we find a great vacation spot, how we vote, how we even find compatible life partners, and oh yes, how we find a cosmetic surgeon.

See some of our clients’ plastic surgery blogs here:

Why Sites Like RealSelf.com Are Thriving

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Seattle-based RealSelf.com founder Tom Seery recently wrote a guest post at TechFlash addressing the success of new Web 2.0 sites focused on specific professional groups like doctors, lawyers, real estate, and teachers.

Seery says the one of the reasons behind their recent success is that “their target customers are extremely information intensive buyers, thus benefit from discussions with experts and in connecting to others who can relate to similar experiences. People considering elective surgery, suing a contractor, or buying a downtown condo often lack familiarity with the purchase process and are making an emotional, expensive, and potentially life-changing decision.”

He also points out that doctors “are getting a low return on investment from Yellow page providers. They can’t measure the results from print media ads. And they have found that online lead generators produce poor leads.”

We agree, and have found the quality of paid online directories and lead generators to have declined steeply over the last year. Our philosophy is that any marketing initiative you try should have a good ROI, or you shouldn’t be doing it.

Read Tom’s entire article at TechFlash.com

A new and easy tool for updating your business listings

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GetListed.org is a great new tool for updating all of your most important business listings in one place. getlisted

You can use GetListed.org to submit your business to Google, Yahoo!, Best of the Web (the free listing) and Live Search. Google will give you the option verify your information via phone or snail mail. We recommend verifying by phone, it’s faster and the postcard seems to get lost a lot.

We would do this for you, but Google prefers to have the actual business owner add and claim a business instead of an SEO. Live Search will also send a follow up verification via postal mail.

And we’re always here to help, of course!

A simple quote grows and takes on a life of its own

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Las Vegas cosmetic surgeon Samir Pancholi was quick to reply when we pitched him an opportunity to provide a quote to a New York Times reporter about helping patients quit smoking before surgery.

The story was published in print and online on August 13, 2008 and is titled Want a Face Lift? First, Better Stop Smoking. Since publication, the article has been reprinted and syndicated dozens of times, on sites like tobacco.org, the International Herald-Tribune, and many other local and national news sites.

The Las Vegas Sun picked up the story and expanded it, publishing another version on November 13, 2008 titled Doctor Refuses Plastic Surgery To Patients Who Smoke.

Pitching reporters isn’t complicated – you just have to know what they want and give it to them in the right package. Usually this means 2-4 sentences that can be dropped almost instantly into their story, and being interesting rather than regurgitating the same old droll surgeon-speak answers.

What’s the benefit to the doctor? Creating a respectable journalistic history lends an enormous amount of credibility to your reputation and leads to more free PR down the road.