People are spending more time online now than ever before, which means your online marketing efforts are becoming more and more important. The term digital marketing encompasses a variety of activities including search engine optimization, social media, and websites to connect with current and potential patients.

What Is Digital Marketing?

Given the rapid evolution of digital marketing, there is no easy answer to that question! New tools are being developed every day while older mediums are thrown to the side. Some of the most important tools for digital marketing are:

-Your website

-Blog posts

-Social Media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc.)

-Earned online coverage (PR, social media, and reviews)

Here are some common tactics used in online digital marketing:

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) – The process of optimizing websites to appear higher in Google search engine results pages (SERPs). This increases the amount of free traffic your website will receive.

Content Marketing – The creation and promotion of content for the purpose of gaining more traffic and patients, while making people more aware of your personal brand.

What Are the Main Benefits of Digital Marketing?

Unlike with traditional marketing, digital marketing affords one the opportunity to see a direct return on their investment. You can weigh your marketing budget against new business to see if your marketing is actually bringing in enough new patients to be justifiable.

With this technology, you can accurately decide where you need to focus your marketing efforts to gain the most new patients. With offline marketing, it is difficult to tell where new patients are coming from, and therefore difficult to gauge where you need to focus your efforts.

What Kind of Content Should I Be Creating?

There are many specific ways to target patients and potential consumers, based on things like who they are and how close they are to making a purchase/appointment. However, for veterinarians who are new to digital marketing, we recommend you focus on a few specific avenues:

-Having a mobile-optimized website – Your website may be the first way that potential patients interact with your practice. So not only should your website reflect the professionalism of your practice, but also it needs to be accessible by mobile users, who make up a majority of your traffic.

-Blog posts – Blog posts are a great way to increase your organic traffic, especially when accompanied by a sound SEO strategy.

-Short Videos – Videos can be a good, shareable medium that people can use to become familiar with your practice before deciding to actually pay you a visit.

How Long Will It Take to See Results?

People often have the misconception that because the internet allows your access to almost anything in seconds, that their return on investment with digital marketing will be just as fast. However, the truth is that depending on your digital marketing strategy, you may not see results at all. That’s why it is important to hire paid professionals to assist you with your digital marketing strategy. That way you can create high-quality content that will convert to measurable results quickly.

 

Ready to Try Digital Marketing?

If you think that digital marketing could benefit your practice, we urge you to contact professionals who can help put your marketing dollars to good use. Call VetNetwork at (800) 564-4215 or visit vetnetwork.com to see if digital marketing might be right for your veterinary practice.