Build an online presence, reduce staff time spent with paperwork and phone-calls

Every practice has to start somewhere.

Many podiatry practices still don’t much in the way of an online presence, yet this is commonly how people discover foot and ankle care.

Dr. Aaron Seiter, DPM was one of those practices. His solo practice in Arkansas has been humming along with referral business, but no website to draw those people who might be searching online.

He also realized that his staff spent a lot of time taking payments and shuffling paper, so it was time to take his online presence seriously.

After a few conversations with Jim McDannald, DPM of Podiatry Growth, both saw a good fit and an opportunity to improve his practice.

THE CHALLENGE

Dr. Seiter wanted to plan and build an online presence from scratch in a way that would save his staff time and effort.

“I run a very lean office – it’s just myself and two others. So any opportunity we can make more efficient use of our time is very valuable,” he says.

Improving the patient experience was also very important to Dr. Seiter. “I’m very old-fashioned,” says Dr. Seiter, “but I do realize the rest of the world is not. People want to pay by credit card and doing so online means that they’re not waiting on the phone, or tying up the phone line with payments while other patients might be trying to call in to make an appointment,” he says.

The challenge for him was making the decision to get started and gaining an understanding of what needed to be done:

• An intuitive, easy to use clinic website
• Google My Business profile
• Rank in local Google results
• Online bill pay

He knew seeking a podiatry marketing expert would benefit his practice. By working with a professional, he could improve workflows within the office and make his clinic more visible to potential patients online.

THE APPROACH

Dr. Seiter knew he wanted a website and to look better in Google search results but wasn’t sure where to begin, which is why he pursued professional help with Jim.

Plus, he’s busy. He doesn’t want to get bogged down trying to figure everything out on his own.

THE RESULT

In collaboration with Jim McDannald, DPM, Dr. Seiter has been able to:

1. Develop a digital marketing strategy centered around his needs

Dr. Seiter’s key concerns going into a digital marketing strategy were about maintaining ethical standards and having his digital presence reflect well on his local reputation.

He was also concerned as to whether he’d actually like his website.

“It’s a bit like buying a piece of art; will I like it? (Yes, I did!),” he says. “Jim was able to incorporate my requests for things like background colors. I didn’t want anything cheesy – like pictures of a bunch of toes, or people sitting at a lake. He was very good at incorporating what I liked and has continued to impress me.”

2. Save his staff time and effort

Another key goal was to be able to create efficiencies for his practice. “I definitely wanted things like intake forms integrated, just to save my staff time,” says Dr. Seiter. He’s currently in the process of setting up online bill pay. “That’s something my staff was wanting,” Dr. Seiter says. “Currently, staff would have to take credit card payments over the phone. The improvements Jim’s been making to my practice have been very valuable,” he says.

Now his staff can focus more on the experience of patients in their clinic, instead of shuffling papers or being tied up on the phone.

3. Partner with an expert

Dr. Seiter also finds it valuable to work with someone who truly understands podiatry and how the practice works.

“Different medical fields have different strategies that work to make money or to attract patients,” he says. “Jim knows the different aspects of the practice and understands what works for podiatrists as well as I do.”

Next up, Dr. Seiter is looking forward to being able to use his time more efficiently. “If you can make more and work less, that’s the goal in any job. Jim’s efforts are helping pay off in terms of time, as well as finances.”

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If you’d like to discuss how you can generate better results online, let’s chat.