Hospital lead generation is the goal of all your marketing efforts. You don’t write newsletters, post to social media, create testimonial videos, and write articles for nothing! Each piece of content is designed to attract and connect with prospective patients..

Think about kids selling lemonade or washing cars. They stand on the side of the road, jumping up and down with their hand-drawn signs and the fresh-faced excitement of enterprise. Their enthusiasm is their marketing, and as soon as a car pulls up, the passengers become leads.

But what happens once the driver gets out of the car? The lead needs to become a customer. The same goes for hospital lead generation. Setting a marketing strategy into motion is one piece of the puzzle, but converting your leads to become patients? That’s another entirely.

Hospital Lead Generation Best Practices

Hospital lead generation is unique. The strategies used for health care aren’t the same ones used for commercial or retail businesses. A truly impactful campaign incorporates the following hospital lead generation best practices:

• Collecting (the right kind of) information from leads
• Following up with leads in a timely manner 
• Talking to leads on the phone for a more personalized touchpoint
• Sharing relevant and engaging content tailored to their concerns
• Obeying all laws and regulations

With these simple steps, you’ll get great results from your hospital lead generation strategy.

1. Ask for Information

When users visit your website, you want them to become patients at your hospital. But are you actually asking them to take actions to become your patient? You’d be surprised how many hospitals miss the mark on this crucial step.

Including a call to action (CTA) on your website is one of the best hospital lead generation practices. If you want something, ask! So think about the next step you want your website visitors to take. In most cases, the goal is to get their information so you can follow up with appropriate additional marketing assets.

One great CTA strategy encourages users to fill out your contact form. Using their information, add them to lead nurturing campaigns customized for their priorities or market segment. Then share information about your relevant service lines, and sign them up for your newsletter or other mailing lists. Lead nurturing campaigns keep your hospital brand top of mind when they’re ready to select a healthcare provider.

Use CTAs that are easy to follow and find—a button on your home page or contact forms in your footer—to get the best results.

2. Follow Up With Leads

With your CTAs working hard across all your channels, you’ll have numerous leads to sift through. But not all leads are qualified leads. Tracking each phone call, form fill, social media follow or newsletter sign-up is important for evaluating the reach of your marketing campaigns. But the results of those hospital lead generation initiatives won’t all be viable prospective patients. Once you’ve weeded out obvious wrong numbers and solicitors using your contact form to sell you timeshares, start reaching out to your new leads.

Following up with each lead is an excellent way to keep prospective patients interested in your hospital. Many hospitals automate their follow-up process with emails, while others prefer to reach out with a phone call or text. No matter which style of follow-up your hospital lead generation strategy uses, know you’re 60 times more likely to qualify a new lead if they’re contacted within an hour.¹

3. Encourage Phone Calls

Phone calls are an interesting follow-up medium because many marketers automatically assume they’re a bit antiquated. But hospital lead generation doesn’t play by the same rules as traditional marketing. Health care is personal and private, so many leads will prefer to talk on the phone.

The benefits of phone calls go even deeper. Leads who talk to someone on the phone are 28% more likely to become patients, converting 30% faster than those who only interact with your hospital online.² When contacting leads by phone, be sure you’re tracking each phone call and including notes as appropriate in your CRM or call tracking software. 

Always follow all the applicable regulations concerning patient health information and privacy. And make sure your staff is aware of and trained in changes to these regulations as they happen.

4. Share Your Content

The prospective patients you find through your hospital lead generation strategy want to hear from you. They’re already interested in your hospital, are curious about the services you provide, and are eager to learn more about your clinicians.

So give leads what they want by creating and sharing content about your hospital! Use your contact list to distribute newsletters, informative articles, videos, and even podcasts. And don’t forget to encourage leads to connect with your hospital on social media!

5. Follow the Law

All parts of your hospital lead generation plan must comply with state and federal healthcare marketing regulations. The Healthcare Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) is the most well-known law which compels health care providers to get patient consent before sharing health data.

Check with your state health department to ensure you comply with all relevant healthcare marketing rules.

Dreamscape Marketing can help with your hospital lead generation. Call us at 888.307.7304 to schedule a discovery call and learn more about our full suite of hospital digital marketing services.

 

For a list of references, please contact us.