Think about your daily routine. Inevitably, during your day you pick up your phone or use your computer to Google for something. Now ask yourself: how impatient do you get while loading up that Google search?
These days we’re all used to finding online search results and information quickly. We also like to make purchasing decisions online. And we like to make reservations online, too.
Doing things online is definitely the new norm. And that’s why it’s time to ask: is your practice website meeting your patients’ expectations? Or is your digital presence driving them away in droves?
The 5 Reasons Your Patients Aren’t Using Your Website
At this point, digital access to purchases and appointments has been a game-changer for many industries. But while industries such as travel and e-commerce have kept up with the changes, healthcare has admittedly not - even though more patients than ever are looking for healthcare information online.
As a result, many healthcare websites frustrate, confuse, and drive away patients. As many as 30% of web visitors - often more - give up when they don’t get a good experience from a website. And those visitors, your patients, move on to find care elsewhere. That, of course, is assuming patients find your website in a Google search at all!
Don’t believe us? We’re willing to bet that your website is guilty of one, two, or even all of the following reasons patients bail on (or never even find) healthcare sites:
- You Have No Contact/Make An Appointment Button. Do you still expect your patients to call you in 2019? Sorry, but they don’t want to! 80% of patients would prefer to see a physician who offers online scheduling. It doesn’t matter if you’re a primary care practitioner or a specialist. So having a clear Make an Appointment button and Contact Us page - with a digital form - is a modern-day must.
- Your Site’s Navigation is Bad. Too many websites across all industries treat their websites like online billboards. But your patients don’t want fluff and ads. They want useful information. They also want to access it in scannable, digestible bites. To allow this, modern websites need to be easily navigable. They need to be short and simple. And they need to be arranged in a way that puts the information most useful to patients front and center.
- Your Site Has No Useful Content. Speaking of useful: people leave a website when they don’t find what they want. In healthcare, that means providing patient-centered information and content. Contact pages, service pages, and active blogs can all help to keep visitors on your site. Remember - visitors use a website as long as it's offering something valuable to them. Are you giving your patients what they want?
- Your Site Is Loading Slowly. The average Internet user has no patience for a page that doesn't load quickly - and by “quickly”, we mean “takes three seconds or more to load”. The longer it takes for a webpage to load, the more page abandonment increases. So if you want your site to succeed, you need to bring that loading speed down.
- Your Site Isn’t Mobile Friendly. Did you know mobile searches have consistently been on the rise since 2009 - and surpassed desktop searches in 2018? More than two-thirds of digital device users access the Internet via a mobile tool at some point during their day. As a result, Google search results now prioritize websites that have been optimized for mobile device access. If your website doesn’t meet this requirement, we’re sorry to say that patients probably aren’t even finding it. If that’s the case, the other four problems are the least of your worries!
Why It’s Time To Revamp Your Website
We know web performance is a daunting topic. And it doesn’t even always feel necessary. But it is.
More patients are going online to find doctors every single month. And when someone is referred to a doctor, 77% will vet that professional online. It’s important that you don’t lose any of these patients as they search for the right practice - potentially, your practice.