How do you rank reputation management in 2021?

07:30 04 March in News, Practice Solutions by Sophrona Management

Reputation Management in 2021

Today, we live in a world where every decision begins with an online search. From what to eat for dinner, how to make sourdough bread, how to give yourself a home haircut, to finding the best eye doctor near you; practically every life transaction is Googleable.

Healthcare is no exception. Doctor profiles are searchable on Healthgrades, Yelp, Facebook, Google and a number of secondary websites that may go unmonitored. Furthermore, profiles that are not claimed by the practice may have reviews that go unanswered. And so it begs the question: how do you rank reputation management for your practice in 2021?

Sophrona President, Marc-Francois Bradley recently weighed in on the importance of reputation management in the latest issue of Administrative Eyecare by ASOA.

View ASOA Article

In the article, Bradley makes an important note; managing an online reputation is independent from the patient experience you are creating inside the practice. Reputation management is the exercise of monitoring, addressing, and cultivating what patients are saying about your practice online.

“Regardless of patients’ experiences, practices must watch what is being said online, address complaints, and encourage those with good experiences to go public. At the same time an organization needs to constantly look for ways to enhance the patient experience.”

How much of your strategy is proactive versus reactive?

Is your practice in front of our behind the problem? Do you have a strategy to send requests, review feedback and respond proactively versus reactively? Practices of every size can benefit from having a clear strategy for reputation management in 2021. If you have not created a strategy to request reviews and manage feedback, here are a few questions to guide you toward creating a plan that works for your practice.

How will we send review requests to patients after a visit?
Is reputation management technology available through our practice management system or a 3rd party vendor?
What is the purpose in collecting feedback?
How often will we respond?
Will we respond to positive and negative reviews?
How will reviews be routed internally if they are positive?
How will reviews be routed if they are negative?

Three Keys to Success for Online Reputation Management in 2021

The Administrative Eyecare article went on to reference three key elements of success for online reputation management in 2021.

Technology: The first key to success is selecting the right technology and partner. A comprehensive reputation management suite should allow your practice to easily request feedback and provide a dashboard to monitor your online reviews. Simplifying the process as much as possible is crucial. Provide concise instructions and direct links for patients to leave feedback.

Staff: Next, having staff that understands the patient perspective and how to respond is equally important. Whether a review is positive or negative, the right response is in alignment with your brand voice. It is always important to listen to patients and try to understand how to use feedback as a learning opportunity. Doing so can change an experience, and potentially a review, from negative into positive.

Process: Lastly, outline a process for reputation management from beginning to end. Determine how emails and cell phone numbers will be collected at checkin. Most importantly, utilize technology that makes it easier to collect feedback, respond, and monitor your reputation online.

How can Sophrona help with reputation management in 2021 and beyond?

Sophrona provides a convenient way to request, monitor and respond to patient feedback. Engaging with patients after a visit has never been more easy. Utilizing Sophrona’s Reputation Management Suite can help your practice proactively request feedback, collect reviews across multiple websites, monitor comment sentiment and respond appropriately.

Sophrona helps practices automate review requests for every patient so you can engage in the digital conversation and own your reputation. To learn more about a recent case study, click below.

Case Study: Automated Reputation Management

How do you rank reputation management in 2021?