A doctor’s guide to diagnosing a reputation problem

Diagnosing a reputation problem is as simple as 1, 2, 3.

These days, people are finding physicians the same way they’re finding good Thai restaurants —by checking ratings and review sites. These review venues, however, vary widely: People aren’t just going to physician directory sites to grade their doctors. They’re also going to Yelp, Angie’s List, Google Places and other social media services.  

In this fragmented landscape, how are you diagnosing a reputation problem? And what’s the cure for less-than-stellar ratings?

Where are reviews about your practice showing up?

The first step is to Google yourself to identify the places where online information about your practice is showing up. Claim your listing on these services and make sure your profile is complete and accurate by supplying key information about your credentials, including the medical school you attended, when you graduated, whether or not you’re board-certified, your specialty and how long you’ve been practicing.

Is your online reputation healthy?

Diagnosing a reputation problem requires surveying the landscape and seeing what your patients and other people are saying about you. If you see symptoms that point to a looming problem, address them before the problem grows worse. If your patients are complaining about things that you can control, such as bedside manners or office cleanliness, take the time to respond to their feedback. Thank them for pointing out their concerns and let them know that you’re working to resolve them (and take actual steps to do that). Your patients will be happy that you reached out and took their input seriously.

Not all negative reviews, however, warrant a follow-up. For instance, some of them may have nothing to do with your practice. If someone links you to an insurance issue and you’ve billed all parties properly, it’s probably best to move on. Otherwise, you may get bogged down in a “he-said, she-said” situation.

Perform routine checkups

Following your initial survey, make your reputation checkups a routine part of an ongoing review cycle. Set up Google Alerts to let you know when your name comes up in the social sphere. Be active in the community where people are talking about you, and engage widely. Although it’s important to address the negative content, be sure to comment on the positive reviews too. Thank people for their input and let them know you want to continue to hear from them so you can keep improving your service.

The only caveat here is to avoid addressing medical issues with patients online as you run the risk of breaching patient privacy.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure

You can also take proactive steps to preempt negative online reviews, when diagnosing a reputation problem. Following each visit, send patients a follow-up email to get their feedback, or place feedback forms in the office that patients can complete at the end of their appointment. In both cases, make sure you install a follow-up mechanism to deal with the feedback; it should be accorded the same level of attention as online reviews.

Antidotes for poor feedback   

If you can’t preempt poor feedback from appearing online, you stand a good chance of burying it by creating high-quality online content related to your practice. Consider establishing a website for your practice. Links to your webpages will push negative reviews down on the search results page where most people never look. Since multiple studies show that most people typically don’t go much further than the top three search results, it pays to make the investment to create content that you control and that’s ranked highly by search engines.

Maintaining an active presence in social networks can also relegate the negative content to the periphery. Consider establishing a profile in popular social venues like Facebook and Twitter, using account names that reflect your actual name or something as close to it as possible. For instance, Dr. Joe Smith should try to grab the username “DrJoeSmith.” And then engage your followers by posting links to helpful content that relate to your area of specialty.

You may also want to start a blog and share health tips with the community to position yourself as an authority in your practice area. Before you start the presses, however, it’s a good idea to consult with an attorney for advice on the type of content you can post that won’t expose you to the risk of malpractice claims.  

Whichever prescription you opt for to strengthen your online reputation, keep in mind that prevention can be better than a cure when it comes to reputation management. By performing routine checkups on your reputation and continuously engaging with your social communities, you can go far to protect the health of your practice.