5 reasons to make patient testimonials a priority in your practice.

Testimonials are essential to the growth of your practice. Some owners are too scared to even ask for feedback, worried that it may open a can of worms. True, it might. But wouldn’t you rather deal with the worms once and for all and ensure the customer journey in your practice is second to none? The other option is to ignore what your customers think and let them go to your competition across the road!

Once you are open to feedback, you can then receive testimonials. These will act as a launchpad to your success. Why?

1)    Builds trust. With the number of practices on the high street, your ideal customer may end up somewhere else because they don’t know what amazing customer service you offer. Testimonials help build that trust with new customers who may be searching for a reputable practice. When existing customers share their positive experiences, it gives you credibility that is often difficult to obtain through other marketing avenues. It’s one thing to do facebook ads, but another for someone to see through another customer's eyes. 

2)    Increase Referrals: Happy patients are more likely to recommend your optical practice to others. Sharing patient testimonials on your website, social media channels, and other marketing materials can help encourage referrals and word-of-mouth marketing.

3)    Provide Social Proof: When potential patients see that others have had positive experiences with your practice, it can provide social proof that your practice is reputable and trustworthy. This can help overcome any doubts or concerns they may have about choosing your practice.

4)    Highlight Services: Patient testimonials can be a great way to highlight the services and treatments your practice offers. When patients share their positive experiences with specific services or treatments, it can encourage others to seek out those services as well. So, whether you offer post-cataract assessments, MECS, dry eye clinics or speciality contact lenses, testimonials help shine the light on them. Get several testimonials for each service that you offer so there is no doubt about what you provide and the quality of it.

5)    Differentiate from Competitors: Patient testimonials can help differentiate your optical practice from competitors. When patients share their positive experiences, it can emphasize the unique qualities and benefits of your practice compared to others in the area. I personally haven’t come across many practices consistently sharing patient testimonials. When your ideal customers see so many pleased testimonials coming from your practice, it’s a no-brainer they will also want to be part of that experience. 

Don’t underestimate the power of testimonials. How else will you set yourself apart from the competition?

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Hasnain Mamdani