1. Don’t use a template – You might think that using a template for your site will suffice, but if you take a look around, the sites that are set apart from the rest are the ones that are custom built. When a potential client visits your site you want it to immediately give off a professional vibe.  A custom site will engage the user and keep them around to search around your site a little more.  Don’t lose a client because they get turned off immediately by a website with an unprofessional look.
2. Don’t have a site that’s not search engine friendly – You’re probably saying, “I just can’t quite wrap my head around the whole SEO thing.”  That’s okay because we can wrap our head around it and it’s something we take pride in and enjoy doing; making your plastic surgery web design more effective by optimizing your site for search engines.  Don’t lose another client because you don’t take the time to ensure people can actually find your practice! 
3. Don’t have an outdated website – Of course there are a whole slew of things I could list here that could make your website outdated, but for this post I’m going to focus on two. 
   1. Having an all flash site – It’s a mistake that many people make these days.  You’re still in the mindset that having an all flash site makes your plastic surgery website more exciting and attractive to your users.  Perhaps this used to be the way users looked at sites, but times have changed and people want to get to the information they want to see, and they want to get to it fast!  So, don’t waste your time (and money) on something that your users are more than likely going to skip over anyway. 
   2. Outdated or unclear photos – Plastic surgery has come a long way over the years.  You don’t want your potential clients seeing outdated photos and thinking that the last procedure you did was in 1982!  Make sure your images are high quality and show that your practice stays on the cutting edge!

 It’s tempting to take the easy route with your neurosurgeon web design and have a simple website that contains the minimum of what your patients might need to know.  But there are certain qualities that all successful neurosurgery websites should have that can (and will) separate you from the rest.

1. A way to cut down on phone calls – We know that you’re busy people.  Of course the surgeon is busy seeing patients, but office workers are busy with everything else.  Being interrupted with phone calls during the day becomes annoying.  The more information you have on your neurosurgeon website, the more your patients won’t have to bug you. 
2. Have your patients “prepared” before they walk through the door – Having a neurosurgery website that contains all the forms your patient needs saves time for both patients and staff.  Why not give the option for those that choose, to fill out forms prior to their appointment.
3. Provide pertinent information – People coming to see you are obviously coming to you for a reason.  Providing the latest neurosurgery information on your website will give patients the option of staying up-to-date on the latest in neurosurgery, and perhaps their own condition.    
4. Information for other physicians – If most, or all of your patients come to you through referrals, then it would helpful for other doctors to know your referral process. 
5. Ease your patients minds – Surgery…and really anything having to do with going to see a doctor, can be nerve wracking for many people.  For someone anticipating an upcoming surgery, they more than likely are nervous and have tons of questions that no one will have time to answer for them.  Having example videos of surgeries and what a particular surgery entails could help a patient through the anxiety.  Additionally, feeling like you really know your surgeon can make a patient feel more comfortable.  Let your neurosurgery website “do the talking” with your surgeon giving a video testimonial. 
6. Testimonials – Sometimes the best way for a patient to find the right surgeon is through other patients testimonials.  Let others be inspired because nothing speaks louder than personal experience. 

For some unknown reason, firms that specialize in medical website design tend to throw out usability. I don’t know why. My only guess is that they do so much to please the client, that they actually forget about the end user. However, it is our view at Stone Soup that keeping the end user in mind is what our clients really want. With family practice websites, we don’t want to create a website that appeals to doctors. We want to create a website that appeals to patients. I think many firms lose that focus since the doctors are the ones paying the bills. However, I think it’s our duty as professionals to assert our knowledge and understanding of the actual users and make sure they’re the focus of any new design or redesign. When we do this, we gain the trust of our clients. And our clients become more successful because of it.

Consider this hypothetical situation: Stone Soup just provided you with a new, impressive, professionally designed medical spa website that has been receiving online visitors for the past month. When asked how your new clients found you, 15% (a conservative number) said online. At an average of $100 a visit (if your average visit is higher or lower, by all means adjust accordingly), consider how many of these “I found you online!” clients you would need to attract to pay for your website.

This is an important consideration because it is your return on investment (ROI). In other words, the number of new patients who found your practice online and made the decision to pay for your services based on your professionally designed website. Such clients would not be walking through your front door unless you had hired Stone Soup. Take this a step further and you can contemplate how many additional clients you will receive based on the positive recommendations of your new patients who found you online.

Another factor to consider is time. Depending on the purchase price of your professional website in conjunction with the ROI, your investment could have paid for itself and be turning a profit in the matter of a couple of months. However, even if you knew it would take over a year to be in the green, think about how priceless your site is to the happy clientele who would not have found you otherwise.

Here’s that question again. How much do you want to pay, or think you should pay for a professionally designed medspa website from Stone Soup? Regardless of the exact number, one can assume that it is enough to pay for a professional medical spa website!

Step 1: Plan

A failure to plan is a plan to fail so the first step is to start brainstorming. Visit other family practice websites and make note of designs you like and don’t like, and why. If you don’t already have a logo and slogan, consider what they may be. Think about how many pages you want your medical website to contain, and what information about your practice you want to share with the online community. Also decide if you want to include videos, host a medical blog or forum, and if you want to make downloads available to visitors (i.e. new patient forms). And last but not least, figure out how much money you want to spend and set a budget.

Step 2: Purchase a domain name

If you don’t currently have a website, now you need to purchase your domain name (URL). It’s recommended that you have 2-3 additional choices in case your first pick is not available. Then provide us with your selections. Stone Soup also provides hosting and complete custom design work so we can assist you in completing steps 2 through 4 in one fell swoop.

Step 3: Acquire Hosting

If for some reason we don’t fit your hosting needs (Stone Soup specializes in custom medical website design and hosting and can exceed your needs), a plethora of options are available per your preference.

Step 4: Obtain a design

If you are not a medical website design expert, then it is time to hire Stone Soup, as we can create a custom site that is effective and fits within your budget. If you found a couple of websites during step 1 that you like, be sure to mention these as an emphasis of what you want your family practice website to look like and include.

Step 5: Upload and test

Finally! Your hard work is about to come to fruition as you see your family practice website online and “live” for the first time! If you arranged hosting with a company other than Stone Soup, it is important to test your site. Once your files are uploaded, type in your domain name (URL) and begin testing. In other words, start clicking on every link to make sure all the pages appear exactly how you want them to. Read all of the content thoroughly to catch any errors. Test all applications, videos, forums, etc. that your site contains to ensure everything is working as it should. If this seems like overkill to you, just remember that nothing raises questions about medical competence than a family practice website that is questionably set up!

Whether they’re searching for a dermatologist, general practitioner, oncologist, or any other medical professional, most people will perform a quick search online to find the nearest – and best – practice in the vicinity (“best” typically determined by website comparison). “Well I’m in the phone book,” you may say. Phone book? Do those still exist? Even so, does a listing in the phone book reach out to the prevalent “online only” crowd? Does it provide a detailed “About” page, or pictures of your professional medical office? What about directions to your practice, and testimonials from satisfied patients? The fact is even if you have a fancy full-page color ad, it does not compare to – and may have cost more than – a beautifully designed, professional medical website that makes visitors want to become patients just from having viewed it! Still not sure? Please continue to the final reason why you can’t afford to not have a professional medical website customized by Stone Soup.

Having a professional website of your medical practice can prove even more profitable if local competitors do not have a site since online shoppers are finding you (not them). Furthermore, phone book or word-of-mouth potential clients are likely to jump online to find your website for more information. It is extremely likely that if choosing between you and an un-sited (or unimpressive sited) competitor, they will choose you because they:

• were able to learn about your practice and the professional employees
• saw pictures of the facilities and staff
• can feel more comfortable about their visit since many of their questions were answered immediately online via a FAQ page or forum or email inquiry
• were able to easily download their new patient forms and filled them out in the comfort of their own home

And all thanks to your fabulous website! So now is the time to illustrate via a professional medical website that you have a modern flair in the field of modern medicine. Begin attracting new customers and increasing your profit by allowing Stone Soup to give your medical or family practice a home on the internet – you can’t afford not to!