When the doctors of GPs on Bayview wanted to reach new patients in Perth, they turned to HealthEngine for help.
It’s 3am and your toddler has an earache. What now?
For most parents in Perth, the next step is an internet search. And that’s where they find available appointments with the doctors of GPs on Bayview ― thanks to a little help from HealthEngine.
Starting from scratch
When GPs on Bayview opened in Claremont early in 2016, their challenge was a big one: building a base of patients in a crowded medical marketplace.
“We started off with 3 doctors in a community where there were a lot of other choices,” says Chris Swarts, Director of GPs on Bayview. “We’re a private-billing practice, so our goal from the start was focus on quality care for everyone from newborns to pregnant mums to the elderly. We felt there was a real market for patient-centered GP care with an excellent customer experience.”
In short, they needed to not just reach potential patients, but bring them in the door. For help with that challenge, they turned to HealthEngine.
Reaching ‘here and now’ patients
HealthEngine is changing the way Australians book appointments with doctors. With tools that help patients and doctors connect, and special booking technology that shows exactly when doctors have availability ― patients have the ability to book an appointment right on the spot.
For GPs on Bayview, HealthEngine began by putting their ads on all relevant Google searches. Those 3am parents searching on Google, for instance, might see a message something like this:
Thanks to targeting tools from Google Ads, the messages can reach anyone in the Perth area, with special messages for specific areas, types of patients or illnesses. (Their average ad rank is 2.6 ― excellent for a medical practice).
HealthEngine’s proprietary booking platform lets those potential patients make appointments online, often for the very same day.
“Online appointments offer great service to the ‘here and now’ generation, who want to take matters into their own hands,” says Swarts. “We’re open from 7am to 7pm, and HealthEngine puts us at the forefront in those searches and shows those people just how soon we can see them.”
Users appreciate the easy and familiar online tool, similar to those used to make travel or restaurant reservations. The 24/7 service also reduces pressure on the front desk team at GPs on Bayview. Says Swarts, “With fewer calls, they have more time to focus on quality customer service with patients who come in.”
The Results
GPs on Bayview is now thriving!
“We’ve seen over 5,000 patients in our first 2 years, and we’re currently adding about 300 new patients each month,” says Chris Swarts. “That’s unheard of, even for established practices.” The practice has already added two new doctors to handle the surge in patients, and is making plans to add more.
HealthEngine brings the practice dozens of new conversions each week ― and it’s more than just worried parents at 3am.
In fact, GPs on Bayview’s return on investment (ROI) with HealthEngine is an impressive 8 to 1. The practice’s all-time AdWords clickthrough rate (CTR) is an amazing 5.86%, well above the industry average of 2%.
HealthEngine helps practices fill their appointment books.
Want similar results for your practice?
What would GPs on Bayview suggest for other businesses getting started?
“Start with a quality product that works really well,” says Swarts. “Then you’ve got to advertise, get your brand out there. One of the key ingredients for success is being in the right place at the right time. For us, as a new practice, our work with HealthEngine has given us just that: a priority presence, at the right place at the right time.”
“HealthEngine gets feet through our door.”
Fritz Holznagel is a writer for Google.
