What does it take to get a return on your investment in RealSelf? In this series, we’ll walk you through the approaches your peers have taken in order to get peak performance from their profiles.
Patient Education · Transparency |
Dr. Camille Cash
Dr. Camille Cash connects with patients on RealSelf by reflecting real life on her profile, both in its diversity and by being transparent about what people sign up for when they undergo a procedure.
“My patients come from all walks of life: high-powered attorneys, soccer moms, stay-at-home moms; young and older patients; black, white, Asian, Latino,” she said. “Showcasing their stories makes the process of having an aesthetic procedure tangible and real.”
That approach yields both direct ROI from patient contacts and longer-term branding for her practice. “Dollars in, dollars out—that’s how you get to the hard ROI number,” said Dr. Cash. “But the overall presence and branding is the softer value.” On both counts, Dr. Cash rated RealSelf, which drives more than 40 leads each month to her practice, “Worth It.”
RealSelf Profile By the Numbers
- Specialty: Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
- Years in practice: 18
- Joined RealSelf: 2015
- Location: Houston, TX
- Patient reviews: 65
- Star rating: 4.9
- B&A photos: 540
- Answers: 11,452
The Cash’s Marketing Philosophy: GIVE PERSPECTIVE
“I believe in being very real with patients about the journey between ‘before’ and ‘after.’” – Dr. Camille Cash
Leveraging a differentiated experience. Dr. Cash sees RealSelf as both a highly differentiated practice marketing channel and a true partner in amplifying her content.
“RealSelf isn’t a replica of our website surfaced on another platform. It gives a completely different perspective,” she said. “That helps develop trust and a different level of transparency, especially in terms of people seeing the full journey of having a procedure.”
Building trust through peer-to-peer insight. “It’s exciting to be able to take transparency about the patient journey to another level with RealSelf, not just from the doctor’s standpoint, but also my previous patients saying: ‘This is what I expected. This is what I experienced. This was the process for me.’”
One unique benefit consumers get from hearing previous patients’ perspectives? “Other patients answer questions that might seem trivial at first, but are really important for helping those starting out make a decision about whether a procedure is right for them or not,” said Dr. Cash.
Pulling back the curtain. Dr. Cash is also purposeful about highlighting the full spectrum of the surgical experience. “I believe in being very real with patients about the journey between ‘before’ and ‘after,’” said Dr. Cash. Being upfront about the process of surgery gives potential patients a “realistic expectation of what the journey looks like,” she continued, and leveling with them increases their satisfaction with the process in the longer run.
One Big Idea: Patient Education
Dr. Cash focuses (and you should too) on leveraging RealSelf as a way to educate patients versus “marketing” to customers. If you focus on building content that 1) helps patients understand their treatment journey, 2) gives a clear picture of the practice and provider even before they step foot in the practice, and 3) gives them the confidence to make their next step, you will be setting both you and potential patients up for success.
One Crisp Takeaway
Remember: consumers have more information about more doctors at their fingertips than ever before and can easily filter your practice out of contention before your office hears from them directly. To increase your chance of being shortlisted, publish timely content that lifts the veil on what it’s like to be your patient—and the results that await at the end of their journey with you.
