Highlights:
- Creating a “vanity URL,” or custom URL, that points to your profile on a third-party website like RealSelf is a great way to align your brand across mediums, convey professionalism, and defend our brand from competitors.
- Practically speaking, custom URLs also help consumers and staff alike easily recall your direct address on such platforms and look presentable on promotional materials. This can drive profile visits that aid consumer decision making and facilitate reviews.
One of the perks for RealSelf Network Doctors is the ability to customize a portion of their RealSelf profile web address, giving practices yet another valuable way to stand out on the platform.
With so many online touch points where consumers can learn about your practice, including your main website, social media channels, and review sites, it can be difficult to maintain consistent branding online. One way to alleviate this challenge is the ability to determine your name, web address, and how you’ll appear on social media.
Vanity URLs make it easier to take control of your brand on third-party platforms like RealSelf. You should take advantage.
While this is easy enough for main website URLs and social media handles (provided they haven’t already been chosen), it has traditionally been more difficult when dealing with third-party directory and review sites, many of which have their own, sometimes convoluted URL formats.
We recognize the importance of controlling every aspect of your online appearance. RealSelf Network Doctors, for example, have the ability to choose their own “vanity URL,” customizing how member doctors’ profile pages can be accessed online.
While the term “vanity URL” may imply this is merely a cosmetic detail, there are some substantive benefits to having this capability.
Choosing a Vanity URL Grants Practices Brand Alignment
Every marketing touchpoint that you can control represents another valuable opportunity to broadcast your message and align your brand. This is one of the primary benefits that choosing a vanity URL provides.
While branding goes beyond names, logos, and URLs, coordinating these components helps provide the type of consistency in messaging that is championed by many branding experts. Whether you decide to mirror the practice’s main website URL, or the social media handle your practice uses, a custom RealSelf URL will contribute to a cohesive brand presence online.
An Easy URL to Display in Promos
While some consumers will encounter your RealSelf profile on their own through doctor search or targeted Spotlight promotion, there will be other opportunities to promote your profile directly to potential patients.
This will become increasingly valuable as your profile becomes populated with positive ratings and reviews, and you’ll want to proactively share your profile with current and prospective patients as a destination that can inform their decision-making process and make reviewing you easy.
Add an extra touch of professionalism to your online presence with a thoughtfully chosen vanity URL.
Simply put, a custom RealSelf URL can make it easier for you and your staff to remember where to direct potential clientele; provide a pithy destination to include on promo materials; and will aid their recall when they seek you out online. In addition, a URL of your choice conveys an extra touch of professionalism when added to print, online, and other collateral marketing material. All of these factors can help drive attention and traffic to your profile.
Get It While It’s Hot: Defend Your Brand
Your practice may already use an online moniker to communicate a particular focus or location, (e.g., yourcitybotox). Perhaps it’s part of your site’s main URL (e.g., www.yourcitybotox.com) or social media handle (e.g., facebook.com/yourcitybotox), or maybe you’ve thought about starting to use this kind of messaging as a way to potentially broaden your appeal.
Being able to choose your RealSelf profile URL provides an opportunity to select these valuable terms, aligning with others used in your existing marketing efforts or simply snatching up a memorable term or phrase that best represents your practice—before another practice does.
Choosing a vanity URL isn’t rocket science, but it does require some forethought and strategy.
Choosing a RealSelf vanity URL, much like deciding the name of your practice or main website address, requires some thoughtfulness and strategy. And just like those other important decisions, choosing the right vanity URL can potentially have a positive impact on the amount of traffic and attention coming to your practice’s profile page.
The customized RealSelf URL will help demonstrate to current and potential clients that your practice is detail-oriented, professional, and values communication, all while keeping your overall branding efforts well-aligned.
