Robotic Surgery: 5 Marketing Ideas for your Hospital's Website

Robotic surgery is one of the most exciting developments in surgery in recent years. If your hospital uses a da Vinci® Si™ Surgical System or other robotic surgery system, you want to let patients know. Whether it's pelvic prolapse, mitral valve repair or robotic prostatectomy, the more your patients know and understand about surgical procedures that can be performed using robotic surgery, the better chance you have of capturing that market.

Minimally invasive surgeries hold the promise of better precision for surgical procedures, access to areas previously thought unreachable and a shorter recovery. Further, there are fewer complications like blood loss and infection. Robotic surgery is a type of minimally invasive surgical procedure and it is changing patient’s lives. Touting your hospital’s da Vinci Surgical System or minimally invasive robotic surgery program can give your hospital the edge.

While marketing robotic surgery, however, keep in mind that while it has changed the surgical experience, this surgical procedure is not available for every condition, and it’s not right for every patient. You want to reassure patients that you have the expertise and experience to use every surgical approach: traditional, minimally invasive or robotic.

Here are five important tips for marketing robotic surgery and your da Vinci surgical system:

1. Get your name out there. In addition to marketing the robotics on your own hospital’s website, find out if there is a regional website or organization of robotic surgery. Become affiliated with that site to make it easier for patients to find you. For example, when patients in the Florida region search for robotic surgery, Robotic Surgery of Florida comes up. The website, in addition to offering a wealth of information on robotic surgery, lists different hospitals in Florida and surrounding states that offer robotic surgical procedures. Patients can easily click on a nearby hospital to find out more. If your hospital is not listed, no one can find you.
2. Show what you know. Create a robust section on your website describing robotic surgery. The technology is new and some patients may be wary. Just advertising “robotic surgery” isn’t enough. Physicians' training is critical to patients, and they’re also interested in how a robotic procedure works. The website of North Florida Regional Medical Center includes a detailed history of the technology, procedures available and patient information. Go the extra step with an explanatory video explaining the different surgical procedures. A video provides a visual guide so patients can understand the procedure even better. Videos also demonstrate your expertise and depth of knowledge in this field. Hartford Hospital offers a detailed video of a robotic prostatectomy.
3. Is this for me? Patients want to know if their condition can be treated using robotic surgical procedures. Children’s Hospital Boston lists the procedures they treat robotically, so patients can know immediately if they are a potential candidate. To sharpen your information even further, be focused. Often, a patient who is researching treatment options understands their condition, so don’t spend too much time discussing the disease. Offer, specific, detailed information about the robotic procedure for the particular conditions you treat.
4. Be a valuable source of information. Patients are looking for informative content before undergoing a surgical procedure, especially when the procedure is something cutting-edge and new. Offer them information, in the form of patient testimonials or links to outside articles detailing robotic surgery and its benefits.
5. Let the doctors speak. A robotic surgery is not just advantageous for the patients—doctors find it beneficial as well. Through either an article or video, have your doctors discuss why they like using a robotic procedure: the enhanced visualization, greater dexterity, superior precision. Hearing a doctor’s opinion provides a personal yet professional element to the discussion.

Patients are eager for information on robotic surgery, and want to find hospitals performing these cutting-edge procedures. Provide that information and prove your expertise. By showing patients you understand their questions and have the answers they need, you become their first choice for minimally invasive surgical care.


Do you have any thoughts or tips about robotic surgery or minimally invasive surgery marketing?

Promoting Hospital Doctors: 8 Creative Ideas for your Website

Your doctors are a critical part of your hospital’s reputation. Their credentials, expertise and experience are what draw patients to your institution. So it makes sense to showcase your physicians’ expertise prominently on your website.

Here are eight creative ideas for featuring your doctors on your site:

1. Pictures: Nothing says reassuring, confident and experienced like pictures of your doctors interacting with patients and each other. Feature them on many pages of your website—especially clinical care pages. Even without a quote or a name, that picture tells your visitors, “I will take care of you.” I like to post photographs of physicians talking to patients—I find this demonstrates patient education is an important part of the clinical program.

2. Scrolling marquis: What a great way to show off your doctors and their expertise or personality. A picture of a doctor combined with his or her name, credentials and a quote gives your visitors a glimpse about who will be caring for them. Mix up the kinds of quotes you use—some should be about patient care, while others highlight your hospital’s research and technology strengths. See how University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center combines pictures and quotes from doctors, volunteers and patients right on their home page. Your eye is drawn immediately to the changing display, and there is a “read more” option on each picture.

3. “Find a Doctor”: Display this box prominently. Your visitors want to know what your doctors specialize in, and how they can access their expertise. Include a quick search box on your homepage, and make it easy to search your physician directory.

Include search options by:
• Physician name
• By diagnoses/procedures
• By departments, services or specialties
• Location, if your hospital includes satellite offices
• Language, if you have bilingual doctors

4. Showcase Expertise: The nice picture may interest your visitors, but it’s the impressive resume that makes them pick up the phone for an appointment (or better yet, use your online scheduling system). Each physician should have a page with their credentials and a phone number, but also a short bio that tells the visitor a little more about them—different schools, fields of interest, important publications. Write the bio in third person, or in first, like the ones at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. Consider using tabs to divide the bio into areas that different user audiences may find interesting. For example, researchers might want to see a long listing of publications, while patients may just want to know research interests. See Mass General’s doctor lists, for an example. For many of their doctors, you can quickly scan the tabs and then jump to your area of interest right away.

5. Highlight different roles: Your physicians are scientists and researchers, experts in their field and above all, compassionate human beings. On your homepage, include a few intriguing snippets about your physicians that invite your visitors to click and learn more. For example, pediatric specialists who have children can talk about how being a parent influences the type of care they give.

6. Take advantage of free press: If a physician at your hospital was featured on a talk show, radio show, or made any sort of public appearance, link to that appearance on your website’s homepage. A doctor at the University of Washington Medical Center appeared on Dr. Oz’s talk show—that is definitely something you would want to let your visitors know about! It makes the impression that this doctor is an expert—an impression you want to cultivate.

7. Use video to demonstrate personality: Include a short video clip of a physician explaining a diagnostic procedure or what to expect before surgery. Talking head videos are important for a patient to get to know a doctor, but aren’t necessarily the best for explaining a particular disease. Make sure your doctor feels comfortable—it won’t help you if the doctor seems fidgety in front of the camera.

8. Engage physicians as content contributors: Cleveland Clinic boasts an informative “Ask the Doctor” feature. Doctors answer frequently asked questions, and each question and answer is followed by the name of the doctor who answered, along with a brief bio. This immediately demonstrates the doctors’ expertise and their ability to explain complex medical information in a patient-friendly manner. Or, you can blog it: Have your doctor pen short articles related to medical areas of interest, such as Emory Healthcare’s Advancing Your Health Blog. A blog is an opportunity for you to share your physicians’ medical expertise in a way that’s relatable and patient-friendly.

To summarize, show off your  most impressive feature—your physicians. Your sophisticated technology and state-of-the-art surgical devices are critical to your marketing efforts. But it starts with a doctor, for almost every single patient. So start with your major draw—you’ll be sure to see the benefits quickly.