Branding Tips for Optometrists

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I would be willing to bet most of you reading this have a web page and facebook page for your office and is a good resource for general information about the office, booking appointments, and a generic about us section. And I would also be willing to bet that not very many of you have branded yourself professionally on social media beyond linkedin. Professional branding in eye care is a really easy way for the patient to find you online and get to know your professional expertise before ever meeting you in the office. For instance on Instagram there is a small amount of eye doctors branding themselves but this area is quickly growing. Below I will outline easy steps on how to create a social media page to brand yourself professionally (you may also get some good tips to take away to your business social media pages). I recommend to keep your private pages secured to just family and close friends and have your professional pages public.

1)  High Quality Headshot

Hire a professional photographer for a session and get them to give you 2-3 professional photos that you can use for different social media platforms and websites. I would suggest using the same headshot for your profile pics to have consistent branding and you can use the others for bios, blog posts, social media posts, etc.

2)  Pictures for your page

For instance on Instagram where pictures are the main focus you need to have good quality pictures and be strategic about what the pictures will look like all together once posted. When people look at your profile they see all the thumbnail pictures in a glance so they need to be aesthetically pleasing and not cluttered or chaotic. I chose to do lighter photos and every other post is a picture and then a graphic with words in a white background. I would stay away from dark photos or too many busy photos.

3)  Create a mission

Make a goal on what you want to achieve out of your page and create content based on that. Some examples of goals are:

  • Patient education and informing the general public

  • Marketing eye care services

  • Networking

  • Building a searchable online presence

  • Promoting your niche or expertise in optometry

4)  Content

Create some interesting content to share on your sites and keep your patients engaged. It can be anything from fun facts to the latest research to new hip frames or a brand new piece of equipment you have in your office. I even try to keep things interesting and add fashion, beauty tips, and words of inspiration.

When you don’t know what to say try not to create content but document your daily professional life.  

Content Ideas for pictures or stories/videos:

  • Introduce yourself

  • Give a tour of your practice

  • Share some of your favorite things in the eye care world

  • Answer frequently asked questions

  • Educate about a particular eye disease

  • Feature your best selling frames

  • Talk about lens design and what is best for different hobbies or occupations

  • Educate on the importance of dilation and that you can still drive afterwards :)

  • Educate on the difference between ODs and OMDs and

A good online presence is so important and will be beneficial in many ways. It is great for patient education, it helps the patient remember who you are, helps with patient retention and also a great networking tool. I chose to focus on one platform for myself, instagram, and spend a hour or two a week curating posts and managing the page. Engaging in comments and likes is a great way to build relationships with your followers. You can link your social media channels to your web page so that they are easy to find. Using hashtags and tagging your office location also increases your exposure. Good luck and happy networking!