Site Analysis

What’s wrong with this Web site?

Dr. Debra Jaliman has run a dermatology practice in Manhattan for the past 25 years. Ten years ago, she created a Web site to promote both her practice and her line of skin-care products.

The site has generated some business, but not as much as Dr. Jaliman would like. “Most of the business that has come through from our site has been laser consultations, which are complimentary to any patients interested,” Dr. Jaliman said. “Consultations tend to be fruitful as many patients book treatments after receiving them.”

For sites that promote services, it is especially important to establish the expertise of the service provider and a sense of trust. In addition, the practice of dermatology is extremely competitive in New York City, and it is crucial for practices to try to differentiate themselves.

To gain the trust of site visitors, Dr. Jaliman offers several areas on the Web site where she presents her background and credentials. There is a partial bio on the home page and a more detailed bio in the “About” section that gives her credentials and highlights the procedures she performs. She also has a section devoted to media coverage she has received and another page — actually on a related site — that provides testimonials for her services and products.

Dr. Jaliman is a frequent guest on television and has been quoted in a number of print outlets, including The New York Times, InStyle, Glamour and Town Country. Making media appearances, Dr. Jaliman said, is the most successful way she’s found to promote her business. And yet, because she has so much competition, she has found it difficult to compete on Google and other search engines. Her site can be found near the bottom of Page 1 search results for “New York City dermatologist” and on Page 2 for “New York dermatologist.”

In the past year, she has invested $20,000 on search engine optimization, attempting to optimize the site for a number of keywords, including “dermatologist nyc,” “coolsculpting,” “thermage,” and “botox.”

“We were not pleased with the results,” she said. “It was not worth the cost.”

Unlike many sites for service providers, this one promotes both service and products. Along with her medical practice, she has created a line of skin-care products that she sells through a related site that she links to from the top navigation (under “Products”).

Dr. Jaliman has also invested time and effort in social media campaigns. She writes a blog on WebMD and has a presence on Twitter and Facebook. “I have a personal Facebook page as well as the practice and the upcoming book, ‘Skin Rules,’” she said. “We also utilize Twitter and continue to network with social media outlets. We have all our sites and pages linked to each other, which increases traffic and helps promote the practice. We have surely seen an increase since our investment in social networking.”

If you have read this column before, you know how important it is to pay attention to your site analytics. Dr. Jaliman has Google Analytics installed on her site, and she has learned a great deal from the numbers. “We have learned which procedures draw the most traffic to our site,” she said. “It has been surprising to see which ones actually attract the most people; it’s not always what you expect.”

Over the years, Dr. Jaliman has used analytics to help her make numerous adjustments and improvements. “We have worked very hard to build up our entrance page to appeal to the masses,” she said. “Consulting with experts who advised changes on everything from my profile picture to our contact form has lowered our bounce rates significantly. We’ve also changed the colors of the site to make them more aesthetically pleasing and attract more patients.”

Dr. Jaliman said she volunteered to have her site reviewed because she hoped to get some useful feedback from the readers of this column. “We are hoping to receive honest appraisals from real people,” she said. “In many cases, companies don’t have a real feel for what drives consumers.”

Please take a look at the site and consider a few questions:

•  Does this site make you want to come in for a consultation?
•  Does it give you sufficient trust in Dr. Jaliman to put your skin in her hands?
•  Are the products presented in a way that makes you want to buy them?
•  Do you have specific suggestions about the design, navigation or marketing?

Next week, we’ll collect highlights from your comments, I’ll offer some of my own impressions, and we’ll get Dr. Jaliman’s response as well.

Would you like to have your business’s Web site or mobile app critiqued? This is an opportunity for companies looking for an honest (and free) appraisal of their online presence and marketing efforts.

To be considered, please tell me about your experiences — why you started your site, what works, what doesn’t, why you would like to have the site reviewed — in an e-mail to youretheboss@bluefountainmedia.com.

Gabriel Shaoolian is the founder and chief executive of Blue Fountain Media, a Web design, development and marketing company based in New York.

Article source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=fe49984f3e240536bb4bc7ee09b5e2ca