In an era of digital everything, traditional media (print, radio, television) might seem irrelevant. Although its role has been redefined, it remains a valuable marketing tool. The key is to use traditional media effectively alongside digital media to promote your ophthalmic practice or ambulatory surgery center.

The scope and reach of television, radio, and print advertising has decreased. Because they can target only broad demographics, the best use of these forms of advertising is for branding or raising public awareness of your practice or ambulatory surgery center.

Digital media, on the other hand, may be used for highly targeted and trackable advertising. It is an excellent means of promoting specific services, such as LASIK or cataract surgery, to a precisely targeted audience.

COMBINING TRADITIONAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA

To use both mediums effectively, consider your goals. If raising awareness is the aim, reaching the maximum number of people is crucial. This involves using traditional media to reach a broad audience and supporting the effort using digital media to target key groups.

If the goal is to increase patient traffic for a specific treatment such as LASIK, highly targeted advertising with digital media should be the primary focus. This effort can then be supported by traditional media advertising the target audience is likely to view or hear.

TACTICS AND CHANNELS

The following are some strategies to achieve your marketing or educational goals using both types of media.

Example No. 1

Goal: Raise awareness of your practice and its services.

Strategy: Reach as many people as possible in the local area.

Tactics:

• Create a television ad featuring patient testimonials and showcasing your practice’s services. Run the ad twice daily during the evening newscast on the most popular channel, Monday through Friday, for 4 weeks. Include your website and Facebook page for people who desire more information.
• Design a billboard ad for placement in high-traffic areas during the same time frame. Ensure the ad includes your practice’s website and/or a QR code.
• Launch a Google Ad campaign targeting people searching for eye doctors in your area. Use pay-per-click ads that link to your practice’s website. Run the campaign for 4 weeks.
• Develop a Facebook ad campaign targeting adults in your area who are over 25 years of age and have specific eye care needs. Link the ads to your practice’s Facebook page or website. Run this for 4 weeks.

Although this is not a comprehensive list of every tactic you could use, it illustrates how you can blend the use of digital and traditional media to raise awareness of your practice and its services among as many people in your area as possible.

Example No. 2

Goal: Grow your LASIK business.

Strategy: Target individuals between the ages of 20 and 45 who wear glasses or contact lenses within your practice’s service area.

Tactics:

• Run a radio ad on a local station targeting this demographic. Air the ad four times daily during peak drive time (morning and evening rush hour), Monday through Friday, for 4 weeks. Promote your practice’s website.
• Create ads for Spotify and Pandora targeting local users in this age group who wear glasses or contact lenses. Run these ads for 4 weeks.
• Launch a Facebook and Instagram ad campaign targeting local users in this age group who wear glasses or contact lenses. Use hashtags and QR codes linking to your practice’s Facebook page or website and run for 4 weeks.
• Develop a digital banner ad campaign that retargets users who have visited the LASIK page on your practice’s website. Show these ads to tagged visitors as they browse the internet and run for 4 weeks.

Although this example may resemble the previous one, the difference is that digital ads can target a specific audience, something traditional media cannot. The benefit is that you spend less money to reach exactly the people who may be interested in LASIK, which is the goal of this campaign.

THE POWER OF STRATEGIC MEDIA INTEGRATION

The previous two examples illustrate how traditional and digital media can be used in combination to achieve a goal and increase business. The key to successful integration is clearly defining your goals before spending money on marketing. Once your goals are set, the appropriate use of traditional and digital media becomes apparent.