A medical website is in some ways like an online store front, but this type of online business requires a special design approach. Nevertheless, it has several things in common with other online businesses. Its objectives are to engage the user, build up trust, and get conversions.

The Internet can be a great source of medical information, but the information that is available is not always accurate. It can in fact at times be dead wrong, or even dangerous. Inaccurate information can lead to confusion and an imprecise or false self-diagnosis.

• The website’s content should therefore provide solid educational information, or point to education resources that a patient, or a prospective patient, can place trust in.
• The services the medical practitioner or clinic offers should be clearly spelled out. This would include insurance and financial options available to a customer. Integrating custom insuretech solutions can streamline the process of managing patient insurance claims and payments.
• Contact information should be prominently displayed and easy to locate. A simple “contact us” page may suffice, but a better approach is to allow customers to schedule appointments or consultations online, and complete registration forms if they happen to be first-time patients. Making any needed forms easy to locate builds trust and confidence.
• A team page with photos and brief biographies also builds trust. Patients making their first visit will feel as if they already know the team members.

An example of a team page on a pre-built website created for a medical practitioner.

• Bonus: HIPAA Compliance – In the U.S. to keep sensitive protected health information (PHI) safe, healthcare providers are bound to the HIPAA privacy rule. When creating your medical domain website, especially if you are located in the U.S., it is important to know what HIPAA compliance is and how you can prevent violating the HIPAA law or getting penalized.

The Benefits of Using Pre-Built Websites for the Medical Domain

You will realize a number of benefits when using pre-built websites in the medical domain:

• The content one would expect in a medical practice’s or clinic’s website has been spelled out.
• Design trends and content areas needed to build a website of this type are already embedded in the pre-built website. The UX is embedded as well. All you need to do is whatever customizing is needed to meet your client’s specific needs.
• Installing a pre-built website takes but a click. Instead of having to work your way through a complex installation and setup process, you can focus on those processes that are of greatest importance to you – branding and customizing.
• Installation is a snap, and page building, while taking somewhat longer, is not much more difficult. The Muffin Builder, with its cool options panel, and shortcode generator will see to that.

Be Medic 1

This hero image projects friendliness with professionalism and competence. The background image features the type subject matter you would anticipate, but it does not intrude – it merely sets the tone.

Be Pharmacy

Again, a friendly, professional introduction. This pre-built website’s intro makes an excellent use of whitespace, as do the product images. The hero image and UVP are nicely balanced, and the responsive product layout is perfect for mobile device displays.

Be Medic 2

This pre-built website offers an interesting color scheme. The layout transmits a feeling of trust. It provides an up-front glimpse of a member of the medical team. It serves as an introduction and a welcome. A subtle parallax and slider effect combination gives the home page extra depth and a sense of warmth.

Important Things to Consider When Creating a Medical Domain Website

When creating a medical domain website, these conceptual elements require particular attention: (1) presenting the brand, (2) photography, (3) user guidance, and (4), making the conversion.

• The Brand Matters– Promises the website makes are promises that must be kept. Online claims and offline performance must consistently be equivalent if trust is to be maintained.
• Photography – Photographs need to be clear, crisp, and convey a mix of friendliness and professionalism. The home page hero image needs to invite the user in, and team member photographs should emphasize the message that the business is to be trusted. If necessary, be prepared to underscore the importance of high-quality images to your client.
• Guiding the User – Put yourself in the place of the user. What information are you looking for, as you decide whether or not to contact the medical facility? Forms and navigation buttons need to be available every step of the way. Most of the pages in these pre-built websites feature smartly-integrated buttons, and culminate in either a call or action, or a contact form.

The services page on a medical pre-built website for WordPress: showing a big picture of the specialist on a drop down list, a short description of that service and the price range.

• Making the Conversion – Internet medical marketing needs to be sensible. Hype is to be avoided at all costs. The typical user in this area will be looking for a reliable medical practitioner, clinic, or hospital. This must be evident in the website.

This is no place to pressure a user into purchasing something or signing up for a service. The emphasis is on providing the user with the unbiased information needed to make an informed decision.

The website needs to provide its sources of information and its content needs to give proof that the medical facility is real – and to be trusted.

The backgrounds, expertise, and specialties of the members of the medical team should be presented front and center.

An example of how a medical pre-built website (the contact page) integrates a map