7 Tips You Need to Know When Choosing Plastic Surgeons Online

In the past people chose their surgeons mostly by word of mouth, seeing whoever their friends recommended,  but now  most people research and choose their  own doctors with the help of the internet. They narrow it down and on average consult three different surgeons before choosing the one they feel most comfortable with. But how do you narrow it down to three with  the myriad of sites all professing their Surgeon to be the best? What do these sites really tell us about the surgeon?

1- Search Engines, such as Google, are a great first move. They can help you see who is out there and give a ranked result. These rankings come from a variety of sources, paid advertising (Google Adwords), forum postings , links from the surgeons own website to name a few. This will give you an idea of who the best marketer is not necessarily the best surgeon.

2- The next site we should check but often don’t is the CPSO , College of Physicians of Ontario, to ensure that the surgeon is a certified Plastic Surgeon,  http://www.cpso.on.ca/public-register/all-doctors-search In Ontario any licensed doctor can call themselves a Cosmetic Surgeon but certified Plastic Surgeons spend five years training after becoming an MD in order to have the knowledge and experience to  use the title Plastic Surgeon. If the surgeon you are considering has a private clinic for their surgeries, don’t forget to make sure they have hospital privileges while you are on this site. This is an important backup in case of emergency.

3- Facebook is a great spot to check out the culture of the office, what do they stand for, what kind of image are they sending out? Remember with one or two pre surgery visits and several follow up visits , you may be spending a lot of time with these people. If you find people you enjoy being around it will be a more positive experience.

4- Review sites such as RateMDs are also high on everyone’s list. This gives you an overview of the practice and surgeon.  Be wary if the surgeon has too many negative comments but also remember  some of those comments could be resolved by the time you read them  or could be  from people with unrealistic expectations.

5- Twitter – Are they tweeting appropriate information for you ? Is this a quick sales site for them or is it a genuine foray into the community? If what they post is inappropriate for you find someone who targets what you are interested in, again you need an office that you are comfortable in.

6- Personal websites are a must! This will give you a chance to look at before and after pictures, you want a subtle lip increase but everyone on the site has a trout mouth? Keep looking! Make sure that the service you want is something the surgeon does and has experience with. Check to see if there is talk about individual plans so you can achieve your aspiration not get cookie cutter results. Most importantly check to see that they are within your area. A great surgeon in another city will make follow up visits difficult and what if you have an issue? You need someone who is close enough to be able to see them if you need them and to be able to have the appropriate follow up, which may continue  for a year  depending on your surgery.

7- Last but most important- test them – Send an email or call the office.  How quickly was your call returned? Was the person that wrote back knowledgeable? Were they helpful?  This will be the main point of contact and you need someone who makes you feel like you are their priority and never rushes you.

Using these tips will help you find the three best suited,  local surgeons to contact. The next step will be choosing who is best suited to help you reach your goal of looking  on the outside how you feel on the inside. Go ahead and make the call, book your appointments, then come back and I will help you navigate the consultation.

Dipping my Toes Into the Social Media Pool

I need to learn about online marketing to bring my company’s business to the next level, so I decided to learn what a Twitter was compared to an Instagram compared to whatever a Snapchat might be. Signing up for a social media course, I prepared to gingerly  dip my toes in the pool that everyone is swimming  in these days.

A Saturday in January was my day one.  I started with assigned reading at 8 am, by one pm my husband asked just how many articles I had to read that day. I was on my first one but he didn’t understand, it may seem like hours to him but now I knew how to make a messy bun,  cook chocolate mousse with just an avocado, sugar and cocoa, and I could even tell you which hotels were the eight most expensive in the world (Hotel President Wilson, Switzerland tops the list FYI). The glitz and movement,  I needed to focus but how could I with all this important information just floating around  page edges, taunting me with my lack of knowledge?!  I promised myself just five more minutes and back to the article. What will Rob think when I tell him I had to print the articles in order to read them without getting side tracked?! I tried dipping my toes and fell in a  whirlpool! I was ready to give up, feeling like I had developed what I imagine ADD is or perhaps had just lost my mind completely. Two full days and I read one article and had eighteen tabs open in my browser.

Moving forward things improved. I could resist temptation once I learned the word  retargeting, advertising from sites you have visited,  and understood why there were so many interesting things to click on . I also enjoyed discovering what other people had been  looking at on my computer as the ads popped up for American Eagle and makeup sites, this could be useful around Birthday times! Wow, I was maybe treading water now!

I have learned how I can use Pinterest or Instagram for visual branding of our business and product, You tube for education, Twitter and Facebook for connecting and feedback with our clients. Snapchat I think will remain unused except for personal use, such as sending pictures of a new hairdo from the salon to tease everyone until they can see the full cut.

Finally feeling like I have swam back to the bank, next week I am prepared to publish my first five Tweets, I plan to do a daily countdown to Valentine’s Day of the people our business loves in Ottawa. Then I am ready to plunge back into the water and see if I can learn a new stroke. As for tonight I am heading into the kitchen to make chocolate avocado mousse.