An Exciting Time in the Online Space

Every month, CLICK provides ECPs and optical retailers with the tools they need to build their presence online and grow connections with their patients. The latest in a series of popular e-newsletters from Vision Monday, CLICK is a monthly briefing designed specifically to provide practice insights and ideas about the latest Web site features, tools and Web-based applications.

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—The Editors

Pew Internet & American Life Project: 61% of Americans Look Online for Health Information

WASHINGTON D.C.—At the start of this new year, it’s a good time to fully embrace the change that the Internet and technology have created in our lives and in patients’ lives—and assess what it means to the daily eyecare practice and eyewear dispensary.

The Pew Internet & American Life Project is one of seven projects that make up the Pew Research Center, a nonpartisan, nonprofit “fact tank” that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. The Project produces reports “exploring the impact of the Internet on families, communities, work and home, daily life, education, health care, and civic and political life,” according to the resource-rich Web site.

Here are some recent Pew Internet insights to ponder:

A majority of American adults look online for health information and most are accessing reviews and comments posted by fellow consumers. According to a June report released by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project and the California HealthCare Foundation, 61 percent of adults look online for health information. Of those, 59 percent have done at least one of the following activities:

• Read someone else's commentary or experience about health or medical issues on an online news group, website, or blog
• Consulted rankings or reviews online of doctors or other providers
• Consulted rankings or reviews online of hospitals or other medical facilities
• Signed up to receive updates about health or medical issues
• Listened to a podcast about health or medical issues

In addition, 20% of internet users who have looked online for health information, or “e-patients,” have actively contributed comments, reviews, and updates. E-patients in this group have, for example:

• Tagged or categorized online content about health or medical issues
• Posted comments, queries, or information about health or medical matters in an online discussion, listserv, or other online group forum
• Posted comments about health on a blog
• Posted a review online of a doctor
• Posted a review online of a hospital
• Shared photos, videos or audio files online about health or medical issues

In sum, 60 percent of e-patients (37 percent of all adults) have done at least one of the above activities.

“We are beginning to see e-patients turning to interactive features both to help them find information tailored to their needs and to post their own contributions,” says Susannah Fox, a co-author of the report, and associate director of the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project. “They treat the Internet as a supplement to traditional sources of information, using blogs, podcasts, and other online resources to deepen their understanding of a condition and sharpen their questions for a health professional.”

In the Pew Internet/California HealthCare Foundation report, “The Social Life of Health Information,” is a description of how the e-landscape has shifted in the last decade. In 2000, 46 percent of American adults had access to the Internet, 5 percent of U.S. households had broadband connections, and 25 percent of American adults looked online for health information. Now, 75 percent of American adults go online, 57 percent of American households have broadband connections, and 61 percent of adults look online for health information.

An April 2009 survey shows that 56 percent of adult Americans have accessed the Internet by wireless means, such as using a laptop, mobile device, game console, or MP3 player. The most prevalent way people get online using a wireless network is with a laptop computer; 39 percent of adults have done this.

The report also finds rising levels of Americans using the Internet on a mobile handset. One-third of Americans (32 percent) have used a cell phone or Smartphone to access the Internet for emailing, instant-messaging, or information-seeking. This level of mobile Internet is up by one-third since December 2007, when 24 percent of Americans had ever used the Internet on a mobile device. On the typical day, nearly one-fifth (19 percent) of Americans use the Internet on a mobile device, up substantially from the 11 percent level recorded in December 2007. That’s a growth of 73 percent in the 16 month interval between surveys.

Baystone: Offers ECPs Customized Sites, Multi-Media Enhancements

JERICHO, N.Y.— A new resource for eyecare professionals looking to update their online presence is a company which has specialized in helping professionals in the dental, cardiology and OB/GYN fields, among others, to develop theirs.

Baystone Media is a full-service web design company which is now targeting eyecare professionals with customized Web site services involving no initial set-up fees or long-term contracts, but monthly fees for unlimited pages plus various optional packages of content development, video enhancements and search engine optimization.

States Kara Hirsch, marketing manager, “We bring experience in many different industries, from architecture and food and apparel retail, including development for medical specialists. We think we offer a lot to eyecare practitioners and eyewear retailers who are looking build modern, new sites in an easy way, with dedicated customer service and simple-to-use management systems.”

Hirsch explained Baystone’s work now brings to the optical market “the basic building blocks of the site” along with choices of ‘gold’ and ‘silver’ packages or suites of site enhancements.

Baystone’s content is written by professionals and is then customized by each doctor or professional for the needs of their eyecare practice, optical boutique or dispensary. Options include e-commerce capabilities, e-newsletters, search-engine-optimization (SEO) and a range of direct-to-patient communication tools. “From e-newsletters to reminder cards to special notices, these tools help build and develop patient loyalty and also help build referrals for practices,” Hirsch notes.

She also points out that the company’s customer service and telephone consultations will provide step-by-step advice about the style, look and content of high-performance sites. In addition, the customizable nature of the site-building, allows for simple and continual updates. “We offer unlimited customer support, and don’t charge to make changes. We offer constant support, although the sites’ content is relatively simple to preview and manage.”

Some of Baystone’s media enhancements include ‘live’ video spokesmodel spots, social media connections to maximize the power of the sites, and other features.