(Update from 02.06.2020 / This article was originally published on 06.08.2015)
Jameda, Sanego, DocInsider, Ärzte.de, The doctor's information... the list of existing doctor rating portals is long. There are also portals for clinic ratings, sector-independent rating portals such as Yelp! or the now highly regarded evaluation function at Google - However, these will be omitted in the following.
We asked ourselves: Which doctor rating portals really play a role in the search for a doctor? And on which portals should doctors regularly check their rating status?
Direct comparison of doctor rating portals
To find this out, we checked the best-known portals and analysed the following indicators:
Monthly users
How many visitors do the individual review portals record per month? It should be noted that this information comes from the operators of the portals themselves and could not be verified by us. Some portals do not provide any information at all.
Facebook fans
Do the review portals have a fan page on Facebook and if so, how many fans do they have? Even if one can argue about the informative value, the number of fans undoubtedly gives an indication of how well-known the respective portal is.
Google Rankings
We have analysed some - in our opinion meaningful - keyword phrases to determine how well the doctor review portals can be found on Google. A good ranking also indicates a high number of visitors, as this is included in the ranking by Google.
Sistrix Visibility Index (Germany)
The visibility index can be used to track how a website has developed on Google over a long period of time. The higher the value, the better the general findability of the website on Google (i.e. not related to specific keywords). Further information on → sistrix.com.
We also analysed other factors, such as pricing and the rating system, to make the portals more comparable.
Final note: arzt-auskunft.de is of course not a classic doctor rating portal, but "only" a directory of doctors. Nevertheless, we have included the site here.
The results of our evaluation
Doctor rating portals at a glance
(Please click on the picture to enlarge)
Summary
According to the factors we analysed, it is clear that Jameda continues to attract the most attention from patients by a wide margin and is ahead of all other portals with its smartphone app. However, Sanego also scores relatively well and is clearly superior to its competitors Ärzte.de and DocInsider in the Google ranking and visibility index.
Doctors are therefore advised to check the rating status at least on Jameda and Sanego regularly (ideally monthly). However, DocInsider and Ärzte.de should also not be completely ignored and should be checked at least quarterly to see how the ratings are developing here.
Everyone has to decide for themselves whether they want to pay for a premium entry. If it is purely about the rating status, you can also achieve a lot with basic entries. However, we recommend that our customers have at least one premium entry on a portal - also with regard to the Search engine optimisationas there is a link or several links to the Practice homepage can be very valuable for the Google ranking.
Thinking outside the box
This article was originally published here in 2015 (the current version was revised on 2 June 2020). A lot has happened in the "valuation market" since then.
Google ratings, for example, did not play as big a role five years ago as they do now. Therefore, in addition to the above recommendation, doctors should also keep an eye on their Google rating status. Google ratings are directly linked to any existing Google MyBusiness entry (resulting in the entries in Google Maps) and are therefore directly visible when a doctor's name is googled.
In addition, opinions are also formed (particularly in the field of aesthetic medicine) in internet forums or Facebook groups. While internet forums are becoming less important, Facebook groups are gaining in significance. This is where people with similar interests organise themselves to exchange information (e.g. experiences, tips). See our blog post on this: Facebook groups can influence the practice's image.
Photo: © DragonImages / elements.envato.com
