Internet-savvy consumers are incessant shoppers of health care providers and information

Today's Internet-savvy consumers are incessant shoppers of both health care providers and health care information, typically passing through four phases of online evaluation and connection with physicians, medical practices and other patients, according to Ron Harman King, a veteran digital marketer of specialty practices.

Understanding how to not just treat but also communicate with today's healthcare consumers through the Internet is key to a successful medical practice in the 21st century, said King, a featured speaker at the 2012 IVF-World Live Congress April 20-22 in Berlin, Germany.

The theme of the international conference is "In-Vitro Fertilization Clinics: Embracing the Digital Age," exploring how to best use the Internet to advance clinical and business success.

Equipped with social media and the conversational capabilities of Web 2.0, today's patients often look to other patients as much as to physicians for insights, said Mr. King, who will present two seminars:  

Converting the E-Powered Patient to YOUR Patient  
Today's prospective patients spend hours on the Internet comparison-shopping for health care information and physicians. Each is judging the IVF specialist long before the first appointment or even the first phone call to a practice. This session looks at the four phases of the e-powered patient's decision-making and engagement process, and how to use each phase to build new-patient volume.

The Doctor as Online Teacher: Growing Your Practice through Internet Content and Conversations Traditionally, marketing has been a one-way conversation from seller to buyer. Not anymore. In the Internet era, the patient is largely in charge of the process, which involves a sophisticated, online conversation not just between providers and patients but among millions of patients. Here's how to properly join the online patient conversations already in progress.