How important are first impressions? They’re crucial when it comes to medical spa websites. The initial visit to your website is likely the first interaction prospective patients will have with your med spa. Their initial impressions are KEY in their decisions to move on or book with your practice.

As your homepage loads on the screen, you are opening a virtual front door for patients to get an impression of your practice. It needs to be striking. Beautiful. User friendly. Your goal is to create an experience: an aesthetic and productive user journey that leads to trust and bookings from your patients.

If your website is executed well, you will see your bookings and revenue increase. But just how do you create the ideal website experience for your prospective patients?

The truth is, many Med Spas have struggled with their website design. There is a high cost of choosing an inexperienced partner to design and develop your website. We've encountered practices that have spent up to eight months working with someone and have nothing to show for it or worse off, the quality of the work is far from what is expected.

You want to reach more than the patients who found you only because you are the closest option. You are an exceptional practice. Google needs to be ranking you as a top-rate medical spa, and prospective patients should be seeking you out. Your value needs to be apparent on your website.

Website design is a delicate science, but we are here to help. Read on to learn our top 10 suggestions for creating the website that your Medical Spa deserves (and needs!).

Your website’s design will likely leave the most lasting impression.

Simple design is best. Prospective patients want to quickly scan your website and get a sense of your practice. Patients can get lost in too many options or complex layouts.

Keep your homepage simple. Understand that the homepage’s primary functions are to present an aesthetic brand visual and to offer navigation for your prospective patients. The homepage is not meant for long explanations--go into detail on subsequent pages about your treatments.
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The more simple the homepage, the more likely your patients will dive deeper into the website. Better click-through rates are a major goal of any website, and a simple homepage will encourage that exploration. (And your website will load faster too!)

In your design decisions, take advantage of the power of white space. Intentional spacing can draw attention to concise and direct headers, poignant images, etc.

So, cut out the fluff and showcase only the essentials. Everyone benefits from an uncluttered layout. You and your patients are best served by viewing only the most important information, which in turn leads to more bookings.

Medical Spa competition is fierce. To stand apart from your competitors, you need your website to showcase that your practice is unique from the rest.

Create a distinct feel for your website. Avoid cookie-cutter website designs. Google rankings do not look kindly on websites that are essentially duplicates of other MedSpa websites. Invest in making your website experience unique.

Personalizing your practice can also help create your distinct experience. Consider putting a face to your brand. Invest in high-quality photography of your entire team. Include info on their specialties, highlight relevant quotes, and allow their personalities to shine through.

Share your expert knowledge. Recognize that your Medical Spa has a wealth of knowledge among your doctors and team members on procedures and services. Sharing your expertise will increase patient trust that they are in good hands and improve engagement.

If you are recognized for a specific procedure, make that known! Take every opportunity to build up your authority. Patient testimonials, awards, effective before and after images, etc. can all help build your credibility. You could also mention the BOTOX training programs where your injectors certified.‍
Don’t try to blend in with all the Medical Spas out there. Your Medical Spa is truly something exceptional! Boldly showcase your many strengths. Make it obvious that your prospective patients should book with your practice!

Your prospective patients likely came to your website with a specific purpose in mind. Make the navigation of your site as user-friendly as possible in their search.
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Make the navigation on your website obvious. Break up your treatment content with headings and subheadings to make it easy to quickly scan and find information. Also, quick links on the header and footer of your website can help your patients quickly find what they are looking for.

Your headers and links should contain clear “Call to Actions” that outline exactly what steps should be taken by your prospective patients. Your commands should point to links for further information and bookings. Obvious links often work well in the form of website buttons.

There's also no need to keyword stuff. Instead, seamlessly integrate phrases you want to rank for into your headers as directional tools to guide your prospective patients. Continue to mention these keywords as it feels natural in your treatment descriptions. Sparingly using these phrases can help direct your patients and improve your SEO ranking.

Make your content as digestible as possible. No one wants to read a straight page of content. Instead, alternate your content blocks between brief paragraphs, stunning visuals, set apart quotes, helpful infographics, and lists/bullet points. Effective formatting will often be the deciding factor of whether or not your visitors read your content.

Make sure your website layout is logical and easy to understand for a first-time patient. Add value with every sentence. Clearly lay out the information your prospective patients need to book with your practice!

In the absence of personal, face-to-face interaction within your practice, your online writing presence needs to take on that role!
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Keep your writing tone personal and engaging. Address your prospective patients with the second person “you.” This direct, down-to-earth approach creates a personal connection as if you were talking directly with them--despite the screen.
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Your website should NOT read like a medical journal. Don’t dive too deep into the technical science behind your procedures. Rather, explain your treatments clearly and simply, always focusing on the end goals of the procedures like weight loss, etc. Your patients shouldn’t have to go to Medical School to understand your practice’s content.
 
While not coming off as too academic, you also need to avoid creating a sales showroom feel. Avoid empty sales-pitch filler. Patients are turned off by websites that seem too focused on baiting them for sales. Instead, be as concise and helpful as possible.
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Always keep in mind that your website needs to be tailored to the way first-time patients think. For example, maybe a patient is looking for a weight loss treatment but is not sure what procedures are out there. Help them out. Clear headers, demonstrative pictures and videos, and brief explanations can fill in some of those knowledge gaps.
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Your patients should never feel overwhelmed or lost while reading your content. Write clearly and directly on your patients’ level.  It doesn’t matter how much you know or offer unless you make it accessible to your patients!

In the aesthetics industry, a stunning visual is worth pages of written content.

Offer visual proof of the effectiveness of your treatments. Prospective patients are very interested to see the before and after results of your treatments. The visuals they see often have a direct impact on their decisions to book.

All the leading Med Spas are currently providing live videos of their treatments. Treatment videos are like diamonds on your page. An effective video instills SO MUCH TRUST in your practice’s injectors.

For example, a video helps settle the anxiety of  “the unknown” that many prospective patients bring with them. It provides a view into the treatment experience and can showcase the pleasant, professional, hip, etc. vibes of your practice. No other medium can match a video’s endorsement.

*Expert Tip: Change up your video content. From fun videos showcasing your team, to educational clips walking through treatments, to a walk-a-around of your practice--the range of video content is endless!

See how Beauty Hut Sculpting effectively shares video of this injection treatment, showcasing the pleasant and professional experience for everyone involved.

Create an aesthetic vision across your visuals. For example, a website that prominently displays minimalist black and white beauty photos can create a feeling of sophistication. On the other hand, the use of colorful photographs where people are prominently interacting can create more of a warm, community feeling. Either, if employed effectively, can be a strong med spa website strategy.

Visuals are key in creating the aesthetic vision for your website. Beautiful visuals break up written content and provide an unmatched view into your med spa’s treatments. Written explanations can only get you so far... SHOW DON’T TELL by providing visuals for your patients!

Expert Tip: You don't need to produce exclusive video content on your website and every other marketing channel. Re-use your video content over all your channels! See how the med spa website example above showcased a popular TikTok post on their website. Think of your website as free marketing space for your social media marketing.

It’s easy for prospective patients to feel disconnected from a practice they have only interacted with online… So what can you do to make your practice seem more real?

Personalize your practice!

Introduce your staff on your website! Create space for your team members to be featured. In addition to names, job positions and photos, create space for written content from your doctors. Patients want to hear from the industry’s authority figures, and these voices of expertise add authority and credibility to your website.

You can also personalize your practice in a testimonial section. Prospective patients appreciate and DO read patient testimonials about their treatment experience. Feature their reviews and even pictures (with permission). Positive reviews about your practice are often what nudges prospective patients off the fence to booking with your practice!

Prospective patients often feel more connected when they associate faces with your Medical Spa. Bring your staff to the party!

Your patients are subconsciously influenced by the colors on your website.

The colors used in your banners, buttons, text color, etc. all contribute to an overall aesthetic. Use that knowledge to your advantage.

For example, you need to think about what feelings certain colors evoke. For example, in the United States, red is usually used as a symbol of urgency (stop signs) or passion. Blues create more of a calm feeling, yellow is sunny and optimistic, etc.

Be mindful of your colors as you create an aesthetic for your website and brand.  Don’t go overboard. Generally, a simple scheme, with just a few complimentary colors will serve you best.

*Expert Tip: So how can you make sure you aren’t just picking your favorite colors for your website? We have used and recommend Coolers.co in generating a color palette that works for your website. (This is not sponsored).

Decide which color(s) you want to use on your main display on your homepage. Make sure the other landing pages use complementary colors that, while often different from the home page, fit within the overall website design.

If implemented well, your website colors can become a key part of your overall brand recognition. Your color scheme can be implemented into your social media accounts, emails, etc. to create a universal link between all of your marketing branches and your practice representations.

You are in the beauty business, the colors on your website need to reflect that!

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Let’s address the big question: How do you convert the visitors to your website to fully engaged patients?

Your website design needs to encourage this transformation!

While being careful to not be too pushy, you can create opportunities for your prospective patients to progress towards treatment.

As mentioned earlier,  provide clear CTA’s (calls to action) that stand out from the page's design. Including a colored link box with a simple call to action like “Book Now” will often do the trick. Encourage your patients to click links by triggering the link boxes to change color when a cursor hovers over them.

You could also set up a chat pop-up to appear after a potential patient has clicked a link and shown interest in learning more. Just make sure to not be too in their face with the chat...just provide it on the side as a resource. It also can be a good idea to set up a google snippet--to collect data on your visitors to send them targeted ads about your practice in the future.

Make every opportunity to collect prospective patients' emails/info on your home page. While they have shown promise by initially seeking YOU out, your goal is to now flip the exchange where YOU are now actively reaching out to your prospective patients.

Patients expect your mobile website to be equally, if not better designed, than your desktop option.  

Whichever website platform you choose, it needs to have a responsive web design that automatically scales to whichever viewing screen your patient is using.
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Don't get sloppy.  Make sure your links are functioning and deliver your patients where they need to go. A misdirected link is a hit to your website’s credibility and authority- it can raise questions about whether your website is legitimate and backed up by reliable sources.
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Carefully monitor your pop-ups. Nothing is more frustrating than trying to navigate a website only to have the screen taken over by a pop-up that seems impossible to escape. Make sure clear navigation is available to all your patients… not just the ones with tiny fingers who can miraculously click a tiny escape box. 
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Put in place the necessary optimizations to keep your website loading quickly. A slow-loading website is a big turn-off. For example, compress your images to the smallest possible image weight to lower loading times. This might be something you can do your own but a developer or web design agency will come in handy.
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Your prospective patients won’t stick around for a subpar mobile experience. THEY WILL MOVE ON. A poorly designed or slow-loading website is not acceptable.  Do what it takes to keep your mobile website navigating smoothly and loading quickly!

As you design and continually update your website, always keep your Med spa’s goals in mind. 
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Be strategic. Craft a marketing plan that evaluates your website goals. Here are some questions you may want to consider:
 
1. What treatment areas are you hoping to grow in over the next 5 years? 10 years?
‍The areas you want to see growth in should be prominent on your site and receive a good deal of attention. 

2. What do you like about your competitors' websites? How can you incorporate similar effects on your own?
‍Pay attention to the other leading aesthetic practices in your area. Your website can benefit from paying attention to others’ strengths.
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3. What are your patients taking away from your website?
‍Consider collecting some data from your viewers. Make sure their takeaways align with the goals of your Medical Spa.
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*Expert Tip: We have had great results using the Hotjar resources to collect patient information.  Knowledge (of your patients) is power when it comes to creating the best website design!

Does everything on your site fit with your overall aesthetic? 
‍Seek to be on-brand. For example, your images should all have the same level of  quality. Regularly take a step back and evaluate if everything is working well together. 
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Utilize your people in this process! Ask for opinions from your doctors and other members of your Med Spa team. Your website should be reflective of your combined team’s goals.

An aesthetically stunning, optimized, custom website is crucial for the growth of your Med Spa practice. It is a tool that both aids your patients in receiving the information they need and helps you to convert patients into bookings.

You can not be too intentional with your website design. Every effort to engage and aid your prospective patients is well worth your time. With care, you can create a website that engages and gathers new patients to your Medical Spa