The Patient’s Pick - What Makes You the Obvious Choice

A few months ago, I needed to find a specialist. I had a referral, a couple of names, and enough curiosity to do what almost every patient is doing today, I Googled them.

 What I found was eye opening and a little unsettling.

One didn’t show up at all.

Another had a photo that looked like it was taken in his bedroom when he was 20.

One had a polished list of credentials but a bio that sounded like a Word document template someone forgot to personalise.

Only one stood out.

Not because of a fancy website or a viral Instagram account, but because their profile was clear, credible, and relevant to the very issue I was trying to solve.

They didn’t look like a celebrity. They looked like a professional, like someone I could trust.

That moment stuck with me because it reinforced something I see every day in my work with physicians.

Patients aren’t just choosing based on referrals. They’re researching, vetting, comparing and most importantly, they’re deciding long before they step into your office.

The question is, when they look you up, what do they find?

From white coats to Google search, the modern patient journey.

The traditional patient journey has been flipped.

Decades ago, you might build a practice entirely from GP referrals or hospital affiliations. But now, patients take those recommendations, go online, and start researching.

They want more than a name. They want context, credibility, and confidence before they book.

In fact, data shows that more than 70% of patients in the US begin their journey with online research and that includes patients who received a direct referral. Even in the UK and Ireland, where the healthcare systems operate differently, private patients are increasingly influenced by what they see online.

But it doesn't stop at Google, patients are looking across platforms (review sites, clinic pages, LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube and more). They’re listening to podcasts, reading blogs, and skimming through your digital trail to answer one question

Is this the doctor who can help me?

In a world of overwhelming information and rising health anxiety, the doctor who shows up clearly, calmly, and credibly is the one who gets chosen.

What patients really value? (It’s not just your credentials!)

Let’s be clear, qualifications still matter. Patients want to know you’re board-certified, experienced, and highly trained. However, that’s just the baseline, it gets you in the running, but it doesn’t win the race.

What actually influences their decision?

• Relevance: Patients want to see themselves in your story. That you understand their condition, stage of life, or goals.

• Reputation: Not just clinical, but emotional. Are you known for being a good listener? A clear explainer? A reassuring presence?

• Relatability: Can they imagine sitting across from you, feeling seen and heard?

• Accessibility: Are you easy to contact, book with, and follow up with? Do you offer online booking or telehealth?

• Trust signals: Recent reviews, professional photography, a well written bio and media features. Even small touches like your tone and language choices build or erode trust.

One of the most overlooked factors is consistency. Patients notice when your bio says one thing and your reviews say another. Or when one platform is up to date but the others are neglected.

Mixed signals make people uneasy. In healthcare, unease is enough to prompt someone to keep looking.

The new trust equation

Trust used to be built over time, in person. Now, it begins the moment someone types your name into a search bar. That’s not good or bad, it’s just the new normal.

Patients are not only consuming health information online, they’re making decisions based on what they find. Just like they compare restaurants or holiday rentals, they’re comparing doctors.

They're checking your reviews, tone, appearance, clarity of communication. Everything contributes to an instant gut feeling:

Yes, this doctor understands people like me.

or

No, this feels impersonal or outdated.

This is why I coach every physician in our branding program to think like their patient.

Step out of the clinical role for a moment and enter the mindset of someone who is overwhelmed, uncertain, and trying to make the best possible decision for their health or their family.

Ask yourself this question:

What would you need to see to feel safe?

That’s the bar and that’s your opportunity.

You don’t need to be everywhere, just visible where it matters

This isn’t a call to become a content creator.

You don’t need to start dancing on TikTok or posting breakfast reels to build trust.

But you do need to:

• Control what patients find when they search you

• Show up consistently across platforms

• Speak clearly to your ideal patient’s needs

• Be findable, bookable, and human

This might be through a strong Google Business profile, a clean modern website, thoughtful testimonials, media articles, recent headshots or even a 60-second intro video.

The tools are flexible, but what matters is the intention behind them - To build trust before someone ever meets you.

And that trust leads to action. Booking, referring, returning and recommending.

Referrals still matter, but they need backup

Let’s not pretend referrals are dead.

They’re still a huge driver of new patient flow, especially in specialties.

But the shift is that referrals are just the start nowadays. Patients will go online to confirm that referral. They want alignment between what they heard and what they see.

If a friend says you’re fantastic, but your online presence is inconsistent, outdated, or cold, they’ll hesitate.

If a GP recommends you, but you have no reviews or useful content, they’ll keep comparing.

You want your online presence to validate the referral and say “Yes, I'm exactly who you thought I was”.

Being the doctor that patients choose

The truth is, you can’t afford to be invisible anymore.

It’s not always the best clinician who gets chosen, it’s the one who shows up clearly, consistently, and credibly.

The one who says, through every touchpoint "I understand your problem, and I can help".

So if you want to:

• Attract more of the right-fit patients

• Turn passive referrals into booked appointments

• Build a long-term reputation that outlasts trends

Then your branding isn’t optional, it’s essential.

It’s just critical to remember that branding isn’t logos or colours or catchphrases. It’s the perception you create, the story you own, the feeling people get when they come across your name. 

Done right, it becomes the reason a patient stops scrolling. The reason they say, "This is the doctor I need".

How can you start to build your brand?

You don’t need to do everything all at once, just need to take one intentional step. 

Here are three you can do this week:

1.     Google yourself. What comes up? Is it accurate, consistent, professional?

2.     Update your bio. Make it specific. Make it human. Make it clear who you help and how.

3.     Ask for three new reviews. From real, satisfied patients. Social proof builds trust quickly.

Start where you are and use what you have.

My final thoughts

Patients don’t meet you at the front desk anymore, they first meet you online instead.

That first impression is your photo, your headline, your tone, your clarity.

It’s your ability to say, without jargon or ego, “Here’s who I am, and here’s how I help".

So many of the physicians I work with are brilliant, compassionate, and deeply committed to their patients. Yet so many of them keep their brilliance hidden, their message is buried and their online presence doesn’t match their real-world impact.

That’s what the Physician Branding Program was built to change.

If you’re ready to be seen, trusted, and chosen by the patients who need you most, let’s build your brand to reflect the doctor you truly are.

Because someone out there is searching and hoping more than anything, to find someone who makes them say

"Yes, this is the doctor I need"

Olivia is a globally sought after high-performance strategist, serial entrepreneur and co-founder of Verity Barrington.

With over two decades excelling in branding, business, and behavioural strategy, she helps physicians and surgeons build powerful brands that drive visibility, authority, and long term income.

Her clients don’t just get noticed, they become winners.