Client: Pendleton Medical Centre, Salford
Business type and sector: NHS GP in Salford
Pendleton Medical Centre is an established NHS GP practice in southeast Salford. It is one of ten member GP practices within Salford Southeast Primary Care Network.
Problem statement:
When Salford-based GP practice Pendleton Medical Centre (PMC) faced challenges attracting new patients, it approached FIRE Creative to develop a ‘patient-friendly’ brand identity and digital marketing.
10%
increase patient list growth within 12 months
x2
patient acquisition over 3 years (doubled)
100%
increase in Google Reviews rank and improved brand trust
Dr Deji, PMC GP, shares, “Many NHS GPs look alike and rely on word of mouth for marketing, making it challenging to stand out. In addition, as one of ten GP practices within Salford Southeast Primary Care Network our densely populated Salford location means patient competition is high.
GP practices primarily earn revenue based on the number of patients, so each new registration positively impacts our financial performance. We needed a fresh perspective to help differentiate us from neighbouring competitor GP surgeries.
When we met Debbie from FIRE Creative, we were most impressed by her ability to think outside the box and identify opportunities we had not considered.”
Capturing PMCs’ personality with the help of brand identity and messaging
For the identity, we selected a digitally-friendly and accessible font, emphasising the medical practice’s human aspect. The logo emblem symbolises the integration and interaction of various elements that make up Pendleton Medical Centre.
Green = Salford suburb
Blue = Medical
Pink = Community spirit
We set lifestyle images and inspirational words in circles to expand the visual identity and further capture the medical practice’s soft and approachable nature.
Using digital marketing basics to build trust
We conducted a website and digital marketing audit, identifying customer journey gaps.
During the discovery session, we learned that most patients use the same GP practice. Many only leave their practice when they relocate to a new area, pass away, or because of poor customer service and experience.
Building brand trust was key to the campaign’s success, so this became our primary objective for increasing conversions and patient advocacy.
Our research revealed that Salford’s population grew by 15%, and it was clear that the GP practice was missing a significant opportunity.
We developed a tone-of-voice plan to help the PMC practice team improve its Google My Business review score, offering quick wins.
While the PMC GP practice website met NHS guidelines for accessibility and mobile friendliness, it wasn’t converting visitors into registrations. Basic SEO principles often get overlooked, so we used keyword research to improve the website’s top 10 landing pages. Adding a simple mix of local search and brand value-based terms to make meta titles and descriptions sound friendly and patient-centred.
Delivering revenue with brand and digital marketing
When FIRE Creative started working with Pendleton Medical Centre, they had just over 3,000 patients. However, within three months, we saw a 6% increase in patient registrations and a 30% increase in patient list size year over year, with their patient list size doubling in 3 years.
“We now have a recognisable identity that connects the entire team and the patient community and a straightforward marketing process we can apply and adapt. By attracting more patients, we can increase investment in better healthcare and patient services.”
GP Practice Manager
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