How do you overcome objections and successfully move forward?
A meaningful share of Malaysian healthcare systems and hospitals have not yet launched online physician ratings and reviews. There is real data to support the case for doing so, but despite that data, healthcare marketers often face genuine internal resistance, especially from doctors. Here are five tips to help navigate that resistance.
Key Takeaways
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How to get internal buy-in for physician ratings and reviews
Even armed with solid data and clear talking points, such as the fact that health consumers already use ratings and reviews to make decisions, a pitch can still fall flat. This is a reasonable concern. Opening a doctor’s practice and bedside manner to public, transparent review is bound to trigger an emotional response. Recognising that emotions genuinely shape how doctors and other stakeholders react helps in adjusting the pitch for a better chance of success.
Tip 1: Start with empathy
Physicians are often concerned about their own health system posting potentially negative reviews about them on organisation-owned platforms. It can feel counterintuitive, and that concern is valid; it takes more than data, it takes genuine empathy, to work through it.
When speaking with doctors, acknowledge the real stress they are already under, EMR (Electronic Medical Records) systems, patient satisfaction targets, RVUs (Relative Value Units, a measure of the resources used to provide a service), and cost-reduction pressures, among others. Ratings and reviews can feel like one more item on an already long list. Acknowledging that reality first, then showing how the initiative genuinely helps rather than adds to the burden, tends to temper an initial negative reaction and make the data that follows land better.
Tip 2: Use data to your advantage
Being a later adopter has one real advantage: more data is available to draw on. Once genuine empathy has been shown, highlight evidence that other organisations have succeeded with ratings and reviews programmes, including cases where negative reviews were part of that process. Reaching out to peers at organisations that already run a programme, for insight and permission to reference their experience, strengthens the case considerably.
It is also worth pointing out that provider reviews already exist on third-party sites regardless of whether an organisation participates directly. Publishing verified, first-party patient satisfaction data on an organisation’s own platform is a way to own that narrative rather than leave it entirely to external sites with far fewer reviews and less context.
Tip 3: Partner with Patient Experience
Pitching a ratings and reviews programme as a marketing-only initiative can undermine it before it starts, particularly where marketing does not already have strong internal credibility. Bringing the Patient Experience team on board first, then presenting the initiative jointly, tends to land better than marketing pitching it alone. Doctors who see the initiative as a marketing “ploy” will be far less receptive, however inaccurate that framing might be.
Tying the programme to existing patient experience goals, ones stakeholders are often already accountable for, creates a natural, credible connection rather than an added burden.
Tip 4: Find a physician ally
Not every doctor will support the initiative, but some genuinely will. Identifying a few, particularly respected leaders who already support marketing and the Patient Experience team, and meeting with them early builds a foundation. A single credible physician ally can be invaluable when tough questions arise in wider meetings, since a peer voice tends to land differently than a marketing team’s answer alone. The same logic applies to finding an early executive supporter.
Tip 5: Go in with logistics figured out
Leaders and doctors will reasonably ask how comments are moderated, what criteria determine what gets posted, and what happens if a doctor disagrees with a published comment. Having a clear escalation plan, developed with Patient Experience, Legal, and Compliance, ready before the pitch demonstrates genuine preparation rather than an afterthought.
Testing the programme on a staging site first, so doctors and staff can review real examples before public launch, also helps address concerns about what the actual output will look like. Doing this groundwork upfront signals genuine respect for stakeholders’ time and concerns, and tends to reduce the number of follow-up meetings needed.
Frequently asked questions about physician ratings and reviews programmes
Why do doctors often resist ratings and reviews programmes?
Most commonly, concern about negative reviews being published on an organisation’s own platform, combined with an already heavy workload. Leading with genuine empathy for these concerns, rather than data alone, tends to be more effective at building buy-in.
Should ratings and reviews be pitched as a marketing initiative?
Not alone. Partnering with the Patient Experience team and presenting it as a joint initiative tied to existing patient experience goals tends to be received far better than a marketing-only pitch.
What should be settled before pitching a ratings and reviews programme?
A clear moderation policy, an escalation process for disputed comments, and identified decision-makers for each. Bringing a fully worked-out plan to the pitch, rather than promising to figure out logistics later, builds real credibility.
How can a physician ally help with internal buy-in?
A respected physician who already supports the initiative can address peer concerns more credibly than a marketing team can alone, particularly in group settings where scepticism runs high.
Conclusion
Rolling out a provider ratings and reviews programme succeeds less on data alone and more on how genuinely the process addresses real concerns: leading with empathy, partnering with Patient Experience, building physician allies, and settling logistics before the pitch. Organisations that combine credible data with genuine change management, rather than data alone, tend to see meaningfully smoother adoption. The Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s work on reducing burnout and improving joy in work is a useful, credible reference point for understanding the broader stressors clinicians are navigating alongside any new initiative like this one.
Looking to build a healthcare marketing strategy grounded in genuine stakeholder buy-in? Contact MYSense today.
