Blog · Diagnostics · 5 min read
Diagnostic centre marketing in Nigeria: how to fill your bookings
Labs and imaging centres fill bookings from three streams: self-booked searches, referring doctors and corporate screening. Here is how to work all three.
By the Kren Agency team ·
Diagnostic centre marketing in Nigeria works when people searching for a test or scan can find your centre, understand what to book, and book it without a phone call. It also keeps referring doctors and corporate clients sending patients, and treats every result as private. Here is how a lab or imaging centre in Lagos or Abuja puts those pieces together.
Where do a diagnostic centre’s patients come from?
Most centres draw from three streams. Each one needs different work.
- Self-booked patients. Someone searches “ultrasound scan in Ikeja” or “lab test near me” and picks a centre within minutes.
- Referring doctors. A doctor writes a request and the patient goes wherever the doctor suggests, or wherever is nearest.
- Corporate screening. Employers book pre-employment or annual health checks for their staff.
Many centres lean on one stream. When it slows, so do the bookings.
How do self-booked patients find your centre?
Usually on Google, which is why diagnostic centre marketing starts there. Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and prominence, and that businesses with complete and accurate information are more likely to show up, in its tips to improve local ranking. It also says more reviews and positive ratings can help a business’s local ranking.
For a diagnostic centre, that means:
- Add every common test and scan as a service on your Google Business Profile, including the custom ones.
- Keep opening hours exact, including Saturdays and public holidays. A patient who arrives fasting to a closed door may not come back.
- Add real photos of the entrance, reception and waiting area.
- Ask every patient for a review, and reply without confirming what test anyone had.
Our post on setting up a Google Business Profile for clinics covers the full profile.
What should each test page say?
People booking a test have practical questions. A good page per test, scan or package answers them before they call:
- What the test is for, in plain words.
- How to prepare, as your scientists or radiologists advise. Fasting, a full bladder, what to bring.
- Whether a doctor’s request form is needed.
- How long the visit takes and when results are usually ready.
- A price or a starting price, if the centre chooses to share one.
- One clear way to book, repeated down the page.
For packages, say who each one suits and what it checks. A long list of test names means little to most people.
Should patients book and pay online?
Walk-ins will always matter for labs. Scans are different. An ultrasound, X-ray or CT slot is fixed time on a machine, so an empty slot is lost income.
Let people pick a time online or by message, then confirm it and send a reminder the day before with the preparation notes. Whether to take payment in advance is your decision. It suits some packages and puts off some patients, so weigh it against your own no-show pattern. Our post on reducing patient no-shows covers reminders and confirmations.
How do you keep referring doctors sending patients?
Doctors refer to the centre that makes their work easy. Make yours the easy one:
- Give a simple referral route. A request form they can send in seconds, and a named contact who answers.
- Confirm the patient arrived. A short note tells the doctor the referral worked.
- Return results the way the doctor prefers, on time and through a secure route you have agreed.
- Track referrals by doctor. When one goes quiet, someone calls.
Keep any referral arrangement within your professional rules.
How do you win corporate screening contracts?
Employers want a short list of packages, a clear process for booking many staff at once, and one contact person. Write a one-page offer for each package.
Agree in writing what the employer receives. Results belong to each employee. Share them with the employer only on a lawful basis, such as the employee’s consent, and get advice on what fits your case.
Why does results privacy matter for diagnostic centre marketing?
The Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 lists health status as sensitive personal data in section 65. Section 30 restricts processing it to set conditions, the first being the person’s consent for that specific purpose. Section 39 requires security measures that take into account how sensitive the data is.
In practice:
- Name no test in reminders. Other people see phone screens.
- Confirm identity before discussing results by phone or message.
- Keep patient details out of ads and posts.
- Ask before adding anyone to health-check reminders.
How Kren helps diagnostic centres fill their bookings
Kren is a done-for-you team for private clinics in Lagos and Abuja. For diagnostic labs and imaging centres, we set up your Google profile and test pages, run your campaigns, and build the booking confirmations, preparation reminders and referral tracking. Your team runs the tests, handles results and confirms each booking.
Opening a new lab? Our post on MLSCN medical laboratory registration covers the approval steps first.
On a 30-minute strategy call, we look at where your centre loses tests and scans today and what to fix first.
Show me where my clinic is losing patients →
Questions owners ask about diagnostic centre marketing
Should we publish test prices online?
That is the centre’s decision. Many people will not call without some idea of cost, so a starting price can bring more bookings. If you prefer not to, explain what each package covers and make it easy to ask.
Can we advertise health check packages on social media?
Yes, with care. Describe the package and who it suits, promise no outcome, and never suggest you know someone’s condition. Each ad network also has its own health advertising rules, so check them before a campaign.
Can results be sent by message?
Only through a route the patient has agreed to, after you confirm who they are. Health status is sensitive personal data under the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023, so take advice on the safest method for your centre.
Which stream should a new centre start with?
Usually self-booked patients through Google, since that work keeps paying off. Start building referring doctor relationships in the same month, as they take longer to grow.