Medical practice video marketing: videos that bring in patients
Video marketing for a medical practice works when it does what a review page can't: shows patients who the doctor is, what a visit feels like, and that the practice is taking new patients, before they call. One 30-second vertical "meet the practice" video, used on your Google Business Profile, Instagram and Facebook, and a 60-second version on your website, covers the first questions. That's where new patients look: in rater8's 2025 survey of more than 1,000 US patients, 84% checked online reviews before choosing a new provider, and in an earlier Press Ganey survey, 51% of people choosing a new primary care doctor started on the web. Below are the 6 videos worth making, the HIPAA and ad rules to follow, what to film, and a real 30-second family practice video made from 17 clinic clips.
17 clips of a family practice became a 30-second new-patient video with captions and a call card, Sped up. Phone-size version.
6 videos new patients look for
| Video | Length | What it shows | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meet the practice | 30 s, 9:16 | The doctors, a visit, who you see, how to book | Google Business Profile, Instagram, Facebook |
| Meet the doctor | 45–60 s | One physician, their approach, in their own words | Website doctor page, YouTube |
| Your first visit | 60–90 s | Check-in, what to bring, the exam, follow-up | New-patient page, booking confirmation |
| Services and hours | 30 s | Same-week visits, telehealth, insurance accepted | Website homepage, ads |
| Health explainer | 60–120 s | One common question (flu shots, a screening, a test) | Website, YouTube |
| Patient story | 30–60 s | A patient in their own words, with written authorization | Website |
The first and fourth answer "can I get in, and will I like it here?", which is most of what drives a new-patient call.
Rules to follow before you post
- Identifiable patients need a written HIPAA authorization before their face, voice or story is used in marketing. A general consent in the intake packet isn't enough. HHS settled with a physical therapy practice for $25,000 over testimonials posted with patients' names and full-face photos without valid authorizations.
- Keep protected information out of the frame: screens, charts, schedules, labels and wristbands.
- Testimonials must be honest and typical, and any reward for a review must be disclosed under the FTC's Endorsement Guides.
- No outcome promises. Describe access and approach ("same-week appointments", "we take time to explain"), not results.
- Health targeting is limited on Meta. Meta removed detailed ad targeting based on health topics in 2022, so target by location and age and let the video speak to the right patients.
What to film (one morning)
- Each doctor looking at the camera for 5 seconds, relaxed, in a white coat or scrubs.
- An exam with a consenting patient or staff member: listening with a stethoscope, checking a pulse, talking.
- A child's visit, if you see children.
- Writing notes or a prescription: hands and a pen, not a screen.
- The front desk welcoming someone.
- The waiting room and an exam room, wide and bright.
Film vertically, 5–10 seconds per shot, in the brightest room. Turn off any screen that shows patient data. If a doctor talks to camera, use a phone on a stand and a clip-on microphone.
The example: a 30-second family practice video
We uploaded 17 clips of a family practice (a doctor with a child and adult patients, a pulse check, a stethoscope exam, writing a prescription, a second doctor facing the camera) to Novacut. The practice name and phone number are made up. We wrote:
Make a 30-second vertical video for Instagram, Facebook and our Google Business Profile introducing our practice, Maple Family Medicine, to new patients. Open on the doctor looking at the camera with her stethoscope with the text "Your family doctor, close to home" in the first two seconds. Then show the doctor examining a child, checking a patient's pulse, listening to a patient, and writing a prescription, with calm, reassuring instrumental music. Add short captions: "Kids, adults and seniors", "Same-week appointments", "Most insurance plans accepted". End on a card: "Maple Family Medicine" with "Accepting new patients · Call (555) 014-2290" underneath. No claims about outcomes. Give every horizontal shot its own crop on the people or the product so it fills the 9:16 frame with no black bars, and keep all text large, inside the middle of the frame, clear of the top 15% and the bottom 35% where the app buttons sit.
Novacut opened on the doctor facing the camera under the first line, then the child's exam, the pulse check, the stethoscope and the prescription, each with one caption, and the call card over the exam room, to a calm library track. It cropped the horizontal clips to fill the vertical frame, and flagged the one crop to check: in the child-exam shot the doctor sits near the edge and her face is partly cut off.
We also asked for a 60-second horizontal version for the website. Most of these clips were filmed vertically, so in 16:9 they came out with black bars at the sides. If you want a horizontal website video too, film part of the morning horizontally: a horizontal clip crops cleanly to vertical, but a vertical clip has to be zoomed about 3× to fill a horizontal frame.
Where to post each video
- Google Business Profile. Upload the 30-second video under Photos → Videos (up to 30 seconds). It's what people see when they search for a doctor nearby.
- Your website. The 30-second video on the homepage, "meet the doctor" videos on each doctor's page, with captions.
- Instagram and Facebook. Post it, then run it as an ad within your service area.
- New-patient emails and texts. Link the first-visit video in the booking confirmation.
The same playbook works for dental practices (dental video marketing) and med spas (med spa marketing).
Mistakes to avoid
- Stock footage of strangers in scrubs. Patients want to see your doctors.
- A screen with patient data in the background. Check every frame before posting.
- Outcome claims. Show access, time and care, not promised results.
- No phone number or booking link at the end. Keep it on screen for at least 4 seconds.
- Posting a patient without a signed authorization. Get it in writing before filming.
FAQ
What videos should a medical practice make?
Start with a 30-second "meet the practice" video and a short services-and-hours video. Then add "meet the doctor" videos, a first-visit walkthrough, short health explainers, and patient stories with written HIPAA authorization.
Is video marketing HIPAA compliant?
It can be. Film staff or consenting patients, get a written HIPAA authorization from any identifiable patient before using their image or story in marketing, and keep screens and charts with patient information out of the frame.
How long should a medical practice video be?
30 seconds for Google Business Profile, Instagram and Facebook, 45–90 seconds for website and YouTube videos, and up to 2 minutes for explainers.
Can a doctor's office run Facebook ads?
Yes, but Meta no longer allows detailed targeting by health topics. Target by location and age, and keep the message about access and approach rather than conditions or outcomes.
Do I need a professional crew?
No. A phone on a stand, a clip-on microphone for anyone speaking, and a bright exam room are enough. The editing (order, captions, music and the call card) is where the polish comes from.
Sources: rater8 survey on how patients choose doctors, via Medical Economics; Press Ganey survey on choosing a doctor, via MDedge; HHS OCR, physical therapy provider settles over patient testimonials; FTC Endorsement Guides; BrightLocal on Google Business Profile video limits. Checked November 2026.
Footage: Pavel Danilyuk on Pexels (Pexels License). The practice is fictional; the people shown don't endorse Novacut.