How to Keep Your Dental Practice Thriving in an Online World
Simplify Your Marketing Philosophy and Stay Organic
It’s easy to become overwhelmed with dental marketing advice. Gurus are everywhere, promising some new marketing hack that’s guaranteed to attract 100+ new patients a month. There are books and videos and conferences. Your email box is overflowing with “industry secrets” and “SEO secret sauce.” So, how can a dental team sift through all this content to find solid advice that allows dentists to stand out online and consistently attract new patients? The best advice is to always focus on the basics and play the long game. Stick to simple dental marketing strategies and core truths. This will allow you to incorporate your own unique dental brand and accommodate local demographics.
Lately, there’s been a push to incorporate more automation into marketing. New apps boast that AI makes creating content easier than ever. In fact, all you have to do is enter a few words, and—presto—you have a social media post or promotional video! The truth is that technological aids like this do have a place in the creative process, but they should never be in charge. Using AI to assemble your content can speed up your workflow and make your practice more efficient. However, allowing your office to adopt some algorithm-based marketing plan is a recipe for stale, generic content. The driving force behind all your branding should be an intense desire to remain organic, to have your content firmly rooted in real people and real events. Humans have an uncanny ability to suspect fake and artificial things, which they instinctively distrust.
1. Maximize Your Content (Multipurpose)
Producing good content takes time and money, so it’s important to capitalize on this investment. For example, instead of just posting your video on social media, start a YouTube channel and catalog all your content in different playlists. Also, develop website content by embedding your videos; this will build authority with prospective patients and the Google algorithm.
Have you started a dental blog? Consider turning these articles into short videos as well. If you have good pictures and videos on a particular topic, be sure to craft social posts, which can then be repurposed into boosted paid ads.
Are you producing a monthly email newsletter? With the modern smartphone, emails are now like text messages. People receive alerts and respond easily, so a practice newsletter is another effective way to connect with your patients and maintain strong relationships. Platforms like Constant Contact and Mailchimp allow users to compose visually appealing emails that prompt engagement and strengthen brand loyalty. Some possible information to share: upcoming events, staff highlights, continuing education, dental education, special offers, pictures and videos, policy updates, and links to other content (webinars, podcasts, Facebook Live events, blog posts, and social media). The critical thing to remember when using email—respect people’s inbox. In other words, be careful how many emails you send; a good rule of thumb is one per week. If you send too many emails, people will unsubscribe.
Have you started a professional website to highlight your passion for dentistry and stand apart from the competition? Hosting a separate website dedicated to your treatment philosophy, professional development, and portfolio of work is another great place to repurpose your social media content into blog posts, podcasts, and webinars.
Keep your files organized and backed up. Your camera should always be accessible. Get pictures of before and after dental work. Capture fun moments with staff and patients. Be sure to ask everyone to sign a brief permission form, so you can use these images and videos online. If you have plenty of pictures and videos available, you’ll have more creative options and post regularly.
Build a Dental Portfolio
How to Make a Dental Portfolio for Prospective New Patients Dentists Need to Prove Themselves Today Dentists who began practicing before the internet dominated our lives, will remember when reputation and referral were the most important aspects of practice growth. Before Google turned smartphones into our personal vetting machines, dentists
2. Education Is the Best Dental Marketing Strategy
Balance is essential when creating online content and designing dental marketing strategies. Of course, you want to promote your services, but advertisements should only comprise about 10% of your efforts. The bulk of your time should be spent providing, for example, educational material. When it comes to dentistry, there’s no shortage of topics. Go into detail about the various dental procedures you offer. Take time and explain all the details. This will not only demonstrate your enthusiasm and authority, but it will also help patients and prospective patients dispel some of their dental anxiety and fear.
Video is an excellent format for educational videos. It doesn’t take long to set up some lights, turn on a camera, and discuss dentistry. Statistically, video posts do much better than posts with only photos and text. That said, the Google algorithm and SEO still rely heavily on text, so a text-rich blog is a vital part of search ranking, exposure, and new patient growth. When you publish online, your words signal to Google that you’re an authority. Each time you develop a topic area with original text, you have the opportunity to not only impress website visitors, but—more importantly—you can show Google that your search listing deserves a higher ranking in Google maps because you demonstrate professionalism and excellence.
3. Successful Dental Practices Entertain
Marketing a dental practice has undoubtedly changed over the years. Today, it takes more than just professional qualifications. Consumers have many options for dental care, and Google makes it easy to explore each one. So, the question is how your practice can stand apart from the crowd. How can your dental marketing strategies contrast the long list of dentists providing all the basics? Answer: Add some entertainment value to your social media campaigns.
If you can make people smile and laugh, they will remember your dental team. At your weekly meetings, brainstorm fun ideas that add humor and creativity. It always helps if someone on your team has experience with a camera and editing software; you can do many interesting things with today’s technology. If you haven’t already purchased a portable greenscreen, it’s time to make the investment. This will allow you to easily remove your talent from the background and place them anywhere. As you can imagine, there are endless possibilities. You can have your entire dental team inside a mouth, looking at a tooth, dressed as cavity-fighting heroes—complete with an epic background.
The mobile phone world is all about entertainment. In today’s fast-paced culture, the ability to entertain is associated with overall value, quality, and excellence. So, if you’re a creative dentist who makes people smile and laugh, you’ll be viewed as more passionate and skilled.
4. Be Ultra Visible in the Community
One simple truth about success in today’s modern world is relevance, staying top of mind and being visible to prospective new patients. With the internet and mobile technology, everything moves fast and changes fast, so it’s not enough to expect that time will build your practice the way it did twenty years ago. Today, if you want your dental practice to be at the top, you must fight to keep it there, which means visible dental marketing strategies (connecting with the community, posting regularly on social media, advertising locally, networking with other small businesses, and effective building signage).
Social Posts That Connect with the Community
Top of Mind Dental Marketing [4-Step Guide]
Creating Brand Awareness in Your Community The Goal of Marketing When it comes to marketing, there are many techniques and theories. Creative and actionable ideas are all over the internet. You can find plenty of bulleted lists and videos with expert tips. But all of this advice can feel scattered
