Having to go to the dentist, or a dental specialist, is often synonymous with discomfort. More than likely, unless you are scheduled for a regular cleaning, you would only go to the dentist if you are experiencing some kind of tooth and/or mouth pain.
On top of that, your anxiety level might rise since you can’t help but wonder what kind of pain you will have to endure while seated in the dentist’s chair. Is your tooth going to have to be filled? Will you require a root canal? Will you be fitted for a crown? Will the tooth have to be pulled?
None of these options are pleasant ones, but they are indeed necessary if you wish to enjoy a lifetime of smiles. But this is why a very tailored marketing strategy is so vital for dentistry practices.
According to information from the dental SEO services by Dental Marketing Guy, when your are actively seeking out new dental patients for your practice, it’s important to hire a marketing executive who is familiar with dentistry marketing and advertising since he or she can prove very useful in tying search engine optimization to increased production.
You might find other, cheaper SEO marketing companies, but you might be kept in the dark as to their efforts and strategies which, in the long run, can place your website and SEO rankings in such serious jeopardy that you actually get banned from search engine results.
A marketing company familiar with dental practices will make certain your website does more than just convey a cohesive message which will serve to attract new patients. It will be recognized by the Google algorithms as helpful and cite-worthy.
But just like the old adage says, man and women cannot live on bread alone, SEO marketing is not the only advertising strategy a dental practice can employ to attract new clients. A new report explores some of the marketing strategies dentistry practices can employ that will make you smile.
Here are just a few of these strategies.
Be the Sponsor of Fun Local Events
By sponsoring local events geared for kids, you can organically promote your dental practice without appearing promotional or pushy. One example is two teams of kindergarten children playing a football (soccer) match. One team might be dressed in green while the other would wear white.
They are wearing different colors while competing against one another, but they both have two things in common. Not only does each team want to win, but they are wearing sports clothing that’s bearing the logo of the local dental practice that’s sponsoring the big event.
The logo can be something like a friendly smiling toothbrush that bears a wide white smile on its face. This will be followed by the company title, phone number, and email address.
Sponsoring events for children as a dental marketing strategy is an idea that works simply because you are targeting a market that’s in great need of dental care (kids). Their moms and dads will naturally go through the expense required to give their kids the knowledge they need to practice proper hygiene on their teeth so they can enjoy a nice smile for years to come.
Client/Patient Review Websites
Research proves that as a first step in choosing a medical provider, 72 percent of users read reviews on trusted medical review websites. Nearly 70 percent of users will not see a medical provider who consistently gets bad reviews.
What this translates into, is that doctor review websites possess the power to either boost your dental practice or all but destroy it. This is the digital internet age where all the information you require about a topic can be found in seconds by doing a Google search.
That said, if you wish to attract more business, you truly need to be proactive and cautious if you wish to maintain a stellar reputation. It’s important for you to claim your profiles on the most trusted medical practice review sites to be found on the world wide web.
Three recommended sites to target are Vitals, Dr. Oogle, and Healthgrades. It should be noted that only Dr. Oogle caters solely to the dental industry.
Improve You Online Reputation with Positive Reviews
Getting positive reviews is vital. It’s not enough to simply have your company profile posted on the medical review websites. They must instead be populated with positive reviews. However, that doesn’t mean you should pay for “fake reviews” as this is an unethical practice that can haunt you later on down the road.
According to the experts, this is a trusted formula for acquiring positive reviews that seems to work more often than not:
First, you need to provide potential reviewers with superior service. If you go the extra mile in giving your customers their money’s worth and more, they are likely to speak positively not only to their family and friends about their dental experience, but they will be more motivated to leave a good review on a medical/doctor ranking website. This also holds true if you perhaps nudge them along with a future discount or even a coupon for their next visit.
Second, you might ask them to spend a quick minute to leave a review on the doctor review site of your choice. You don’t want to tell them what to say in terms of a positive experience. This might make them feel uncomfortable. If you’ve given them a terrific, painless experience in the dental chair, chances are they will want to leave a positive review of their own accord.
That means, all you need to do is ask them to share their experience with the medical websites and that’s it. If they write something along the lines of, “My experience with the dentist was 98 percent positive, but not 100 percent positive,” this will resonate with a potential customer since it sounds so genuine.
Use Video
In this 21st century digital age, video is king. It’s also a very powerful method for constructing social proof. For instance, on your website’s homepage, you might post a mini-interview with a client where you speak with them directly and honestly about their dental experience. Ask them about their dental issue, and about its severity. You can then speak about how you took care of it in a painless and relatively quick but professional manner.
Add “before and after” screenshots in the video. In this way, video testimonials are a very dramatic and powerful tool exhibited by real people. They work very well to convince potential clients who aren’t quite sure if they want to go with your practice or not.
While some folks might be a bit shy about opening up about their mouth and teeth problems, you will be surprised at how many will be more than willing to appear in your video.
Also, on your website’s “About Us” page, you might post short videos of your dental practice operation, including the sophisticated equipment you’re utilizing to restore your patient’s dental health.
Finally, you might want to post interviews with the practice’s doctors speaking about their dental procedural experience. The doctors should speak plainly and in a manner that’s not so technical it goes right over the heads of the average dental client.
However, at the same time, doctors need to display their overall knowledge and experience about the field in order to convince potential customers that they will be in great hands when it comes time to undergo a comprehensive dental procedure.
This article was written in cooperation with Dental Marketing Guy.