Implementing new dental marketing strategies for your office is a great way to see your business grow. However, you might be experiencing a plateau and haven’t had many inquiries from new dental patients. But with so many strategies to choose from, how can you be sure which are best for acquiring new patients? Let’s go over the top five that The DofM recommends.
Have a Mobile-Friendly Website
You might already have a top-notch website that is attractive to users and easy to navigate. A robust website is a good start, but you could be missing out on several potential leads if your site isn’t mobile-friendly. If a potential customer uses a smartphone or mobile device to search for a new dental office and can’t navigate through your site, chances are they will give up and look elsewhere. Save yourself from this potential problem and make sure your website is responsive. And if it is not, we can help!
Encourage Online Reviews
Online reviews are critical, especially for your site’s SEO. Reviews also serve another purpose: building trust and familiarity within your community. A dental office with five reviews won’t be received nearly as well as an office with 85 reviews. However, don’t fall for online review schemes. Your reviews should be genuine, and you don’t need a perfect 5-star rating to see success. Some customers will feel suspicious if your company has only 5-star ratings. You’re aiming for an average of 4.5 to 4.8 stars.
Be Active on Social Media
As you probably know,
social media is more prevalent now than ever. If your office is not active on social media, we recommend you create a few profiles.
Facebook and Instagram are useful platforms on which to start because they are the most popular and are user-friendly. Social media helps your online presence in several ways: exposure to new patients, Google rankings, and branding. While you might not attribute new patients directly to social without some paid ads there, a presence will only benefit you overall. If your dental office is already using social media, be sure to post at least once a week, and interact with users
Use Email
Email marketing is a strategy that is more useful than you might think. We recommend our clients send a monthly e-newsletter. Your newsletter can contain office updates, industry news, fun facts, or anything you’d like. The best ones share information about you and your team, connecting you and your patients. Email is most people’s preferred way of hearing from companies. In your newsletter, you can also link to your website’s information pages or blog posts. Links direct traffic to your site and can help you to gain new patients and more business.
Direct Mail and Business Cards
Paper items are still a great way to market, even with popular online tactics today. Word-of-mouth is still one of the top methods for dental offices to earn new patients and build their brand. If a person sees a dental brochure on their co-worker’s bulletin board, that creates a small connection. The person will recognize the name and already have familiarity, making them much more likely to call your office when searching for a new dentist. We use direct mail a lot for dentists because many people select a dental office near their home. Even your business cards can help, especially if you consider referral discounts for patients who help spread the word.