Digital marketing is gradually taking over traditional marketing strategies. The influence of digital marketing on dental practices has increased significantly in recent years. It has contributed to increased patient inquiries and conversions, which are vital for a successful practice.
In this article, you will learn about the 8 best digital marketing strategies that can help you generate more reviews for your dental practice.
Create a website
Build a strong website. Make sure it has an appointment booking system. This can be as simple as having forms on your website where patients can submit their information and book appointments online. You could also have an online booking software that integrates with your existing website to make things easier. Ensure your website copy is optimized for local searches by targeting local keywords on each webpage. Your keywords should appear on the meta description and title of your website.
Invest in dental SEO
Dental SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is optimizing a dental website to rank higher in search engines like Google. It helps you attract more qualified leads. Moreover, dental SEO has many benefits, such as:
- Increased website traffic: By ranking higher in search engines, a dental website will receive more organic traffic, leading to more new patients for the practice.
- Increased credibility: A top ranking in search results can help build credibility for the practice. When a website ranks well, it can be perceived as more trustworthy and reputable.
- Cost-effective marketing: SEO is a cost-effective way to market a dental practice. It is less expensive than other forms of online advertising and provides a higher ROI in the long run.
- Long-term results: The results of SEO are long-lasting. Once a website ranks well, it will continue to receive traffic and leads as long as it maintains its ranking.
The Best Dental SEO practice to focus on are:
- Create high-quality, relevant content: This includes blog posts, articles, and pages on the website that provide value to visitors and are related to dental services.
- Use relevant keywords: Identify keywords that potential patients are using to find dental practices and incorporate them into the website’s content and meta tags.
- Optimize website structure and navigation: A well-organized website that is easy to navigate will be more appealing to both users and search engines.
- Build high-quality backlinks: Obtaining backlinks from reputable websites can help improve a website’s ranking in search results.
- Use social media: Social media can help increase website traffic and improve search rankings. It is important to have a presence on multiple social media platforms, post updates, and share content regularly.
Make your dental practice mobile-friendly
It’s no secret that mobile devices are the preferred way to search for businesses. 61% of mobile users are more likely to pick a local business with a mobile site, according to a study.
Additionally, Google has announced that the more mobile-friendly the site, the higher it will rank in the search results on a mobile device, specifically on a smartphone. You can test whether or not your site is mobile-friendly by entering your URL into the Google Mobile-Friendly Test tool.
Use social media to grow your reach
Social media is an excellent way to reach and engage patients. Many dental practices use social media to communicate with their existing patients. Others also use it as a tool for growing their reach and awareness.
With the right content strategy, your social channels can be used to promote your dental practice and build brand awareness. You can also engage with current and potential patients and share patient testimonials and reviews, all while building authority and trust in your brand.
Claim your social media handles on popular platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, or Pinterest. Then, start creating content. Include posts about before-after pictures, new equipment, or even fun contests with prizes.
Use text marketing to promote your dental practice
75% of all American millennials and Gen Zs prefer texting over phone calls. And almost 89% of consumers prefer texting over calls or emails when communicating with their healthcare providers. Strong communication with patients is key to the success of any dental office. But when your front desk is busy with appointments and procedures, the patient experience can suffer.
Text marketing is a cost-effective and efficient solution to this problem. It allows practices to send appointment reminders, special offers, and answers to patients’ queries automatically.
Sending timely text messages to your patients is a great way to engage, retain and convert them. You’ll keep your patients happy for years by providing relevant, timely, and helpful communication. But make sure your text messages are HIPAA compliant, or you risk getting in trouble with the law.
Utilize email marketing
Email marketing is an inexpensive way to remind patients about appointments or other important updates. It also lets you reach out to them about special offers, discounts, and new treatments. You can send personalized emails to send:
- Appointment reminders: You can send emails 2 weeks before an appointment date reminding them of the upcoming visit, especially if it’s been a while since their last check-up.
- Promotions/Discounts: If your practice offers special pricing or packages, it’s best to notify patients via email. So they don’t miss out on these opportunities!
- Thank You Messages: When an existing patient refers a new patient to your practice, send them thank-you emails. Show your gratitude and give them a discount on their next visit!
Create a dental blog
Blogging is one of the best digital marketing strategies today. But it can be hard to keep up with if you’re not doing it regularly. Creating a blog for your dental practice will help increase brand awareness, show off your expertise, interact with patients and build trust and authority in the community.
So, how often should you blog? It depends on your goals and the type of content you create. Some dental practices blog daily, while others do it once a week or less often. But if you want to generate more leads, post a blog twice a week. Create a content calendar to stay consistent. You can write blogs about:
- Your practice’s news and updates.
- New technology in dentistry.
- Dental care tips and advice for patients.
- Industry trends that affect your practice.
- Patient Before-after case studies.
- Patient testimonials.
Promote your practice through video marketing
By sharing videos on social media, 67% of marketers say their return on investment (ROI) has been boosted. According to Wyzowl, 87% of businesses state that video has effectively generated more leads. And 81% of marketers feel its direct impact on sales.
Most people are visual learners. So, creating videos about your services is a great way to share your work with potential patients. Make video content for YouTube or TikTok to attract more patients and promote your dental practice.
You can use video in several ways, such as:
- Introduce new patients to your practice.
- Exhibit your work (before-and-after videos, testimonials).
- Patient testimonials or review videos.
- Respond to frequently asked questions.
- Provide educational dental tips and advice.
- Give your dental office tour to reduce anxiety.
Many free editing tools are available online if you can’t afford to hire a professional videographer. These tools will allow you to create nice-looking videos without breaking the bank. For example, iMovie or Windows Movie Maker on your computer or even YouTube’s own editing features (which are surprisingly good).
Conclusion
We hope these 8 strategies will help you generate more profits for your dental practice. If you want to promote your dental office, there is no better place than the Internet. With just a little effort and research, you can make your practice successful with these tactics.
