Do you wish you could prescribe yourself a pill that delivers maximum online visibility for your dental practice?
Unfortunately the treatment regime for dental practice marketing effectiveness is a bit more involved, and it often takes years to cultivate. It doesn’t hurt to have the solid foundation of a healthy and active practice marketing lifestyle either. Foundational dental practice marketing methods vary according to location, patient base, certain environmental variables, and even financial considerations, but a dental website is a good start.
Hopefully we can be sure in stating dental practice marketing is no longer only for the aggressively minded practices. Dental practice marketing was formerly relegated to those most unfortunate practices that did not have enough existing patient word of mouth to sustain themselves. Or at least that’s what the naysayers would have you believe. Not so long ago, marketing for the dental practice was considered taboo by many a dental professional. Not so long from now, those same dental practices will not be viewed as professionals by their surrounding communities because they have no digital practice identity.
Why?
Because people turn to the Internet for everything these days…and people believe what they read, at least for the most part. It’s up to you as both a dentist, and a local business owner, to make sure that what people read is authentic, accurate, and informative. A professional website is your foundational dental practice digital marketing element, and social media is the perfect complement. If you still need convincing on that point, you’ve probably long since hung up your dental tool belt.
But what if there is nothing out there to read about your dental practice?
Don’t be so naïve!
Right now there is probably at least one good thing OR one bad thing relating to your dental practice out there on the Internet. Most likely this digital word of mouth resulted from an actual patient, and it could have come from anywhere…Google does a pretty good job of making the necessary connections.
Wouldn’t you rather be in control of the information?
You’ve heard it before and you’ll hear it more, even if you never visit this website or blog again; social media is the single biggest dental practice marketing initiative to take place since dentists started worrying about Google placement.
No more procrastinating, no more excuses. Get your practice connected and begin using social media for your benefit. If you don’t, it’s quite possible others could use it to your detriment. Control the environment, monitor your digital word of mouth, and enlist the help of your patients.
Social media 100% sustainable dental practice marketing, it’s not a “let’s try it out and see what happens” approach. That will get your practice nowhere in a hurry, we promise. Consider social media an ongoing effort, much the same as your efforts to attain or maintain a highly visible practice Internet presence.
Take social media and combine it with local search, well now you’ve gone and amplified that digital word of mouth. All right smack dab in the middle of your immediate (and virtual) local area.
Think local and get social, the smart dentists and local community business owners are already doing so.
Are you going to wait until the cost increases or until your competitors dive in?
If understanding is what you need, fret no more – subscribe to this blog and get the elementary info spoon fed to you on a twice weekly basis!
Follow us on Twitter – @SocialDentalNet and ‘Like’ us on Facebook for some more interesting insights!
Wait, we know. You require the empirical evidence gleaned from others of your ilk…please check out these articles from the never-ending digital marketing and dental social media archives.
We thought this dentist said it best:
“I am thrilled to be able to allow my patients the opportunity to gain valuable dental health information through the creation of Facebook and Twitter”, said Dr. Petruccelli. “Considering the ever-growing number of people that use the Internet every day as their main source of communication and information, the decision to create social media channels was easy.”
This article offers some standard caveats, and also hits the marketing angle:
Facebook can be a tremendous networking tool. Business pages on Facebook can elevate your Web site status through Search Engine Optimization. In addition, if you have a Facebook business page link on the opening page of your Web site, potential patients will feel that they know you and your office before coming in for their new-patient experience. I know of dental practices that have gained new patients simply because of their business Facebook page! Think of Facebook as a bit like a cocktail party, where people circulate and share snippets of conversation.
And if you have an Office Manager or any staff prone to such things illustrated in this article, you’ve got bigger fish to fry! And please don’t take on ANY dental practice marketing if you’re dealing with that type of employee nightmare. You will only lose money, and quite possibly lose face.
If you’re still reading, you can click here to see how this group of dentists polled have lingered in no man’s land with social media marketing efforts in their practices.
Why do you think dentists have yet to realize the marketing potential of social media for their practice?
