Dentists around the globe deserve high praise for finally embracing this monumental opportunity known as social media. Neighborhood and cosmopolitan dental practices alike are connecting with their local communities on Facebook and tweeting away on Twitter too.
To what end remains to be seen.
When we really get down to brass tacks, how can Twitter possibly help dentists recruit more new patients, or keep a larger percentage of existing ones?
It could be as easy as…Synch, Tweet, Save!
It sure makes sense for our local dental health experts to talk to us where we congregate every day – within the most popular dental social media environments.
It sure makes sense for dentists and staff to continue the dental health conversation with patients outside of the two times per year we are actually sitting in their chair – within the most popular dental social media environments.
And it sure makes sense for patients to actively engage with their chosen local dental health team to keep aware of important news (x-rays anyone?), understand what’s going on in the office that translates into a more comfortable & convenient dental appointment, and share some digital word of mouth or possibly save some money while we’re doing it!
But how do these practices so adept at digital dental marketing and dental social media use these tools to increase new patient acquisition, enhance existing patient retention, and improve recall percentages?
Easy; never stop communicating.
Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Foursquare, YouTube – you name it…these mediums are all ways for local dentists to connect with the local community allowing them to disseminate the dental health info.
Feed the local beneficial dental health info, practice news, and office promotions, consistently through these channels by employing different methods and formats designed to take advantage of the different attributes of each social media outlet.
YouTube is a tool to convey local dental health info and practice familiarity to your patients and prospective patients through video.
Foursquare is a tool to enable technically savvy patients (you all have them whether you’re in NYC or Whitefish, MT) to make going to the dentist fun – go figure!
Twitter is a tool to broadcast – lather, rinse, repeat – local dental health news, practice specials, interesting or funny news, local events, practice promotions, website updates, blog content…and everything else that offers a window into your practice and dental patient experience 140 characters at a time.
Facebook of course is the big dog, a dental practice without a Facebook presence in 2012 is like a dentist without a website in 2010 – a dentist nobody can find, and probably one nobody would want to go to simply because by default, you are communicating how behind the times you are.
And if your practice social media communications are behind the times, doesn’t that point to some other glaring inadequacies?
It does in the mind of the prospective patient.
Are there some nuances to effectively applying social media for the dental practice – yes.
Is it dental school – not by a long shot.
See how American Express deploys Twitter as part of their digital marketing strategy.
What if your patients could tweet their way to saving on dental health care while amplifying your digital word of mouth at the same time?
If that is something in which you might be interested…
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