How to Grow Your Dental Practice with Online Marketing

The boom of digital technology and the increased prevalence of telehealth have changed the relationship between patient and doctor. According to the US National Telecommunications and Information Administration, more American Households are using online search engines to contact a healthcare professional. As a dental practice owner, you can’t deny the vast benefits you can receive from marketing your business online.

As with any business looking to transition to digital platforms, you need to invest in marketing strategies that include building a website, search engine optimization, and online ads. Luckily, dental practice loans help you secure funding to advertise your dental practice and facilitate your movement to digital platforms to reach new patients.

Online marketing is a great way to increase your revenues and grow your dental practice. From search engine optimization to social media marketing, there are several ways to reach new patients and grow your business. Keep reading to learn more!

What is the Difference Between Traditional and Digital Marketing for Dental Practices?

The best way to market your dental practice will vary depending on your location and target demographic. However, here are a few general differences between traditional and digital marketing.

Traditional marketing methods generally involve older advertising channels such as print media, television, or radio. While these channels can still be effective, they are becoming less and less common as people shift to digital platforms.

Digital marketing methods generally involve newer advertising channels such as websites, search engine optimization, social media, and email marketing. These channels are more popular among younger generations and are growing in popularity each year.

So, to reach more people while keeping existing patients engaged and loyal to your practice, it’s best to start investing in dentistry marketing strategies. Find out how to get started with dental marketing in the next section.

Top 5 Digital Marketing Strategies for Dentists

Investing in a dental marketing campaign can be tricky if you don’t know where to start. You can have a lot of ideas of how to market your dental business, but it’s essential to have a plan and start step-by-step.

Here are a few ways to help you get started with your digital dental marketing campaign.

1. Define Your Brand

The first step in any marketing campaign is to define your brand.

• What makes your practice unique?
• What are your core values?
• Do you want to be known as a thought leader in the dental industry?
• Do you want your business to host events and seminars?

Once you have defined your brand, you can create marketing materials that reflect your values and mission. Your website, social media, and other marketing materials should align with your brand.

2. Enhance Your Online Presence

Having a website and opening social accounts isn’t enough to attract needed attention from prospective patients. You need to ensure search engines notice you and your rankings are not far behind.

Follow these several tips to optimize your digital presence:

Improve Your Dental Website

A website is essential for any healthcare business looking to market online. The website should be easy to navigate, informative, and reflect your practice’s branding.

Now more than ever, people use their smartphones and tablets to access the internet. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly so that potential patients can quickly view your information on the go.

Make sure you include keywords throughout your website content. This will help your website rank higher on search engine results pages.

Write Quality Content

Quality content is essential for any website. It helps to establish your practice as an authority in the dental industry and attract new patients.

There are many ways to produce quality content for your website:

• Write blog posts about dental topics
• Create infographics about dental topics
• Record videos about dental procedures
• Post patient testimonials
• Participate in online forums and Q&A sites

When you produce quality content, you provide potential patients with the information they can trust. This will help you build trust with potential patients and increase the chances of choosing your practice for their dental care.

Optimize for Local SEO

Many people looking for a dentist in their area will conduct a local search. Make sure your website is optimized for local searches by including your city and state name in your website’s title tag and meta description.

Many online directories to submit your website for free, like Google My Business. By doing this, you will increase your website’s visibility and reach more potential patients.

Unlike general SEO, local SEO can be less competitive since you’re no longer competing with everyone online, but only similar dental websites and practices in your area.

Consider Online Patient Reviews

Online reviews are an essential part of any dental practice’s online marketing strategy. They can help you attract new patients and build trust with potential patients.

There are several ways to solicit online reviews from your patients:

• Send a review request email
• Include a review button on your website
• Provide instructions for writing reviews on social media
• Make a review request phone call
• Offer incentives for writing reviews

By using various methods, you can increase your patients’ chances to write reviews about their experience with your practice.

3. Identify Target Audiences

Online advertising is another great way to reach your target audience. There are many different types of online advertising, but the most common ones are social media and search engine ads.

Here are two ways you can increase your patient acquisition using social media platforms and Google search engine:

Leverage Social Media to Reach a Specific Audience

By using social media platforms like Facebook, you can target your potential patients by their age, gender, interests, and more. This will help you create marketing materials relevant to them and increase the chances of converting them into patients.

You can create a Facebook Business Page, start marketing your business, and earn followers that convert. Ensure to include a link to your site once you create your page.

You can also use Facebook Ads to target your desired audiences specifically. Depending on your business plan, you can set an ad budget for a month or more. And remember to check the results using Facebook analytics to see how your ads perform.

Utilize Google Ads to Reach a Wider Audience

Google Ads is another great way to reach potential dental patients and advertise your dental services. You can create ads that appear when someone searches for specific dental keywords on Google. You can also target your desired audiences by location, age, and more.

The great thing about Google Ads is that you only pay when someone clicks on your ad. You can also use Google Analytics to track the performance of your ads and see how they are affecting your website traffic.

4. Try Email Marketing to Reach More Patients

Email marketing is a great way to stay in touch with your current patients and reach more potential patients. You can send emails about special offers, new services, or patient appreciation events.

By using email marketing, you are providing prospective patients with the information they need to make an informed decision about their dental care. You can also use email marketing to increase the visibility of your website. By including a link to your website in your email signature, you provide potential patients with a direct way to learn more about your practice.

Many software programs can help you create and send email campaigns. The most popular ones are Mailchimp, Constant Contact, and CampaignMonitor. Each program has its own set of features, so be sure to research which one is best for your business.

5. Study Your Competitors and Develop a Marketing Plan

It’s important to know what your competitors are doing and how they reach their potential patients. By studying your competitors, you can develop a marketing plan that will help you stand out from the competition.

Some of the things you can do to set yourself apart from your competitors include:

Offering a Patient Loyalty Program

There are many different ways to create a patient loyalty program. You can offer loyalty cards that your patients can use to earn rewards, such as free dental services or products.

You can also offer discounts on future dental services for patients who refer their friends and family members to your practice.

Participate in Community Events

You can meet new people during events who may not have otherwise known about your practice.

You can participate in local charity events, health fairs, or other community events. Be sure to have a booth or table set up at the event so people can learn more about your practice.

Offer Free Consultations

This is a great way to show your patients that you appreciate them and want to continue providing them with quality dental care. You can also use this as an opportunity to evaluate the patient’s oral health and provide them with a treatment plan.

Start Developing a Dental Marketing Strategy and Grow Your Practice

If you want to gain more customers and continue building trust, ensure your website is SEO-optimized so that it appears higher in search engine results pages. You can also submit your site to local business directories. And don’t forget to use Facebook and Google Ads to target potential customers in your area. Remember to also get involved in the community by taking part in local events and offering free consultations.

When it comes to gaining new customers, think outside the box and try some of these creative marketing ideas. Have you started implementing your marketing plan yet? If not, don’t worry – our lenders at Select Funding are here to help get you started!