Dentistry Marketing 101: How Investing In Marketing Now Benefits You In The Future

Introduction

The success of any dental practice lies in acquiring and retaining patients. But how do you get the word out?

This is where dentistry marketing comes in—to help you connect with potential patients and reach out to current patients with appointment reminders. Customers value communication when booking a free consultation or procedure at an oral surgery clinic.

So how do you get started on dentistry marketing? Read on to find out more.

What is Dentistry Marketing?

Like every other profession, dentistry also requires a marketing strategy. Like any other form of marketing, this involves using promotional tactics to spread the word about your dental practice. You can do this via:

• Social media
• Traditional media and advertising
• Paid ads
• Email marketing
• Optimized website content and blog posts
• Newsletters

Patients are an integral part of marketing. Thus, using a combination of these techniques is critical to customer acquisition and retention. Remember, the more patients you bring in, the higher your revenue.

Besides, all interactions in your dental practice, either face-to-face or via telephone, are a key component of marketing, especially brand reputation.

How Investing In Dentistry Marketing Now Benefits You in The Future

Here’s the good news: Investing in marketing will help you attract the right leads now, and it will continue to benefit you in the future. When done well, investing in marketing pays for itself—people who are attracted by good, effective marketing have a higher chance of becoming your clients. But that’s not all. Here’s exactly what you get:

It Increases Online Bookings And Phone Calls

According to a Google study, 76% of prospective patients research their health care options on a provider’s website, and 44% of those using mobile phones end up scheduling an appointment. Therefore, it’s important to have a phone number on the website that patients can call directly.

You can then push all marketing to your website, increasing your bookings.

However, you and your staff might miss some phone calls between handling patients and carrying out procedures. Based on data, 87% of new patients who are put on hold or directed to a voicemail hang up and never call again.

For every missed opportunity, your practice loses new clients and revenue. But there’s a way to solve that. Suppose you need help to manage customer communication and your phone system; your dental practice could hire a human-like smart receptionist to handle all customer queries, including quotes, booking appointments, and more.

It Builds Reputation

Reputation needs a combination of marketing and delivery. Marketing will get customers on your door. Delivery will keep them coming back. 

Here’s why:

If all your patients receive quotes on time, book their appointments without delay and get information about all your services, they are more likely to market your practice to friends and family. That creates a viral effect on your marketing campaigns.

Oral surgery clinics handle a lot of emergencies. Therefore, if your customer experience is seamless, your patients will become your ambassadors.

It’s Good for Brand Awareness

According to the Canadian Dentistry Association (CDA), there’s an oversupply of dentists. A 2016 study showed that in 2015, there was one dentist per 1,622 patients in Canada, compared to one for every 1,742 patients in 2005.

These numbers are potentially rising. As the number of practicing dentists increases, it’s becoming more critical to stand out and attract more patients. A proper dental marketing plan can help your practice.

It Builds Stronger Relationships

If you invest in marketing, you can connect with current and potential patients. Customer communication tools such as emitrr come in handy by automating reminders, recalls, and reviews. In addition, it sends personalized automated text messages to customers.

Because the patient feels appreciated, they are more likely to be loyal to your brand and recommend your practice to more people. A happy client becomes your best marketer.

How Can You Invest in Dentistry Marketing

For your dental practice to succeed, here are a few tips on how you can invest in marketing.

Incorporate Digital Marketing Techniques

You can use tools such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads, Google My Business, Google ads, social media marketing, and email marketing to reach current and prospective patients. Digital channels will drive traffic back to your website and boost revenue.

Improve Customer Communication

A dental practice involves a lot of human interaction. Therefore, you’ll need to be in touch with your patients at the clinic or virtually. 

Train your staff to handle patients. Additionally, add a smarter phone system to streamline patient handling that makes it easier to handle communication.

Frequently Asked Questions

Takeaway

Dentistry marketing is an essential part of running the practice. What’s more, patients are at the center of it all. To grow your brand, provide a seamless customer experience.

As long as patients can reach the dentists, book appointments, and have their queries answered with no hiccups, scheduling a dental consultation at your oral surgery clinic becomes much easier.

Author:

Dr. Fadi Swaida first graduated from the University of Western Ontario with an Honors BSc in Biology before graduating from the University of Manitoba’s Faculty of Dentistry. He is an active member of his church and enjoys football and being by the water! His outgoing personality and fun-loving character will ensure you always feel welcome at Dental Implants Clinic.