Dental health is an essential part of our lives. But how do we find the right dentist to take care of our pearly whites? Referrals are welcome, but nowadays we look to the internet to see which clinic is nearest to us, what their reviews are, what others have to say online and more.
This is why, more than other industries, dentists need to consistently work on their digital marketing strategy. Without one, you won’t really exist online and you’ll be missing out on what the internet can offer: traffic, massive visibility and even more appointments.
If you’re still wondering or figuring out what to do – take a look at these free and easy digital marketing strategies we’ve curated that have worked wonders for other dentists just like you.
You’re guaranteed to see results instantly.
1. Claim and Verify Your Google My Business Listing
Did you know that 46% of all Google searches are centred on finding information about businesses near the user? Local SEO for dental practices is a must since you’re servicing your local community. One of the best ways to take advantage of local SEO is by claiming your Google My Business listing.
This free tool by Google helps local businesses by displaying information such as your business name, address and phone number. You can further optimise your GMB listing by adding your regular business hours, a quick business description, your business category and different attributes.
Once you have a verified GMB listing and optimised it correctly, you will begin to be seen on both Google Search and Maps. If someone searches for, let’s say, ‘family-friendly dentist in Melbourne’, you can pop up on Maps and people can call you up or visit your website to book an appointment.
2. Respond to Online Reviews
Did you know? A whopping 97% of users read online reviews before contacting the business they are interested in. Online reputation management is another important way to win more patients and drive more traffic to your website and clinic.
Here’s what makes or breaks your online reputation: it’s being responsive. About 70% of customers will leave a review on your social media platform or wherever you want them to write their feedback. Once they leave a review, it’s your job to respond. Being responsive has a number of benefits.
This helps not only in maintaining excellent customer service and experience, but it showcases your responsiveness and care for customer experience to other prospective customers checking out your business. Not to mention it also improves your ranking – you can even insert keywords (explained later) that are related to your business. This works best for glowing reviews about your business – they’ll be on top of searches if someone looks for your business or service.
3. Work on Search Engine Optimisation
You’ve probably heard elsewhere before. But hold on.
People nowadays search for brands, stores, services and suppliers nearby on Google or other search engines. Did you know – these search results will often turn into visits to stores/locations within 24 hours?
So, you’ve got a working website that’s easy to navigate and simple to book an appointment with you. That’s great!
But are you getting customers? Do you know if they are actually checking your website?
If you haven’t seen an improvement in traffic and booked appointments, fret not. You just need to do more work on search engine optimisation, or SEO.
SEO, in a nutshell, is a process to help you rank higher in search results (like in Google or Bing) and done right, gets you ahead of your local competition.
For customers to notice you online, you’ll have to figure out which words and phrases people are using to look for dental services. This is called keyword research. Once you have this list, you can structure your website to reflect these commonly used keywords and turn it into a magnet for patients – contact our team for your free keyword report.
4. Maintain and Optimise a Blog
This could be your favourite part of the digital marketing game: writing blogs!
If you’re thinking you need more than a thousand words per blog post, pump the brakes.
If you only have enough time to write a 400-500 word blog entry, then go for it. Consistency is king. The minimum recommended length for a blog is 300 words, but to really rank you can write as much as 1,200 words if you have the time and resources to do so.
But there’s a science to blog writing that helps you get ranked on search engine results pages. It goes back to your keyword research.
When you write your blog post, you can insert your keywords in your title and different parts of your text. When you do that, Google’s “bots” crawl around your page and look for keywords to match possible search queries. When you’ve got some of those keywords your customers search for, you’re on the right path.
There’s a number of other factors to consider, but a blog is the ideal starting location to build on. Other factors link backlinking and improving authority ranking can be considered once you’ve gotten some meat on the bones of your blog.
So get started!
More blogs equal more traffic, which means more prospective leads that turn into customers.
5. Talk to Your Patients on Social Media
You want to be where your customers are, so you need to be on social media. Setting up a Facebook Page and other accounts on key platforms your clients are frequently using can truly enhance the digital presence for any dental practice.
Craft and curate social posts and updates about your business – even if you only have a few words to say about what’s going on with your clinic today – and help your patients learn more about what goes on in the life of a dentistry practice. Stuck for ideas? Think along the following buckets for generating some post ideas – try make them educational, informative, useful, practical, or fun for your customers
You could even consider building a monthly social calendar to plan your posts in advance and make it a less sporadic and time-consuming activity. Sit down once a month and generate your ideas and posts all in one go and then sit back and schedule them for the following month.
Work smarter not harder.
With Social Fox, you’ll have access to SEO services for your dental practice – from experts in digital marketing and working in the medical industry. Take a bite into digital marketing today – contact us on our website for a free quote and more advice.
