I always hate going to the dentist more than I hate the doctor or eating my vegetables. In fact, I dislike going to the dentist more than I dislike going to the hospital. Moreover, since I move around a lot, I’m constantly searching for new dentists to trust my teeth with.
I heard all kinds of horror stories from friends who had the same problem finding a dentist—things like fake cavities getting filled and overpaying for a service they were not receiving. It is not an easy task to find a good dental professional.
The good news is that finding good clients, and lots of them, is not impossible. Here are some smart marketing ideas to help you attract new clients.
1. Facebook Ads for Local Awareness
Marketing your dental practice to the right audiences is important while getting the word out about your business. Your ads should not be shown outside of the 50-mile radius—if you’re in Pennsylvania and you’re seeing ads on a site in California, then that does no good for anyone.
Local Awareness ads are a great way for you to reach people locally, and the new map cards offer even more ways to maximize your exposure. You can now incorporate a “get directions” link directly into your map card, or even change the CTA for a call-button.
2. Call-to-Action Ads
Advertising or marketing for dentistry mainly does one thing—get patients and prospects to call the dental office and book an appointment. You can get click-to-call ads from Google AdWords (formerly known as Google Adwords) and Facebook on mobile, desktop, and tablet devices. Using this extension will allow you to create call-only ads or add it to ads that already exist.
3. Call-Only Ads on Mobile
One in 20 Google searches consists of health-related information. According to Google, most health-related queries are conducted on a smartphone. Make sure not to miss out. You can create the perfect mobile ad with call-only campaigns via Google Ads.
4. Demographic targets on Facebook
On Facebook, there is a ridiculous amount of demographic targeting available, and you should be taking advantage of this. In addition to obvious factors, other factors can be targeted such as language, relationship status, income, and interests. Statistics show that 90% of all dental purchases are made by women. By targeting ads at women who live in your area and recently purchased children’s clothes, you can get in front of the crowd.
5. Reminders for Appointments
No matter if you send it by e-mail or not, appointment reminders are crucial for patients to attend their scheduled appointments. Utilize Google calendar alerts for this process, and send appointments confirmations and reminders via email.
In addition to keeping your patients informed, you can also remind them to make an appointment, such as an annual cleaning.
6. Targeting Google Ads based on income
You ought to floss regularly, and you ought to see the dentist for annual cleanings. In reality, most people don’t. If you’re using Google Adwords, you can target different demographics by income level.
Select “Advanced Location” on the settings tab. It will bring up this menu:
You will notice three options under the “Location groups” tab. The one you want is “Demographics.”
You will need to click the big red “add” button and select the household income tier(s) you wish to see.
Advertising for whitening teeth or veneers can be targeted at certain income levels, while advertisements for basic health may be targeted towards lower income groups.
7. Adwords Remarketing
Often referred to as “easy money,” remarketing is a method that enables you to remarket to website visitors by using ads that are specifically targeted to re-capture past customers. If you collect emails from your patients at your dental practice, you can leverage them through Google Ads and Facebook! Create an audience of people who visit your practice frequently and design an email ad to entice audience members to visit again—perhaps with a reminder for a whitening, cleaning, etc.
8.Facebook Messenger Ad Type is Now Available!
Facebook recently announced a new ad platform that lets companies communicate with one another using Messenger. Advertisers have the option to use the “Send Message” command as a call-to-action, which would lead prospects to the Messenger platform. There’s still some beta work to do, but this might go live soon!
9. Ads on Google Maps
You could literally be leading a potential patient towards your dental practice with an advertisement on Google maps. On mobile, ads that include directions and contact CTAs will appear when the word “dentist” is entered into the search bar.
10. Ads on Waze
Similarly, you can also advertise on Waze directly just as you can on Google Maps. Due to Waze being a community-based application, advertisements are different—customers close to your business will see a “digital billboard” appear on a map as well as in the search results. They may either locate your dental practice on the map or save it for later.
11. Emergency Words
Two months ago, I suddenly found myself searching for an “emergency wisdom tooth extraction boston” at 2AM. I selected the third and two more results from Google maps with the highest ratings since the first two results did not provide a “call” CTA. I cannot seem to reach any of them, so I called the first practice who called back (which was expected).
It is easy to attract clients with an immediate need or high intent by bidding on keywords like “urgent” and “emergency.” Imagine the return on investment for those keywords! If you cannot handle emergency cases and do not provide a way to contact your practice, you may find yourself with a bad Google rating…
12. ZocDoc
Talking to healthcare providers on the phone is something millennials dislike as much as having to pay for WiFi. You can find doctors in the ZocDoc mobile app based on their specialty, insurance, location, and availability, just like you book a restaurant appointment on OpenTable. It’s now in most major U.S. cities–and even some smaller ones!
13. Yelp
88% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations, according to research in 2014. You cannot emphasize how important Yelp is—make sure you claim your business! Most likely, people already write reviews about your practice, which you should check and remove any inaccuracies. Get your business in front of potential patients on Yelp. It is the online resource that millennials rely on to look for a new dentist.
14. Instagram
Did you know Dr. Pimple Popper? Though not for those who are timid, this dermatologist became popular for popping zits on Instagram. Orthodontists display before-and-after pictures on their Instagram pages, and celebrities advertise teeth whitening products.
You can advertise through your practice’s Instagram account by showing-off your unique techniques, and promoting yourself to potential patients through social media. Regular updates will ensure that your followers stay aware of your practice.
15. Email Marketing
In a perfect world, your patients would be able to email your practice about making an appointment by simply sending an email. An appointment request arrives on your receptionist’s desk with a few available times, and bam, an appointment is made and on the calendar. Furthermore, you can also send bills, reminders, and cute emails that let your customers know you haven’t seen them in a while.
16. Getting a Referral Bonus
People trust recommendations from their friends 93 percent of the time, according to Pride Institute. Increase business by rewarding the recommendations! Retain existing clients with a bonus, or grow your practice. Every new patient that’s referred to you gets $10 off, so show your appreciation and give them a dental visit! It is easy to arrange for patient referrals if you hand each patient a business card when they check out. And throw them in the mail whenever you send it.
17. Video Advertisement
Recent reports say that video marketing is increasingly being used in the healthcare industry. Don’t miss out! Personal video connections can help build trust, recommendations, and more appointments between you and your prospects.
18. Direct Mail
Today, there is still time to stuff mailboxes with postcards advertising products. Direct mail still works perfectly well, especially for baby boomers. It is also a great way to make sure you have a competitive price point or highlight your company’s specialties. The results of one advertisement reveal a return on investment of 35 phone calls and 7 new patients from every 5000 postcards sent out! That’s a great ROI!
19. Local Events
When I was younger, I played recreational sports whose teams were sponsored by local businesses. Members of these teams would wear shirts emblazoned with the business’s logo. Additionally, this lets you engage with parents with little kids with free toothbrushes, a small postcard with tips on keeping kids’ teeth healthy, and a special kid-friendly offer. This information was provided to parents of kindergarteners, and they reported that seventy percent of them switched practices after they heard it.