When it comes to “putting your practice out there,” you don’t need a marketing guru to tell you what to do. By definition, marketing is “the action or business of promoting and selling products or services, including market research and advertising.” However, traditional marketing should not be your focus. With today’s marketing continually advancing, we want to look deeper than the simple advertising rouse that many companies still attempt. Today, especially with dental offices, we want to utilize marketing in a way that we can further engage with our patients. For your dental office, marketing should include social media management, content marketing and patient outreach.
Social Media Management
For starters, let’s take a brief look at social media management. We have previously mentioned the importance of a presence on social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter and Google+. In terms of marketing, social media is the way of the future. Through these different channels, your dental office can reach patients on a whole new level. From simple office updates to practice specials, you can utilize social media tools for all of your marketing needs.
Want to announce the availability of dental sleep medicine in your office? Spread the word on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and your active blog. Want to let your patients know there is a new member to your staff? Share it on social media! Have important, educational information? Your social network is the key to sharing all of this information and is your greatest asset in your marketing plan.
Content Marketing
By now you might have heard that “Content is King,” but what does that mean? As our society continues to shift toward the Internet, so does your marketing plan. And, a large part of that plan should be content. What does this mean? This means your website, social media channels, educational blog, press releases and other sources for generating online content.
The biggest source for your content marketing can be found right on your website. From the pages to the blog, your office can utilize content marketing to its fullest here. The content you should include on your website should be:
- Information about your office
- Educational pages
- Services offered
- Contact
- Interactive blog
- Doctor and staff bios
When generating your content, it is important to provide unique, quality content rather than focusing on quantity. And, most of all do not include duplicate content on your site or blog—Google can tell. With quality content on your website and blog, your practice can become easily searchable for patients.
Patient Outreach
The patient outreach portion of your marketing plan can include a variety of ideas and practices. Try to include a Newsletter, in-office information, an email list, etc. Whatever you can do to further reach your patients is beneficial. A newsletter allows you to share information about your practice or educational information by sending it right to your patients’ email. This creates a new way for you to share the most important information with them without having to rely on social media or content on your website. By offering an email list for your patients to join, you can send the information you want them to see right away directly to them.
Establish your practice with a marketing plan that can successfully reach your patients. If you have any questions on marketing or other ways you can reach your patients, contact Dr. Mayoor Patel for more information.
