Dental practices are leveraging social media marketing more than ever, and why shouldn’t they? Social media marketing lets you engage with your potential patients & invite them to your office without using dated marketing methods such as door-to-door marketing. Check out this blog to learn how you can begin implementing dental practice social media marketing from scratch!
To your surprise, one of the most effective ways for your dental patients to reach you is through social media. Patients use platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram to build and maintain relationships with both people and businesses. More and more individuals are turning to social profiles to decide on who they can trust based on social proof and online word of mouth.
Given that fact, are you using the best social media marketing tool for dentists to up your marketing game to the next level?
When searching for information regarding their next treatment, 73% of people use search engines.
Social media marketing for dentists is meant to be realistic, simple, and achievable. Why? Because your patients should remember your name as a professional dentist that they can trust. As a dentist or small business owner, you always want to put your product or service first. However, no matter how badly you want to give your clients the best experience, you probably are not an expert at social media.
So what’s the solution?
Smart dental social media marketing such as Practina can simplify the task for you! The automated post scheduler helps you to convey your message, build trust, and connect with more patients.
Why Should Dentists Consider Social Media for Their Practice?
Social media marketing is all about putting your business in front of more eyes and connecting with your target audience. The more time and effort you put into these initiatives on social media, the better your results will be, and your overall branding will further stick in the minds of prospects in the long run.
Any dentist reading this went to school for an extended period and then put in a ton of work to master their craft. Some of us who are super ambitious and want to have full control over our marketing may take the same approach when beginning our social media marketing journey. However, those really serious probably just want to focus on their services and business while experts take care of their social media marketing campaigns.
With 2.7 billion active users on Facebook alone, you can’t ignore the potential power social media marketing has for a dental practice. Studies reveal that more than 80% of American adults use an online social network. These numbers are high enough for small businesses and professionals, including dentists, to consider social media marketing.
With the following social media marketing tips for dentists, you’ll be able to harness the power of the online world to achieve spectacular marketing results.
More than 55% of dentists have Facebook accounts for their dental practice. This implies that most dental offices have social media accounts. Yet the majority of them lack engaging content and have a minimal following. The result? They are not taking full advantage of social media.
So Do People Really ‘Like’ Dentists on Social Media?
We understand that people fear going to regular dental visits. So, given that people don’t like dental visits, why would they want to realistically connect with their dentists on social media?
That’s a good question, and can make you assume people don’t like to talk about their dental hygiene. However, when you look at the social following big oral health brands have, like Oral-B toothbrushes (8.1 million & counting!), the facts say otherwise.
People may not enjoy going to their dental appointments, but they care about how their teeth and smile look, how to take better care of them, & how to live healthier. They also look to social media and online resources to learn more about oral health. That proves you should create a strong social media and online presence to become the source of information people turn to. This will help you build long-lasting relationships with your patients and help your practice grow.
9 Social Media Marketing Tips For Dentists
1. Content First: Always post valuable and engaging content
People want to learn more about oral health and how to maintain it. So when you post content, try to give valuable tips about dental health and hygiene. Informative posts mean more people will share them with their friends. This will lead to more engagement in your posts.
Not sure how to come up with the perfect posts? Practina can do it for you! Let the intelligent auto social media posts scheduler create, schedule, and publish posts that are tailored to your business!
Another tip is to keep a fun factor in your posts. Give your audience a decent laugh from time to time. You can share dental memes and fun facts on dental health or dentists to do so. A little humor never hurts anybody, given that you know how to play with words. If not, you can let our advanced marketing tool Practina do it on your behalf.
Besides original posts on the major social platforms Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, you need to share other content on social media as well. In the end, your goal is to engage and connect with your audience.
2. Create a Series of Content to Tell Your Story
Okay, so you know that content is important, but how do you take it to the next level to stay ahead of the competition? Try putting together a series of content to showcase before and after results rather than using a simple split image. That’s cliché, and almost everyone has done it. When you bring forth a series of content, it makes people want to follow along. It conveys a story and brands you as the expert and a magician of creating beautiful smiles. Furthermore, it builds trust with potential patients as they experience more touchpoints with you (We’ll talk about touchpoints in detail later in the blog!).
So how do you create a series of content?
Follow these quick and easy 4 tips:
▪ Tutorials. Tutorials always play the ‘X’ factor when you want to connect to people. Put together videos that explain dental tips & oral care in a simplified way. Your audience knows about daily brushing and flossing, but have they seen a dentist do it or explain the right way, products, or tricks to do so? Such simple tutorials will work, and it shows a more personable side of your dental clinic.
▪ Case studies. Another good idea is to tell the success stories of previous patients and display them as case studies. Find patients who are happy with the results you provided for them. Tell their story by showing how it improved their confidence and their health. You can do that or invite a local influencer in for a free checkup or cleaning to do so.
A simpler way is to consider using Practina, an intelligent ai social media marketing tool for dentists that will collect your reviews and publish them as posts!
▪ Relevance. Ensure the content you create and post is relevant to the specific social platform. You don’t want to bore your Instagram audience with an essay. For lengthy content, consider Facebook or YouTube. Short-form or bite-size content is ideal for Instagram and Twitter.
▪ Ask questions to prospects. Ask your potential patients to participate in a survey or questionnaire related to oral health. Such content is perfect for Twitter and Facebook since it’s easy to create a poll on those platforms.
3. Is Your Leadership and Communication Ideal?
Every practice needs great leadership, and your dental practice is no exception. You need to dedicate some time in your calendar to create, and articulate to your team, a clear vision for your practice in 2021 and beyond.
Practina can help you by providing foolproof social media marketing for dentists and creating the perfect posts for all your platforms.
The most successful dental businesses we work with have SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) driving them forward. These goals help get the right marketing strategy in place for success. Whether it be social media, your website, or SEO.
4. Influencer Marketing is the New Trend
Want more dental patients in your dentist’s chair? Influencer marketing is your best bet. And it’s cheaper than running unproductive Facebook ads or engaging in other forms of advertising. An average dentist probably doesn’t have the intricacies required to figure out how to do it. But let us tell you, it’s not that hard when done right and with the best dental marketing tool!
Do some research on a local influencer on Instagram or Facebook with a large following. We understand it’s not a cakewalk to find someone who specifically attracts millions of people by talking about their teeth, but it may be helpful to find someone who focuses on beauty or simply looks and feels your best.
A popular influencer with a healthy smile and engaging content can attract a significant number of followers. So if you’re a rookie dentist, instead of trying to come up with engaging content, capitalize on an influencer’s existing following to build yours.
But how can you do this?
You can offer them a free cleaning session or free screenings at your clinic. Or you can give them monetary benefits. Just invest your time in paying for the materials! If they give you a shoutout on Instagram and link to your website in return, chances are you will enjoy new patients walking through the door.
While influencer marketing is a critical aspect of social media marketing for dental clinics, most local businesses are unable to scratch the surface with this. Influencer marketing can act as a golden opportunity for local dentistry when used correctly.
5. Create TouchPoints
Your prospective patients need to see or hear about your dental practice at least 14-16 times before they consider your services! That’s how you will build trust through dental practice social media marketing. It could be through word-of-mouth from another patient, through your website, coming across your practice on social media, flyer drops, phone calls, or Ads on Google/Facebook, etc. In 2020, we saw a huge rise in the use of social media by dental practices, making the online space even more crowded and competitive! Make sure your practice is showcased online consistently to promote your brand and increase its awareness.
Practina can help you streamline your advertising for brand awareness or lead generation for particular dental services. So if you are offering a special discount or offer on Invisalign or Implants for a limited time, make the most of it with this trick. Focused advertising for lead generation lets you track and see the Return On Investments simpler and faster.
6. Google Always Rules
Search engine optimization can never be out of the race. The importance of SEO continues in 2021. For a steady stream of new patients, your dental practice needs to be visible at the top of SERPs. We understand this won’t happen overnight. But you can get the desired results with proper planning and combining it with your dental practice social media marketing campaign.
So plan to start early. Think about where you want your dental clinic to be in the next 1-2 years & start your practice’s SEO groundwork now. SEO is a long-game investment to establish and maintain your online presence on Google. That can be your biggest asset if you make all the right moves.
7. Are You Spending Money on Advertising Yet?
It’s no surprise Facebook and major social media channels see an abundance of content every minute of the day. Now let’s say an average person signed up for such platforms earlier and has 1,000 friends listed on their profile. It’s not feasible for him/her to see all the content their friends post throughout the day. The good news is, that Facebook uses algorithms to prioritize content.
It implies the best way to ensure a piece of content gets seen by as many friends and followers as possible is to invest in paid advertising. The risk is, that it’s easy to lose part of your money on ads. But not when you use the smart ads offered by Practina. No more wasting your money on ads that don’t work. The intelligent app will make sure your ads are visible to your target audience on the platforms and at the times that they are the most active.
Remember to always start small and then scale up once you identify an effective ad. Advertising doesn’t mean paying for exposure on social media sites. PPC advertising on Google is also one of your options. It’s better to consider the best social media marketing tool for dentists to maximize benefits from paid advertising.
With Practina, you just need to pay for the ads you run! Also, there’s no hassle or burden to managing your entire workflow. The tool will take care of your dental practice social media marketing from the start!
You can also benefit from geo-targeted ads that consider geographic and demographic targeting. Use them to get your practice in front of the people who are most likely to be interested in your products and services. Such ads help kick start your social media campaign and get you the maximum amount of likes.
8. Win the Trust of Your Patients
The 2020 pandemic showed everyone that health is most important. As a dental or orthodontic practitioner, you can leverage social media to show empathy. Try to connect with your patients during these difficult times for everyone.
Remember people always trust people. Sounds cliché? But it’s true!
All advertising, on your website, social media posts, on flyers, everywhere – prospect patients want to see there are genuine people behind those words and visuals. They want to confirm that you specialize in what you do and can deliver the customer care and service they expect. To personalize your communication as much as possible. Try not to bore the audience with posts based on dental issues only. Keep things interesting and up-to-date.
9. Leverage the Power of Visuals: Add videos and photos to your campaign
Videos are the most popular form of media content on the internet. And YouTube is still the #1 platform for watching videos. So make sure you upload videos directly or natively to Facebook. You can spend a few minutes shooting a great clip in the office and share the video with your followers. Make sure to boost the video for maximum reach.
For photos, capture moments of a dental procedure to give an idea of the kind of experience patients can expect at your clinic. You can also post before and after photos, transformations, an inside tour of your clinic, and more. Just remember your patients value comfort over everything else. Given that, use photos that reflect the comfortable, relaxing feeling of your office.
Additional Tips
Post about other stuff too!
We get it. You have a dental clinic you want to promote. But it doesn’t imply you can’t or shouldn’t share other types of content. Discuss, share, and reshare other non-dental things too! Non-dental content should always be a part of your social media marketing for dental clinics. Just figure out what your target audience prefers and share stuff that matches their interests. For instance, you might comment on a new cafe in the town, share viral news, or talk about a local health seminar.
Ask your patients to leave reviews
Do you want to garner word-of-mouth advertisements? Then request or motivate your patients to leave genuine reviews on your social media pages. A potential patient who visits your page would want to learn about what other patients have experienced. Hence, reviews and testimonials can be really helpful in spreading the word around.
Use smart apps for an enhanced user experience
Many new apps, social media posts scheduler tools, ad tools, etc allow you to make the most of your dental practice. Some even let you convert patient reviews into social media posts for better reach. Make sure you leave a call to action in your posts, ads, and marketing material such as ones that encourage viewers to book an appointment, call you, or visit your website. Using applications such as Practina can enhance and improve a user’s experience while also bringing you the best of social media marketing for dentists!
Are You Using a Savvy Social Media Marketing Tool for Dentists to Enjoy More Appointments?
We hope that you are now armed with the best social media marketing tips for dentists. Next, you need to focus on implementation and start booking more appointments!
It will take some time and commitment to create great content, but most dentists don’t do that regularly. And that’s exactly why we are here with Practina, an intelligent social media marketing for dentists. You get to enjoy customized posts that are automatically created, scheduled, and published on all of your social media. Then there are smart ads, geo-targeted ads, reviews, a lead center, and other advanced features that can simplify social media for you!
All you need to do is try it once and see for yourself how the system can help you stand out from the rest. Sign up today to check out Practina’s amazing features!
Let’s help you create flawless smiles and spread wellness in the community!
