June 2015
How to Build Your Dental Marketing Plan Like a Dance in the Summer Rain
I envied her the moment I saw her walking along the curb in the street outside my office window. Nothing was stopping this mom and her two preteen daughters from thoroughly enjoying the drenching downpour of a summer rainstorm.
What if you could free yourself from boundaries in your dental marketing? Being aware you have them is the first step towards a new era of effectiveness.
The mom’s and daughter’s laughter made me curious. And my curiosity was quickly turned to thoughts of how freeing it is to lift your arms into a summer downpour with no fear of getting soaked to the bone.
Everything in me wants to live that way. More of that freedom desire is in me for how I write, market, and run my growing dental content and consulting business.
Think free-range
Most of my life, I’ve been an outside-the-box, color-outside-the-lines kinda guy. Cliche’ as that sounds, the core value could be the difference in how you connect with your patients and/or clients through your marketing.
You build an audience these days by…
- Content that sounds like a conversation more than a used-car-lot sales pitch.
- Connecting with people in a social media environment more than an invasive, in-your-face marketing campaign.
- Compelling people to do business with you as result of your freely shared, easily accessible, useful knowledge and expertise more than dropping people into a sales funnel to see who survives the process.
What I’m saying is – untether yourself from how it’s always been done…how it’s currently being done (in some instances)…and get out there in the downpour of possibilities.
What’s possible?
Let’s get practical. You own a platform on which your services are the main course.
As a dental provider you’re known for providing treatment that helps people eliminate their pain, maintain their health, and look better. If you’re a supplier, consultant, or marketing firm you’re a connector that delivers the goods to help dental providers do their job effectively.
None of that’s ground breaking information, I’m guessing. But it’s a perspective that shapes a few possibilities you might have forgotten or not pursued in your dental marketing.
Build your dental marketing plan like a dance-in-the-summer-rain (Why it’s okay to free yourself from how you’ve always done it)
1-Get comfortable with creating useful content around your professional expertise and services.
The easiest and yet most ineffective thing about your dental website?
You can set it and forget it.
But forgetting it no longer has the effect it once had. Why?
Google values content…content…content. Not just any content, rather content that’s fresh, relevant, and useful to your market…and delivered consistently.
Keywords matter (don’t misunderstand) but they’re no longer the magic dust they once were.
Use them. Just don’t abuse them.
What do I mean?
Baiting your website with keyword data to get the search hits is old-school. And it’s especially confining (not freeing at all) if it’s ALL you rely on to get found in your local search results.
Pay as you go is another, still popular, option. Google ads are effective but their scalability is lacking if you want to invest available marketing dollars elsewhere.
Here’s your elsewhere…and it’s totally free-ing!
- Brainstorm all the topics you can think of that serve your patients/clients. Then consistently create blog posts, enewsletter articles, podcasts, etc and share them with your list.
- Listen to your patients/clients. What are they telling you about their pain, problems, need for solutions, etc.?
- Scan your testimonials and reviews for “nuggets” of info you can build content around.
And if all this sounds time consuming and out of your wheelhouse –
- Hire a copywriter/content writer to do the “heavy-lifting” while you stay on your game in dentistry.
Sound good?
2-Build relationships with social media and use the connection to help people with your expertise.
Social media isn’t all cat videos (those are hysterical), images of your latest root canal procedure (gross), or a group photo standing under your latest proclaimed state-of-the-art technology or service you invested thousands of dollars to promote at your booth at the recent industry convention (who cares…wait…that was rude…sorry – but you get my point…hopefully?).
Conversation is the essence of social media. And it’s dialog that often, if not most of the time, revolves around the sharing of knowledge based content – yours or someone else’s.
Social media is a wasted tool, if…you’re only talking about yourself and not helpfully engaging people in conversation around…wait for it…your “greatness.”
I use that term “greatness” loosely.
Face it, you ARE great. You have skills, expertise, authority…and by-golly people like you! Or they should, right?
Dance in the social media rain, my friend.
- Post useful info/content on your dental practice Facebook page.
- Link to your blog, latest podcast episode, or another industry colleague’s content via your Twitter feed.
- Picture your practice culture on Pinterest or Instagram.
- Tell a story with video on your YouTube channel.
And remember…
3-People do business with those they know, like, and trust.
Trust grows over time when you help people deal with their pain, problems, and related challenges. It’s vital to your marketing relationships (that’s what they should be) that you don’t give the you’re-just-a-name-on-my-huge-aren’t-you-impressed-with-the-size-of-it-list impression.
Lists are essential (treasure them). Marketing funnels work (careful you don’t abuse the privilege of your list trusting you to promote to them).
Marketing is ultimately about sharing information or services that help and potentially change people’s lives.
And you can do it with an effortless humanity that people feel more compelled to give you their time…and money.
Be that person. It’s the principle behind why I stopped working for a moment to watch a mom and her daughters dance joyfully in the rain.
- Lose the marketing tone, schtick, or whatever you want to call it. Be yourself by talking like a human being to other human beings.
- Evaluate your marketing copy and content by it’s dance-in-the-rain, conversational, realness. Write (and market) like you talk!
- Preserve people’s trust once you’ve earned it. Keep giving away content (blog posts, podcasts, newsletters, reports, webinars, etc.) because it helps them.
Then…
Enjoy the returns on your investment. Celebrate them like a soaking dance in a summer downpour.
2 Core Content Strategies That Give You an Edge in Your Dental Marketing
Our soon-to-be six year old grandson lives every moment full of anticipation. And we love the satisfaction of being able to respond to his hopes for fun.
You’re in a unique position to be responsive in your dental marketing. And the satisfaction of your patients or clients depends on you being prepared with a core content strategy.
All our grandson had to hear was the word, “Zoo!” The mention of that word signaled what my wife and I already knew would make him happy.
It’s a grandparent thing. We know him. And we know what fills him with hours of joy.
Start with what you know.
When you know someone you’re in a position of leverage. In recent posts I shared the true value of your website platform (PC) and what leverage means to your authority (AC).
Knowledge also equips you to respond.
People expect a response these days. You send someone a text and if you get the “bubble” (indicating they’re reading it) on your screen with no reply you think – “Hey what’s the deal?”
Or you send an email or leave a voice mail. Hours…days go by and no reply. Wow!
Customer service rises and falls on quick, adequate, satisfying response.
Responsiveness rules.
Think of your patient’s or client’s digital (online) presence as a sort of third “ear.” It’s where you apply your responsive listening skills through the use of what let’s call “Responsive Content (RC).”
You’re essentially in the problem-solution “business.” People search for you and your services because they’re in pain (problem), lack knowledge about maintaining their health (problem), or perhaps lack the resources to solve either circumstance (problem).
Communicate where people are listening.
What’s the quickest way to respond these days? And where do your patients/clients access that information?
It seems appropriate to respond digitally rather than using snail-mail or direct mail. If you want to connect in real-time you can’t beat the digital response.
Two digital content strategies you must be prepared to use if you want to master a responsive reputation.
Work your email list.
The most abused and at the same time under-used responsive content (RC) tool you have is e-mail.
Why abused?
Because you could fail to understand the intrinsic value of permission. And if you have permission don’t discount what it means to treasure it as a trusted relationship.
Certainly, you know what it means to be spammed. If not, scan your email inbox and evaluate those who emailed you.
What’s their relationship to you?
Someone you requested info from?
Someone whose content you find useful?
And while we’re on the subject of “usefulness,” here’s how to get the most from your email promotions.
- Be untypical. Inform your readers via a relevant story, idea, or theme.
- Connect the story, idea, or theme to the action you’re asking them to take when reading your email content.
- Ditch the formality. Treat your email like a one-on-one conversation. Write the message in a way that sounds like a casual conversation with one person (your reader).
- Avoid salesy words and common cliches’. The quickest way to get your emails spam-filtered is to sound like your “selling” something. Think about your language.
- Invest in your subject line. The key to emails being delivered (not filtered), opened, and…drumroll…read…is your subject line.
- Share a benefit in your subject line that compels them to open it.
And #2
Connect with social media.
The key is connecting. I hesitated to use the word, “engage,” because it’s often overused and has lost its impact.
That’s sad since social media is really about engaging (there, I said it!) your patients/clients in an online conversation with you via your content.
There must be more to your social strategy than contests, promotions, and images of office parties (important, don’t get me wrong) or dental procedures. Keep your social media channels “human,” but don’t miss the advantage of having a (hopefully) growing “fan base” because of your content value.
- Link to your own relevant, useful content. This is the importance of having a consistently updated blog or article page on your website platform.
- Curate and share other valuable, helpful content that’s relevant to your dental practice, dental expertise, and dental products or services.
- Balance content with the occasional (and I emphasize, occasional) promotion. Social followers are numbed when every other post is about your latest “Like”-our-page-share-our-page contest for a free give-away.
- Avoid violating privacy issues. But don’t allow your fear to keep you from legitimately and effectively connecting with your patient/client base on social media.
- Review and respond in as much real-time as possible to comments or direct connections on your social channels. If necessary, designate, or better, hire someone to manage your social media content and communications.
Responsiveness gives you an edge in today’s digital marketing. And timing is on your side when your mindset is aligned with two of the most effective strategies.
The Use-it-or-Lose-It Factor That Attracts People to Your Dental Marketing
We have two young adult daughters. The youngest (in her early twenties) was involved in a car accident that totaled her newly purchased vehicle.
Yeah. I know! Bummer.
The frustration she’s experienced reaching an acceptable insurance settlement is proof that having one thing matters.
Leverage.
And leverage is an essential reason why you must be in a position of authority in your dental marketing.
Two fortunate things about my daughter’s accident. One, she wasn’t injured. Two, it wasn’t her fault.
But the no-fault issue isn’t without loads of hassle. Of course, I’ve been the supportive Dad (why wouldn’t I).
My unfortunate experience with auto accidents gives me a certain amount of leverage. I can use it on her behalf to get what she deserves from the at fault’s insurance provider.
Leverage is essential to getting what you want, what you need, or what you’re entitled to.
You have more authority than you’re leveraging as a dental professional.
- You’re educated.
- You have solutions to people’s problems and pain.
- You deliver a valuable and useful service.
The magic of leveraged authority
In a previous post, you discovered how to leverage your expertise via your Platform Content (PC). Revisit the post to understand how your dental website has essential cause and effect value.
It’s time to amp-up your website (PC). And your Authority Content (AC) is the energy you need.
Gone are the days when a mere website is all you need. Sure, it’s a start.
Search engines (e.g. Google) recognizes that you have one. But if you want to vault to a higher ranking as a dental provider you must…I repeat, MUST prove that you’re a useful resource worthy of people’s search.
There’s more to being useful online as a dental professional than common Services and Procedures web pages packed with dental keywords.
PC + AC = “Leverage”: How to leverage your authority into an ongoing stream of profitable relationships.
- Keep your blog updated with fresh, informative content. Answer the questions your patients, clients, or readers are asking via your blog content.
- Tap into patient’s or client’s questions with responsive, relevant, quick & easy surveys. Develop your own surveys/questions instead of using standardized approaches.
- Avoid “bait-and-switch” tactics when surveying and promoting your content on your website and through social media channels. Do it just-because and be up front about your reason(s).
- Re-purpose your blog content into a downloadable e-book. Offer the e-book (free) on your website or via a designated landing page. Share the download link every opportunity you get and you’ll develop a reputation of being a go-to resource.
- Start a podcast. It’s a fresh way to spotlight your “authority.” Check out these resources:
Pat Flynn’s How to Start a Podcast Tutorial
Rainmaker.fm – The Showrunner podcast
And who knows…
You might create a passive income stream out of your content development. And who couldn’t use that kind of financial and career leverage?
Stay tuned. In an upcoming post you’ll get the final content piece that increases your influence.
The First (of 3) Snooze-You-Lose Strategies That Eliminate Panic and Propel Your Dental Marketing
If you’ve ever attended a family reunion you understand. I’ll explain.
At the core, it’s the same principle that connects your dental marketing to the big-picture strategy.
My dad made a statement at our most recent family reunion. I can’t get it out of my mind.
It answers the question, “Why am I here?” And I’m not talking some existential, meaning of life idea.
The essence of his statement to our gathering of nephews, nieces, cousins, spouses, children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren defines what it means to be family.
We were circling up prior to our reunion meal. My dad (the current family patriarch) pointed to the displayed, vintage portraits of my grandmother and grandfather.
Then, tearfully gesturing to our gathering, said, “They caused all this…”
Cause and effect
Everything starts somewhere. Before a tree, family or otherwise, extends its branches, there’s a simple seed (the cause).
And your dental marketing impact (the effect) is no different.
What seeds are you planting? And going a step further, do you have a strategy that’s easy to implement?
Reacting isn’t a strategy
You’re accustomed to it. For example, as a dental provider, you react to the pain a patient presents with.
Your education, training, and experience teaches you to diagnose the situation and prescribe a treatment plan. I realize it’s a bit more complicated than that, but you get the imagery.
Reaction can grip you too when there’s a need to market your services.
- New patient scheduling is down
- Recare has stalled
- Web search analytics are showing downward traffic trends
And the dentist down the street is your community’s new rock star with their state-of-the-art…cutting-edge this or that (and if they use “state-of-the-art” or “cutting edge” to describe whatever in their latest postcard mailer or on their newly designed website, you should stop worrying…because no one cares…seriously, nothing says boring, “numbing,” marketing copy than those two phrases…but I digress).
Meanwhile, back to your challenge at hand…
Your marketing dilemma is a different cause for reaction than you’re typically educated, trained, and experienced to handle. You know when a tooth has erupted and what to do to fix it.
Now your marketing presents with pain. What to do?
A road paved with “good intentions” that leads you nowhere
Well intentioned dental professionals do what they know best to do when marketing challenges arise. Right?
You leave a Post-it® note on the desk of your office manager or designated front-office team member that reads, “See me about an email blast…” (or something related to a panic-driven “marketing” blitz).
Is that the best you can do?
Your dental marketing deserves better than a random, reactively conceived, out-of-their-depth (with all due respect reference to the person tasked) email blast. You’re panicked. I get it.
Take a deep breath.
Better…?
Now let’s assess the problem and nail down a more effective solution to your ongoing marketing dilemma.
You WILL be in panic mode again. That is, unless you readjust your perspective and realign your approach.
The first (of 3) marketing content resources you’ll ever need to build your dental practice or dental industry business (and stop burdening an already focused and busy business assistant).
1-Your Platform Content (PC)
Consider your website your office’s front door. Before a new patient or anyone else walks through the door of your dental practice they’ve probably invested a portion of their time hanging around in your digital “lobby.”
This assumes you have a website. If you don’t…well…we need to talk (and we should have that conversation, like, NOW).
Having a website is only the beginning. These days there’s more to an established, effective, useful, search friendly online presence than a mere website.
Home page-check! About us page-check! Services pages-check! Contact us page-check! Social media buttons-check!
I’ll even go so far to say Blog-check! You’d be surprised (perhaps) how few can check that one off the list these days.
And if you do have a blog page, how fresh and/or recent and useful is your content?
More on that later.
How to make your dental website a solid, home-base platform
Consider it the “cause” of your intended “effect” (to borrow from my earlier family reunion story).
If you want to avoid reactionary, panic-stricken marketing make certain your website platform is solid.
- Visit your website as if you’re searching for a dental provider. How informative is it? Do you know where to go next from page to page? Does it communicate relevant, benefit focused information (rather than “hey, look how great, equipped, educated, etc we are…”)? Are there clear calls to action page to page? Does the content ultimately lead to scheduling an appointment or consultation?
- Clean up your language. Make sure your entire site is “you” (reader/patient/client) focused. It should read as if you’re having a personal conversation with the person reading your content.
- Stop talking so much. Reduce your page word count if necessary. You should be able to inform and compel a response with 250 to 500 words per page on average.
- Keep it real. Evaluate your page header images. If your images look cookie-cutter, your site can appear that way.
You want to avoid having the reader feel like, “oh, I’ve been here before…just another dental website…” Imagine them feeling instead that your practice story, culture, and voice is different than most…and unique to yours.
Your dental marketing starts somewhere. And your website platform is the most strategic place to begin if you want to solve the panic mode problem in your marketing.
Process and act on this for now. Stay tuned…there’s more to come in an upcoming post.