Dental Copywriter
Your Simple Strategy for Becoming a Memorable Dental Industry Authority
I attended a memorial service for a family member of a long time neighbor. What I encountered has been my experience many times over about leaving a legacy.
It also brought to mind a principle that can turn your dental marketing content into something memorable rather than something forgettable.
A son of the deceased offered a touching moment during his eulogy. Now in his 50’s (I assume), he recalled a moment with his dad when he was five years old.
Age five! It’s not unusual that your best memories are those simple moments that revolve around a lesson learned or practical, loving words related.
And it’s equally true that your dental marketing content, promotions, emails, whatever strategy you choose are most memorable when they do one thing.
Answer a question
Content marketing – in any niche’ – is really that simple. It’s as uncomplicated as listening to your audience – their questions, their problems, the deeper issues they face and writing useful answers to them.
A bias for helping
Marketing can easily digress into an attempt to impress. You can be lured into the latest online trend or be tempted to talk…talk…talk about all the nuances and technical eye-candy associated with your products, services, and procedures.
That’s common. But…it’s as forgettable as a laugh inducing, Super Bowl commercial that’s creative and entertaining but fails to connect you with the product and leaves you asking, “Now what was it they were promoting?”
What connects gets remembered
This is why it’s vital that you know the intrinsic value of your dental content. I’m frequently asked a couple of questions about dental industry websites.
1-“Do we really need blog posts/articles on our website?” 2-“How frequently should we publish blog/article content?”
Those questions reveal a need AND a strategy. And I’ll take a strategic approach to answering them because in essence that’s what I seek to do here on my blog each week – answer common questions (expressed or implied) with useful answers.
Your Simple Strategy for Becoming a Memorable Dental Industry Authority Whatever Your Specialty Is
1-Intentionally invest your best marketing energy (and dollars) in publishing useful information.
The simple answer to question 1 – “Do we really need blog posts/articles on our website?” – is “YES!” If for no other reason, it reveals you’re listening.
And that’s the essence of content marketing. To listen is to have no other alternative but to be useful..helpful.
As a dental professional you do not have the practical opportunity to be face-to-face for as long as it would be necessary to answer your patient or client questions. Timing is an issue as well.
Your clients and patients often do not have questions during the hours you’re available in-office or on-site. But they will search for them via their mobile devices, smartphones, tablets, and other available technology that gives them online access.
My question for you: “Will you show up in their search results?” And if you do, will they find the memorable answer(s) they’re searching for? (I’ll cover this in greater detail in future posts. Stay tuned.)
- Set up “listening outposts” throughout your dental practice or dental service business. Your dental assistants, dental hygienists, front-desk business team, customer-service reps, field consultants, managers, etc are your “ears.” Ask them to keep a running list of the relevant questions they’re asked by patients or clients. Review your list regularly.
- Hire a copywriter/content strategist to create blog/article content around simple, non-technical answers to those questions. Why hire? Because you’ll delay what you do not have the time (or expertise) to do. Content marketing is as strategic an endeavor as it is simple. There’s an art to writing an SEO optimized, practical, informative, readable, and actionable post or article.
2-Apply a publishing frequency that’s driven by your desire to establish yourself as the go-to authority.
The answer to question 2 – “How frequently should we publish blog/article content?” – is not as much about saturation as it is about being compelled to deliver valuable information.
If you’re listening…really listening to your “audience” you will always have something of importance to share. Now it’s more a question of strategic opportunity.
- Publish/post your blog/article content at a minimum every other week and at a maximum every week. Consistency plus informative value is the-new-black. Gone are the days of content mills that write a paragraph or two packed with dental keywords on a topic that is written about for the sole purpose of baiting the search engines. It’s essential that you create and deliver content that has substance. And your substance comes from “listening” to your audience.
- Monitor your published content via online tracking tools and good-old-fashioned conversation. I’ll cover the practical side of online search tools in another post. For starters, lurk around in your web hosts built-in tracking systems. Ask your IT team or an up to date, tech-savvy colleague about the best apps or software that will give you a window on your content “love.”
Really, it’s all about the “love.” Love for your audience, for your expertise, and the memorable value you consistently deliver via your content.
3 Ways to Deliver Value Through Your Dental Marketing Content to the Masses Searching for Your Services
“You add about as much value as the ‘g’ in lasagna.” – @BillMurray (not the actor) via Twitter
I chuckled while scanning my Twitter timeline as the above quote got my attention. It’s blunt but there’s a principle you shouldn’t ignore.
Whatever you do, don’t be a “g.”
It’s vital to your dental marketing success that you avoid being the “g.” As quoted, the “g” adds no value.
In the language context it occupies a necessary space, a keystroke, within a yummy word. But it’s silent and holds no value beyond the word’s spelling.
I’m not going to debate the nuances of the English language here. That’s not my point.
Here’s the principle: Your dental marketing content – especially online – should add value to your readers and dental website visitors.
There’s two reasons I’ve been beating this “drum” on recent posts.
One, is because the volume of dentists, dental professionals, and dental marketers who are “getting-it” is increasing as we speak. If that’s you, you’re dialed-in to the digital marketing reality that having a dental website is ONLY the beginning.
There’s more and you know it.
You’ve adopted the content marketing mantra that valuable, useful content, consistently published, and distributed via a blog/article page, a podcast, social media, etc is how you build a trusting audience – an audience of readers who will gladly use your services because they trust your expert content.
The second reason for beating the “content-drum?”
A significant number (I’m sad to say) still rely on high-word count, feature-heavy, technical web pages full of dental-speak that colleagues understand but the general public quickly click away from. Not because they’re “dumb” but because the content is “numb” (typical, expected, overdone, and over-used).
How to Deliver Value Through Your Online Dental Marketing Content to the Masses Searching for Your Services
1-Publish Tight, Accessible Content
“Tight” content is readable. Copy and content readability involves a conversational flow.
Write and publish content that your readers can easily scan and understand. Keep in mind that most are reading your content (and viewing your website) on a smartphone or mobile device like an iPad or tablet.
Accessibility is vital to your digital marketing success. The tighter and less wordy your copy/content is the better for how your reader commonly accesses it.
2-Deliver Useful Content Consistently
I’m often asked, “How frequently should I publish or distribute my content?” Opinions vary.
At a minimum I encourage dental professionals to publish every other week or two times per month – minimum! Weekly is best (four times per month on average).
Consistency builds momentum. And the quicker you build momentum with valuable, useful content via a blog, podcast, or social media channels the more trusted you and your expertise become.
Brainstorm and write down the questions your patients or clients are asking. What topics emerge that you could answer through a 400 to 500 word article/blog post?
Create and update an editorial calendar. List topics that apply to certain dental “seasons” (Late summer: back-to-school, Fall/Holiday: end of year insurance benefits, Spring/Early Summer: teeth whitening and cosmetic dentistry for wedding and prom season, Etc.).
Hire/contract with a skilled copywriter or blog content writer who understands the dental “landscape.”
3-Compel with an Easy, Clear Call-to-Action
Inform your readers what the next step is. Compel them to take it.
Use “action” words like “Schedule,” “Contact Us,” “Request,” “Click here,” Etc.
Remove the passive language from your website content. Words like “Welcome to…,” “We’re proud to announce…,” “We would like to…,” “Please…,” imply passivity and permission.
Tell readers about the benefits of your services and ask them to do something specific to access them.
Deliver value through every piece of content you publish. It’s how you build trust, gain attention…and avoid being a “g.”
What a Back-Handed Criticism Taught Me About Watching My Language and How It Can Improve Your Dental Website Content
A criticism recently got under my skin. I prefer to roll with push-back but this one irritated me given my experience and expertise.
It involved a discussion about a website’s language, tone, and readability. By the way, each are vital on your dental website and in your dental marketing.
Let’s make one thing clear – I speak English as my first and only (for now) language.
I’ll explain why I’m sharing that bit of trivia in a moment.
My first words as a child were in English.
I’ve sat through boring English classes (no offense teachers or professors) at a high school, university, and post-graduate level. And as a professional copywriter and content marketing strategist I’ve had to unlearn a portion of what I was taught (some rules of grammar DO NOT APPLY).
I’ve learned about “word-economy” (how to say the most with the least amount of words) from some of the world’s best communicators and communication coaching settings.
Plus…
I have over three decades of experience using the English language to persuade, compel, inspire, motivate, celebrate, and comfort.
I have tens of thousands of hours writing and delivering presentations as a public speaker in a variety of venues using (Bingo!) the English language.
And I have close to an equal number of hours as a trained, professional writer/copywriter commanding the English language on behalf of my own and my client’s services.
So when I was questioned by a client (trying to make a point) whether English was my first language, understand why I was ticked. To clarify, the whole issue wasn’t about my alleged “butchering” of the English language.
The issue surrounded the voice, tone, and general design of the language that’s effective on a dental website. Dental practices and dental marketers often hire me to rewrite their content because what’s there lacks all the above – compelling voice, tone, and readable design.
What’s the deal?
The default on many websites (dentistry is no exception) is high word count (that lacks flow or purpose), wordiness (fluff and bloat that doesn’t offer solutions), and feature-heavy (”Hey, look how state-of-the-art equipped and educated we are…” with few if any stated benefits to the reader/site visitor).
Too strong?
Is it too strong a criticism if your readers aren’t compelled to read past your Home page graphics and headline? Or if your copy/content reads like a chapter out of the most recent CE course you took on osseointegration (i.e. it’s full of dental-speak that only dental professionals use and understand).
I’m not implying that your dental website copy or your dental marketing content should be “dumbed-down.” Frankly, that’s an insulting way to describe copy and content that should, above all, compel people to use your services to improve their health.
But for goodness sake make it easy for them to read and know what action to take next!
How to Create and Deliver Dental Content that People Can Understand and are Compelled to Act On
Watch your language.
Language is about being understood. It makes sense that if you need an interpreter or if your reader must Google the definition of a particular word or words used in your content – it’s not connecting!
Your readers connect with you word to word, line to line, and page to page IF they understand what you’re saying.
- Write your dental content for the general public. The education level of your target audience isn’t the benchmark. The benchmark is speaking clearly and compellingly about your services in a way that leads to a specific, intended action like a scheduled appointment, client contract, etc.
- Know your readers. Listen to their pains, concerns, and goals. The late, writer and leadership consultant, Stephen Covey, said it best, “Seek to understand then to be understood.” There is no connection without knowing. Knowledge of your readers leads to understanding what they lay awake at night thinking about, feeling, etc., that compelled them to land on your website or read your content in the first place. Write to that!
Take-that-tone.
Language is about understanding. Tone is about being heard.
Our grandson will ask, “Are you mad at me…?” It surprises me when he asks that because in the moment I’m not “angry” with him at all.
In reality, he’s perceiving my mood by the “tone” he’s hearing in my voice. If I answer a question somewhat “short” or abruptly he hears anger when I’m simply being brief and to the point.
- Write in a conversational tone. Use this tone more than 95% of the time in your dental marketing content. Why? It works because writing how you talk is how you’ll best be heard and get your point across.
- Keep the tone casual, crisp, and to-the-point. Punchy, short sentences compel better than long, rambling, wordy sentences. Remember, with content, being heard starts with being easy to read and follow.
Raise your voice.
This isn’t about volume. Voice is about being relevant.
I’m talking relevance to your audience. Okay, to soothe your occasional need to feel all intellectual and academic – if your audience is other dental professionals or colleagues go ahead and unload all the dental-speak you want.
That’s fine. They get-it.
But…
That’s not your audience on your dental practice website.
- Again, know your audience. Most of the time it’s everyday, ordinary people who have the need to visit your dental web pages because of mouth pain or some other oral health related issue. Period.
- Know how to use your voice. Internal web pages (Home page, About Us page, Services/Procedures pages) are for quick-scanning, easy-to-read, call-to-action content about the basics of your dental services. Your blog/article pages are for more detailed, educational, albeit easy-to-read and informative content that compels them to trust your expertise.
Now, was that so difficult to understand? I’m a bit tongue-in-cheek with that question.
I’m also biased about the language, tone, and voice you use on your dental website and in your dental marketing content.
Keep it real. And whatever you do, keep it readable. Or…your site visitors and readers are gone with a “click.”
That should really get-under-your-skin.
How to Add Some “Suspense” to Your Dental Marketing Content and Increase Your Influence
Out of the corner of my eye, all I saw was a dark flash outside my studio window. And then a few tufts of feathers floating upward in the breeze.
The suspense hung in the air as I searched for the cause of all the commotion.
It’s easy to miss the point of why you create content for your dental marketing. And the bigger issue might be what’s really missing.
As far as I could tell the bird never saw it coming. The “it,” was apparently the small white cat with said bird in its mouth (Poor, lil’ thing…the bird that is).
The plot unfolding outside my studio window was thick. Suspense works that way.
What’s the point of your dental marketing content? Even more revealing – what’s the plot?
A random flash of dental speak here and there isn’t a plot.
Why?
People expect that. So, let’s talk expectations for a moment.
Web searches turn up hundreds, even thousands, of results for dental services. Depending on the size of your locale those search results can be even higher.
I write a lot of dental website content for clients. And my curiosity remains high about how effective it really is when all’s-said-and-done.
Potential dental patients, new patients, or those seeking your dental services, etc., arrive at on your website for one reason.
Something worked in their search query.
Keyword rich copy is essential. But…
I’m realizing there must be more to keep them ON your website. And more important – returning again and again.
Don’t cop out saying – “Well, they scheduled…or hired us…so my website must have done it’s job.”
Sure, a scheduled appointment adds to your dental digital marketing win-column. I’ll give you that.
What is of equal importance is the relationship you’ve only begun to develop with that new patient or client.
Is the suspense (or lack of it) “killing” you?
Who is helped by typical, outdated, status-quo, overly technical, feature-heavy, dental web content? And why is that a necessary question?
Imagine someone arriving on you dental website and experiencing something entirely fresh, out-of-the-box. What would that look like?
Glad you asked!
The new brand of dental web copy that adds a little suspense, keeps them returning for more, and sharing what they found so your dental practice or dental industry business achieves greater influence.
That’s a lot to comprehend. Allow me to break it down.
Your new brand of dental website copy or digital marketing content isn’t about your services.
“But I’m in the business of providing dental services,” you say. Correct! You are.
Yet, that’s not the only reason why people do business with YOU!
Remember those thousands of web search results?
You are hopefully among them. And the only reason you or another local practice or business showed up where you did in the rankings has everything to do with this.
One, you paid for your ranking with ads or any of the common, trendy approaches that work but also devour time and cash flow.
Or…
Two, you’re nowhere near the top of the search pile because you didn’t invest in the latest, trendy SEO technique.
Or…
Three (and here’s something to think about and repeat lavishly), you achieved a higher ranking than most because you know the value of a content-rich website that consistently provides useful, relevant content for those searching for your services.
It’s not only what you do or provide. It’s also about showing up consistently with information that showcases your authority or expertise.
- Launch or re-launch your dental blog or dental articles page. It’s the most cost-effective and long-term beneficial strategy to maximize all that dental-speak that you think can only be posted on your services pages.
- Use your blog to communicate the information potential patients or clients are searching for about solutions for their dental health or dental business.
Your new brand of dental website copy isn’t really about YOU.
“But I’m the founder, the dentist.” Right. You are!
And everyone expects you to talk about you.
How about your About Us page? You know, that page where you talk about qualifications, educational achievements, CE credits, and on and on.
There has to be more.
- Tell readers less about your qualifications and more about what it’s like to do “business” with you. For example, what does an appointment look like from start to finish? What’s your personal treatment philosophy? How does a consultation move step by step? And what are the outcomes people can expect?
- Invest your dental marketing copy in those descriptive processes that build the “suspense” about what it’s like to work with you and your team. The return on that investment has the potential to be greater than a quick glance and…”Oh, sounds like every other dentist or dental service provider in my search results.”
Suspense can transform your dental marketing efforts. Use a bit of it to increase your value in the eyes of those searching for precisely what you provide.
13 Clues Your Dental Website is Leaking (And a Few Strategies to Fix It)
Words I don’t like to hear – “Honey, the carpet in the extra bedroom is damp.” My first thought: “We’ve had a ton of rain in recent days….,”
But that wasn’t it.
Perhaps you can relate on an entirely different level. Like, “Hey, our dental website doesn’t seem to be generating many leads lately.”
It’s a common issue. And it’s especially true if your site is one of those business “necessities” that you had designed and have not given much thought to since.
My household disaster culprit was much the same. The out-of-sight-out-of-mind hot water heater had begun to fail and slowly leak.
The end of its usefulness
Websites, like household appliances, wear out. In our case, we got a ton more years out of this faithful water heater than should be expected.
It’s a good thing when your resources last longer than expected. And it’s better when you get a heads-up that a change needs to be made before more damage is done.
Is your website leaking?
A strange question, right? But a solid, up to date, useful website platform is essential to your digital marketing success today.
Let’s diagnose it for a moment.
Your website is “leaking” if:
1-The copy/content on your pages hasn’t been updated in, like, 2 or more years!
2-You rely on flashy, moving, revolving, explosive, eye-candy (shall I continue…?) banners to call attention to your pages.
3-Your page copy is a technical, wordy, encyclopedia-like collection of “dental industry speak” that only you and anyone with enough CE credits would understand.
4-You use fine-print to tell site visitors/readers the real “deal” about your services and promotional offers.
Your website is “leaking” if…
5-The word count on your main pages and sub-pages is bloated with more than 500 words each.
6-It’s so keyword dense that the copy doesn’t flow.
7-You use the words, “state-of-the-art,” “cutting-edge,” “Welcome…” and other basically irrelevant, feature-heavy words to describe your services.
8-The word “you” is rarely if ever used because your copy isn’t reader focused.
9-Your copy doesn’t offer compelling benefits focused on why your readers should choose your services.
10-There are few if any calls-to-action that guide the reader where to “click” or navigate to next.
11-The bottom-line of your site doesn’t compel readers to schedule, request more information, hire you, read more, or take some relevant action.
12-You say, “Blog?…What blog…?…I don’t have time to blog…?”
13-Or…”Social media buttons…what are those?…and what would I do with them if I had them?”
Any of the above mentioned true? If so, your website could be leaking as we speak.
Let’s fix this, shall we?
For starters…
- Make your dental website a platform instead of a digital brochure.
- Use your website as a content delivery machine. Update your content consistently via your blog or article page.
- Showcase your authority and professional expertise by having an educational mindset.
- These days information creates opportunity. Create an informational stream relevant to your specialty or services.
- Think blog posts, webinars, podcasts, downloadable simple, short ebooks. Answer your patient’s and client’s questions through these content sources.
Begin to plug the leaks in your website with these strategies. And ask for help if you prefer to stay in your wheelhouse of daily expertise.
Leave website copy and content creation to…well…those who do this all-day, everyday.
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.