Staying abreast of new marketing trends and devising unique marketing ideas can help your local dental practice add new customers and stem the tide of patients turning to chain dental practices.
Extended hours and competitive prices are helping fuel the demand for chain dental practices. Their large footprint and high-tech design are luring patients vying for fast service and after-hours appointments. Chains like Aspen Dental and Heartland Dental are popping up in shopping plazas across the country, and private practice ownership is declining. According to the American Dental Association, only 73% of United States dentists still own private practices. The number of private practices owned by young, new dentists is also shrinking.
To stay competitive, dental practices need to ramp up their marketing efforts to add loyal customers and garner repeat business.
As part of your omnichannel marketing strategy, it’s important to incorporate both digital and traditional platforms.
Here’s a quick list of some unique marketing ideas to implement:
LAUNCH A MOBILE APP
Debuting a mobile app can help customers track appointments and monitor billing. Apps can send out notifications to keep your dental practice on the radar by promoting oral hygiene and healthy habits. Apps are great tools to encourage your patients to write online reviews, a proven method for attracting new patients.
At least 63.3% of consumers check Google reviews before visiting a business, according to ReviewTrackers, an online review software company.
ADD #HASHTAGS
Are you using hashtags on your social media posts yet? Hashtags organize social media posts into groups by their subject matter.
You can use a mix of trending, relevant, and branded hashtags to raise brand awareness and improve engagement.
NEW MOVER MARKETING
About 27.1 million people moved in 2021, according to the U.S Census Bureau. Remote workers are moving to locations with a lower cost of living and better lifestyle. New movers are an asset to your business. They have not had time to develop routines or form loyalties with the competition.
Welcome new residents to the community by participating in Our Town America’s new mover marketing program. We send new residents a Welcome Package filled with proven offers to reach people before they form loyalties to your competitors. People appreciate being welcomed to their new home and the convenience of having information about a high-quality dentist delivered to their door.
Presenting a one-time use free offer on that new mover gift certificate helps seal the deal.
Our Town America has over 50 years experience compiling clean new mover lists that are accurate and up-to-date. Our respected suppliers identify individuals and families who have filed an address change in the past 30 days, and we weed out duplicates to provide accurate and reliable lists to help our clients get a solid return on their investment.
TURN TO TIKTOK
Although you may be reluctant to add another social media platform to your to-do list, TikTok is quickly becoming the place to be online. TikTok has more than 86.9 million active TikTok users in the United States alone. In addition to watching clips of people dancing and funny cat videos, at least 81% of TikTok users rely on the platform to learn about new products and brands.
HOST A Q&A
Instagram stories offers an interactive question feature to help encourage engagement. Invite your followers to ask you questions and share your responses. Inviting questions can help educate patients on oral hygiene, provide logistical questions about your practice and inform patients about the various services you offer.
Users may throw in a personal question, which can be a great way to humanize your practice. The best part, you choose the questions to answer.
PHOTO CONTEST
Showcase the bright smiles of your customers by launching a photo contest. Ask followers to submit a favorite photo of a smiling family member or a shot of their children brushing their teeth before bedtime. Pick a winner and present a small prize. To encourage submissions, you can offer a small consolation prize to everyone who participates.
CROSS PROMOTION
Team up with a local business to cross-promote your services. Forming a long-lasting partnership with a local orthodontist or oral surgeon will help drive traffic.
LEVERAGE TESTIMONIALS
People dread visiting the dentist, but it’s a safe bet your patients are pleased with the results. Ask patients to write a testimonial at check out. Customer testimonials typically highlight positive experiences and build trust and credibility with potential patients. Use their positive testimonials online or on your marketing materials.
Taking an approach that allows for unique marketing ideas can help your dental practice thrive and become a well-respected fixture in the local community.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
After serving our country as a US Army Medic, Michael Plummer, Jr. returned to the family business (Our Town America – the nation’s premier New Mover Marketing franchise started by his father in 1972) in 2001 to work in the IT department. More than fifteen years later, Plummer now leads the business as its CEO and CTO – using his extensive technology/data experience to make Our Town America the savviest analytical player in the industry.
A technology expert with more than 15 years of leadership experience, Michael Plummer, Jr. has helped Our Town America establish itself as the nation’s fastest-growing and most successful New Mover Marketing franchise. With dozens of franchise partners located from coast to coast, Our Town America helps thousands of local business spark long-term, loyal relationships with countless new movers each and every year.
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