An online presence does a lot for your business. Not only does it give you a place to keep your patients updated on the latest news surrounding your dental practice, treatment options, and services, but it also gives you the opportunity to create a space where people can engage with you.
As you build your online reputation around your dental practice, social media can be a great tool for answering questions from potential patients, responding to testimonials and reviews, addressing concerns, and pointing patients to book.
An online presence gives you the opportunity to show your audience your values – leading to stronger working relationships and, subsequently, a better ranking in Google and Bing.
A Facebook Business Page is More Than a Social Call
Having a Facebook page or an Instagram page set up for your dental practice is a fantastic way to engage in social activities and create trust.
Social media pages blend the narrative between advertising, self-promotion, and authoritative discussion. You don’t just want to promote and advertise, but you’ll also want to create a dialogue between you, your patients, and your dental practice.
Here are some tips on what to do once you get your social page up and running:
- Pose questions to your patients.
- Comment on testimonials and reviews.
- Respond to discussions.
- Post relevant content that engages your audience.
- Do an FAQ to generate a conversation.
- Give your audience a behind-the-scenes look at your practice.
- Share news about recent updates in the industry.
To put it simply, the purpose of using social media for your business is to create opportunities for people to engage with you. By creating engagement, you build trust and authority with current and potential patients.
How Do You Know Your Posts Are Being Read?
Finding success on social media is all about knowing when your audience is most active and discussing the topics they’d like to know more about. Just because Facebook has 1.73 billion active daily users [1], does not mean that you will reach your entire audience. It’s important that you learn what windows of time have high engagements for your particular platform (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.) so that you can post when your audience will be most likely to see it.
Keep in mind that finding the best time to post will take some experimentation on your part, but once you figure it out, you’ll see a positive increase in engagement.
How Many Google Reviews Do I Need?
The real answer – you can never have enough.
Having a few reviews on Google My Business is a fantastic start, but you need at least 10 reviews before prospective new patients will take your business seriously. In order to increase the likelihood that you’ll get a review, it’s important that you respond to all reviews you have – both positive and negative. By doing this, you prove to prospective patients that you are credible, willing to build trust, and are professional. If a prospective patient sees that you are responding to others, they are far more likely to visit your location because it shows that you truly care about your patients and your practice.
The Importance of Staying Active
Creating a Google My Business page and various social media pages is just the start. In fact, the only way you’ll have success on these platforms is if you continue to be active.
One of the worst things that a prospective patient can come across is a social media webpage that is inactive. Inactivity devalues patients’ trust in a business and often leads to them believing that the business is closed.
Make sure that you have recent photographs of your dental practice, provide relevant content on your social media pages that encourage discussion, and respond to comments, questions, and testimonials. Social media provides a direct link to your customers, and with the right amount of engagement, you can leave a good impression and get the feedback you need to better your practice.
About the Author:
Clayton Patterson is the founder and CEO of Digital Space Marketing. After spending nearly a decade developing websites and launching successful marketing campaigns for medium sized companies and startups, Clayton knows what truly drives conversions and brings growth to an organization. In addition to his extensive marketing experience, Clayton is a lawyer with a deep understanding of website accessibility laws and the technical requirements that all websites should abide by.
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