The ideal time to ask a patient for a testimonial is just after they have completed treatment with you. You can go about getting a patient testimonial in several ways, but we suggest requesting either an online review or a video testimonial.
More often than not, a happy patient will gladly write a written review for your page. Video testimonials are a bit harder to come by, so you’ll want to give your patient the option of doing either.
Which Type of Patient Testimonials Should You Get?
While both written online reviews and recorded footage are going to bring in a lot of traffic, patient testimonials that do the best are ones that include a patient’s service rating. According to BigCommerce, 88% of consumers equally trust online testimonials and reviews just as they do recommendations from family and friends [1].
Capturing a Video Testimonial
There are a few things to consider if you’re able to find a patient who agrees to a video testimonial and allows you to post their video online. See below for our top video tips:
- Make sure that the video testimonial captures the patient’s name, the treatment they had, and why they chose your dental practice.
- Ask the patient to discuss why they like your practice, how the staff treats them, and how the appointment process works.
- Consider hiring a professional videographer to ensure that the video is captured in high-quality and can be shared across multiple digital platforms.
- Use branding in your video to make your dental practice top-of-mind for viewers.
- Add the testimonials to your website – ideally, place them with relevant content.
- Share or post the videos on your social media pages to draw in organic traffic and use paid social campaigns to push the video out to a wider audience.
The Importance of Reviews in the Dental Industry
Online written and video patient testimonials are important in the dental industry because they have a high impact on prospective new patients, and they set you apart from your competitors.
Positive reviews will help you rank better in Google and Bing and, in doing so, will help you win over patients who are considering several dentists in the area. They can additionally be used to build trust between you and your existing patients, as well as potential new patients who are viewing your dental practice online. Keep in mind that the more reviews you ask for, the more you will receive – which will help build your online presence and increase your search engine optimization.
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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