As a dental practice owner, you are probably a very motivated person, constantly thinking of ways to make your practice more profitable. But with all the new and upcoming technologies available, what are some new and innovative ways to grow your dental practice?
Below are proven 14 growth ideas for your dental practice.
1. Create A Website That Attracts Patients
The first thing that patients will see when they visit your website is an image or graphic of your office. It should be professional-looking but not too flashy. If you have a website, it should also include a phone number for patients to call. Make sure that your website is easy to navigate and has plenty of information about your services. You can even add videos to help patients understand how their teeth work and why they need treatment.
Make sure that the content on your website is relevant to what you offer. For example, if you are a cosmetic dentist in New York City, then the content on your website should focus on cosmetic dentistry. However, if you are a general dentist in New Jersey, then the content on the website should focus on general care.
2. Use Social Media Marketing
As a dental practice owner, you know how important it is to reach out to your potential patients. You want to make sure that your patients know where to find your information, and you want them to know how to contact you.
Social media marketing is one of the most effective ways to market your dental practice. There are many social media platforms out there, so which ones do you use? Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, YouTube – the list goes on. The key is to find a platform where your potential patients spend time. Once you have found this platform, start regularly posting content related to your field.
Posting quality content will attract followers who will like, share, comment, and/or click through to your site. As these people become fans of your page, they may eventually become your loyal patients.
3. Offer Free Dental Consultations
Many people are interested in visiting a dentist but may not know how to choose the right one. That is when you should offer them a free consultation. By offering a free consultation, you can get to know each other better before deciding whether or not to schedule any treatments.
During the consultation, ask questions about their current oral health status, as well as their goals for treatment. By doing this, you can determine if they would benefit from treatment. If they do not, then you can politely decline to treat them. However, if they are interested in getting started, you can refer them to another dentist in your area.
4. Add More Dental Services
If you only provide cosmetic dentistry such as teeth whitening, teeth grinding, and teeth polishing, consider adding orthodontics, periodontics, endodontics, and general dentistry.
These additional services will allow you to broaden your scope of care, making your practice seem more comprehensive. Also, by providing these types of services, you will be able to develop long-term relationships with your patients. They might even recommend you to friends and family members!
5. Increase Patient Referrals
A referral can be a strong way to increase patient traffic to your dental practice.
When current patients leave your dental office after completing their treatment, they often tell others about their experience. So, make sure that you have a strong referral program. Ask your patients to send referrals to their friends and family members. Tell them that they will receive $50 off their next service if they send a referral. Encourage your patients to invite their friends and family members to your office.
6. Appointment Reminders To Help Dental Patients
The majority of dental practices have a no-show problem, which occurs when patients fail to show up for their scheduled appointments. This is a costly problem for practices because it can lead to lost revenue and unproductive time at the practice.
A study by Health Management Technologies found that approximately $150 billion were lost each year because people did not show up for their medical appointments.
What can be done to reduce no-show-up patients’ problems? One of the most common ways is by sending automated appointment reminders to patients via email or text message.
7. Work With A Marketing Agency
The dentist’s office is not like most businesses where you start out with a small initial investment and reap the benefits of that investment over the years. If you want to grow your practice, you will need to invest in growth strategies and marketing.
A marketing agency can help you grow your dental practice. They will work closely with you to develop a dental marketing strategy that will generate leads for your practice. Additionally, they will promote your brand, website, and social media accounts.
8. Hire An Assistant
Hiring an assistant can help you manage all aspects of your practice. From scheduling appointments to answering phones, an assistant can handle everything else. So not only does hiring an assistant to save you money, but it also gives you more time to focus on growing your practice.
9. Set Up A Blog To Improve Your Dental SEO.
Blogging is an excellent way to build your reputation as a leader in your field. Write about your specialty, treatments, and other dental-related topics in your field, and make sure that you post consistently. Eventually, your readership will grow, and you will begin receiving requests for information from potential patients.
10. Use Email Marketing
Email marketing is one of the easiest forms of advertising because it makes it easy for people to sign up for your email list. All they need to do is enter their name and email address. Then, once they subscribe, you can send them emails with tips and tricks related to keeping their teeth healthy.
11. Give Away Coupons
Give away coupons for discounts on services or products to your potential patients. This will allow you to earn even more money without spending any of your own.
12. Run Paid Ads
You may have the best service in town, but if nobody knows about it, then you will not be able to charge enough to cover your expenses. So, make sure that you advertise your services well.
Paid advertising campaigns offer an inexpensive means for connecting with prospective patients through various different platforms such as Google ads, Facebook ads, YouTube ads, etc.
13. Provide Discounts To Communities
Provide discounts to local businesses, schools, churches, and charities. This will help you gain additional business while giving something back to the community
14. Promote Patient Reviews
Collecting dental patient feedback before closing out appointments helps ensure that no issues were overlooked by either party. It also gives doctors a chance to address any concerns raised by their patients. You can post their positive reviews on the website and on social media pages. Tag your patients and thank them for the review.