Staying competitive in the world of internet marketing means periodically taking a fresh look at your current online presence. Taking a step back and giving yourself an honest evaluation will help you to build a more effective marketing strategy. The goal of a self-review should be to see yourself as others see you. Ask yourself, “Where do I stand?” “What do others see when they see me online?” and, “What does my practice look like as it’s presented on the internet?”.
Here are four key areas that need a regular check-up along with questions to ask when evaluating your current internet marketing efforts.
Review Your Website.
Prospective patients view your website as a representation of who you are as a dentist and what the overall experience of an appointment at your practice will be like. What your website looks like, how it functions and the information it provides often determines whether or not prospective patients will call to schedule an appointment. Ask yourself these questions as you evaluate your current website:
- Does my website look modern or does it appear dated?
- Does my website portray a welcoming and friendly mood?
- How does my website appear on smart phones and tablets?
- How does my website compare to my competitors?
- Am I respecting my patients’ time by providing online forms and online payments?
- Is my contact information and address easy to find on my website?
- Does my website show me at my best?
Examine your social media.
Even if you have very little time or resources to devote to social media, every dental practice should have a presence there. Why? Because it’s where your patients are. The number one online activity in the world is social media. When looking at your social media accounts, consider:
- Is my branding consistent? Do my social media accounts look like my practice/website?
- Am I posting regularly? (This varies by site and by audience but once a week is a minimum guideline.)
- Do I respond to my followers? Am I listening or just talking?
- Does social media make my practice look welcoming?
- Do I need to spend more time growing my number of followers?
Research your local listings.
Having your business listed in frequently used directories is essential to your overall internet marketing strategy. Being found on Google, Yelp and Bing as well as sites such as Healthgrades gives prospective patients multiple avenues to discover your practice and make informed decisions when searching for a dentist. Be aware of major directories where you may not be performing well and focus your efforts on improving the strength of your listings there. You also want to research the directories where your competitors are appearing. Evaluating your listings should involve answering the following:
- Is all of my information accurate and up to date?
- Have I uploaded as many high-quality, relevant pictures as possible?
- Can prospective patients see what my staff, my practice and I look like?
- Have I given enough information for prospective patients to make an informed decision?
Evaluate your reviews.
Patient reviews are connected to most major local directories and map listings. Prospective patients want to see what other people say about you. This can be frightening, and many dentists only think about reviews when they discover that they have a negative one. But with proper strategy, a deep history of positive reviews can be built over time. A few items to consider when looking over your current reviews:
- Have I spent enough time attempting to encourage positive reviews?
- Have I responded to reviews whenever possible?
- If I have responded to reviews, do my responses seem open and conciliatory or angry and defensive?
- Do my current reviews look legitimate or would someone suspect that they were written by a friend?
- If I have a lot of reviews, are they “too good to be true”? For example, a listing with nothing but one hundred 5-star reviews may look suspicious to someone searching for a dentist.
- What can you do to actively encourage more reviews for your practice?
Smile Savvy focuses on internet marketing for dentists. We provide dynamic websites, comprehensive social media management and local search optimization that will help you get found online. Visit our website to learn more.