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3 Ways Tech-Savvy Dentists Stay Connected with Patients In Between Appointments

by Naomi Cooper July 3, 2019

As a dentist you have a unique relationship with your patients in that you may only see them a couple of times a year. It’s hard to forge a relationship when you only see the other person every six months.

Luckily for dentists, there are some really innovative tools on the market to help streamline your communication to stay connected with your valuable patients all year long.

Make sure your website is optimized for patients today. Contact information needs to be easily accessible, online appointing is preferred and above all, make sure it’s user friendly.
Don’t just rely on the patient communication features that came standard with your practice management system. Enhanced communication solutions offer features like real-time text messaging straight from the front desk computer and software that can automatically fill the holes in the daily schedule.
Always follow up with a survey. Post-appointment surveys not only demonstrate your commitment to patient satisfaction, but help you gain valuable insights about the overall patient experience and allow you to correct any weaknesses that may exist.

For more tech-centered strategies for dental patient communication, check out my Dental Products Report article here.

Blog

The Dental Marketing Strategy You Might Be Overlooking

by Naomi Cooper May 3, 2019

What is the one area of the dental practice that plays a crucial role in the patient experience?

Your front desk.

Your team at the front provides the first and last impressions a patient will get from your practice, so their marketing and communication skills must be on point. Your clinical abilities of course play a role, but if a new patient has trouble making an appointment or leaves feeling unsatisfied, it’s not only a lost revenue opportunity, but also a waste of marketing dollars, and no one likes to waste money.

Here are 5 ways that you can support the front desk to be sure they are working most effectively.

Equip the team with the verbal skills needed to give a perfect first impression. They need to be confident in answering questions from prospective callers about fees and insurance, and know how to redirect the conversation away from costs and highlight the practice’s selling points instead.
Automate daily tasks like appointment reminders. Using text or email reminders saves the staff from spending hours on the phone every day.
Enable patients to update their contact info via tablet devices that can be automatically uploaded to your practice management software.
Setting up an online portal through your website is another way to collect and confirm all necessary patient information in a HIPAA-compliant way.
Train the team to always schedule the next appointment before the patient leaves the practice to capitalize on the momentum created during their time in the chair.

While it’s important to have the right people and personalities working at the front desk, it’s up to the entire dental team to employ high-quality customer service every step of the way.

For more front desk insights, head to Dental Products Report and read my recent article.

Blog

What Do Your Dental Patients Really Want? Here’s How to Find Out

by Naomi Cooper March 6, 2019

What if I told you that by asking one seemingly simple question, you could unlock the secret to each patient’s internal motivations?

No, I’m not a mind reader, and you don’t have to be one yourself in order to find out what your patients really want. You just need to start a more effective dialogue with your patients. And any dentist can start by asking:

If there were one thing you could change about your smile, what would it be?

Here’s why it’s so amazingly effective:

It’s open ended, forcing the patient to say more than just yes or no.
Nearly 99% of people think their smile is their most important social asset.
Yet more than a third of Americans are unhappy with their smile.

Patients typically spend money on things they want, not necessarily on items they actually need. Asking this question allows you to align your treatment recommendations with their aesthetically-driven desires, improving patient satisfaction and driving your production levels up.

For more insights into how this one question can drive greater production levels at your practice, check out my Dental Products Report article here.

Blog

Dentists: Is Your Online Reputation At Risk?

by Naomi Cooper January 2, 2019

When’s the last time you googled yourself or your practice name? Have you checked what patients are saying about you on review sites?

Online reputation management is a crucial component of dental marketing these days, and if you’re not staying on top of what people are saying about you online, you could be putting your business at risk.

Many dentists consider hiring outside experts to handle their reputation management, but that can often be expensive. Here are simple strategies that any practitioner can employ to remain proactive in protecting his or her reputation online.

Be vigilant in collecting patient reviews. Building a repository of prophylactic comments will counteract anything negative that should come along. Every one in the practice should be responsible for asking one patient to post a review each day.
Claim your online profiles. There are an infinite number of websites with business listings and patient reviews, but the most commonly used by dental patients are Google, Facebook, Yelp and Healthgrades. Be sure each of these is updated with current practice contact information, business hours and links to your website.
Don’t forget to monitor your profiles. Delegate this task to a trusted staff member who will be responsible for checking each online profile on a regular basis, and alerting you if any questions and concerns are posted.

For more details on how to protect your online reputation, check out my recent Dental Practice Report article here.

Blog

3 Must-Haves that Your Dental Practice Website Might Be Lacking

by Naomi Cooper September 10, 2018

You likely invested a hefty sum into building your dental practice website, and for good reason. Your website is the cornerstone of all your marketing efforts. However, in today’s fast-paced digital world, simply launching a website won’t cut it.

Your website should be updated periodically to ensure that it is continues to function as it should. What updates are important for dentists today?

Prioritizing Mobile: Users are 5 times more likely to leave a website that isn’t mobile-friendly, and search engines are increasingly showing preference to mobile sites as well. If you haven’t yet converted to a mobile-friendly website design, now is the time to consider making the switch.
Online Chat: While it’s becoming increasingly common for dentists to use text messaging for appointment reminders and recall, the idea of online chat is quickly gaining momentum. Patients can get questions answered and schedule appointments, even when your front desk isn’t available.
Visual Content: As more and more patients use smartphones to browse your website, large blocks of text can be cumbersome to read through, especially for older patients. This makes video a terrific and engaging way to present information to patients.

Check out my recent article published in Inside Dentistry to learn more about these key website design trends. Nearly every dentist today has a website, but far fewer choose to maintain the website to current standards. Dominate your online competition by staying up to date on the current online trends and keep your website firing on all cylinders.

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Guaranteed Tactics for Reaching Your Most Desired Dental Patient Type

by Naomi Cooper July 9, 2018

A good question to ask yourself before beginning any marketing plan is this:

Who am I trying to attract?

After all, there are a million different marketing tactics available and a million sales people waiting to sell you on each of them. If you aren’t clear on the type of patient that you want to see more of in your practice, it will be extremely difficult to determine which advertising will work well for your practice. Not only that, you will undoubtedly waste money on a haphazard marketing plan.

I recently published an article in Dental Products Report where I discuss three of the major patient demographic groups that most dentists like to target today, and I go into detail about what marketing tactics currently work well for each. Check it out to read the specifics, but here is a quick synopsis:

Baby Boomers – Focus on your messaging with this group and discover the #1 thing you don’t want to avoid
Millennials – Find out what you and your team should be doing in order to capitalize on word of mouth with this generation
Moms – Get ideas on how to maximize convenience for this busy patient group, and the treatments you can promote to stay relevant

And while it is good to stay on top of the trends related to your ideal patient type, it’s important to remember the intangible customer service qualities (strong verbal skills, good customer service) that will always appeal to patients of all types.

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