July 26, 2014
As a dentist, you have spent years in gaining expertise in your field but establishing your dental practice is a different skill altogether. Even if you provide excellent dental services, you cannot be assured of success till you are able to spread the word regarding them. What you need is a successful marketing campaign backed by quality service. But marketing a dental practice has come a long way from the traditional methods of posting postcards or advertising in the print media. In today’s times, more and more people are turning to the internet to search for the services they need. Even in the case of personal recommendations by satisfied patients, prospective clients like to confirm through a web search.
The first step in marketing your dental practice is to create an online presence with the help of a website. But putting up a website is not enough. You may have a compelling website, but there are hundreds more out there that are vying for attention. Internet marketing is a specialized field that has several aspects and requires a comprehensive and consistent effort on your part. The key is to make yourself visible. This is where email marketing comes in. In fact, email marketing can be used even when you don't have a website. This is a very economical method requiring minimal investment. Among all the methods used for online marketing, email marketing has proved to bring maximum returns. Its appeal lies in its simplicity and ease of use. Further, you can customize it according to the needs of the client. It helps to grab the attention of your targeted audience and prompt them to utilize your services.
Why do I need a dental practice manager?
Importance of email marketing
The effectiveness of email marketing lies in the fact that most people check their emails daily. This is necessary for them to stay in touch with their daily activities. Email marketing is, therefore, a matter of reaching your clients where they are. But an email marketing system can only bring desired results if it impresses upon the minds of prospective clients. As a dentist you need to be subtle, professional and elicit trust in the patients regarding your capabilities. A loud and too obvious marketing campaign can do more than good.
Benefits of email marketing
Email marketing for dentists and dental practices offers several benefits as it helps you to stay in touch with your existing clients. This improves the chances of patient loyalty. A problem that often comes up is that existing patients may not always return to you despite first-rate services. Emails sent from time to time help to keep you in their mind, if they have any further requirement for dental services. Emails are an effective way to encourage prospective patients to utilize your services for preventive care. In short, you can use email marketing to strengthen a lifelong relationship with your patient through customized timely reminders and by providing important and interesting information.
Recommended email content
However, you need to focus on two things when preparing your emails. First and foremost is the content of your mail which should always be pertinent to the clients' needs. It should consist of matter that engages the interest of the reader and encourages potential customers to take action. It can be about reminders for follow up visits, offers for limited time, information regarding various dental procedures or aftercare, tips regarding dental hygiene and so on. All of these address concerns of your clients. Besides keeping your content relevant to the readers, it is equally important to focus on proper presentation of the content. It should never be in the form of the written word only. Videos and infographics incorporated in your email are a great way to stimulate the interest of your client.
Additional features in your email campaign
There are several features in email marketing systems that make it easy for you to not only reach your targeted audience, but also to spread your brand through share, forwards, social media likes and so on. In addition to this, emails are an effective medium to highlight your capabilities and knowledge at a one to one basis. Today, social media is one of the strongest mediums to reach out to a wide audience. In fact, it has taken the place of yesterday's yellow pages. The use of modern technology helps to track the number of receivers along with the details of people who read these messages. This provides valuable information regarding your patients' needs. It helps to understand their current concerns as well as expectations from the dentist. This information can be used to make your email marketing campaign more effective.
Getting your email marketing campaign ready is the easiest way to promote your dental practice. Why don't you start today?