When it comes to hiring an online marketing service, there is no shortage of options.
You might hire a local designer that focuses solely on upfront design. You might hire an SEO company that offers optimisation services. Or you might hire a social media agency to manage your Facebook and Twitter profiles.
Or… the other option is to hire an integrated dental marketing service that houses all your marketing initiatives under one roof.
Below you will learn about the five most common Internet dental marketing services and which ones(s) might benefit your practice the most.
1. Website Designers
Where does your dental marketing strategy begin? Your website. This is where the magic happens. It’s where prospective patients convert into new patients.
What a website designer offers can vary. One might be a local contractor who has little to no experience building dental websites. Another might be a large provider who specialises in the dental field.
When shopping around for a designer, be sure that they have experience serving dentists. After all, your new website should be designed to convert dental patients, not apparel shoppers or B2B firms.
2. Search Engine Optimisation Agencies
If your practice website wasn’t optimised from the get-go, you might have (or are considering) hired an SEO contractor after your site went live. Ideally, your website will be optimised before it launches. However, it’s never too late. Most firms will conduct an initial SEO audit, and then guide you or perform the campaign for you.
SEO is an area of Internet marketing that requires a serious vetting process. After all, more rigorous search engine guidelines can make or break your new-patient-pulling power. An old-school consultant looking for short-term gains may be violating Google’s terms of service. It’s crucial to hire a provider that follows the latest best practices that provide sustainable, long-term SEO results.
3. Freelance Content Writers
Written content is one of your website’s greatest assets. It’s what tells prospective patients why they should choose you over the potentially dozens of other dentists in their area.
Blogging regularly is an excellent way to improve conversion, as it establishes you as an authority in dental care. Due to time constraints, dentists will oftentimes outsource their writing to freelance writers.
While this can be beneficial, be sure that your writers have extensive experience writing patient-centered content. They should write from a patient’s point of view – conversational and free of dental jargon.
4. Social Media Companies
Having a consistent social media publishing schedule builds community among your patients. Not only does this improve conversion (as website visitors are apt to view your social presence), it encourages repeat appointments and referrals.
Time is the challenge. Most dentists don’t have the time and focus to post regularly throughout the week. Hence, the reason they outsource to a social media agency.
If you hire a company to help manage your social presence, make sure you or a team member is involved in the process. While a third-party can certainly save time, personal touch is a key ingredient of a fruitful social media strategy.
5. Paid Advertising Providers
Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising campaigns can produce quick and predictable results. However, new patient success is contingent on the efficacy of your campaigns. If your campaigns are not properly optimised, you could deplete your budget quickly, with little to no result.
A good portion of dentists don’t achieve profitable ROI from PPC. Be sure that your provider has experience advertising dental services and works your campaigns on a consistent basis.
Integrating Your Internet Dental Marketing Strategy
While all five of these dental marketing services can improve your online success, rolling all your services into one provider is the most efficient approach. There are several complications with separating your providers. For instance:
- You’re required to manage multiple vendors, which can prompt confusion and time constraints.
- Each vendor has their own agenda, and oftentimes one might sabotage another vendor to save face. When performance is lacking, the finger pointing begins.
Bundling all your services together can save you time and money. More importantly, it can exponentially increase your new patient performance. Consider these five benefits of hiring an integrated provider:
- Your website has a clear purpose, designed for one reason: To get and keep more new patients.
- The voice and tone of your content is consistent, including proper SEO practices performed before site launch.
- Your social media profiles ensure a consistent brand, aligned with the look and feel of your website.
- Your paid ad campaigns are synced with your site landing pages to boost patient conversion.
- There’s greater accountability. If your new patient performance is lacking, you know exactly who to go to.