Is Marketing Different For General Dentists and Dental Specialties?

General dentists, your everyday oral health saviors that oversee routine appointments, and dental specialists (orthodontists, periodontists, endodontists, etc.) are both tasked with marketing their practices to the public. Though their goal of attaining new patients through marketing efforts is identical, there is a key factor that differentiates the two. Our group at Dr. Marketing has highlighted this stark contrast which creates somewhat of a marketing disparity between the two and explained how dental specialists can get themselves noticed by more patients. 

Marketing For The Dental Industry 



Dentists, like all business owners, are responsible for producing effective, creative, and consistent marketing that is seen by people whom they want as patients. Marketing is imperative for any company's success and while you might very well have a phenomenal service or product, you still must make the public aware of these offerings. Dentists need to market every part of their practice, from the image that they are projecting to treatments that are immediately available for patients. Perception is reality; both you and your employees should be conscious of how your dental practice is being branded and understand the general public's impression of it. 

Marketing Is Different Among Specialties vs. General Dentists



Dental specialists, in a nutshell, are at a severe disadvantage in marketing their services compared to regular dentists. Whereas general dentists can potentially reach anyone who happens to catch their advertisements, specialists are limited to the patients that require their specific treatments. Take an orthodontist, for example; they work on misaligned teeth, jaw bones, and other supporting features within the face for functional and cosmetic purposes. Their advertisements will not be viewed as helpful or necessary for patients who have no such issues and are merely seeking out an ordinary dentist for a checkup or cleaning. They have to cater their marketing to a unique target audience. 

How Dental Specialties Can Reach New Patients 



Collaborate with general dentists

A referral partnership can help your dental specialty attract more patients and you will depend on other dentists to grow your base of patients. Build relationships with general dentists who can refer patients to your practice. After confirming which dentists in your area can assist with this, you will have to develop a dental marketing strategy to communicate with these medical professionals. Your marketing here should focus on selling general dentists the possibility of referring patients over to you. You can attempt this by forwarding a personal letter that includes your brochure and request, scheduling a face-to-face meeting, networking with colleagues at organized conferences, and delivering personalized holiday gifts. 

Paid advertisements that use keywords

Keyword advertising is advertisements on search engines that utilize keyword research. Once you have determined the keyword searches that are most prevalent and applicable to your dental clinic's goals, you can bid to have your ads presented in the search results when anyone types in those keywords. Search marketing hinges on keywords, so you must select the proper ones for these advertisements. Regardless of which platform you elect to use for keyword advertising (Google Ads, Facebook, or another alternative), you must bid on the highly important, valuable keywords for your industry. Then, you will produce text ads that integrate these advertising keywords. If visitors click on your ads in the Search Engine Results Page (SERP), you then pay the amount that was initially bid on the keyword, completing a process known as pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Pertinent keywords for your dental specialty and website can assure you of a cost-effective online marketing campaign.

Partner with marketing experts

For peace of mind and to eliminate the guesswork, look for a marketing professional to put together advertisements that will get your dental specialty noticed. They possess the knowledge, experience, and marketing versatility to bring you in more patients. Having a smaller target audience to work with, you will want to ensure that you are on the right track with your marketing tactics. Putting out misguided marketing concepts that yield scant new patients in exchange just puts your dental practice, and its budget, in a needless jam. Let the experts solve your marketing predicaments, put your dental specialty in front of many prospective new patients, and provide you with more time to care for your current patients. 

Optimize your website and Google Business Profile

Upgrade your website design to give it ideal optimization for local search and a user-friendly design that encourages online visitors to learn of your services. On a similar note, keep your Google Business Profile up-to-date because it is a necessity to help you earn more patients from online resources. Google Maps search results are consistently taken into consideration when patients are trying to find a new dentist and you will want to remain visible at all times. A good ranking results in your Google Business Profile listing being displayed at the top of local searches in the desirable three-pack, the upper echelon of dental specialties that are most likely to be clicked.

Offer specials for new patients

Incentivizing patients to choose you as their dental specialist is what should come after they are browsing your website. An attractive offer, either to get prospective patients or for data collection, will be most beneficial for your dental practice. Offers can motivate people on social media to click on your website and perhaps make an appointment, while valuable contact information can be collected from the people on your mailing list. Offers can include a free X-ray or teeth-whitening for first-time patients, a free electric toothbrush for new patients, or even an online giveaway for those who enter an email address on your website. 

Re-target your past visitors

Using previous online engagement as the measuring tool, you can deliver ads to your audience and essentially track their tendencies. A few common types of re-targeting efforts are site-based re-targeting (providing ads to people who have previously visited your website), email re-targeting (providing ads to people who open your emails), and search re-targeting (providing ads to people who search up one of your keywords). Because you are targeting an audience that is already searching for dental specialists, you have a stronger chance of converting them. Still, to achieve this, you have to make a mental note of what your competitors are up to and meticulously select and test your dental PPC campaign's keywords. Only with the proper keywords will your advertisements be found above organic search results.

Guest posting online

Guest posting represents a terrific opportunity to increase inbound links and participate within the general blogging community that is associated with your dental specialty. While you might not yet have a large online audience when your website is first introduced, sharing content as a guest elsewhere, on established pages, can offset that issue and boost your traffic. Cementing great relationships with other bloggers, you enhance your opportunity for partnerships, cross-promotion, link sharing, and getting through to a broader audience. 

Is Marketing Different For General Dentists and Dental Specialties? 

Dental specialists, despite the enormous challenge of working with a smaller group of patients than general dentists, are in a position to get their niche recognized when it is marketed astutely. Contact our team at Dr. Marketing and learn how you can get your dental specialty recognized by more patients who specifically need your expertise.