Category: Business of Dentistry

Social Media Marketing & Small Business… Worth Your Time?

I’ve said before that Facebook may or may not bring you new business, and I stand by that statement. However, we have to look at the nature of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other Internet communities to understand how and why social networking can be profitable.

You’ve been to a face-to-face networking event; the awkward feel that everyone’s there to sell something (that’s why you’re there). The odd-looking people who you know are there because they have nothing else to do–which is not a good sign. The somewhat interesting (if you’re lucky) speaker.

You leave with a handful of business cards and a dream that maybe from the two hours of your life you just invested, maybe one, just one of the folks you met will bring you a new client…somehow. But networking online is different. It’s so much better!

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Dental Practice Names & Dental Website Domains…Different Animals

Zebras and tigers both have stripes, but they are very different. For instance, even in a pinch, I wouldn’t ride a tiger. I also wouldn’t advise petting or hand feeding a tiger. A zebra, on the other hand, sure! Sounds like fun!

Another obvious difference is that Zebras live on the plains of Africa. Tigers call the jungle home.

My point is, like zebras and tigers, your practice name and website domain name have different homes, different purposes, and thus should be dealt with differently. That’s not to imply that your practice and website shouldn’t have the same name, but I recommend you put some thought behind your decision. These names should be with you for a long, long time.

As with most marketing and advertising concepts, I recommend attacking the naming issue with logic. This Q&A chart should help. Read More

The Formula for Writing a Great Dental Practice Tagline

Some folks call it a tagline, others call it a motto or slogan. What we’re talking about here is the short phrase that follows your practice name. The little cluster of words tagged onto the end of your message. For instance, Modern Dental Practice Marketing’s tagline is: We’re in the Business to Make Dentists Smile!

TAGLINE QUIZ

Can you remember the companies for these taglines?

  • Over 10 billion served
  • Always low prices
  • You’re in good hands
  • Don’t leave home without it
  • Something special in the air
  • Good to the last drop
  • Zoom Zoom
  • Just do it
  • The nighttime sniffling sneezing coughing aching stuffy head fever so you can rest medicine
  • That was easy

I want to talk with you about how to come up with a good, catchy tagline for your small business or dental practice.

To gather the clouds for a good brainstorm, read your mission statement, philosophy, and/or vision. Write down single words that represent your practice.

Small Business Social Media Management with a KISS

I read an article on Mashable today that listed over 30 different social media sites. There are a bazillion more out there. If you’ve heard about smart phone advertising, social networking by location, and other crazy technical stuff you don’t understand, the words “social networking” can seem scary or overwhelming. Problem is, EVERYONE has jumped on the bandwagon. When any business succeeds to unprecedented levels like Facebook has, every Tom, Dick, and Harriet wants a piece of the pie…or even better, their own pie.

Here’s the deal:

  • As a small business owner, you need social networking as a part of your Internet marketing plan.
  • As a small business owner, you do not need ALL FORMS of social networking. That would be a gross waste of time and energy.
  • As a small business owner, you have NO TIME for anything social! If you did, golf would come way before Facebook.
  • As a small business owner, I understand and empathize.

Let’s apply the KISS philosophy (keep it simple, silly). Read More

The Secret to Patient/Customer Loyalty & Excellent Word-of-Mouth Referrals

We have three main grocery stores in my town. One is super cheap, and I have to admit, I shop there. It’s the American Way. Another is staffed by teenagers who are more interested in texting than bagging. As a shopper in this store, I’m a guinea pig for workers in training. And I’m paying for this privilege? No thank you.

The third grocery store is amazing…so it’s the store I prefer and recommend. Prices are higher, sure. But being greeted with a smile and, “Can I help you?” is priceless. If I can’t find what I’m looking for, an employee reads the confusion on my face and rushes over to help. He actually walks me to the product I need—never points or gives me directions. I love Tom Thumb in Trophy Club, Texas. Those fine folks could write a book on excellent customer service.

One of my favorite quotes is from Einstein. He said something like Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Logic tells us that the reverse is true. Good sense is doing the same thing over and over if you want the same results.

I decided to analyze why I like Tom Thumb. My main appreciation is for the employees. As a somewhat intelligent businesswoman, I should apply these points to my own business. I’m no Einstein, but I figure that mimicking the customer service that I appreciate will foster the same loyalty in my clients that I feel for my favorite grocery store.

Fact: Word of mouth advertising has the best return on investment of any marketing.

Fact: Seventy percent of Internet users believe the testimonials
they read online. It’s modern word of mouth.

Fact: If you get good reviews on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Yelp!, Google, etc.,
you’ll benefit not only from readers of those reviews, but also from search engines loving the backlinks to your website.

So what’s the secret to rave reviews, loyal customers, and excellent customer service? Read More

Today’s Guest Blog: Hire the Best Person and Train for Dental Success

This blog was provided by Warschaw Learning Institute and written by Elaine Dickson. Let me know what you think!

Dr. Bill Sasser, a periodontist in Charleston, South Carolina puts it very simply.  “I don’t base my employee’s salary on the position, but on the person.  A good employee is worth everything, and a bad one is worth nothing.”  In dentistry as in many other businesses, all employees are not “created equal”.  Just because someone has more “experience” does not necessarily make them a better candidate than another person who has not worked in the field.

Limiting your hiring process by recruiting only those who have worked in dentistry can be very hazardous to practice growth, because you may not get what you are paying for.  Just because someone interviews well and has worked in a position for awhile, does not always mean they have been successful.  This depends on the person, and it’s the right combination of attitude, character traits, experience and personality that makes a truly valuable employee.  Experience is only one piece of the puzzle, and the question you must ask yourself is “what type of experience?”  Sometimes experience translates into bad habits that can encumber your progress and actually cause your practice to digress.

People make all the difference.  What good does it do to spend thousands of dollars on continuing education and implement practice management systems designed to insure effectiveness, when you do not have the right people to carry these systems out?   As a dentist/practice owner it is not humanly possible for you to perform chairside and oversee all of the administrative or even clinical systems of your practice at the same time. Read More

Common Questions about Modern Dental Practice Marketing

We’re often asked if we’ll do projects for businesses outside of dentistry. The answer is: Heck Yes! Take a peek at our portfolio, and you’ll see that half of MDPM’s clients aren’t dentists at all.

While we specialize in dental content because of our experience in the industry, our clients’ businesses range from home improvement to medical consulting to property management to religious instruction. Yeah, that’s a pretty wide range of clients. Few companies offer what MDPM does, and even fewer offer similar services for such a great price.

We’ve been asked if we host websites. The answer is no. We use the trusted resources available on the internet. WordPress, which we use for our blog websites, is free source software. Anyone can use it at no cost. WordPress offers 100 design templates, great add-ons (widgets), multiple pages, and customizable features. In addition, with WordPress, we can provide our clients with visitation statistics, as well as a free smart phone version of their blog. MDPM blogs are hosted with WordPress, as well.

Some folks want to know the difference between a blog and a custom website. This article explains the answer in detail. Check it out.

Why we recommend new blogs. To keep your costs low, and to take advantage of WordPress’ search engine optimization benefits, we prefer to create new blog websites for our clients, rather than just provide content for an existing blog. This allows us the freedom to do what we believe is best for your practice’s Internet marketing strategy. We’re in control of the blog’s success. We’ll purchase a good domain name, set up the blog website with a blog on the main page, and add other pages to describe your practice, team, and services. We always recommend that our clients keep their main website if they have one. A blog is great for SEO, but it is not a showcase site. It’s a workhorse. We’ll recommend that your blog’s visitors go to your main website for more detailed information about your office.

Will MDPM write blog content for my existing blog? Yes! We can’t promise that you’ll receive the same SEO benefits if we provide content for an existing blog. If your current blog is not on WordPress, and we provide content to your web company, they have to do some backend work to ensure the blog is indexed properly on search engines. In addition, if we only provide you with blog content, you’ll miss out on the extra promotional efforts we provide with the Extreme Internet Presence Package.

What else do we offer besides blogs? A lot. Visit our services page for more info. In short, we offer full-service Internet marketing, as well as community marketing. Branding, logo design, event planning and management, press releases, social networking, team training, and more…  You might also want to complete our free assessment while you’re here. It will help you, us, or a consultant analyze your current and past marketing program.

Writing a Dental Practice Mission Statement & Tag Line

I sell blogs. You sell dental services. Who do we sell to? People. Who pays us? People. Who do our services help? People.

We should never, ever forget that business is about the people, and people want excellent service for their hard-earned dollars. From the initial phone call to the proactive follow-up to the warm personal welcome to the unparalleled treatment in your office, every patient who experiences your dental practice should be chomping at the bit to share the story with all of their neighbors and friends.

Think about what you do that makes your practice different than the one down the road.

When I used to interview dentists before writing content for their websites, I would always ask, “What sets your practice apart from all the rest?”

The answer, ironically, was the same—all the time!

Dentists said, after some thought and hesitation, “You know, it’s our personalized service and wonderful team; it’s the real one-on-one that we give the patients that makes us different.” Read More