The Top 5 Dental Marketing Mistakes to Avoid

A new year is always a great opportunity to evaluate your dental practice marketing efforts and see what’s working – and what’s not. There are certain obvious decisions to make if your budget increased while your results failed to add up. Perhaps your focus was on acquiring new business, but your patient retention was the real issue that needed to be addressed.

There are a lot of minor tweaks that can help you grow your practice in 2024. However, let’s look at five of the most common dental marketing mistakes to avoid before you put your strategy into stone.

1. Neglecting Your Online Presence

Most people searching for services now do so online, therefore it’s crucial to build and maintain a strong internet presence for your dental practice. The areas to regularly evaluate and update include:

• A professional and user-friendly website
• Consistent social media activity on more than one platform
• Online marketing tools like Google Business Profile and targeted digital ads

2. Failing to Identify Your Target Audience

Casting a wide marketing net without any awareness of your ideal patient and target demographic is a sure failure to gain any return on your advertising investments. If necessary, conduct market research to identify your target audience so you can then tailor your content, messaging, and platforms.

By determining who your ideal patients are, where they’re located, and what their specific needs are, you’re more easily able to respond.

3. Overlooking Local Search Engine Optimization Strategies

Local SEO is essential for attracting nearby patients who are seeking dental services, but it doesn’t have to be intimidating or needlessly expensive. There are a few simple factors to keep in mind.

• Optimize your website for local search terms.
• Make sure your Google Business Profile is complete and accurate.
• Research keywords and phrases beyond the basic “dentists in My Town.”
• Include valuable internal links and backlinks in your web content.
• Verify that your website is mobile-responsive.
• Avoid oversized images and try to tag them with keywords.

4. Ignoring the Power of Patient Reviews and Referrals

Word-of-mouth marketing may look different these days, but it’s still an extremely smart and cost-effective way to attract new patients. Are you encouraging satisfied patients to leave positive reviews, either on Google, Yelp, or other online platforms? By highlighting glowing testimonials, you’ll build credibility and trust with potential patients.

Don’t forget to respond promptly and professionally to all online reviews – especially the negative ones – to show that you value feedback and are committed to resolving possible problems. Consider rewarding current patients for their referrals with complimentary services or free swag.

5. Don’t Forget to Review, Adapt, and Diversify

Just as there are constant advances in the practice of dentistry, strategies and tools for dental marketing are regularly evolving with the times. That’s why it’s important to track your efforts, either through front desk questionnaires, website monitoring software, or digital insights on your chosen platforms.

By determining the most successful results, you can adapt your budget accordingly, as well as diversify your marketing strategy to include both digital and traditional.

At RAMP, we help dentists avoid these five mistakes that can potentially cost both money and time. We invite you to contact us for a free strategy session so we can evaluate the best course for your practice in 2024.