8 Innovative Ways to Grow Your Local Dental Practice
While just about everyone goes to the dentist, growing your dental practice is not as simple as placing a “We’re Open” sign on the door. Many businesses have failed because business owners only knew how to serve their actual customers or clients rather than continue to acquire new ones. Despite the vast amount of education a dentist may have, building a business follows a whole new set of rules. With this in mind, it is important for you to know 8 innovative ways to grow your local dental practice.
1- Promotional Offers
When a business has been around for a while and developed brand awareness, advertising is often a wise choice to gain sales. While advertising may always be a good method of attracting new patients, there is typically a need for new businesses to establish promotional offers to beat out their competition. For instance, you may want to offer the first teeth-cleaning service for a new patient at half-off if someone does not have insurance.
2- Social Media
Social media is being utilized by businesses everywhere with remarkable success. When seeking to establish a local dental practice, it is a good idea to join some local groups online. Seek to be a friend rather than a source of spam. Build relationships first, and people will be open when you speak of your services.
3- Appealing Website
A website is often a person’s first impression of your business. Get the website wrong, and you may deter many would-be patients. Doing your research on this topic is important because there are many people and organizations out there who offer website-building services.
4- SEO Keywords
Having a good website is only one piece of the pie. You will also want to take advantage of SEO keywords. SEO keywords help to make your business appear in search results when certain terms are searched, such as “Dentist near me,” or “Dentist in…” It has been shown that the first business to appear in a search result is often the one that gets the sales.
5- Remarkable Service
While it is important to attract patients, you must also focus on impeccable patient care. It is through this type of care that you will build your reviews. When people are seeking a new dentist, good reviews are very important. When someone is going to get dental work done, he wants someone who can be trusted.
6- Referral Programs
Offering discounts or rewards through referrals can also be a wise choice. This is closely connected to providing remarkable service to your patients. People talk, and when they talk about you, what will they say?
7- Non-Insurance Package Deals
There is a large customer base that does not have dental coverage. Many low-income families do not have adequate dental coverage to be seen by their local dentist. Take advantage of this by offering package deals, such as a yearly package that consists of 2 teeth cleanings, a set of x-rays, 2 exams, and a 10% discount on all other services.
8- Retain Patients
Finally, it is much easier to keep patients than to acquire them. As a result, when someone seeks your services, make sure you have built a long-term relationship in mind. Keeping your patients safe by ensuring customer satisfaction will prove to be one of the best goals you can have.