Debunking the Myths of Dental Marketing

Marketing a dental practice can be frustrating for many professionals, especially when the methods, rules, and tools are constantly changing. Whether you do it yourself or have a marketing team on hand, it might be tempting to buy into some of the common misconceptions out there. We’re going to dismantle six of the big myths of dental marketing you may have heard.

“I don’t need marketing because I get referrals.”

As the original form of advertising, word-of-mouth recommendations from your current patients are wonderful. Positive online reviews and testimonials go a long way in establishing your reputation.

However, it’s not wise to rely solely on referrals no matter what size your market share is. Things change. Marketing consistently and proactively can help offset natural patient attrition and attract potential new customers in the area. If you’re offering a new service or product, you have to let everyone know through postcards, website retargeting ads, or an email campaign, rather than wait for them to find out through the grapevine.

“My community is so saturated; marketing won’t make a difference.”

The other end of the scale from having little competition to worry about, is having too much. But a saturated market doesn’t mean you’re simply at the mercy of the big dental chains and their even bigger budgets.

There are many tools and strategies – beginning with an outstanding patient experience – that will help you stand out in a crowd.

“I don’t personally use ­__ or read __, so it’s a waste of marketing dollars.”

This is a tough misconception for many business people to overcome. It’s vital to remember that you are likely not your target audience so your marketing shouldn’t just reflect what you use or like.

Whether it’s generational or personal preferences, dentists may not engage with the platforms or media that their ideal patients are using. Approximately 4 billion people have used social media in the last ten years, so it’s a good idea to incorporate one form or another into your marketing toolbox. Facebook ads or an active Instagram account are a couple of examples.

Traditional marketing like newspaper ads may seem outdated to you, but it’s still a valuable resource in certain communities or for an older demographic. Get multiple opinions for a subjective perspective on ads or campaigns.

“Digital marketing is SEO.”

Search engine optimization – or SEO – has long been a buzzword in the effort to attract traffic to your website, but digital marketing has expanded way beyond this tool. SEO is important but it can be expensive to pay for keywords and Google rankings, only to be at the mercy of the algorithms.

Numerous other digital marketing techniques offer a more comprehensive strategy to gain more new patients, faster and for pennies.

“Marketing is too expensive.”

The truth is that marketing can be expensive – if it’s not done right.

It’s a waste of your advertising budget if you’re not getting a measurable outcome that shows a return on investment (ROI). That’s determined by evaluating your market, identifying your ideal patient, and tracking your results.

If you spend thousands of dollars on one direct mail campaign but don’t track which new patients responded to it, then marketing is expensive. A good budget is diversified and adjusted as needed, based on results.

“I don’t have to worry about it, my marketing team takes care of everything.”

As a dentist, your priority is patient care – not radio audience numbers. However, for marketing to be truly successful it takes a team effort.

So, even if you’ve employed an in-house person to handle it or are hiring a large ad agency, it’s important to have pieces in place to capitalize on the marketing results, such as:

• A well-trained front office team for patient care and follow-up
• A tracking system to determine how new patients find you
• The tools to measure your ROI
• Strong communication and trust

If something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Before deciding where to spend your marketing dollars – or worse, relying on luck and referrals only – don’t be swayed by misconceptions. A good partnership between a dental practice and a marketing team can dispel those myths and help create the perfect strategy for your practice. Give RAMP a call today for a free consultation.