Relationship-Focused Dental Marketing

Without successful word of mouth strategies in place, social media marketing will fail.  This is the third of my 2010 dental marketing predictions.  Social marketing is not a “build it and they will come” tactic …

For example, a traditional magazine ad required you to build your ad, write the check to pay for it, and perhaps sit and wait for it to work.  Social media marketing requires ongoing effort—sort of like maintaining a yard.  You’ll always need to tend to it or it will die.

Practices well versed in referral marketing strategies, those who understand what it takes to make traditional word of mouth succeed, will likely find social media a remarkable opportunity. On the other hand, those practices looking for fast fixes, immediate floods of new patients or those who practice off-and-on “when we have time” marketing will be quickly disappointed in social media.

It’s happening already.  Check out Facebook, and you’ll find dozens of abandoned dental practice pages.  Pages were created, and for whatever reason were left ignored.  Most commonly I hear, “We just don’t have time”, “We don’t know what to say”, “It didn’t work”, etc.  Here are a few successful word of mouth marketing elements to keep in mind with social media:

• Communicate well and be responsive.
• Be personable (yet you don’t have to get personal).
• Be yourself, authenticity is in.
• Make one specific person in your office responsible for regularly maintaining and monitoring your efforts (it helps if they are people oriented, motivated—and for social media, have good web 2.0 skills).
• Be patient.

Social media marketing efforts will build results for the long term.  As with referral and word of mouth marketing, focus on building quality relationships and communities first—the benefits will follow.

What are your thoughts?