North Texas Dentistry Volume 8 Issue 2 2018 ISSUE 2 DE | Page 21
6 Steps to an Awesome
Dental Website
So, what is the secret to transform an
ordinary website into an awesome virtual
office?
Over the course of the past 12 years
designing hundreds of dental websites,
we’ve discovered six keys to creating an
effective dental website that will help you
stand out from the competition and
attract more new patients.
1
Be clear about what makes your
practice the best choice.
If your local market is like most, you have
a lot of competition. To beat them, your
website has to stand out. But before you
start designing, you need to be clear why
you are a better choice than the dentist
up the street – your brand positioning.
Are you the “eco-friendly” dentist? The
convenient “family” dentist? The “mod-
ern” cosmetic dentist? Find out what
makes you special and own it.
When you are crafting your website, this
should guide the entire design. We clarify
brand positioning with every client
before we start work on design.
2
Speak to your ideal patient.
Keep your ideal patient in mind. What is
most important to them? Will your
design appeal to them - language, pic-
tures, style?
Designing to an ideal patient does not
mean you will not get other patients. But
it will give you focus. The more targeted
the communication, the stronger the con-
nection.
the independent dentist. One huge weak-
ness of corporate dentistry is their revolv-
ing door. Patients want to know, trust
and develop a relationship with their
dentist.
People want to see and hear from the
doctor before booking an appointment.
Be personable. Get professional photog-
raphy. Have a well written bio that tells
them more than where you went to den-
tal school. Ideally, have a short video of
the dentist(s) introducing themselves and
the practice. Talk to them and be real.
4
Give them social proof.
Rave reviews from current patients are
very persuasive and reassuring to
prospective patients. With the rise of
reviews and ratings online for everything,
patient testimonials are more important
than ever in building your credibility. If
you have a 3-star rating, many people
won’t give you a second look.
The reality is that people trust reviews
online. Psychologists call this “social
proof” – gaining reassurance that the
choice we are about to make is the right
one. Take advantage of this insight by
prominently displaying positive patient
r eviews throughout your website.
5
Visit your website from your
smartphone.
Smartphones have surpassed computers
as the most used device for going online.
In fact, as many as 80% of the visitors to
your website will be on their smartphone.
When reviewing your website, make sure
it looks great and is easy to navigate on a
phone. If they can’t find what they’re
looking for in a couple of seconds, or they
have to pinch and zoom to read the text,
most people will just move on to the next
dentist in the search results.
6
Make scheduling simple.
The most important action a prospective
patient can take is to schedule an
appointment. So you want to do every-
thing possible to make that process easy.
Just having your phone number on the
“Contact Us” page or at the bottom of
your homepage in small font isn’t going
to cut it. Most prospective patients are
viewing your site on their phone and
won’t hunt for a number. For best results,
add a prominent “Click to Call” phone
number at the top of every page of
your website.
Marc Fowler is President of McKinney,
Texas based dental marketing agency
Bullseye Media. Since 2006, Bullseye has
helped over 350 dental practices reach their
practice growth goals.
Marc can be reached by sending email to:
[email protected] or by calling his
direct line: 214-592-9393.
Put yourself in their shoes. If your ideal
patient is a busy mom trying to juggle the
dental needs of her family, then early
morning, evening or weekend hours and
family appointment blocks are probably
high on her priority list. Make sure these
are front and center on your website.
3
Connect on a personal level.
Research shows that the second most vis-
ited page on a dental website is the “Meet
the Doctor” page. This is great news for
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