In order for your practice to grow and your business to thrive, you need to keep getting more patients through the door. It’s an age-old challenge in dentistry, but there are some simple steps you can take to help with attracting new patients – and they won’t bust the budget!
Below are seven cost-effective tips to help you entice new patients:
Get the right signage
Your exterior signage should do two things, create the right image and be noticeable to passers-by. It’s something that sounds so obvious but in the day-to-day running of the practice, and if the sign has been in place for a while, it can often be overlooked. A good exercise is to go 100 yards up the street and then walk up to and past your practice and see, with fresh eyes, how visible it is to pedestrians and motorists.
Tell your stories in the press
Engaging with your local newspapers/magazines by sending them interesting articles about your practice will raise your profile with potential new patients…and it’s free! Rather than a factual article about the services you offer and your opening hours, try sending them a press releases that tells the story of how you’re helping your patients. For example, using a case study of someone who got the smile they always wanted, which gave them more confidence.
Invest in a good website
Google is more than likely the first port of call for someone looking for a new dentist, so once that potential patient lands on your website you need to make sure it’s appealing enough for them to book an appointment. Your website is one of the most important marketing tools you have so it needs to be attractive, informative and benefits-driven. This is one investment that has the potential to achieve a big return.
Tweet, like, post and share
Following on from the above, if someone is searching for a new practice online they may well come across your social media pages. They may even be searching within social media; there are now 2 billion searches per day on Facebook. Just like your website, you need to make sure your pages are appealing to potential new patients. Ask a team member who is most experienced at social media activity and ask them to take control, but make sure the content is engaging and relevant, not just a stream of adverts.
Engage in local networking
Have a team member who can act as your local representative in the community and build your presence. Make an effort to join local organisations who are key influencers, such as business clubs, sports clubs, the Chamber of Commerce. Many of these groups hold regular meetings and events, and often look for speakers – volunteering to put an interesting talk together on the health benefits of good dentistry could also get you in front of a few audiences.
Invite people to a free open day
This can be a great way of getting potential new patients through the door. Once they are there you can show them all the great services you offer and how they can benefit from being a member of your practice. Make sure you have a structure to the day and know what you want to include, e.g. demonstrations, practice tours, meet the team, and advertise it using the above channels – social media, website, and your local network.
Incentivise potential new patients
People like to feel that they’re getting a good deal, so why not offer an incentive that will motivate them to give your practice a chance. These can be low-cost but high-perceived value items. For example, you might be able to buy an electric toothbrush from the trade for £20 – but in the high street stores it would retail for nearer £90. You could run a time-based promotion offering a new electric toothbrush worth £90 for each new patient who has an initial health check and joins the practice.
Attracting new patients is a challenge, but the solution does not have to be costly. Implementing any of the above are cost-effective ways to approach the issue – however make sure you track how successful each of these are, so you know where best to direct your resources in future.
