Yup in addition to the traditional four year dental degree with the inclusion of a one year residency, the DeVry University Doctor of Dental Surgery is now offering post graduate degree extensions for dentists in Business and Management, Engineering and Information Sciences, Media Arts and Technology and Network and Communications Management. Not only can you drill fill and bill, but you can encrypt all patient files, build Heath kit computer networks in your office and not unlike Dr. Evil build “frickin’ laser beams”…….where will it all end? Let’s start with something simple.
15 Strategies for Growing Your Dental Business Online from Mydent International
Introduction:
The internet provides an unprecedented opportunity to socially
connect, market dental practices, and build brand awareness. Over the years, more and more companies have
greatly expanded their marketing efforts to the internet. In fact, some companies operate completely
via the web, helping them reduce costs and increase profits. Though marketing through the web entirely
isn’t feasible for all of us, it surely provides enormous opportunity. In this
report,we will discuss 15 strategies that can help you grow your dental
business online.
Strategy #1: Write articles related to dentistry. If you’re a dentist,for example, you should write articles on a variety of topics such as bonding,
implants, amalgam fillings, gingivitis, and more. By offering valuable content, readers can
build trust with you. Articles are a
great way of displaying your expertise, and can be an effective method for
bringing visitors to your website. There
are many article directories online such as www.ezinearticles.com,
www.goarticles.com and www.articledashboard.com.
Strategy #2: Build brand
awareness through social media. Over the
past several years, the internet has grown to a whole new level of social
interaction. With platforms such as
Facebook and Twitter, companies are able to provide news and updates to readers
by the push of a button. How can you get
followers to these social networks? Some
strategies include: adding
facebook/twitter icons to your website, offering giveaways or special discounts
to followers, emailing your permission based contact list, and simply making
flyers for your office or business. The
key is to inform people to tell their friends, friends of friends, and so
on. This can create a positive viral
marketing effect. Also, make sure to
participate and share your videos on youtube.3
Strategy #3: Participate on
dental and healthcare blogs.Originally based on individual public diaries,
blogs have elaborated to address a variety of informational posts related to a
website. There are two main methods for
using blogs:
1) Commenting on posts written on other blogs. 2) Creating your own
blog with updated content.
The most popular blog platforms include www.wordpress.com and www.blogger.com. Start by searching for terms
related to the dental industry to see other blogs. This can help give you a
head start.
Strategy #4: Don’t let your
website decay.Your website is often a reflection of your business model. Having a clean, functional, usable website
are significant aspects for your visitors.
Be sure to update your content (this is also good for search engines),
fix broken links, and maintain easy navigation.
Website design is also important, since you want your visitors to be
attracted to your site.
Strategy #5: Engage in email
marketing. Email marketing is one of the greatest ways to keep in touch with
your customers or patients. Currently,
www.MailChimp.com offers a free plan to get you started. Other popular email marketing services
include Constant Contact, AWeber, and iContact.
It is important to provide your readers with valuable, fresh
content. 4) Set up an opt-in form on
your website to attract newsletter subscribers.
The email marketing websites listed above, for example, offer tools to
create an opt-in form. Give your
potential subscriber an incentive to sign up for your list, such as an original
report or ebook related to dentistry.
Strategy #6: Get on page 1 of
google.One of the easiest ways to get on page 1 of google is to use their maps
tool: www.maps.google.com If your business or
practice isn’t listed, make sure to put it on there. Using these maps can allow your business to
show up first for prospects in your neighborhood. For example, if a person searches “Dentist
Wantagh NY,” if your address is in Wantagh, your listing will likely appear on
the top of google. Think of the
possibilities and get listed on google maps right away. It’s free.
Strategy #7: Optimize your website.You could have the greatest website
in the world, but if your website is not optimized, people will not be able to
find you. Below are some ways to
optimize your website, using on page SEO (search engine optimization). Add meta
tags Update content every few days Focus on a few keywords, but don’t overdo it
Use your keywords for the browser bar Make sure your content is relevant Remove
broken links 5
Strategy #8: Get quality
backlinks.What is a backlink? A backlink
is when another website or blog provides a link to your website. Getting a backlink with your keywords is very
helpful. For instance, if one of your
keywords or phrases is “Dental Continuing Education”, then you should get that
phrase linked to the appropriate page on your website. Look for sites that have high page rank (PR
rank), as this can have more weight in the search engines. Page rank ranges from 0-10. A useful page
rank checking website is www.prchecker.info
Strategy #9: List your business
or practice on local directories.Besides google maps (www.maps.google.com) and
google places (www.google.com/places), there are also other valuable places you
can get listed on. Here are some other
directories:http://local.yahoo.com/https://www.yelp.comhttp://www.hotfrog.comhttp://corporate.yellowbook.com/advertise/https://advertise.local.com/
Strategy #10: Add a blog to
your website. A blog is a great way to provide updated content. Having a blog offers your visitors more than
just your products and/or services. It
can also help improve your search 6 engine rankings. Some of the most popular blog platforms
include www.wordpress.org and
www.blogger.com.
Strategy #11: Network with
other dentists and industry professionals. Networking, needless to say, is a
very efficient way to grow your business or practice. One of the top online venues for networking
is www.linkedin.com. Other popular
dental networking sites include http://www.newdocs.com and http://www.dentist-networks.com
Strategy #12: Create an HTML sitemap. A sitemap is a page within your website that
links to all other pages. You can also
think of it as your website directory.
Having a sitemap is a great way to organize your website and it also
helps the search engines to crawl it. A
well known sitemap builder is http://www.xml-sitemaps.com/.
Strategy #13: Participate in
dental forums.Want to connect with other industry professionals? Have content or information you’d like to
share with other dentists? Dental
forums, depending on the site, enable you to discuss a variety of topics such
as periodontics, oral surgery, dental assisting, dental restoration and
more. Become well known on the forum and
contribute valuable content to build your reputation on the site. Some forums also allow you to put links to
your site in the signature. Use the
backlink technique (using your keywords) as discussed in strategy 8). Here are some excellent dental forums:http://www.dentistnetworks.com http://www.dentistry-forums.com/ http://www.101dentist.com/forum/
http://www.dentistry-forums.com
Strategy #14: Put your URL (website address) in your email signature. How often are
you on the computer? Do you send and
receive a lot of emails? One ofthe
easiest ways to bring more traffic to your website is to add your url (website address)
to your email signature. You can also
include a special offer directing the reader to a specific page. Some people also include links to their
social networking sites, such as facebook and twitter.
Strategy #15: Distribute press releases.If you have something newsworthy, writing a
press release is a good idea. There are many
press release services and distribution websites on the internet. Check out www.pr.com and www.prlog.org, for
example. Thank you for reading this
report. We hope it has provided helpful
strategies and ideas for you.
Related articles
