The new year is arguably the most wonderful time of the year. You have the opportunity to start afresh, to shake off all of the cobwebs and the disappointments of the outgoing year. Developing an editorial calendar is one of the best things you can do for your personal and practice growth. Training and clinical leadership may often not get this important organizational and strategic marketing tool on their radar until the incoming year is well underway. At that point, you have already missed some of the opportunities inherently attached to this approach of “thinking like an editor.”
Editorial Calendar 101
Editorial calendars have traditionally been used by news and media outlets. They list the coverage planned for the year. For instance, an outlet may develop focus sections to explore issues relevant to its readership, viewership, or listenership. Scheduled run dates accompany these topics.
Dentists and practice administrators like you naturally value constructive routines and habits. Your patients may even embody the challenges and promise presented by forming and sustaining healthy habits. They may struggle with maintaining consistent flossing or keeping up with professional cleanings at your office. Once the routine is established, there is considerable peace of mind and other benefits associated with a healthier, more appealing smile.
The development of a marketing calendar supports such a beneficial and productive routine. A little consideration upfront (before the start of a new year) can save you considerable hassle and time over the long run.
Getting started
You may already have some informal plan regarding preferred content, news, and communications to share with your valued communities. For instance, you may know that a new laser or computer-aided system in Q1 calls for some announcements. Furthermore, you may learn other new technologies, team members, proprietary products, partnerships, or locations that demand attention on social platforms, e-blasts, newsletters, YouTube, TikTok, and other channels. Likewise, you may have some vague notion of creating and publishing articles on your blog or website about tooth-friendly options for Halloween treats or the likes of the connections between gum disease and systemic disease to coincide with awareness months – from Preventative Health Awareness Month in February and National Oral Health Month in April, to World No Tobacco Day May 31 and World Diabetes Day November 14.
How is this informal (“it is all organized in my head somewhere!”) approach to developing, managing, and deploying content working out for you? You may be all too familiar with the problems with unstructured, nebulous “wish lists.” Marketing calendars provide essential structure. They need not be designed in an overly complex or sophisticated way. Go the “old-school” route. Create a list of topics to explore and news items to promote in word. Print and post in the office for appropriate team members to peruse. Ensure the list is modifiable through a secure internal server or file-sharing platform. Use what has worked for you, your associates, and your staff in the past. There’s no need to reinvent the wheel here.
The overarching idea is to go beyond the onslaught of randomly suggested ideas at inconvenient times. By developing a calendar, your team has a dedicated hub to brainstorm and store their thoughts, ideas, and novel approaches to topics. By “writing it down,” there is also a level of accountability. Think of the calendar as your team’s “accountability partner.” The calendar embodies how you all are in it together. Your plans are “set in stone.” There is a much higher likelihood of plans coming to fruition when objectives are “set” and when an entire team of individuals is engaged, motivated, and inspired by each other.
Steps to strategizing content
Congratulations! By adopting a calendar-driven strategy, you can avoid missed opportunities, such as failing to promote a new treatment or product effectively. This approach also prevents last-minute chaos, where associates and staff are left scrambling to push content to the social universe under pressure.
The content was lifeless at best, full of grammatical mistakes and technical inaccuracies at worst—simply because all-important announcements and opportunities to educate, inform, and inspire were left to chance.
The path to quality, timely, consistent, impactful content that lends itself to more patients and stronger practice “advocates” is characterized by the following straightforward steps:
- No. 1 – Brainstorm oral care, health, and other dentistry-specific topics you wish to communicate to your community in the coming months. We encourage you to plan as far into the new year as possible. The more time that is on your side, the better.
- No. 2 – Inventory anticipated practice- and team-specific news. For example, what plans are in motion to expand your physical or virtual presence in your neighborhood or target market in the coming year?
- No. 3 – Consider all the topics and news items that surface during your brainstorming. Narrow those items down to your “stars” for content.
- No. 4 – When selecting topics to pursue in 2025, confirm their relevance to your current and aspirational patients. Solidify how these topics align with your team’s in-house capabilities and expertise.
- No. 5 – Take a good, hard look at your goal with each topic, issue, or announcement. Do you need to educate on a new treatment? Are you looking to entertain your current and future “fans” with interesting or funny content on the teeth and gums? Define goals for your content to guide and shape its development effectively. Posts can be built around clear objectives. You never lose sight of what you are trying to accomplish and your community’s unique composition.
- No. 6 – Clarify the “treatment” you wish to provide with each topic. Is the content readymade for video? Podcasts? Illustrative graphics? Think of all the ways each item will resonate with your community. Also, note if announcements or topics are suitable for promotions, such as product giveaways. Be open to cross-promoting items with other in-house content and even with different resources from well-aligned partners in your community.
- No. 7 – Once you have ironed out how each topic or news item will be used, isolate a “run date” when such content will publish or go live. Establish a “deadline” representing the last possible day content can be submitted. That way, you are not scrambling to complete the new item before your launch date.
- No. 8 – Include the individual submitting such content with each item. Depending on the internal composition of your practice and its structure, this feature of the marketing calendar may be self-explanatory. An administrator or personnel may already be tasked with similar responsibilities. If not, a good practice is to assign content to the individuals who know it best. When enlisting this strategy, there is less risk of errors. The authentic passion for the topic comes through in the typed or spoken word when the creator is genuinely enthusiastic about it.
Additionally, do not be afraid to use all the resources and predeveloped content around you. Through professional and industry associations, myriad content on specific topics of interest in dentistry circles is at your fingertips. Use it!
There are numerous benefits to this approach. First, the articles and other forms of collateral have likely been vetted by other dentists, specialists, and licensed dental professionals. The information is there for the taking (reference or cite as needed or noted). Plus, putting your own ‘twist’ on the ‘bones’ of pre-existing articles or posts is quite efficient. For instance, you could add case studies from your own practice, or share personal experiences that relate to the topic. You flesh out a few details specific to your providers and office. Voilà—a fresh or unique variation on industry content is within reach.
Lastly, be sure to leverage other organizations’ calendars. Pinpoint local, regional, and national business, trades, industry, and professional publications. You could engage with these outlets as a guest author or regular contributor. You may offer yourself as a source for a relevant focus or special section, whereby the topics within the section align with your expertise.
Of course, if you are struggling with any aspect of marketing strategy, enlist an expert in healthcare marketing communications. Expertise may be applied to work with your team in a scalable way, meaning that the level of involvement and the resources used can be adjusted to match your needs and budget. This complements other operational goals and factors, such as your budget.
About the Author
Naren Arulrajah, President and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, has been a leader in medical marketing for over a decade. Ekwa provides comprehensive marketing solutions for busy dentists, with a team of more than 180 full time professionals, providing web design, hosting, content creation, social media, reputation management, SEO, and more. If you’re looking for ways to boost your marketing results, call 855-598-3320 for a free strategy session with Naren. You may also schedule a session at your convenience with the Senior Director of Marketing – Lila, by clicking https://www.ekwa.com/msm/ or simply send a text to 313-777-8494.
