Timing Your Digital Dental Marketing Initiatives
Which techniques to use and the results and timescales you should expect
Whether you already run an established dental practice or you’re in the process of setting up a new squat, the topic of digital dental marketing/advertising will almost certainly have gained your attention at some point.
For some, the huge potential of the web for attracting new patients will be second nature and something they are well versed in; whereas for others, it may be an area they know they need to explore in more detail but haven’t ventured there yet. Whichever it is though, it’s undeniable that digital marketing/advertising done well, can be a game-changer for the fortunes of a dental practice and the dentist owner.
Perhaps one of the main questions our team is asked when we are discussing with new clients is “what marketing initiative do I need?” closely followed by “when should I start them?” Then of course, “what should I expect from my investment?”
In today’s blog we’ll take a closer look at those questions and provide some insights to help you get moving with your own marketing campaigns and initiatives.
We’ll also discuss how the type of initiative and to some degree the timing, will depend on the status of the practice at a particular point in time.
Search Engine Optimisation – SEO
I’ve been actively involved with SEO for the best part of 20 years so forgive me if I push it to the top of the list when it comes to promoting a dental practice. The simple fact is that holding prominent ranking positions in Google is still the most effective and sustainable way for bringing new patient enquiries from the web, lots of them.
Whilst you can be quite successful with paid adverts of various types, and more of that later, if you rank well in Google with a high-quality website, then lots of new enquiries will follow. Those enquires won’t stop dead if you suddenly switch the funding off as they would with paid ads, albeit you will still need to invest in the services of an accomplished SEO team to ensure those hard won positions are maintained in the long term.
My guidance is that a dentist should always prioritise Google ranking as soon as possible on the basis that gaining good search results takes time; it certainly isn’t a fast process. So this is a mid to long term initiative but one you need to get cracking with quickly. Unfortunately very few website do well in Google without SEO these days and those that do tend to be in areas with very low levels of competition.
So what are the potential penalties for not investing in SEO?
I think this is quite easily demonstrated by noting that over 70% of all organic traffic from Google for a particular search term goes via the top three results – so getting your web pages there is essential if you are to exploit the huge opportunity Google offers.
The large majority of the rest of the traffic goes via the remaining results on page 1 and very little at all via page 2 results. So unless your web pages feature in the top half of page one, and preferably in the top 3 positions for your main searches, then you’re really missing out. Even if you have a great website, it isn’t going to work well for you unless you have good search positions as well.
How long does SEO take?
This varies considerably. In areas of light competition, a well-optimised website can rank well in a few months. In areas of increased competition, it can take much longer. Patience is required and expect to make incremental improvements as the higher ranking positions are reached – remember that your competitors will very likely be using SEO too.
Paid advertising
Unlike SEO, paid ads can be deployed very quickly; actually within a day or two with the only rate-determining steps being how fast you can set up your account, build your ads and have them approved.
So paid ads are a great strategy where exposure is needed quickly, for example new practices where SEO hasn’t had chance to build momentum, where new treatments have been introduced and need to be ramped up and for building awareness of open days.
As a busy dental agency, typically we ask for a couple of weeks’ notice to build new ads for a client as often that can involve bespoke image development and even video. However it’s still a very fast way of bringing new business to the practice.
Returns are also very quick and pretty much start as soon as your ads are published. It is not uncommon to achieve 20 – 30 enquiries per month where the correct investment is made in the ad development and click budget. For the latter, expect to pay anything from £15 – £50 per day depending on the type of ads you are using, the treatments you are promoting and the level of competition in your area.
It’s also worth reiterating that paid ads do not have any of the localisation constraints of Google, so you can publish ads very effectively in nearby areas as well as your own immediate location. Remember that Google will always give preference to local businesses in searches, so you need a very large SEO budget if you want to start breaking into the rankings for areas where you aren’t actually based – with ads, there are no localisation constraints.
SEO or paid ads? Or both?
Whilst SEO and ads are used under different circumstances and have different pros and cons, both techniques can be used in a complementary way. Indeed many of our clients use SEO as the mid to long term strategy discussed above with paid ads used to top off. Both techniques can be very successful if done well and the payback also very attractive.
Summary
The two most popular ways to gain new business from the web are via a Google optimised website and paid advertising. Whilst these methods have different uses and their own pros and cons, they are both designed for the same reason – to get new patient enquiries. These techniques can be extremely successful in their own right, but even more so when used in combination as part of a holistic marketing strategy.
With any type of marketing of this nature and particularly for SEO where momentum takes time to build, starting promptly is key. For more advice and to receive a customised proposal for your own practice, please call the digital marketing team at Dental Media on 01332 672548.