Should you be on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and other sites? Yes! There are two compelling reasons: 1. Your patients are and 2. Your prospects are. In order to grow in any business, you need to stay in front of your customers and prospects â€" and dentistry is no exception! So, as a dentist, should you bother with social media? Absolutely! According to TGDaily.com, 48% of Americans over the age of eleven use social media. And that number jumps to 71% for ages 18â€34. A social media campaign builds relationships with current patients and is the most effective way to draw young, lifelong patients by creating buzz about your practice! There aren't too many case studies out there for a local practice building a patient base with social media (I couldn't find any and I looked!) and it does take dedication. But SSM (Social Media Marketing) is a great supplement to your other marketing activities and can definitely help to increase the overall lifetime value of a patient. You will need a strategic plan or your efforts may be in vain. Follow these four steps to successfully engage with patients and prospects on social media! 1.Know your purpose. Your goal: get more patients or get current patients using more of your services. Don't ever lose sight of the "why" â€" whatever it may be. Connect with current patients and have them post on Facebook about their experiences with your practice â€" and new referrals will follow. Also, make sure you are engaged in conversations. Social media is about relationships so it's important that you comment on your patient's posts, keeping you on their mind, and of course, making them like you more! We all get a warm fuzzy feeling about the person that acknowledges our posts, right? 2.Focus your goals. Now you know what you want to do: engage current customers and attract new ones. But how? Set a goal to communicate with 10 current patients a week and post one informational article a week. If those numbers aren't feasible for your practice, come up with your own. Just be sure to have a plan and stick to it! The way you interact with clients will be different depending on the type of social media you are using. It can get complicated, so use the free 5 Super Easy Tips to Get Social ASAP to simplify it! This easy-to-use guide will have you up and running in no time. Check below for the link. 3.Pick a point person. Put someone in charge of executing your social media plan (updating status and posting articles). It can be you, your office manager or your receptionist. Whoever it is, it has to be one of their daily duties, or it will get overlooked. Staying up-to-date with contacts is a must! If someone leaves you a voicemail â€" you won't wait 7 days to call them back. Same concept with social media, log on often and respond. Make social media marketing (SMM) a priority and it will pay off. 4.Promote. Promote. Promote. Now you have profiles on multiple social media sites and are engaging patients and prospects â€" it's time to drive more traffic to these sites! Use direct mail and email to get the word out and build your friends and followers. If you have a newsletter, always mention your social media profiles and place links in your email signature. Place the social media icons on your website so visitors can easily find them and link directly to them. Create Facebook-only promotions, such as "$50 off any dental service for Facebook friends during January." Anything helps to add visibility. Remember, SMM builds relationships with patients and prospects, establishes credibility for your practice and is the most convenient way to market your practice affordably.
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