Are you just taking the new dental patients that walk in the door? Or are you getting the cases that you really enjoy doing?
That may sound like a fairly stupid question; after all dentists don’t have total control over who contacts their practices for an appointment. But how you market has a huge impact on the types of new patients you get.
In one sense, it’s the difference between bottom-fishing and using a float. There are different types of fish at different depths and they respond to different kinds of “bait.” If you’re not getting the types of patients and cases you want and need, look to your marketing.
You Get What You Market For
The vast majority of dentists still advertise low price, specials, and insurance acceptance. It’s been the go-to approach for at least a couple of decades because it typically generates a lot of new patients who are price- and insurance-driven. But with dental competition increasing on all sides, that marketing approach is slashing dentists’ margins to the bone.
Making less on each new patient is not a long-term success strategy, but it’s one that dentists keep pursuing. It’s also a strategy that keeps dentists working too hard for too long for too little.
If you want different patients in your new patient funnel, you need to change your approach to target prospects with the ability and willingness to pay more. Why would dental patients want to pay more for treatment? It’s because they’re not motivated by price or insurance acceptance. They don’t want “just another dentist.” They’re looking for something else in the dentist they choose to solve their dental problems.
What Better Patients Want
In the Golden Days of dentistry, many people had a lifelong relationship with one dentist. As the dental insurance movement took hold, that kind of relationship became increasingly rare. Today, dentists who have a significant number of long-term patients are among the fortunate. Still, many of those long-term patients are cost-conscious and insurance-driven.
Better dental patients, who comprise up to 30 percent of prospectsbecome in a given market, have the discretionary income to receive not only the care they need, but also the elective procedures they want. Since there’s frequently a significant financial investment involved, better patients need to be confident in the dentist they choose.
Your marketing needs inspire confidence and trust in those prospects. They’re looking for the likeable, relatable, trustworthy dental expert. In other words, they’re looking for a relationship with the right dentist.
It’s Not Easy, But It’s Worth It
Conveying the sense that you’re the right dentist is miles away from price-driven advertising. It requires a strong, focused online presence involving your website, your social media, your blog, and your paid search, among other aspects. Many busy dental practices won’t have the bandwidth to accomplish the marketing change.
SmartBox specializes in helping dentists get a steady stream of better dental patients. Our doctors can focus on actually doing the dentistry rather than riding herd on their marketing.
Visit www.smartboxdentalmarketing.com and click on the “Get Started” button. Schedule your free, no-obligation Practice Discovery Session
.
Following the 25-minute phone call, SmartBox will send you your completely personalized, free, Patient Attraction Roadmap.
We’ll make sure that you get many more of the cases you love to handle.
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