If you’re a dentist looking to up your social media game, you’re in the right place. Social media is a powerful tool to spread awareness about your practice, catch new patients’ attention, and interact with current patients.
All things that are likely high on your priority list!
But as you might have already found, it’s not that easy to create social media accounts that generate the type of engagement you’re looking for. Often a practice makes a profile, posts occasionally, and only hears crickets from their audience.
If you’re ready to approach your social media accounts differently in an effort to get more meaningful interactions, we have some excellent info for you to sink your teeth into.
How to Leverage Social Media the Right Way
There are several major social media platforms out there, and they all have the power to create awareness for your dental practice and earn you new patients. In our experience, some channels naturally work better for dentists than others. Let’s dive into our favourites.
With billions of users, Facebook has an extensive reach. However, the real value of this platform is through the very targeted advertising options it provides. You can target people based on their geographic area, age, and gender. Which can be extremely useful!
Facebook has been increasingly moving towards a pay to play model, meaning that usually, less than 5% of your organic followers will see your posts unless you put some budget behind boosting them. Don’t let this discourage you though; even a modest budget can get your posts in front of the right eyes.
This platform is all about the visuals! Instagram is a great way to showcase all of the wonderful things about your practice. This platform can be especially useful if you focus on cosmetic dentistry to show off some amazing before and afters.
Even giving people an inside look into your clinic and the culture you and your team have created is enough to showcase what makes you unique.
Youtube
If you’re comfortable hoping on video, Youtube can be a fantastic asset for your clinic! Video is the ultimate way to foster connection and trust. Plus, it offers you a great opportunity to share your expertise.
If you’re not sure where to start with video, try these:
- Office tours
- Sharing patient stories
- Sharing your clinic’s story
- Demonstrations
- Tips on how to improve oral health
Whatever channels you decide to use, make sure you narrow it down to one or two. It’s always best to start slowly in adopting a new platform than trying everything simultaneously. Once you’ve built a following on one channel, move to the next!
Create a Content Strategy
Now it’s time to create a content strategy! This essentially means choosing the type of content to post and how often to post it.
We usually recommend that dentists stop to consider their USP (unique selling proposition). Take a minute to ask yourself, what’s the main reason patients would want to book with you?
Are you a family-focused practice that’s great with kids, or are you all about creating the perfect smiles in cosmetic dentistry? Focus on your key values and what makes you unique. Then post content that reinforces your main message.
Content Pillars
Content pillars are the categories of content that support your USP (unique selling proposition). Content pillars are themes or topics that create the foundation of your content strategy. Each pillar represents a type of content that is relevant to your patients. This helps create a structure for your posts and gives you a formula to follow.
We like to stick with 3 main content pillars. For example, if your USP (unique selling proposition) is a family-friendly dental practice, you could focus on the following:
- Pillar 1: Family health focus
- Pillar 2: Staff/Practice feature
- Pillar 3: Funny dental jokes
Deciding on these content pillars will significantly aid you when planning out your social media posts!
How To Make Your Social Media Feeds Look Professional
To make your social media feeds look cohesive and professional, ensure that all your posts work together to create your unique brand experience. Having a “brand” is crucial because it gives your clinic a flavour or personality.
Branding makes your content more memorable and distinguishes you from the competition. Social media is the perfect opportunity for you to reinforce your brand. Here are a few tips to help you do so!
Be Consistent
- Use the same tone of voice and style in all social media captions.
- Use the same profile and cover photos on all social media websites.
- Use the same brand colours within your posts.
Create a Branded Hashtag
Create a hashtag for your practice that both you and your followers can use if they are tagging you in a post.
Design Your Own Posts
If you have an opportunity to create an original design, use it! Set yourself apart from the rest by designing your own posts instead of recycling the same content from someone else. Websites such as Canva make it super easy to create customized posts with your brand colours!
Be Personal, Not Clinical
Up to 75% of people are afraid of the dentist. Make sure you are putting those fears at ease by showcasing the friendly, welcoming environment you provide. Feature staff as much as you can. Once people start to make the connection that you are a group of people dedicated to their health and wellbeing, you will stop seeming so scary!
Add Value, Add Value, Add Value
Don’t post just to post. Make sure each time you send something out on social media, it genuinely adds value. Even making someone smile adds value! Just make sure your posts are always geared towards what your audience wants to see.
To Summarize
The main takeaway here is to focus on building genuine relationships with your followers. You want to provide valuable, credible and trustworthy content for your patients. This will help you retain your current patients and attract new ones! Plus, it will help the world be a little less afraid of going to the dentist.
If you need help creating a social media strategy that’s what we’re here for. Reach out to us and we would love to chat!
