Case Study - The Collegiate Dentist - Ninth Street Dental
Background
Dr. Huang’s practice was seeing 50-60 new patients each month, but his new patient count had become stagnant. His practice had a website, but it wasn’t working to attract new patients.
The practice is located in a market that has a high number of college students, so he wasn’t seeing a lot of high-price cases. He had a quality practice but had little success working with marketing firms in the past.
He was able to increase his monthly new patient count to 109 by making his website patient-focused, introducing a targeted online ad campaign, and creating marketing plans that directly spoke to his college student-based demographic.
CHALLENGE #1
New Patients Weren’t Finding The Website Due To Online Competition
Dr. Huang's practice had an existing website, but he wasn’t showing up in Google rankings. When patients would search for his practice online, the website wouldn't show up in the first page of their search results and his potential new patients were going to competitors.
Dr. Huang realized this was keeping new patients from making it in the door of his practice. He needed to update his website as well as find a way to drive new patients to it through the keywords they were using to search on Google.
By taking a patient-focused approach, Dr. Huang was able to design a website with content that new patients were searching for, thus increasing the number of new patients calling the office.
PRO-TIP - Start With Google
Google is the most widely used search engine, getting between 55-65% of all searches. Yahoo Search and Microsoft Bing lag far behind with a total of 15-20% each. Be sure to target Google for your marketing efforts to maximize your results. - Source: http://www.activerain.com
SOLUTION #1
Create A Patient-Focused Website And Use Online Ads To Bring New Patients To The Practice’s Site
Before beginning an online ad campaign, Dr. Huang made specific patient-attracting changes to his website. The focus of his site now clearly shows the value of his practice to new patients by showcasing the variety of services he offers as well as multiple financing options.
The site clearly guides the visitor to request an appointment or seek answers to the most common questions new dental patients ask. Current patient testimonials are showcased on the home page, allowing his practice to build trust with potential new patients.
Once the site was updated, Dr. Huang worked with Firegang to implement a targeted online ad campaign. He was able to focus his ad campaign by researching the specific keywords his new patients used to find his practice on Google.
How can you make sure your practice is ready to start an online ad campaign? Below are 3 ways to ensure your dental practice is ready to succeed when it comes to online advertising.
- Make your website patient-friendly. View your site the way a new patient would. Make sure your site answers all questions a new patient could ask. (i.e. Do you take my insurance? Will it hurt? Do you offer payment options?)
- Online marketing is a smart move if you want to grow your business sooner rather than later. With 76% of people turning to Google to search for Dentists, online marketing is a vital tool to use.
- Create a memorable new patient experience. Make sure your office staff is trained to answer patient questions as are scheduling your appointments to decrease long wait times.
PRO-TIP - Work With A Professional
Dentists often lose money and become frustrated with online advertising by trying to handle a campaign on their own. Make sure you work with a marketing professional who has a proven track record of success with PPC ads before you invest your time and money.
CHALLENGE #2
Dr. Huang Was Paying A Marketing Company Every Month But Couldn’t Tell If What They Were Doing Was Working
The practice had worked with marketing companies in the past, but became frustrated with the lack of transparency. Dr. Huang and his staff had no way to know if the money and resources they spent on various marketing campaigns were working to bring new patients in the door.
In order to increase his new patient flow rate, Dr. Huang knew he had to find a way to better keep track of the practice's key data.
PRO-TIP - 3 Key Metrics Your Practice
Need To Track Every Month:
- How Many New Patients
- How Many Visits To Your Website
- How Many Phone Calls Convert To Appointments
SOLUTION #2
Track The Practice's Key Metrics Each Month (Including New Patient Numbers, Online Ad Results & Web Traffic)
Realizing that the practice did not have visibility into whether their investment in online marketing was worthwhile, Dr. Huang worked closely with Firegang to track the number of new patients booking appointments each month.
Not only that, he began to track where these new patients were coming from. Did they see an online ad and click it to book an appointment? Were they drawn in by the practice's website due to an online search keyword?
This information led to the practice being able to craft an intelligent marketing plan and boost their new patient flow rate by 58% in only 4 months.
BONUS PRO-TIP - KEY METRIC TRACKING BONUS TIP
There are many analytic services you can use to track your practice’s key metrics every month. However, data is only worthwhile if you use it! Make sure to not only track your monthly progress but set goals to increase new patient counts and online marketing results so you can continue to grow and improve.
CHALLENGE #3
The Practice Wasn’t Resonating With Millennials, Which Are A Large Part of Their Local Population
Every dental market is different and Dr. Huang needed to find a way to reach his very specific local market, which is largely made up of millennial-aged college students.
He wasn't seeing a lot of high-end procedures like implants, but he knew there had to be a way to reach the student population in his area with dental services that related to their needs and budget.
By putting himself in a millennial’s shoes, he was able to work with Firegang to design marketing campaigns tailored specifically to college students’ needs, leading to a rapid influx of new patients.
SOLUTION #3
Build Trust Through Online Reviews & Create Student-Specific Marketing
Online reviews were the perfect next step for Dr. Huang's practice. He had a solid, patient-oriented website with online ads driving visitors to the site based on their keyword searches in Google. His practice was able to make the most of his online reviews and now has a 4.9 star rating on Google with 94 patient reviews, which helps make his practice trustworthy in the eyes of his local market.
Dr. Huang realized that much of his student population didn’t have dental insurance or were on a tight budget due to college expenses. In order to address this, his practice offers in-house financing options, free consultations, free second opinions and a membership program offering discounts and other incentives for a small monthly fee.
KEY PRINCIPAL - Being able to identify exactly what your unique population in your service area needs from a dental practice is invaluable.
Targeting your marketing to speak to this not only gets new patients in your practice but keeps them there for higher-end procedures.
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RESULTS
Dr. Huang and Ninth East Dental were able to increase their new patient flow per monthly by 58% in such a short time by changing the practice's website to directly engage new patients.
Building on the new website, the practice uses online ads to drive new patients from Google searches directly to the site and adapted the services they offer to meet the needs of their large student population.
In addition, Dr. Huang was able to increase his practice's Google rating to 4.9 stars and now features nearly 100 patient reviews, some of which he posts on his website's home page as a way to continue building trust between Ninth East Dental and prospective patients.
Dr. Huang was once spending money on marketing campaigns without seeing results. Now, his practice continues to experience success because he has a plan in place to track his marketing campaign results, make adjustments when needed, and directly build trust and relationships with his local student population.
If you want a dental marketing company that will help you build a marketing plan designed to get high-quality new patients that respect your time, value, and expertise (& minimizing no-shows), then click below to schedule your Marketing Assessment Call.
