Pop! goes the web design

The last time you visited a new website, what was the first thing you noticed about it? We’re betting it wasn’t the snappy text or the contact information. We’re confident in predicting that it was actually the home page’s appearance. Even if you’re visiting a site for purely practical reasons, its design makes an impact on the viewer. This extends to sites belonging to healthcare professionals. While your website deals with dentistry, we want it to be more than just a means to an end.

The thing is, design is what convinces patients to follow through and reach that end (i.e. scheduling an appointment). So while a great layout may seem like a frivolity, it should be your first concern. If your practice’s home page isn’t attractive, it’s a huge ding against you. The bounce rate will be high, and you won’t engage new patients – you’ll just lose them. Fortunately, there are a few design guidelines to follow that will help you craft a user-friendly experience. Read on for some quick tips.

Stay Modern with Your Site Design

Ok, we know – easier said than done. At this point in the life of the Internet, what does “modern” even mean, anyway? We’re using the term to describe the contemporary M.O. of today’s Web. You need to keep up with the design of other sites, even if they deal with a more artistic commodity or service. After all, as an aesthetic dentist, you’re dealing in a similarly visual product, even if other people don’t see it that way initially.

Because a picture is worth a thousand words, we’d rather show you modern design than tell you about it. Check out our Design Gallery to see some examples of the kind of work in which we’re invested. A few of the factors that unite our designs include:

• Streamlined layout
• Emphasis on images
• Appealing color schemes tailored to the user experience
• Clear, easily accessed contact forms
• Vertical design that draws in the eye
• Visual, prominent representations of the practice and its staff

Keep Your Website Active

You’re probably thinking, “Great, another vague command! Thanks for all the help.” But “active” is actually easier to define than “modern.” In this case, we mean that you should keep the site current. Continually update it with fresh images, blog posts, and content. Showcase practice specials and treatment deals. This communicates that you care about keeping up with your patients and their ever-changing needs.

Let the Web Design Guide Patient Conversion

Nobody likes being told what to do, and this even extends to patients that are actively trying to find a new dentist. Bombarding them with contact forms and “CALL NOW”s won’t achieve the desired result. Instead, the design should guide patients toward the information they’re seeking, which will then convince them to take the plunge and become your patient.

It’s never too late to improve your website’s design. Whether you currently have a practice site, or are looking to build one from scratch, now is the time to take action. Consider how many potential calls you could be missing each day – simply because patients can’t find you online. There’s no way to know what you stand to gain until you put that site in place.

And it doesn’t have to be difficult. If you’re interested in learning more about your site’s design possibilities, reach out for a complimentary site evaluation. We’ll help you understand where you’re at, and how to move forward. In the meantime, check out some design tips to get thinking about the changes you’d like to make.

Like many occupants of the marketing world, we were struck by a recent leaked report about the state of the New York Times. As many loyal readers were clued in to with 2011’s introduction of an online paywall, the Times has struggled to remain relevant in a landscape of immediately-available, individual-specific web content. Sites like the Huffington Post and Buzzfeed excel in this arena – but they do so with far less well-crafted content, prioritizing .gif lists and celebrity gossip that is engineered to attract clicks. In order to engage readers, your content needs to strike a fine line between the Times’ more challenging offerings, and Buzzfeed/HuffPo’s blatant pandering to the denizens of the web.

This is true for all content creators, including your own healthcare practice. Taking a measured approach to content marketing is key. Don’t just educate – entertain. Your patients, both prospective and current, will take notice, and respond positively.

Hold on; what’s content marketing?

Content marketing is a brainchild borne of necessity, and shaped by Google’s ever-changing SEO preferences. The choices the search engine giant makes with regard to which content and pages “matter” on the web have changed the way Internet advertising functions. Long gone are the days of pop up ads, spammy pages, and meta keyword exploitation. What matters now are well-written, appealing, and valuable pieces of content. Google appreciates creators who make the web a better place, and it boosts their websites’ rankings in response.

In short, content marketing is drawing in new clients/patients/customers with the aid of compelling content. This can mean information about your practice, newsworthy blog posts, or case studies: whatever works for you. The important part is that the content gets made, gets out there, and gets seen. We can help with all three parts of that content equation.

Making Your Website’s Content Stand Out

What patients (and search engines) really value is content that speaks to your specific practice. Getting detailed and getting personal is just more interesting than writing about vague, industry-wide topics. For this reason, it’s vital that you play a role in your website’s content creation. If you’re writing pages or blog posts yourself, pack in plenty of details about what the office is up to, recent cases, and even information about staff members. If you have a content developer, share updates on office news, specials, and unique cases. The more applicable to your practice the content, the better patients will respond.

In addition to crafting excellent content, you need to show patients that content is something they’ll benefit from consuming. These days, that means sharing on social media. This is where the “entertain” portion of content marketing often comes in. Frame the content in a way that’s going to get patients clicking on the link, and learning more about your practice. Social media is an incredible outlet for all kinds of content sharing – it doesn’t even necessarily have to be written (Facebook users often prefer educational content that’s either heavy with or contained within images).

What Your Patients Want from a Dental Website

In order to create the ideal patient experience, you’ll need to take a step back and decide exactly what it is that your patients want. It’s possible to build content that accomplishes what you want (bringing in new patients) by giving site visitors what they want (an informative but entertaining time spent on your site). Ready to unlock your practice website’s full potential? Get in touch with Doctor Web Solution for a complimentary website evaluation. We’ll help you find the best place to get started.

It can be difficult to focus on both the present and future. But if you don’t have goals in place, how can you know what to work toward? This is true in every area of life, but especially pertinent when applied to your actions on the Web. Since the Internet’s landscape is constantly evolving, you need to be aware of what’s going on today and what could come tomorrow. Your web marketing efforts need to address both of these realities.

How can you predict the future? By putting safe, smart practices in place that will pay off over time. With today’s post, we’ll address some ways to boost your website’s ROI – today and tomorrow.

Short-Term Marketing Practices for Immediate Results

Sometimes, you need to get the word out ASAP. This is especially true when you’re running a practice special or trying to promote a specific, limited-time offer. In this case, there are ways to appeal directly to patients, and to dictate the message you send. Some short-term marketing efforts include:

• Google PPC ads – You probably know that Google is the king of the search engines. If you don’t: it’s overwhelmingly the most-used engine, and it determines whether your site will be placed high in rankings or left in the dust. With Google ads, you’re able to set up a PPC (Pay Per Click) campaign for specific keywords. These ads are listed at the top of and alongside search engine results, and you’re only responsible for payment correlated to the number of clicks your ad receives. That’s the kind of advertising that you can really control.
• Facebook ads – Facebook offers ad services similar to Google’s, but with added targeting options. Since users readily give Facebook detailed information about their interests, preferences, and demographics, that information is at your disposal when advertising. You can choose the types of potential patients you want to show your ads – and put a cap on the cost to prevent big spending.
• Social media posting – Want a great way to reach patients without opening your wallet? Turn to social media. Posting photos, blurbs, and links to great content on your Twitter, Facebook, or Google+ pages will grab attention and get patients thinking about your practice. It’s also a perfect way to advertise promotions.

Longer-Term Marketing for Gradual Payoff

While of-the-moment marketing is all well and good, you absolutely must focus on caring for your long-term web presence. This means working to get your website high in the search engine rankings. The higher it is in lists of results for different keywords, the better chance you have at snagging new patients. But improving your rankings takes some solid, long-running work. It takes time for search engines to notice what your site is up to – and to respond positively.

In order to see your site through to a bright future, consider engaging in:

• SEO – Listing “SEO” is a little redundant, as search engine optimization is the larger definition for each of these practices. But it’s something that you need to maintain as a constant focus. In order to boost your SEO efforts, make sure to work on:
• Content production – Creating fresh content for your site, whether it’s in the form of local pages, blog posts, news, or service pages, is key. This shows patients and search engines alike that you’re staying current.
• Building links – The more links on high-quality websites lead to your own site, the better you’ll do in search engine rankings.

Get Help Marketing Your Dental Practice

Curious about where to start with your marketing? We can help. Get in touch today!

You know that blogging is crucial. Creating new content on a regular basis boosts your site in the rankings, shows patients that you’re invested in maintaining an online presence, and also offers great tips and advice to your audience. But it can be tough to motivate yourself to get tapping away at the keyboard. Feeling stymied? Whether you’re struggling with writer’s block, a lack of ideas, or an uncertainty as to exactly how to write a blog post, the web is rich with blogger-friendly resources. Below, we’ve listed a few of the top places we find blogging help.

Uncomfortable blogging on your own? Our monthly SEO plans include blogging services. Just get in touch to learn more about pairing with us for content creation.

Resources For Dental Bloggers

In order to blog successfully, you need to be able to multitask. These resources speak to that: they run the gambit from keyword advice to dental news to writing tips. Check them out to see if any could be helpful for you and your dental practice’s marketing efforts.

• Keyword Planner – Because Google is basically the boss of SEO, it has a number of resources that are incredibly helpful for small business owners. One that’s content-specific is the Adwords Keyword Planner, which shows average search volume for different terms. Why is this helpful for blogging? It’s the simplest way to check your topic ideas against what people are actually searching for in Google. This is a way to safeguard against search engine-unfriendly post titles and refine the keywords and long tail keyword phrases you’ll  be using in your blog content.
• Topic Generator – HubSpot is an excellent resource for marketers and small businesses. While their blog is filled with ideas, their Topic Generator provides help when you’re totally at a loss for words. If you’re struggling to combine keywords in an appealing way (there are only so many ways to talk about porcelain veneers, after all), try typing in some subjects and tweaking the results. The Topic Generator won’t provide perfect titles, but it will help you get brainstorming.
• New Beauty – This beauty site is an ideal resource for cosmetic dentists and aesthetic clinics. New Beauty’s Smile blog discusses new trends and products in the cosmetic dental realm, as well as common aesthetic concerns and ways to repair them. Their visually appealing, concise blog posts can serve as inspiration for those trying to focus on cosmetic treatments.
• Dental Tribune – While this collection of dental articles is fairy clinical and mostly for professionals, not patients, it offers up-to-date news that could inspire ideas for posts.
• Medical News Today – This database collects research studies related to oral health and dental treatments. Let the specific details of this research motivate you to put together some newsworthy blog posts. Take breaking research and let it serve your practice’s marketing needs.
• Colgate – Colgate has a huge collection of resources for both patients and professionals. The page we’ve linked is a list of their oral health-related articles, which come out on a weekly basis. Their ADA news page also consolidates releases from the American Dental Association, which can help keep you up to date on industry trends and ADA-certified products and practices.

Your blogging needs are always changing. But with this collection of resources, you’ll be able to find help with whatever you’re lacking at the time of writing. We understand the panic of a blank WordPress post and a blinking cursor – don’t give in to the frustration! Get proactive and get blogging – your practice will see the benefits.

What will your website be like? The sky’s the limit.

The concept behind this post may seem pretty simple. Of course you want your website to reflect your individual practice, right? How else are patients going to see the office for what it is, and decide to give you their trust and business? While a custom site seems like a clear objective, it’s not what many practices actually end up with. The design process can become muddled, and taking the speedy route to a redesign compromises forward-thinking layout and quality content.

How can you make sure that your site stands out from the pack? Follow the steps below to see a final product that is uniquely your own. And if you’re looking for design help to get started, our agency is standing by.

Creating A Dental Website That Actually Speaks to Your Practice

The last time you looked at a dental practice’s website, did you feel like it was something special? It can be tough to design a dental site and make it look fresh. But your dental profession doesn’t need to limit your range. With singular design and specific content, your site will end up making a statement.

1. Decide on your design preferences – Starting the design process with a clear plan will help create a cohesive final result. You should be aware of what you want before beginning. Spend time thinking about the color scheme, front page layout, and user interface that you’d like to set up. While a professional designer will be handling the nitty-gritty of putting that design in place, you’ll benefit from providing him/her with specifics. No one knows your practice better than you do, and you should play a role in determining your website’s appearance.
2. Show and tell – It’s imperative that you establish the right balance between site text and images. You want to show off your practice to patients with different tastes, and some will value photographs over written content (and vice versa). No matter the patient, the right distribution of images and text will appeal visually. And those images and text need to be your own, rather than copies from elsewhere on the Web; this appeals to both search engines and patients.
3. Be specific – The more details you give about your practice, the better an understanding prospective patients will gain of why it’s the right place for them. Talk about yourself, your staff members, brands offered, and practice-specific treatments as well as the more general dental information. Patients will see that you spent time getting yourself across, and they’ll respond favorably.
4. Keep your audience in mind – Personalization isn’t all about you – it’s important to keep your target site visitors in mind to provide them with an ideal experience. That being said, you can tailor different portions of your site to appeal to different prospective patients, and build a clear navigation system to support their connections. That way, patients will be able to find exactly what they were looking for, and be convinced to schedule.
5. Find ways to illustrate your expertise – One thing that’s inherently specific to your practice is your dental work. This is typically represented online by smile galleries of before and after photos. Why not supplement those photos with broader looks at your happy patients? Including testimonials and patient stories will really show off what makes you and your practice exceptional.

An Effective Dental Website Will Help Your Practice Grow

In 2014 (and beyond), patients are finding their healthcare providers on the Internet. When they stumble across your web page, is it ready to draw them in? Or will they click away to find something more engaging? If you’re not confident in your site, contact us for a complimentary evaluation.