Free dental marketing from your current patient
A good friend recounted this story to me about her recent visit to a new dentist and it made me think of how dentistry is about relationships:
I recently changed dentists, and when the new dentist saw my old amalgam fillings, he suggested I consider having them replaced with composites. I explained that my prior dentist had suggested the same thing, but the cost for eight teeth was prohibitive and I couldn’t afford it. The new dentist reassured me that for the most part my teeth were in good shape. However, because of the inflexibility of the silver fillings he could see some had stress fractures. He was concerned a tooth would eventually break. So we worked out a plan that would limit the financial and physical impact. A few weeks later, I got two silver fillings replaced. He estimates we’ll need to work on the next two in a year or so, but only after I’ve paid off the first two. That makes it virtually painless to my pocketbook and me.
Building rapport and developing relationships means understanding that patients have to balance their need for services with the reality of everyday life. And it can provide dental practices with one of the most important (and inexpensive) dental marketing tools available: patients sharing positive stories. It’s basic word-of-mouth (excuse the pun) marketing.
Here’s another story that a work colleague recounted about his recent visit to the dentist:
I had to have some unexpected dentistry done and didn’t know how I would pay for it. However, the staff at my dentist’s office had the perfect solution. Seems I could finance for six months, same as cash by applying for a specialty credit card. All I needed was $800, which I knew I could repay, but after filling out my application, they gave me $3000 in credit. I said, “Hey, I’ve got credit to spare. Now I can get my teeth whitened.” The assistant replied, “Yes, and Invisalign braces like you’ve been wanting!” We had a good laugh.
By talking about their positive experiences these patients effectively became word-of-mouth marketers for their dentists. No fanfare or big investment, just taking care of patients the way they would want to be taken care of themselves. It’s a great way to gain referrals and get free dental marketing.
Once your patient has received great service, ask them to fill out a review on your Google Places account so that over time you may potentially move up on the first page of Google. Google loves reviews, you want at least 10, so start asking your patients.
More details about Google and other marketing techniques
Know what else is free? Signing up for ReferralMD. Let us show you the hassle-free way to exchange referrals online.
And don’t forget to tell us your story. What did you or your staff do to help make a patient’s visit painless?
