Carrie Webber of the Jameson Group advises to know your audience
As an early career dentist, you have likely spent a lot of time thinking about where you are at currently, and then asking yourself, "Where do I want to go?" Congratulations! You have already begun developing a strategic plan to achieve your goal. Your years as a student and new professional have provided you with an idea of what your ideal practice looks like. The final question to ask yourself now is, "How do I get there?"
At the June CDS Regional Meeting, Carrie Webber, President and owner of Jameson Group, a dental management, coaching, and marketing firm, recommended using an internal and external marketing plan to strategize your practice's future. What is internal vs. external marketing? Internal marketing is utilizing your own patients and their reviews to increase your patient pool. External marketing is using outward facing channels such as websites and social media.
Ms. Webber informs us that a successful plan uses 70% internal marketing and 30% external marketing. This means that your patients and their experiences with your staff, your treatments, and you are the key to growing your business. "The best way to grow your practice is from within," Ms. Webber advised. "Let's get focused on where we want to go, who we want to find, and what we want them to experience."
Your marketing plan begins with a not-so-simple question: who is the hero of your story? "Are you ready? It's the patient." Ms. Webber said. "The customer is the hero, not the brand. You have to know who you are trying to reach before you can really accomplish the goals that you are looking for."
In short, know your audience. You need to define your ideal patient to create content and messaging that is relevant to them. Ideal patients "say yes to treatment. They complete the treatment, they pay for the treatment, they stay active in the practice and they refer," Ms. Webber said. "So we want to not only be creating messaging to the patients you love, we also want to be creating an experience that encourages and nurtures those behaviors within our patients so that we can have more ideal patients coming through our practice."
Key questions to ask yourself:
• What is it about you that attracts your ideal patients to you?
• What makes you special to them?
• Is that message being communicated on your website, social media, and blogs?
Ms. Webber suggested outlining your ideal patient experience from the front door to the treatment room, and then identifying your purpose, your values, your vision, and your patient philosophy. These are what need to be clearly articulated in your marketing.
A primary pillar of your practice’s success lies with your communication skills, both with your team and your patients. Your goal is to create a "Wow!" patient experience and deliver consistent excellence to patients. Doing this regularly and everyday will go a long way towards making your ideal practice a reality.
Key questions to ask yourself:
• What is it about you that attracts your ideal patients to you?
• What makes you special to them?
• Is that message being communicated on your website, social media, and blogs?
Ms. Webber suggested outlining your ideal patient experience from the front door to the treatment room, and then identifying your purpose, your values, your vision, and your patient philosophy. These are what need to be clearly articulated in your marketing.
A primary pillar of your practice’s success lies with your communication skills, both with your team and your patients. Your goal is to create a "Wow!" patient experience and deliver consistent excellence to patients. Doing this regularly and everyday will go a long way towards making your ideal practice a reality.