The Most Effective Dental Social Media Marketing Ideas
Does your practice make regular dental social media posts? We know the social media world can be confusing to navigate on a professional level, and it’s not like ‘Social Media Marketing for Dentists’ was a module in your college studies.
So, where to begin? Do dentists really need to use social media? What are the best practices for dental social media marketing? And where do businesses find their dental social media marketing ideas?
Here’s a run-down of everything you need to know about dental marketing.
Social Media for Dentists: Should You Use It?
Using social media for dentist businesses may seem unnecessary, and just a few years ago, it may have been. However, 70% of the US population have active social media accounts, and around 55% of Gen Z’s and Millennials prefer social platforms to online searches when learning about new products and services. So if your practice isn’t active online, new customers could get snapped up by competitors already making dental social media posts.
Dental social media marketing represents a huge opportunity to promote your business online at a minimal cost. But it’s not just about attracting new customers. The most successful clinics use their dental social media marketing ideas to develop a reliable and trustworthy brand persona. They also instill confidence so that patients look forward to seeing them rather than dreading their visits.
When consumers choose a dental practice, they’re signing up for a consistent service rather than a one-off experience. Savvy clinics use their social media accounts to bolster their reputation by:
- Promoting the general benefits of dental comfort and good health
- Showcasing their leadership within the industry
- Sharing records of success and patient satisfaction
- Responding to questions to demonstrate knowledge and expertise
Your content doesn’t always need to be serious. We’ll get into ideas for fun dental social media posts a little later. Still, the end goal should be creating a professional yet easy-going image that can break the stigma of dentist visits and convince patients you can deliver top quality dental experiences.
Best Social Media Tools for Dentists
Now we’ve established social media for dentists is a good idea, let’s look at a few platforms you can post on. You don’t need to use them all, but it’s a good idea to utilize a few to ensure you’re reaching as many people as possible.
User statistics in 2021 reveal that 2.8 billion people use Facebook every month, over 1.8 billion log in daily, and 63% of Americans are active users. The platform reaches 59% of all social media users globally, and over 200 million small businesses use Facebook tools to promote their companies.
Facebook algorithms favor some types of content over others, but this is one of the better platforms for promoting written content like blog articles, research papers, and website pages. If you’re ready to boost your dental practice through paid advertising, Facebook Ads allow you to target specific customer personas and demographics, while analytics help you assess and refine your strategy.
User statistics suggest that over 1 billion people use Instagram and 71% of users are under 35. The average user spends 53 minutes on ‘The Gram’ every day, just 5 minutes less than the Facebook average of 58 minutes.
Instagram is a powerhouse in image and video marketing, and more than 80% of businesses consider Instagram engagement their most important metric. In addition to still images and short videos, Insta allows users to make temporary stories lasting only 24 hours. Businesses post one-third of the most-viewed IG stories.
YouTube
Whether you choose YouTube or another channel, video content is a must. Surveys suggest over 27% of people watch 10+ hours of online video content per week, and video is expected to account for 82% of all consumer internet traffic in the near future.
YouTube is the second most popular social media platform after Facebook and the most heavily trafficked website after Google. Statistics show there are nearly 2.3 billion active users watching video content every day, and the average page journey per visit is 6.95, compared to the global average of just 2. The average view time of 11 minutes and 24 seconds is more than enough for dentists to promote their services, give virtual office tours, and share explainer videos, etc.
TikTok
You may not think of TikTok as an ideal platform for dental social media posts. However, since its launch in 2016, this video-based app has taken the world by storm. Statistics show there are about 80 million active users in the US. There is a 60/40 female to male split, and 26% of users are between 25-44.
We know what you’re thinking. Is TikTok really a good platform for dental social media marketing? It all depends on your brand persona and goals. There’s no denying the platform offers a quick, easy, and fun way to communicate with consumers, and there’s a dedicated ‘TikTok for Business’ service. For a success story in the dentistry field specifically, look no further than Dr. Ben Winters, who has been going viral on TikTok since 2019.
Twitter is an excellent channel for dentists looking to stay connected with their older demographic. Statistics reveal that the platform reaches 192 million users every day, 63% of whom are between 35 and 65. Over 20% of Americans use Twitter every month, and 40% make purchases after seeing products on their feed.
The beauty of Twitter lies in its simplicity. Rather than making long-winded posts, the platform only allows for compact updates with a maximum of 280 characters. So you can make several tweets per day to ask and answer questions or provide live updates on anything from a complex treatment to a dental conference you’re attending.
Dental Social Media Marketing Ideas to Grow Your Practice
Now we’ve covered the leading platforms, let’s look at some social media ideas for dentists. It’s a good idea to keep a social media calendar where you can plan and record your posts to make sure your content is varied. You should also make a habit of tracking the results to see which of these dentist social media ideas get the most engagement and conversions.
There will be an element of trial and error to begin with, and you’ll need to experiment with posting times, days of the week, and a range of hashtags to see what works best.
On the topic of hashtags, here are a few popular dental examples:
#dentistrylife
#dentistryworld
#dentistrylove
#dentistrymyworld
#dentistrystudent
#tooth
#orthodontics
#veneers
#dentalimplants
#dentalhygienist
#oralhealth
#dentalclinic
#teethwhitening
#dentalhygiene
#dentistlife
#smilemakeover
And now onto our list of the top dental social media marketing ideas.
Share Patient Testimonials
Did you know that over 88% of online shoppers incorporate reviews into their purchasing decisions? Testimonials are invaluable because customers trust each other more than advertising and marketing statements that come directly from a business. Unbiased reviews add weight to new patients’ purchasing decisions and make the reviewer feel their opinion is valued and appreciated. It’s a win-win.
Make Explainer Videos
According to a recent video marketing report, 96% of people have watched an explainer video to learn more about a product or service. Some dental procedures can be scary for patients. Explainer videos remove anxiety by delivering the relevant information quickly while also creating a memorable brand impression and building confidence in your ability to provide professional services.
Go Live
Live streaming can be intimidating, but it’s one of the best ways to develop a genuine connection with your audience, build brand awareness, and showcase your personality and flair. Plus, just because they’re live doesn’t mean videos have to be unplanned. Scripting and practice are allowed – just make sure they don’t look too staged.
Run Competitions
Giveaways and competitions are a great way to boost engagement and reach on your posts. Everyone loves a freebie, and the more likes, comments, and shares you get, the more the algorithms will prioritize your post. There are community rules that stipulate how to run a contest or giveaway, so it’s not necessarily as simple as asking people to like and share your content. Popular tactics include asking people to invite their friends, tag a friend, comment with a photo, or answer a question.
Celebrate Special Days
When making your dental social media marketing calendar, be sure to plot any interesting and relevant holidays you can use to promote your products and services. Examples include:
- National Dentist’s Day
- World Oral Health Day
- National Flossing Day
- World Smile Day
Start a Discussion
Asking a question or asking people to ask you questions is a clever way of boosting your reach by getting lots of comments. It’s also an effective way to showcase your knowledge and expertise by giving dental tips, thus gaining more trust and solidifying your reputation as an industry leader.
Spotlight Posts
Spotlight posts are a great way to highlight your team’s strengths, the products you sell, the services you provide, and how much you value your patients. Whether it’s a staff member or patient of the month or a focus on a particular field of dentistry like teeth whitening, veneers, or braces, spotlight posts help add value and build trust.
Share Patient Posts
You should always ask permission before sharing a patient’s content. However, doing so shows you already have a following of satisfied customers who are happy to check in online and tell their followers they use your dental practice. This is one of the best forms of free positive advertising. Specific post ideas include waiting room scenes and before and after pictures.
Share Industry News
Sharing news from the general field of dentistry demonstrates that you keep up to date with the newest trends and developments and that your practice offers the most modern dentistry solutions. When you share news posted by peers, you’re also validating the strength of your industry connections, which helps increase patient confidence.
Joke Posts
Integrating some fun dental social media posts keeps the tone lighthearted and adds both variety and personality. Patients like to feel that their healthcare professionals are real people just like them, so a few funny posts can work wonders to add a human touch that builds and maintains rapport.
Go Behind the Scenes
Showing patients what goes on behind the scenes is an excellent way to develop familiarity with your practice and team. Whether it’s a day in the life of an orthodontist, installing a new piece of equipment, or demonstrating your practice’s patient management software, showing people what goes on when they’re not there helps develop a relationship of familiarity and trust.
Create Social Media Challenges
Getting staff to participate in social media challenges is a proven way to extend your reach and gain more followers. After all, your staff is the first people your patients meet or talk to, so having them share and create content on their own channels shows that they enjoy their jobs, like their employers, and are happy to recommend your services.
Write a Blog
There are several business-related advantages to writing regular blog posts, such as getting more website traffic and improving your search engine rankings. From a patient perspective, however, blogs help to showcase your achievements and unique selling points, reinforce your brand persona, and allow you to demonstrate your experience and expertise by explaining complex topics in a relatable and easy-to-understand way.
Do More with Cloud 9 Software
While this is by no means an exhaustive list of dental social media marketing ideas, these should be more than enough to get you started if you’re not already making regular posts.
The team at Cloud 9 Software is dedicated to helping our clients deliver great outcomes to the patients they serve. We hope this article will help you increase your reach, improve your brand image, and onboard even more new clients.
As your patient base grows, you’ll need to invest in – or upgrade to – a more efficient dental practice management software. Get in touch today or book a demo to discover how our cloud-based solutions can help your business.
