Every industry is different. The way a dentist markets to potential patients is different from how Coca-Cola advertises to their customers and different from marketing for real estate. It might seem easy to look online and find ‘marketing best practices for any business,’ but you’re not just any business. You are a dental office, and dentists have different types of consumers than the average business. You need marketing for dentists.
You may have heard that online ads such as Google search ads (pay-per-click advertising) are direct ways to put your message in front of a large audience interested in your dental services and who could afford them. That’s true! Online advertising using Google allows you to pay to pinpoint who you’d like to see your message based on their demographics. But how much should you pay? How much money do you need to spend to get a good ROI for your area? How do you know if what you’re paying for is working? How long does it take to produce results? These are all valid questions, and you should be asking them. It’s important to know where your money goes, how it’s performing, when to hang it up, and when to push forward.
Use this guide to get a glimpse into dental Google Search Ads and how to navigate the ins and outs of pay-per-click advertising.
If dental marketing sounds like something you want someone else to handle, contact Jonathan Fashbaugh of Pro Impressions Marketing Group.
How Much Should You Spend on Dental Google Ads?
Let’s address the question on everyone’s mind: how much should you spend on Google Ads? The answer isn’t simple because it’s partially dependent on where you’re located and how much competition there is in your area. A dentist located in San Diego, CA, will need a higher budget than a dentist in Omaha, NE.
- San Diego has over 3 times more people than Omaha
- San Diego has more dentists
- San Diego’s residents make more money
So if you ask your dentist buddy in Omaha how much they spend on Google Ads and spend the same in San Diego, you won’t get a lot of marketing qualified leads and, therefore, might be wasting your money.
First, you’ll look at the population in your area (everyone, not just those in your target market). Next, look at how many other dentists in your area do similar dentistry as you. If you’re one of many, you know you’ll need a higher budget to be seen. Lastly, do the people in your area make a high or low wage on average? The higher the average salary, the higher the prices in general, including dental Google Ads.
Google’s favorite dentist using Google Ads will be a consistent contender with an adequate budget for the region. A healthy, consistent budget tells Google that you can play ball, and it will encourage Google to give you good deals in the ad auction.
Raise your hand if you read “ad auction” and thought, what? That’s right. Advertisers on Google compete for the highest ads placements in an auction bidding process. Many factors go into this auction, but budget helps dentists get higher placement and more visibility.
Does this all sound like a headache to you? Pro Impressions Marketing helps dentists gain more visibility online to gain new patients. Schedule a consultation today.
Need More Leads or More Marketing Qualified Leads?
To some marketing companies, a lead is a lead. But we know that you aren’t looking for just any lead. You want a marketing qualified lead (MQL)
A marketing qualified lead is someone who has taken specific action to engage with your business. They’ve filled out a form online, made a call, jumped on your mailing list, spent a lot of time on your website, or clicked on your Google ad. But wait, then why wouldn’t each click be an MQL? The simple answer is that, unfortunately, there are spammers, and nothing is stopping an existing patient from clicking on your ad.
To get the most out of your dental Google ads budget, you’ll need to target your ads to specific keywords that your audience would search. Then, weed out unqualified ‘leads’ and only spend money on the ones who have the potential to receive your dental services. In addition to keywords, you’ll need to target your ads for, and geographic location, income, and age. Then, make sure you aren’t attracting the wrong audience with negative keywords such as “cheap cosmetic dentistry,” “Dr. Joe Schmoe down the street,” and “dentists who take XXX insurance.”
You’ll know that the money you spend on Google Ads is working when you’ve taken the time to screen for marketing qualified leads and notice more patients in your dental practice. At Pro Impressions, we do that for you. We screen the clicks on your ads and form submissions to determine if they truly are marketing qualified leads.
Time and Consistency are Key for Your Dental Google Ads Budget
Patience! If you have a healthy dental Google ads budget and have done your best to weed out unqualified leads, your next step is to show Google they can count on you by being consistent and giving it time.
Consistency to Google looks like minimal changes to the budget, ad targeting, ad content, enough budget to run all month long, and on-time payments. Knowing how much time to give your ads can be tricky, but we recommend waiting 4 to 6 months to see how your new campaign performs. This gives Google time to learn about your campaign and to realize that you are, in fact, a stable and steady contender.
Dental Google ads management takes time and consistency. You won’t attain a low cost per conversion (the amount of money you spend per call or email from your Google ads) overnight. Remember when we said that each business is different? Here is another place where that comes in. Cost per conversion for other businesses doesn’t look the same as dental practices. A ‘good cost per conversion’ for Coca-Cola is different than real estate and different than your office. To know what is ‘good,’ will take some research into pay-per-click for dentists and your specific region.
ROI and When to Up Your Dental Google Ads Budget
Can we talk about return on investment for a moment? Return on investment or ROI is the money you make from the money you spend. When using Google Ads, you want a low cost per conversion—because you want to make a lot more on each patient than you pay to get them. If you are looking at your cost per conversion and it’s low, feel free to add more money to the budget. You’ll get more marketing qualified leads and more patients in your chair. But remember, keep an eye on your cost per conversion and notice when it starts to rise. At that point, stop adding to your budget and reap the rewards of your successful Google Ads campaign.
Marketing for Dentists with Pro Impressions
We’ve been helping dentists, like you, for over a decade. It’s our mission to help you grow your visibility online so you can grow your practice, and we hope you’re so thrilled that you tell your friends about it. Contact Pro Impressions Marketing Group today if pay-per-click advertising like Google Ads sounds like a headache. You’ll get a consultation with our president and founder, Jonathan Fashbaugh. Schedule your consult today to grow your practice.
