Let’s chat about something crucial yet often overlooked in dental marketing: patient reviews. Just like a glowing recommendation from a friend, these reviews can work wonders for your practice. They’re not just comments; they’re powerful tools that can enhance your reputation, attract new patients, and even give your website’s SEO a significant lift. Let’s explore the multifaceted benefits of patient reviews and why they should be a key focus in your dental marketing strategy.
Enhance Your Online Reputation
We all love word-of-mouth recommendations, right? Well, consider online reviews as the digital equivalent. They can significantly influence how potential patients perceive your services and the “vibes,” if you will, of your practice. Positive reviews build a foundation of trust and credibility even before a new patient walks through your door. They paint a picture of the quality of care, the friendliness of your staff, and the overall patient experience at your practice.
But you can’t stop there. The way you respond to reviews, both positive and negative, matters, too. Thoughtful responses to feedback show that you value patient input and are committed to continuous improvement. This level of engagement can enhance your reputation, demonstrating that you’re not just a dental practice but a caring community member.
In a world where online first impressions matter, these patient reviews can be the deciding factor for someone choosing their next dental care provider. So, encouraging your patients to share their experiences online is a simple yet effective way to boost your practice’s reputation and stand out in the competitive dental market.
Do you want to learn more about reviews and your dental practice? We have a whole slew of posts on this exact topic!
Attracting New Patients
When someone is searching for a new dentist, they often rely on the experiences of others to make their decision. Positive reviews act as personal recommendations, assuring prospective patients of the quality care they can expect at your practice. They often highlight specific aspects of patient care, like pain-free procedures, modern facilities, or a friendly staff, which can resonate with what new patients are looking for. This authentic form of promotion is invaluable in attracting new patients and growing your practice.
Benefits for SEO
Beyond just reputation and direct influence, patient reviews have a significant impact on your dental practice’s search engine optimization (SEO). Search engines value fresh, relevant content, and patient reviews are a perfect source of this. Regular new reviews signal to search engines that your practice is active and relevant, which can help improve your ranking in search results.
Remember that Google Business Profile you created? Well, you’ll want to keep it updated. Here’s why: your Google Business Profile plays a pivotal role in how your dental practice ranks in Google search results, especially in local searches. When potential patients search for dental services in your area, Google uses the information from your Business Profile to determine your practice’s relevance and authority. This includes details like your location, services offered, business hours, and, importantly, patient reviews and ratings. The more complete and accurate your profile is, the better Google can match your practice with relevant searches. Since Google uses the information it collects from your profile, a steady stream of positive reviews and high ratings on your Google Business Profile enhances your practice’s credibility and trustworthiness in Google’s eyes, which can lead to higher rankings in search results. Essentially, your Google Business Profile acts as a direct line between your dental practice and Google’s search algorithm, making it a crucial tool for improving your online visibility and attracting new patients.
Reviews sometimes contain keywords related to dental services and local references, which further boosts your local SEO game. When patients mention specific treatments or praise aspects of your service, they inadvertently help your practice rank for those related terms. This improved visibility in search engines means potential patients are more likely to find your practice when searching for dental services.
Strategies for Gathering Patient Reviews
Most patients aren’t going to leave reviews on their own; you need to ask for them! Start by creating a simple, hassle-free process for patients to share their experiences. This could be as straightforward as sending a follow-up email or text after an appointment with a direct link to your Google Business Profile or other review platforms. Train your staff to gently remind patients about leaving a review if they’ve had a positive experience. Check out the video below for a definitive guide on getting more reviews.
Transcript
00;00;00;06 – 00;00;25;19
Jonathan
Your online reputation goes deep beyond just what consumers think about you. It goes into your visibility, and that’s because of how Google ranks businesses. It goes beyond just what your website says or what any one piece of information that Google can collect. Google factors in so many different criteria, but online reviews play a big part in that.
00;00;25;21 – 00;00;52;12
Jonathan
And so Google looks at nature of those reviews, whether they’re generally positive, generally negative. We will also look at how frequently you get those reviews if they’re coming in on a regular basis. That’s a big positive signal at the end of the day. Google is just a robot, and there is no better piece of information to peek into the minds of actual human beings who have been at your office than in online review.
00;00;52;19 – 00;01;18;28
Jonathan
At least that’s what Google thinks. So if you’re regularly getting positive reviews, that’s a big signal to Google that you are a quality business worth ranking. And of course, when that visibility happens, because of your online reviews and all the other pieces of information that make you rank worthy on the first page of Google, when people do see those positive reviews, then it absolutely helps with your conversion rate.
00;01;19;02 – 00;01;48;08
Jonathan
So how do you get more online reviews? Well, the answer is just whatever works, really. But I’m a big fan of building it upon relationship and communication. There are ways to automate getting online review requests out the door. But a lot of platforms don’t like that. They feel like you’re spamming people. And certainly if you’re not expecting an online review request, you’re much less likely to take action on it.
00;01;48;10 – 00;02;17;09
Jonathan
Now, if you have an amazing business and you’re continually wowing people, which is what we all strive for, then when a review request comes in, you’re more likely to actually get those review requests, more likely to actually get people to take action on those requests. And the more likely to give you a positive review. But if you’re still growing in this process and you’re maybe going through some changes as a business, then you might want to take a little bit of a different approach.
00;02;17;10 – 00;02;45;24
Jonathan
Selecting specific individuals to approach for an online review. And the most natural way to do that is to teach your team to listen. If a patient. If a customer is saying good things about you, then go ahead and ask them in the moment. Gosh, that’s such a great thing. You know, that’s such a great compliment. Would you be willing to share that feedback with us online in the form of an online review on Google, or some other place?
00;02;46;00 – 00;03;03;14
Jonathan
You don’t have to get into specifics. But if they’re saying good things about you, just ask them to share that with the world and tell them why. Tell them. People don’t often know that a dental office can operate this way, that the experience can be different. And the thing that you just said would be great for people to know.
00;03;03;22 – 00;03;22;09
Jonathan
So would you help us get the word out and do that online review? Then be quiet. Let them answer that question. Would you help? Let that uncomfortable pause be there and the person will fill it. They’ll say, oh yeah, absolutely. Then follow up with another question. Fantastic. Thank you so much. Can I send you a text message with a link that’ll make that easy for you?
00;03;22;12 – 00;03;45;20
Jonathan
Again, wait and listen. Yeah, please. Now, they’ve said they’ll help. And they’ve said yes to a text message. So firing off that text message request to them, it’s going to be something that they expect and that they’ve actually promised in a way that they’re going to do for you. So that’s going to be a request that is much more likely to generate an online review than just spamming every person who comes through your door.
00;03;45;22 – 00;04;08;18
Jonathan
If you are spamming everyone and you are going through some team member changes or other issues, you can actually, be throwing some gasoline on a fire there and asking for reviews that are, by and large, going to be negative. That’s a bad thing. You don’t want regular negative reviews because Google is going to take that as a signal that, oh, I shouldn’t send my users there.
00;04;08;18 – 00;04;30;27
Jonathan
They’re probably regret it if they come to this office. And so you definitely want to address that if you see regular online reviews that are negative in nature. You’ve got to take a close look at your business close. Look at yourself as a professional and say, why are people not happy with me? Am I promising something that’s not something I can deliver?
00;04;30;29 – 00;04;53;13
Jonathan
What is it? And fix that, because you’ll have a much happier business if you can actually deliver on what you’re presenting. Finally, when you have collected these online reviews, you’re working hard to generate positive reviews. Share them with the world. Take an opportunity to share them personally on social media. You can use them in just static social media posts.
00;04;53;15 – 00;05;11;03
Jonathan
The only thing you want to be careful about is that if you’re going to use the patient’s name, you do need permission from them. And I get that in writing because depending on the state that you live in and the person involved, they can actually get a little embarrassed and it can actually constitute a breach of hipa.
00;05;11;10 – 00;05;30;07
Jonathan
And you don’t want to go in there. So, if you’re going to share the person’s name, get that permission in writing and then go for it. Because that’s actually great. If you can share the person’s name, their photo, and their review in a piece of content. That’s a powerful piece of content that shows you have people endorsing you.
00;05;30;13 – 00;05;53;29
Jonathan
You’ve got the goods you can deliver on, providing good quality service. And if you attach actually content, content to that, on your website, it’s actually got some good local SEO value as well. So just leverage those reviews depending on the nature of them, like what they’re about. You could do a lot of different things with that content, and it’s stuff that you didn’t even write.
00;05;54;02 – 00;05;55;08
Jonathan
Patients wrote it for you.
Utilizing Reviews in Marketing Materials
Last but not least, use your reviews in your marketing! Patient reviews can be a goldmine for your marketing content. Feature positive reviews on your website, in social media posts, and even in print marketing materials. This not only showcases real patient satisfaction but also adds a layer of authenticity to your marketing efforts. Highlighting specific reviews that speak to the quality of your services, the friendliness of your staff, or the comfort of your facilities can resonate with potential patients.
When using reviews in your marketing, always ensure you have the necessary permissions, especially if you’re including any patient-identifiable information. Properly managed, patient reviews can be a powerful tool in your marketing arsenal, providing credible and compelling content that speaks directly to the experiences and outcomes your practice offers.
Do you need some help marketing your dental practice? Call us at (970) 672-1212 or click the button below to schedule a consultation, and we’ll help you gain more new patient leads.
