Create a 2012 marketing plan (Your competition already has)

Or how about a back-to-school promotion to remind parents to get their kids in for a regular check-up? There is a good chance your competition did.

Times and competition have changed for the average dental practice. Growing up I knew each of the local dentists in our area. The choice of who to see was easy, and being that both had good reputations, it was simply a matter of personality. Or in my particular case it was a matter of distance from my home, seeing how I had to ride my bike to appointments.

Jumping forward to today, patients have numerous choices of whose practice to make appointments with. Not only are they getting traditional postcard mailers, they are being referred to other practices by friends and family, and seeing Facebook check-ins by their friends at their dental providers.

As a profession that once allowed a dentist to simply open his practice doors and focus on patients, dentistry today requires dentists who have the dental skills along with a marketing plan.

So looking forward to 2012, start the year off with a marketing plan in place by incorporating some of the tips I have learned from our customers.

Whether keeping in contact with your current patients between appointments or growing your patient base, a marketing plan puts you in a great position to succeed and keep that new competing practice down the road at bay.

Creating the plan

A marketing plan not only lays out the vision of your practice for the year, but it also lists the actions necessary to achieve its success. While “winging” a marketing plan can sound like the perfect easy way out, it probably won’t help your practice in the long run.

Use a tool that you are comfortable with to layout your plan. Whether a simple twelve-month calendar, or a complex spreadsheet, both will get the job done.

Next, set aside some time when you can meet with your entire staff to get their input. If possible have them take a simple inventory for the year on what products and services were most requested by patients. This can give you insight into which of those to focus on in 2012. Addressing the question of what products and services would benefit your patients the most will lead your discussion.

Looking one month at a time

Many practices feel overwhelmed about when and how often to market their products and services. What they soon realize is that the year is really already laid out for them in the area of holidays and seasons. Use these dates as a starting point to time your marketing and then build in additional marketing events as you and your team sees fit.

Some of these other events might include a holiday toy drive campaign, or back-to-school promotion.

Market where your patients are

The biggest question you may be asking yourself is how to deliver these marketing messages. Traditionally, printed mailers would have been the only option but as we have determined, times have changed. Patients are more likely to see your marketing efforts in an e-newsletter or a text message before they see what’s in the mailbox.

Utilizing a patient engagement platform will surely complete the task when it comes to e-newsletters and text messages; and you’ll get all the other benefits, such as appointment reminders, in addition to the platform’s marketing tools. Patients are already using these technologies everyday, so take advantage of the situation by communicating with them on their terms.

In addition to e-newsletters and text messages, make sure to include some social media such as Facebook or Twitter. Both allow you to post messages and link out to any e-newsletters you send. You can also include social media promotions to attract fans and followers. Once again you can either manage these social media avenues on your own, or you can incorporate a patient engagement system to help with this.

So to wrap up, remember, if you’re not marketing to your patients, somebody else is, so follow through on your newly created marketing plan. It will go a long way in building patient relationships. More importantly, it will keep your patients connected and engaged with your practice throughout the year.

Note: This article was originally published in Dental Tribune U.S. Edition, Vol. 6 No. 17, November 2011.

About the author

Michael Mosley is director of marketing for Solutionreach (formerly Smile Reminder)