HAPPY NEW YEAR! Have you made your editorial calendar for Q1 yet?
I like New Year’s resolutions that I can keep and that yield significant results. Many dentists will kick off 2022 with a marketing plan that includes regular social media postings, an e-newsletter, and/or weekly blogs. If these three tasks didn’t make your professional resolutions list, it’s not too late to amend your agenda!
Social media rarely earns a dentist a new patient, in my experience. However, the cost of onboarding a new patient, from marketing to hygiene visits, is quite costly. Regularly sharing posts can keep your brand in front of current patients, which helps with patient retention.
As a bonus, involving your team members in commenting, sharing, and participating in social media can help unite your crew on a new level.
If you’re going to try social media posts, then go all-in. Require (don’t suggest, but hold accountable) your team to participate. Every team member should log in at the end of your weekly team meeting and participate on one or more of your social media profiles. Get your team involved by asking for their input on the topic calendar. They have their finger on the pulse of your patients because they hear the questions and requests your patients have. Listen to them! You may generate some amazing new ideas!
If you have trouble deciding on topics for your blogs and social media posts, this calendar is a great springboard to get you started.
Blog and Social Media Calendar
Jan – NY New Pt Special – Whitening Blog
Jan – Outdoor Photo Challenge – Veneers Blog
Jan – Team Tip* – Ortho Blog
Jan – Celebrity Smile Challenge** – Smile Makeovers Blog
Feb – Teeth Whitening Special – Are You Kissable? (Quiz: smile, lips, breath) Blog
Feb – Poll: Best VDay Gift (dinner, chocolates, flowers, jewelry) – Science Says Some Sweets Superior for Smiles Blog
Feb – Team Tip* – 5 Cures for Foul Breath Blog
Feb – Celebrity Smile Challenge** – Gum Disease Symptoms & Treatment Blog
March – St. Patty’s Day in [your town here] – Beer: Good for your teeth? Yes and no. Blog
March – Spring Break Dates (local districts) – 3 Dental Procedures to Schedule Over Spring Break (wisdom teeth, get braces put on, restorative) Blog
March – Team Tip* – Help [your town] Neighbors Find a Dentist Blog
March – Celebrity Smile Challenge** – No More Root Canals? Blog
*Team Tip – choose one employee per month to provide a tip about taking care of oral and/or overall health – include headshot or picture of employee at work
**Celebrity Smile Challenge – grab pictures of celebrity smiles, crop to only the mouth, and challenge your team and patients to identify the celebrity based only on the image
e-Newsletter
E-newsletters are more affordable and practical than print versions.
A practice newsletter’s sole purpose is patient retention.
You need to keep your brand in front of patients for three reasons:
- so they don’t stray to a different dentist’s office,
- so your practice comes to mind when anyone asks for a recommendation for a dentist, and
- so it appears like you genuinely care about your patients and community.
Your newsletter should feature unique photography, a few blogs (teaser with link), and results of challenges and polls from social media posts, plus reviews from Google, Facebook, or personal notes from patients.
Also announce any practice news: new hires, new tech, change in hours, holiday closings, birthday wishes, and congratulations to team members and patients (people love to be named, or for their kids to be named, but get permission first).
For best impact, distribute your e-newsletter on a set calendar, either monthly or quarterly.
Need a PRO Dental Marketing Team?
We do more than editorial calendars! Identiwrite Creative wants you to GET MORE NEW PATIENTS whether you manage your own marketing or allow us the privilege of serving you. Our team of dental writers, graphic designers, web technicians, and on-page SEO experts can manage part or all of your online marketing strategy. We can also develop a strategy for you, after analyzing your competitors, your current rankings and traffic, and learning about your target market. If you need marketing help from experts who know dentistry and dental patients, call us today at 972-679-6885.
