Dental practices just starting out with online marketing often wonder how to approach social media marketing, especially when it comes to what type of content to post to their practice social media page.
To help you ease into social media marketing, here are some basics on what your dental practice should post to its social media accounts.
Social Media and Your Dental Practice: What to Post
While each dental or orthodontic practice may (and should) approach social media posting a little differently, there are some common fundamentals and best practices to follow:
- Your social media posts should stay in brand. Staying in brand with your social media posts means that you maintain the appearance and voice of your practice. Think about your brick and mortar practice for a moment: is it a pediatric dentistry with a fun environment for kids, or does it primarily serve older patients, perhaps in a specialized are of dentistry? What’s the mood of the office when your patients come in? That’s your brand – and the brand of that brick and mortar practice is exactly what should be reflected on your social media page. It’s easier than it sounds: for example, if you have mostly younger patients, don’t bog down your social media with ultra-scientific dental articles; if you serve older patients, don’t flood your social media page with posts about the Kardashians’ most recent dental procedure. Make sense? That doesn’t mean you can’t deviate now and again – you can, and you should – but in the end, you want to target the right audience and maintain the brand and voice of your practice in your social media posts.
- Your content should be engaging. While we believe in the importance of staying in brand, that doesn’t mean being distant from your audience of patients and potential patients – that means go beyond self-promotion and advertising your services. Your content should invite engagement because it keeps your patients involved with your practice. That means posting things to your dental practice page that are interesting to your readers – interesting enough to move them to comment, like, or share. Feel free to ask questions of your readers. Invite their comments. And always aim for something that will pique readers’ interest. And remember above how we said don’t be afraid to deviate a little? We mean it. Don’t be. No matter what your personal brand or dental practice brand may be, there’s nothing wrong with posting a silly meme, a comic, or fascinating dental news – if it’s going to interest your patients or keep them engaged, there’s nothing wrong with posting it. When in doubt, ask yourself:
- Will my patients like it?
- Is this something that would interest someone who isn’t a dental professional?
- Will it make my patients laugh, comment, like, or share?
If you can answer “yes” to all of the above, post it.
- Your social media content should provide value to your patients. When it comes to choosing what to post, always aim for something that will provide value to your patients. Deciding which content provides value differs for every dental practice, but there’s usually one standard rule: avoid anything graphic and clinical (i.e., dental images with saliva or blood). An easy place to start? Aim for something that will make your patients’ day better: a funny dental meme; a photo of you and the team; a promotion or special you’re running. By providing value on your social media page, you’re keeping your current patients involved, while increasing your potential for attracting new patients as well.
- Your content should be personal. Yes, your dental practice is a business – but on social media, people love to see the personal side of your business, and to be reminded why it is they love doing business with you in the first place. At a loss for how to make your content personal? Use team photos. Post your positive online reviews, and thank your patients for writing them. Share photos of your patients. And remember, always reply to patients’ comments on your page. By maintaining the personal, approachable feel on your social media page, you’ll cement your patients’ loyalty, attract the attention of new patients, and truly build an online community of those who love your practice.
Social Media for Your Dental Practice
For more information on what your dental or orthodontic practice should post to social media, contact us to today. We specialize in online marketing, we know the ins and outs of all things social media in the dental space, and we can customize a rockstar digital marketing plan for your personal brand and dental practice.
We can’t wait to hear from you.