How Online Reviews Help Gain Exposure For Your Dental Practice
Apr 30, 2018
10 min read
Table of contents
Imagine a scenario where potential patients are looking for your dental services online and come across this review - "/social-media-marketing-services/" 
Or this…
What do you think will be their reaction? Obviously, they’ll be impressed but will it be enough to get some foot traffic?
Absolutely!
Online reviews are the 21st century equivalent of word-of-mouth and they can serve as a powerful catalyst in driving patients towards (or away) from your practice.
Seems like an exaggeration? Answer me this… when was the last time you went to or ordered from a new restaurant without checking its reviews online?
I bet you do that everytime! And everyone else does it too. Don’t think people look for reviews only when it comes to restaurants, they do it for all things imaginable and dental practices are sure one of them, so it becomes all the more important for you to handle online reviews with care.
According to a BrightLocal study, as much as 93% of consumers read online reviews to decide if a business is worth their time or not, which is huge!... and should be a clear-cut sign that you need to take your review game up a notch if you want some more exposure for your dental practice.
Here are some more reasons why you absolutely must embrace online reviews -
1.Helps propel your marketing efforts
Almost every dental practice of today is engaged in some online marketing efforts, be it Social Media Marketing or Content Marketing or any other outreach efforts. And I am sure you do it as well in one form or the other. So, you’d know how difficult it is to market your dental practice online and the amount of insane efforts it takes to do it well.
Do you want all those efforts to go down the drain? They will if there are a plethora of bad reviews about your practice scattered online.
Bad reviews can also be the reason your dental practice is not able to take-off despite consistent marketing efforts, doesn’t matter how amazing they are.
On the other hand, if there are glorious reviews about you and the way you run your dental practice, they can prove to be the last push a potential patient needs to come to your doorsteps and make your marketing efforts an absolute success.
2. Helps in ranking on search engines
According to a Moz study, cumulative reviews can have a 13% effect on your search engine rankings and quite evidently, it’s a lot!
Source - Moz
Major search engines like Google gives a lot of importance to user-generated reviews. The more you have it, greater are your chances to reach the top.
From there, it becomes a self-feeding review generating cycle. As businesses with more reviews gain more visibility through search engines, it results in more foot traffic which in-turn leads to even more user-generated reviews. The main task is to figure out how to get that cycle started (which we will talk about in the next section)
3. Builds customer trust
Which practice will a potential patient trust more - a dental practice with a ton of happy user generated reviews or a practice with many 1-star ratings?
The answer is quite obvious ain’t it. When you read a bunch of good reviews about a dental practice or any other business, it builds your trust with the brand. You’ll be sure that they’ll take great care of you and will provide you with the best of services.
And when a potential customer starts to trust your brand even before availing your services, that’s where the magic happens. Prove to them that you are worthy of your reviews and bam!... you have a customer that’ll stick with you no matter what.
Only a thing like reviews can make that happen.
Where to begin?
Unless you provide a service so good that customers start posting marvellous reviews for your business themselves, to kickstart your review cycle, you’ll have to ask for it explicitly. Most dental practices lack that. Just simply ask for a review and show them the easiest way to do so or the platform you’d want them to specifically review on. Or you can include asking for reviews in your email marketing efforts.
Doesn’t matter how you ask them, but you’ll have to take the first step.
Use Yelp, Google My Business & Facebook Reviews
Okay, these three platforms are the most accessible, biggest and baddest user-generated review platforms out there and you need to target just them to get the ball rolling.
You’ll have to claim listings for your dental practice first (and create a Facebook Business Page for Facebook Reviews) on these websites to allow users to submit their reviews.
With a monthly traffic of more than 160 million, Yelp is THE platform to focus on for dentists as 30% of the searches made on the platform is related to the healthcare industry. So, if you haven’t yet claimed your business on Yelp, now is the perfect time to do so!
And don’t forget Google My business, which can help your dental practice with localization (a topic we’ll be covering soon) as well.
Unlike popular belief, online reviews are an important part of your digital footprint, make sure you are giving them the attention they deserve and witness all your marketing efforts leave a mark.
On which platform do you receive the most patient reviews and feedback? Let us know in the comments.
How can Artificial Intelligence enhance in-app personalization & customer retention?
Today, brands and businesses cannot ignore the increased usage of mobile phones and mobile apps. That is why working on only desktop-based access is no longer a relevant tactic for growth. Nowadays, businesses of all niches are coming up with mobile apps for generating revenue and bringing in more customers, and this might be the reason why there are currently 2.87 million apps available for download on Google Play. Source: Unsplash But do you think that just launching an app on Google Play or any other platform is enough, especially when the users are inundated with options? If your app slacks the necessary appeal, it can turn out to be an implication to your business reputation instead of acting as a catalyst for growth. To top it is the number of people (21% of people) abandoning an app just after one use. The only way to climb the ladder of success in the ocean of competition without becoming a one-time use app is to use the power of personalization. Although in-app personalization is not an easy task, it can be a practical approach with the right resources like AI. So, let's see how the power of AI is improving in-app personalization and increasing customer retention. The rise in the demand for in-app personalization With the market becoming cluttered and with so many options, customers are looking for a unique and convenient experience rather than going through the same mundane journey of purchasing a product, resulting in a shift to a trend where people prefer a personalized experience. Stats showing a rise in the demand for in-app personalization: More than 80% of the customers are more likely to buy from a brand that offers a personalized experience. 89% of the U.S marketers agree that personalization of their app has increased their revenue along 63% of smartphone users are more likely to purchase from an app that offers relevant recommendations 71% of consumers have an aversion to an impersonal shopping experience 58% of smartphone users felt more inclined toward those companies whose apps remembered who they were and their previous behavior. How is AI improving in-app personalization? Access to user personas in real-time One of the best things about AI is that it can comprehend demographical and behavioral data in a more detailed and less time-consuming manner than humans. It helps brands find out the type of content that will prove relevant for every person's mobile app use. Yes, you read that correctly, every single mobile app user. Source: Unsplash You can bid farewell to the not-so-effective yet cumbersome manual segmentation of users into unchanging personas. In such a system, the segmentation done based on the data collected would have already shifted when you accessed the user personas. But it doesn't matter whether you have 100 mobile users or 1000 mobile users, AI can learn about each one of them on an ongoing basis, and it will also keep you updated about which persona the user currently fits. Personalized and apt content delivery Not keeping the audience engaged through the mobile app might be why every 3 out of 10 apps get deleted within 30 days of installation. You might be planning to deliver new and updated content through the mobile app daily to keep occupying space on the user's mobile. However, if that content is irrelevant and un-targeted, then all your efforts will go astray. Personalization is the only way to drive app engagement. Remember that you are fighting to get a user's attention who gets 65-80 notifications on his mobile every day. So, the user will undoubtedly lose track of the generic content in the ocean of messages. Source: Unsplash AI comes with the power of digesting a vast amount of data about every individual through their in-app behavior. Based on this data, the same AI can make relevant recommendations. Home screen personalization in apps The home screen is the most critical aspect of any mobile app, and it is usually the go-to screen for users to navigate. But instead of relying on the one-size-fits-all approach with the home screen app, you can use AI to add personalization in this vital section of your app as well. Based on the app category and the quality and quantity of the demographic data during the first-time onboarding flow, you can build a personalized home screen experience for the user and make them succumb to staying engaged with the app. And this will never be a time-consuming task since AI will be helping you with garnering and analysis of data. For example, if you have launched a music-based app, you use data like favorite songs, name, age, and gender of the user to build a first-degree personalized list of music recommendations on the home screen. Customize the navigational experience In addition to personalizing the browsing, user searches, and click behavior, you can also work towards personalizing the users' navigational experience or, in simple language, customizing how the users navigate on the app. AI can harness insights from parameters like geolocation, weather, timezone, buyer persona, gender, and then personalize graphics, CTAs, banner images, products, and trending offers to give a unique navigational experience to the user. AI can also leverage the most common path towards conversion for optimizing the navigational journey. It can also identify those aspects of the app that remained unused or that might be hampering the navigational journey of the user. Improving the timing The biggest perpetrator of your mobile app can be too many notifications being sent at the wrong time, as 28% of the users delete an app just because it sends them too many notifications. A customer might love to hear that they will get 20% off on their favorite jacket that they have put into the 'For Later' category, but such notification will be of no use if sent at 3 AM in the morning. That being said, this can be a quick turn-off for someone even when sent at 10 AM if the person is doing night shifts. That is where AI comes into the picture. By analyzing the user behavior and how and when they have interacted with a notification, AI can decide on an optimal time to send notifications that will have more chances of being clicked by the user. Takeaways AI can do wonders for mobile apps, but personalization is the biggest perk of incorporating AI in mobile apps. With AI, you can take the in-app experience to the next level, increasing customer engagement and boosting customer retention rate. Of course, the incorporation of AI in mobile apps has its limitation, and it is only as good as the amount of data it comprehends. Still, you can avoid a lot of guesswork and manual workload from your mobile app marketing by using AI. For more information, feel free to get in touch with our experts. ...
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Advanced Inbound Marketing Tips to Trigger Lead Nurturing Online
Inbound marketing has become the most effective way of lead nurturing for companies around the world. The sure thing that every inbound marketing expert knows is that only a small percentage of the inbound leads will make a purchase on a website. This leaves 90% of your inbound leads not being tapped. When you implement an effective lead nurturing strategy, you will have a huge impact on the results of your inbound marketing strategy. Below are advanced inbound marketing tips to trigger lead nurturing online. Lead Scoring A 2013 Lead generation marketing effectiveness study reported that 68% of successful hubspot inbound marketers usually cite lead scoring based on content and engagement as the most effective method of improving revenue. What is lead scoring? Lead scoring is a concept that is utilized to rank prospects against a scale that represents the perceived value of each lead as it symbolizes to the company. The concept can be implemented in majority of marketing automation platforms through assignment of values to specific browsing habits, conversion events and social media interaction. The final score achieved is usually used to determine which leads should be followed up and which should be nurtured further down. Diverse Lead Nurturing Traditionally, marketers used simple strategies like setting up an email drip campaign which would send generic emails to a list of subscribers as well as outsource inbound marketing services. This method has not been effective as marketers would have hoped. For starters, majority of prospects who are being targeted do not open the emails and on top of that, majority of marketing leads do not convert into sales. This has led to poor performance. Thanks to improved tactics, there are new strategies that go beyond emails. Powerful marketing automation platforms have enabled savvy marketers to incorporate diverse lead nurturing strategies. Apart from marketing automation, they have incorporated social media, paid targeting, dynamic website content and direct sales outreach among others. This helps to increase the chances of sales and ensuring that different strategies provide the intended results. Targeted Content It is important as a marketer to know that one size does not fit all. What you need to know is that targeted content has proven to be the best when you want to nurture leads. While it may seem obvious, there are marketers who are struggling with it. According to research, in order to nurture more leads, when you opt for targeted content, you need to ensure that the right content is delivered to the right audience and at the right time. Before providing targeted content, you need to have a few things in mind. You need to understand every unique need of your intended audience. Once you have identified their unique needs, you need to create an assortment of targeted content which will help to nurture each persona. It should be based on their interests, goals, objectives and marketing triggers. Come up with a marketing automation platform that will help you to identify, segment and target your unique audience personas as you scale your inbound marketing strategy. Follow Ups As a marketer, you need to know that timely follow ups can help in nurturing more leads. The sad news is that majority of organizations are not responding quickly. What you need to know is that automated lead nurturing can help one to reach large groups of prospects but a timely follow-up email or phone call is still the best way of converting inbound leads into qualified sales opportunities. Research has shown that the odds of converting a lead into a sales opportunity is higher when a lead is contacted immediately following a website conversion. As a marketer when you make a timely and well researched call to a lead, it will be far more effective than making any cold calling. From Google Analytics, you are able to know the lead’s browsing behavior therefore having enough information about the lead. You can go further and research where they work and their specific role in the company. ...
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Top 7 Future Web Design Trends (Updated)
A new year always means expecting new, unique, and trendsetting things. The same happens for web admins and web designers. They look forward to refreshing, fresh, and the ?best website trends that may be the future revolution. There is an ample number of advancements in technology that get introduced every year. Web designers, developers, and masters understand the fact that the only constant thing is change. Also, they must keep up with the ?best website trends and be enriched with knowledge of their field. They must revamp their ?current web design trends and techniques.Website design can not be overlooked as it has become essential in creating an identity and promoting a brand. According to a survey conducted by Popsugar, 37.5% of American women prefer visiting a well-designed website more frequently. Apart from web design, website navigation and overall usability play a vital role in the success of an online business. According to another study conducted in 2018, around 60% of the respondents feel that website usability is the most crucial element of an online shop. Similar to any aspect of a business on an online platform, website design trends keep changing. One must keep themselves updated with the evolving landscape to stay ahead of the curve. Therefore, providing a unique, accessible, and user-friendly web design for the target audience is essential! Source: Pexels 7 Future Web Design Trends That You Must Consider In 2021! The web has witnessed enormous growth since it was discovered. Mobiles have reigned us, and with time, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, and Artificial Intelligence is taking over the business landscape. As advantageous and needful, these technologies have been, their actual impact is seen only in a few aspects of which web design trends are a significant area. Here are the top web design trends to know that would help us set a benchmark in 2021.1. Get Creative: Rethink Your Current Web Design Trends And Techniques! Every new creative discovery requires a bit of courage for implementation to make the business stand out of the crowd and to project itself to the world! Similarly, creativity would make the website designs take a bolder step- a more significant leap in 2021. The unique and rarely used asymmetrical layouts will be seen on the websites. An increase in their usage is due to the more substantial amounts of enthusiasm, fun, rarity, and individuality of the brand. Thus, it’s a new trend in web page design that has a far reach and greater appeal on all websites, especially on personal websites. 1. Utilize 3D Technology! Adding yet another dimension is always beneficial – be it life or technology! 2021 would witness the rise in the usage and popularity of 3-Dimensional modeling and render in their website designs. 3D modeling and rendering would become more accessible and affordable, even for those lacking specialized 3D training. Defy, and Adidas have adopted 3D modeling and showcased it on their websites. Many more are predicted to follow the same trend. It is undoubtedly one of the most significant emerging website trends in 2021. 2. Add Engaging Visuals And Videos Videos are a must in this time of cut-throat competition and decreasing attention span of the target audience as it quickly engages the audience and markets the brand more efficiently. This element of video addition is not a new one, but people have great expectations for this new year 2021. So, videos are inevitable and must-haves for the web page. You must plan the design, content of the video, and the quality of the video properly. The meaning and purpose of the video must be evident. The videos must be aptly handled as representatives that visually carry forward the spirit and overall goals of the brand. The video addition must be so that the target audience can’t skip it, and they should come back for more! 3. Implement Motion GIFs We live in a fast-paced and digitized world. As a result, impatience has dawned on us and has become a part of us. We expect even the search engines to load much faster and answer our queries more quickly. We need everything instantly! A website designer obviously should take advantage of this behavior and leverage it efficiently by including motion design on their site. Motion designs immediately provide information that’s engaging too. They help convey a message in a far better way than the textual and pictorial content. GIFs can be the best example of exemplifying the usage of motion pictures. GIFs load faster than videos and communicate everything briefly, though the information is highly complex. Additionally, GIFs work well in all screen sizes too. 4. Enhance Voice-Search Compatibility Many gadgets are currently equipped with virtual assistants like Google Now, Cortana, and Siri. These Smart assistants have set a new trend – an increase in the number of people who use voice queries rather than text. The convenience rendered through voice queries makes people switch to it over manual text. Website developers and designers should provide the best voice-user interface with this increasing popularity of searching with voice. It must offer a great user experience that is more customized and is responsive across all screen sizes. Be prepared for this trendy website design with great innovation! 5. Infuse Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence Big data is the basis of our sustenance today. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning are the basis of handling big data. Webmasters and designers need to stay updated and adapt to these technological trends as in the recent future; the user interface can be influenced and dominated by these trending technologies. Advanced machine learning and AI must be mastered by web designers and infused with web design trends that would help target the users better and offer a customized experience to them. AI and machine learning are set to change the web designing landscape more drastically and uniquely than others. 6. Try Smart CSS Grids Before, web designers had to make a crucial decision – whether they had to design a webpage for the computer or mobile. Also, the most significant task is that they want to develop the website so that it should figure out the device in which it is opened and then adapt to the device. Yes, the website needs to be responsive. Using smart CSS grids helps in designing such a flexible webpage that is so much easier. The latest technology allows the excellent organization of content, highest and unmatchable quality of user experience. The website becomes highly adaptable on all desktop and mobile versions that suit a user’s screen. Conclusion New and creative website design trends have been admired by people every year. The website designers should keep in touch with these updates to be relevant and helpful to many users. 2021 would be another advancing year in technology where only the best user experience providers can withstand. Hence, you can implement these 7 future web design trends to renovate your website successfully. Tweak your current web design trends and techniques to make the most out of your website. Make use of the above said far-reaching technologies and be dominant in the market! Are you looking for a robust team that can help you develop a feature-rich website? Contact us now! ...
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