The number of private dental practices is declining, and smaller practices face increasing competition from mid-size and corporate dental practices. Meanwhile, mobile devices and the internet are creating more marketing channels every day.
So how can you get the best return on your investment (ROI) for your marketing dollars? Choose the marketing channel with the highest ROI: email. A Direct Marketing Association study[i] found that email has a median ROI more than four times higher than other marketing formats surveyed, including social media and paid search.
To increase your practice marketing ROI, follow these simple email strategies.
Be Clear and Concise
Start by using a template in your patient communication software, such as Demandforce, so your practice emails appear professional. Then, keep your message short, and use headings, bullet points and bolded type to make it easy for busy readers to skim. They’ll be more likely to flag your email as one to read in-depth when they have more time.
Personalize Your Messages
Use patients’ first names in messages to help raise response rates and build patient loyalty. And you can keep your practice top of mind by sending not just appointment reminders but regular communications to patients, such as birthday greetings or special offers. In your patient communication software, you should be able to personalize any of these greetings with services and information that are relevant to that patient.
Automate to Save Time
After patients visit, impress them with an automated thank-you email. This polite gesture becomes a marketing opportunity when you include a link to review your practice at the online review sites where your practice needs more positive reviews. Your software will enable you to communicate more, helping patients feel more connected to your practice, even as it lightens your team’s load and creates much less work than manually sending messages.
Track the Results
Don’t just send emails — track whether they’re working. During an email campaign, for example, your marketing software can gather data such as the total emails sent, total emails opened and number of click-throughs or responses generated. This data can help you make intelligent decisions about message content, targeted segments and special offers, so your next campaign can be even more successful.
Emails remain an incredibly effective marketing tool. In fact, for every $1 businesses spend on email marketing, on average, they can generate about $40 in ROI.[ii] Demandforce from Henry Schein One helps you get the best return on your investment in your practice marketing by helping you create more effective, frequent, targeted emails — most of which can also be automated to save more time. Find out more at HenryScheinOne.com/Demandforce or by talking to a specialist at 833-244-3417.
[i] “Email Marketing Benchmarks 2016: Relevancy, Frequency, Deliverability and Mobility” report available to subscribers at https://subscriptions-na1.emarketer.com/Account/Login?ReturnUrl=https%3a%2f%2 ftotalaccess.emarketer.com%2fReports%2fViewer.aspx%3fR%3d2001860%26ecid%3dMX1371
[ii] Results may vary by industry and business. See https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/247664
