W E B S I T E F U N D A M E N T A L S

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For CanadianDental Practices

How to Streamline Your Practice, Save Money,& Generate Lots of New Business with a Dental Website

D E N T A W A R EOnline Dental Practice Marketing

Dear Dentist,

Here’s an amazing opportunity!

There’s no question that your dental practice can profit immensely from a properly

developed website. Never before have you had such power to shape the way your practice

appears to potential patients!

Executed properly, a dental website is an

automatic tool that can build your credibility,

reduce staff workload, and generate a steady stream of new patients by connecting you with

the hundreds of people who are actively searching for local dentists on the internet

every day.

A website enables you to focus your

energy on building your practice, instead of constantly worrying about how to attract,

retain and communicate with patients.

Fortunately for you, most dental practices

today aren’t using the internet properly, and haven’t yet realized the huge potential of the

web as a primary tool for generating new business. That is why practices who equip

themselves with a properly developed website are at an enormous advantage. These select

practices are poised to dominate the online market, easily funneling most (if not all) local

prospects to their website.

If you’re the only practice in your area with a properly developed website, you’re sitting on a gold mine!

Why We Wrote This ReportDentaware is the only Canadian web agency specializing in dental

websites! The web presents a huge, untapped opportunity, and we want you

to see what a properly developed website could do for your practice.

If you already have a website, we hope you’ll call on us to provide you

with a complimentary, no-obligation website audit. If you don’t yet have a website, call on Dentaware to do it right the first time.

Andrew Birgiolas,Director of Marketing, Dentaware

D E N T A L W E B S I T E S : 9 U N I Q U E B E N E F I T S

Here are some unique advantages that only a properly executed dental website can offer:

1 Fully AutomaticOnce it’s up and running, your website will quickly become an automatic, patient-generating machine. As the saying goes, “Just set it and forget it.”

2 Generate ReferralsGenerate referrals right from your website, by allowing visitors to “Send this Page to a Friend” with one easy click.

3 Connect with Hundreds of New Patients Every DayProspects are actively looking for dental professionals on search engines like Google, Yahoo, and MSN. Are they finding you or you competition?

4 Target the High Value Patients You WantThe web allows you to target and connect with people who are searching for specific services (Invisalign, for example). What type of patient would you like to attract?

5 Reduce Workload for StaffProvide useful information - even outside office hours.

6 Exponentially Increase Existing Lifetime Patient Value & LoyaltyKeep patients coming back by announcing & reminding patients about new services with periodic email reminders, newsletters, and updated website content.

7 Dominate the CompetitionFunnel all local traffic to your website and become the leader in your area.

8 Educate Patients & Build CredibilitySave time and Increase treatment “acceptance” by educating your patients and answering questions before they arise.

9 Save MoneyCut down on less effective traditional marketing like Yellow Pages advertising.

T H E H U G E , U N T A P P E D O P P O R T U N I T Y M O S T D E N T I S T SD O N ’ T K N O W A B O U T

Although many practices currently have websites, most of these are makeshift attempts that don’t take full advantage of the internet as a tool to generate new business. Slow loading, incompatible, poorly written, and poorly designed websites have set a low standard in the online world of dental marketing.

The slow uptake of internet marketing by Canadian dentists has presented an exciting opportunity for dentists who have recognized the power of a properly implemented website. These dentists can dominate the online market by being the first to connect with the hundreds of potential patients who are searching for local dentists.

According to Google Adwords, in 2008 about 3,000,000 people searched for a dentist online every month, yet most

websites failed to show up in search results.

Downloading or Watching TV or MoviesResearch Investments

Listening to Internet RadioObtaining/Saving Music

Chatting or Instant MessagingPlaying Games

Research Community EventsWindow Shopping

Searching for Health or Medical Related InfoViewing News or Sports

Travel or Making ArrangementsWeather or Road Conditions

General BrowsingEmail 91%

84%67%

63%62%

58%57%

42%39%

38%37%

32%26%

12%

What Are Canadians Doing Online?

58% of respondents use the internet to search for medical or health-related information on a regular basis.

Statistics Canada: 358-0122

W H Y T H E D A Y S O F T H E Y E L L O W P A G E S A R E O V E R

In the 21st century, the first place people go to find a dentist is the internet, using search engines like Google or Yahoo. In the online world, patients are actively looking to do business with you!

Compare this to the days of traditional print marketing where you would try to connect with a passive audience, hoping that your target would see your ad in a newspaper and care enough to call.

There’s also no way to measure how many people see a print ad or call to inquire because of it. So, if you advertise in print, you’re probably spending money blindly and hoping for the best.

Conversely, the internet allows you to see exactly how many people visit your site, track specifically how many call your practice from the website, and even what parts of your website are converting the most visitors into new patients.

Spending thousands of dollars per month on traditional advertising sounds absurd when you can display so much more content to a targeted and actively listening audience at a fraction of the price, and always know the exact return on investment your website is generating.

$50 $98$86 $176 $237

$364

$562

$900

$1241

$1500

1999 20002001 2002

20032004

20052006

20072008

Online Marketing is Growing Because it Works

Advertising revenue for Canadian online publishers has grown over 219% from 2002 to 2008.

Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada

YOU YOU

Active (Online) vs. Passive (Traditional) Marketing

Yearly Online Ad Spend in Billions of Dollars

W H Y D O S O M E W E B S I T E S S U C C E E D , W H I L E O T H E R S F A I L ?

You’ve probably heard about practices attracting masses of new business through the internet. You’ve probably also heard that the web is a total waste of time.

As with everything, there is a right way and a wrong way to do things. A properly optimized website can generate massive potential for your practice. The secret to success on the web is illustrated in a 3 layer pyramid (start from the bottom up).

The final step is to attract new visitors. Once you’ve got a great site that is effectively converting and attracting return visitors and has all it’s kinks worked out, you can start attracting new visitors to your website.

Then, increase return visitors & stimulate repeat business. Visitors that continually return to your site are called “qualified” prospects. They are much more apt to become new patients than visitors who view your website for the first time.

First, you must establish a great conversion rate. This forms the base from which all else follows. There’s no point driving visitors to a website that doesn’t convert them into patients! (more on the next page)

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H O W D O Y O U E S T A B L I S H A G R E A T C O N V E R S I O N R A T E ?

How many web marketing companies stress conversion as their first objective when creating a website? Few. That’s because web designers focus on just that - “design” - without realizing the real business objectives that should exist behind every website. Here are some of the components of Conversion Architecture:

Conversion rate is the measure of how many visitors to your website are converted into potential patients. That is, how many visitors actually call your practice, submit an

appointment request, or contact you from your website.

A Stunning DesignToday’s savvy consumers can spot a professional web design from an amateur one in no time. The better your presentation, the more prospects will want to do business with you.

A Strategic Custom LayoutThere is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ solution in designing a website. Placement of your logo, achievements, contact information, headlines, and a clear call to action can really affect your bottom line.

Professional PhotographyAmateur photography on a dental website sticks out like a soar thumb. Professional practice photography increases conversion by showing patients what to expect when they walk through your door. Photos of beautiful, smiling faces increase impact by connecting with prospects on an emotional level.

Contact FormsSeize every possible opportunity to connect with potential patients by encouraging visitors to email your practice without having to leave your website.

Persuasive Website TextDon’t talk about yourself, and your practice as much as the benefits your customer will receive from doing business with you. Excite and reassure your reader to the point that they want to call your practice or visit you today!

Prove CredibilityBack your credentials by showing the great work you’ve done. Showcase your expertise with a before-and-after image gallery, and professionally written procedure descriptions.

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H O W T O I N C R E A S E E X I S T I N G L I F E T I M E P A T I E N T V A L U E

Dental practices depend on repeat business. Research shows that it takes an average of 7 visits to a website before someone will take the plunge and contact you, or buy your product or service (Source: Signature Marketing Services). Reminding patients to come in for regular check-ups and informing them about new services is a highly effective way to get existing patients to keep coming back for more. Here are some more effective tools to attract repeat business online:

Integrated Email CollectorsAn email form will allow you to gather patient email addresses and turn them into opportunities for repeat business. Send engaging emails that drive prospects to your website.

“What’s New” PageAnnounce new services or remind patients to take advantage of existing ones with a “What’s New” page. Updates usually only take a few minutes, and can be done as often as you’d like.

Referral ButtonsEncourage referrals with a button that allows patients to “Send This Page to a Friend” without them having to leave your site.

Regular OffersBy featuring new dental services, technologies, procedures, or promotions, you’ll maximize new and repeat business. For example, featuring a tooth-whitening discount for a few months will remind patients about a particular service and get new business in the door.

Dental Procedure VideosEducate website visitors with short procedure videos designed specifically for patients. This saves you time in the office by answering patient questions before they arise and increasing treatment acceptance.

BlogBy writing short posts about dental procedures, the dental industry, or useful information and advice for patients, a blog will position you as an expert in your field. Best of all, writing on your blog is as easy as sending an email.

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H O W T O C O N N E C T W I T H H U N D R E D S O F P A T I E N T S

Many dental websites try to get as many “hits” or visits to their website as possible. But there’s no point in attracting website hits if they aren’t going to convert into new patients. The secret instead is to specifically consider your target audience and attract the prospects who are most likely to become new patients. Think quality of prospect, over quantity of hits. Here are some techniques used to attract new visitors to your website:

Directory Listings(Free & Paid)Like yellowpages.ca and 411.ca, directory listings are websites that display contact information. Directory listings drive extremely well targeted and qualified visitors to your website. Many dental directories exist, so getting your name on these sites will return a great deal of new leads who are eager to do business with you. Basic listings are free, while some sites offer “sponsored” results to increase exposure at a nominal fee.

Precision Targeted PagesTo attract and connect with a specific type of patient, skilled web developers use “targeted pages” to increase your Search Engine ranking for a particular search phrase. For example, if you want to focus on attracting high value Invisalign patients, you’d create a targeted page on your website that focuses specifically on Invisalign. This page would have it's own DOT COM address (ie. “invisalign-in-toronto.com”) and would be filled with keywords to increase the number of Invisalign prospects that find your website. Targeted pages are seamlessly integrated into the rest of your website.

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Sponsored Listings(Paid)

Basic Listings(Free)

YellowPages.ca, a popular directory website

Search Engine OptimizationThere’s no use in having a website if no one can find it! Search Engine Optimization (SEO) gets your website listed on the “organic results” of search engines like Google, Yahoo, and MSN. You do not have to pay for your listing to show up in these results, but your website must be optimized by an SEO professional so that search engines know your site exists. Effective SEO is a complex process that generates massive results.

Search Engine AdvertisingThis allows your website to show up in the “Sponsored Search Results” of search engines, guaranteeing prominent placement of your listing. This is called “Pay Per Click” because you only pay each time users click on the listing. Search advertising gives you tremendous control so you can stay on budget, target specific demographics and geographic locations, and measure results over time.

Search Engine Advertising(Pay Per Click)

Search Engine Optimization(Free)

Search Engine Advertising (Pay Per Click)

The Proof?

• 90% of all Internet traffic is generated from Internet search engines.

• Top 10 positions receive 78% more traffic than those in positions 11-30

• 99% of Internet searchers do not search beyond the top 30 results.

(Yahoo Internet Marketing, Canada)

Paid vs. Free listings on Google

Thanks for Reading!

Dentaware is a website agency that specializes in standards compliant websites for dental professionals in Canada. We believe that arming dental professionals with accurate information about the industry is their best advantage when it comes to decision-making about dental marketing.

To learn more about Dentaware and our services or to receive a free website audit, click or call us today.

www.Dentaware.com

1 888 897-0874 (toll-free)