How To Improve Your Presence On Social Media For Your Dental Practice

I had the greatest pleasure of attending the Western Regional Dental Experience here in Arizona, and you might be wondering- what on earth were you doing at a dental conference?

And you'd be right to wonder that EXCEPT, last September I made the decision to take a part time job at Birk Family Dentistry and it has blessed my socks off. I went in knowing virtually nothing about dentistry, and now I find myself looking things up and learning as much as I can on my own free time. The dental industry is fascinating and it's full of some really incredible people.

I attended WRDE this last weekend to support my office and to gain training in areas that I am still learning about. Everything from women's health, to gut health, to inflammation all the way to insurance. You name it, my team and I learned about it. But do you want to know what struck me as interesting?

I could only find ONE marketing class to attend, which I did. And it was very good. But more and more, I'm discovering that dentists, GOOD dentists, are SO busy and SO short on time. They see as many patients as they can in a day and most of their time is spent caring for people.

As it should be.

But, what about marketing your business? It falls trough the cracks. And what's more? Social media flys out the window so fast. And part of me is thankful for this because taking care of people IS more important than social media and good dentists are focused on providing the best care possible. But, running a business these days means that you really do need to continue to market yourself and there is no easier way to do it than social media.

There's also no more of a confusing way to do it than social media. Which doesn't make sense. Have I lost you? Please don't leave, I have a point.

What I am finding is that MOST dentists are falling into one of two categories. They either:

Aren't sure about how to market themselves on social media and have no idea what to post OR,
They spend their days posting humorous, trendy reels for the sake of views and reach and are frustrated that they aren't really reaching their ideal audience.

It's challenging to know how to market yourself on social media for your dental practice. But here's the deal- it really is easier than you think and you don't have to dance in your operatory if you don't want to! (And most people don't want to.)

How To Improve Your Presence On Social Media For Your Dental Practice

I want to share FOUR ways to start to improve your presence on social media for your dental practice TODAY.

4 Ways Improve Your Presence On Social Media For Your Dental Practice

Update your bio on Instagram
This might seem basic, but you need to start to view your Instagram as your digital business card. It's one of the places besides your website and your actual front door, where people can begin to see if your office is a good fit for them. They need to immediately feel like you understand what their deepest needs are when looking for a dentist.
Start by deciding what your office specializes in. What sets your office apart from other dentist offices? Do you cater to people with dental anxiety? Are you a pediatric dentist? Do you only see elderly people? Do you focus on extractions and implants when patients are in tremendous pain? Whatever it is, figure out how you stand out from all the other dentists on social media. What makes you perfect for this ideal client who is searching for you? Then use the formula "We help _____ with ______ to _____." Let's take the pediatric dentist example. You wouldn't just say "we love kids and see kids of all ages!" You would want to say some thing like. "We help parents be put to ease while we provide the best dental care for children ages 0-15." First of all, you're touching on a worry that parents have when they're looking for a dentist and you're setting yourself apart by phrasing it like that. Pediatric dentists aren't usually thinking about the parents nerves, but if you can take care of the parents worry, and then you follow through with amazing care for their kids, you'll have more referrals than you know what to do with! From there, I would add the name of your dentist, where you're located, and anything else you specialize in. If you want me to help you workshop your Instagram bio, contact me to set up a 45 minute coaching call where I can audit your Instagram bio and help you to level it up!
Determine How Much You CAN Post Half of the battle is knowing what to post. And most people think they need to post every single day in order to be successful. But, this doesn't have to be the truth. Dr. Sally down the street (not a real person) is posting mutliple times a week likely for a couple of different reasons. She either loves social media a lot and it comes easy to her. OR, she has an entire team dedicated to managing and posting lots and lots of content. If you don't have either of those things, then stop sweating it. What you need is a strategy that will work for YOU. Can you commit to posting twice a week with really good quality content? Will 3-4 times a week work? Do you have a member of your staff who loves social media and who can take this on? Start by figuring out how much you can post and commit to that. It's time to get really consistent with your commitment to post X amount of times each week. Then you have to truly follow through with what you said was realistic. Remember, you're never stuck! You can always go down to two posts a week if three was too many. Whatever you do, aim to hit that weeklu goals so that your page stays active.
Start Using Content Pillars There is way more to this than I can fit in this section (maybe another blog on this soon!), and honestly? The term "content pillars" is somewhat of a buzz word in the industry. And I'm not really sure why, because it works. So I'm going to talk about it. Having content pillars is especially helpful when you aren't sure what to post on the daily. When you hit a rut, you can look at your content pillars and create a post depending on what you know your audience needs or will respond to. I would encourage you to pick 5-7 topics that you know you can talk about somewhat simply AND that you know your audience would resonate with. If we use the pediatric dentistry example, your content pillars might be: - Tips To Keep Kids Teeth Healthy At Home - Appointment Tips That Will Make Your Visit Easier - About Your Staff - Dental Anxiety For Kids and Parents - Testimonials and Reviews - Teeth Milestones The Every Kid Goes Through This list obviously depends onthe needs of your business. But, as you can see, you can rotate these topics daily and weekly to keep your content on social media fresh, catered towards your audience, and is a guide that always helps you know what to post! When you are left wondering, "What should I post today?", you can reference your content pillars and it will at least be a step out of your posting rut.
Let Go Of The Need To Be On Every Platform It is unreaslistic to try to be present on every single social media platform. With the algorithms as sophisticated as they are, you really do need to have a strategy for each and every platform you want to pour into. The problem with that, is that no one has time to be on social media 100% of the day. I work on social media and I don't even spend every waking hour on it.
If you have to spread yourself too thin, you will probably give up and you won't be marketing well to anyone. Instead, you need to really hone in on who your audience is and where they're spending their time. And, just because your friend is also a dentist, doesn't mean that where she is marketing her business on social media is where you should be too. I believe that each business, even in the same industry, is so very different from one another. Even if you are on the same platform as others in the same industry, your angle and how you will market your business will depend on YOUR audience.
I recommend each business being on 1-2 platforms. Once you really master those platforms, you can then move on to trying a 3rd or 4th. But, if you're doing it right, you will likely won't need to add more platforms. And that means you have FREEDOM and you aren't a slave to your social media.

If you need help determining what platforms you should be on for your dental practice, I'd love to help you! Start by downloading my FREE Social Media Sweet Spot Guide, which comes with a FREE 10 minute training video on this exact topic. You will gain a better understanding of where you should be focusing your time when it comes to social media and how to really start to find your true audience online.

If you want more help beyond that, I recommend that you get onto my 1:1 coaching waitlist. When a spot opens up, I will personally email you to discuss the offers that I have and so I can learn more about you and your business's specific needs. I'd love to help audit your bios, help you perfect your target audience, and really fine tune your messaging so you can attract the right audience to you. All that without having to dance around your operatory! ;)

I hope this helped you! My heart is growing for dentists. I see all the good that they are doing in the world. So many people are afraid to go to the dentist, so what if you used social media as a window into the heart of your business to bring the exact right clientele to you with ease?

It's possible. If you feel stuck, consider the 4 ways to start to improve your presence on social media for your dental practice. Share this blog post with a friend in the industry and then reach out today to learn how 1:1 coaching with me can change the social media game for your business!

I believe in you!

Jess xo

PS: Here's just a few more photos from WRDE! I truly can't wait for next year.