Thanks to the internet people have a source of free information that they can access 24 hours a day. Google has made their online experience the best it can be, showing them the most relevant website to answer their search query.
Consumers want their answers quick, to the point and well thought out. Your website is no different, and in this blog we will give you some handy pointers to get the most out of your dental practice’s website and make it work for your business.
Is Your Website Mobile Optimised?
Mobile has surpassed desktop for online consumer searches; in fact, Google is now indexing mobile sites first rather than desktop sites. What does this mean? Google makes a record of what websites exist on the internet; it then ranks them in terms of relevancy in the search results. Google is now looking at your website and recording the mobile version first rather than the desktop version. So, if your site is not mobile friendly, then it will not rank as well as a competitor’s website.
One way to see if your site is mobile optimised correctly is to shrink your browser window. If your website is still readable and adapts as the window gets smaller, then your website is mobile friendly.
User Experience (UX)
You need to get into the mindset of your patient and think about whether your website resolves their issues. You need to think about user experience; how easy is it to navigate your website? When a patient first lands on your site, how many steps do they have to take to book an appointment? Are you giving them the information the need for them to be satisfied that you are the right dental practice for them? All of this should be answered within less than a minute of them visiting your website. Speak to your web developer about website navigation and they can help guide you on this.
Clear Call to Actions
Do you have a clear call to actions scattered across your website? A call to action is a clear message to your patients on what you would like them to do next. If they have read an informative blog about oral hygiene; at the bottom of this blog there should be a clear call to action saying, “book in now with our hygienist”. Encourage them to do something while the idea is fresh in their mind; it’s as simple as adding a button.
Online Booking
Is it easy for your patients to book an appointment at your dental surgery? Can they only book between the hours of 9-5? People lead hectic lives with work and family commitments and they are also impatient. If they can’t book quickly or instantly, then they might go to another dental practice. Making it easier for them to book online will give them the opportunity to schedule an appointment from anywhere and at any time.
Simplify your Messaging
The fastest way to get users quickly leaving your site is by overcomplicating your messaging. If people can’t find the answer to their question quickly, then they will move onto a competitor’s website.
This goes back to user experience and putting yourself in your customer’s shoes. Keeping your messaging simple will make their thought process even easier as you will not be making them feel overwhelmed and confused.
Build Trust
Online reviews and testimonials make your patients feel confident when they are deciding whether or not to book in with you. This builds trust with new patients; they can see from other patients their experience and their feedback. Start building your Google reviews and it benefits your local SEO rankings. Not sure where to start? Please take a look at our blog about how to get more patient Google reviews.
Get Analytical
If you’re not already using Google Analytics, then this should be one of your next moves. It’s not as intimidating as you may first think; speak to your web developer about adding Google Analytics to your website.
Once you have this, you will be able to see how many people visit your website, how long they are on there for, where the source of your traffic comes from, what time of day is popular and the pages that they are spending their time on. All of this is basic information can be found on the Google Analytics home page. You can do so much more with Google Analytics and it’s worth looking through Google’s beginners guide to Analytics to explore this further.
Basic SEO
SEO is short for Search Engine Optimisation; it is a list of things you can do on your website so that it can perform better in search engine results. Google sets the standard of what is expected for a website; they do this through a series of algorithms that score your site and determines where it sits in the search results. If your SEO is not done correctly, then it could have a severe impact on how your website appears in Google. If you would like a basic understanding of SEO, then a good starting place for this would Google Garage; this is a free online course created to teach you the basics of SEO. Another excellent resource is Moz’s beginner’s guide to SEO.
Pricing and Treatment Plans
Times are tough; dental work is seen as a luxury rather than a necessity, especially when it comes to cosmetic treatment. If you offer any financial plans to make it easier for your patients to pay for expensive treatments, then you really should have a page dedicated to this. It will give your patients a good understanding of what financial plans you have to offer, giving them the opportunity to have the treatment they desire.
Talk About Yourself on Your About Page
Your homepage is the most important page on your website, it’s the first page Google indexes, it’s the first page your patient’s land on; you should be using it to convince patients your dental practice is the right practice to visit. You may think talking about what a great dentist you are, your education and the fact you have lots of credentials on your homepage is the perfect place, but this might be the wrong messaging to lead with. Instead talk about the practice, the treatments you offer and what makes you different to other dental practices. You’re about page is the perfect place to talk about your credentials and your experience, it is also an excellent place to introduce the rest of your team. This will give your practice a friendly, approachable feeling, making you instantly relatable by talking about your interest and your hobbies.
Start a Blog
Having a regular, in-depth, useful and informative blog will do wonders for your SEO on your website. Fresh content on your site is telling Google that your website is updated and kept relevant. Think about what would interest your patients; one example could be a blog about what they will expect when a new dental patient visits your practice. The point of this blog would be to put anxious at ease, and it also might answer questions they have they could be putting them off visiting a dentist.
Just like your dental practice, you want to make a good first impression when patients walk in, the same goes for your website. Try implementing some of these ideas on your site and see if you have an increase in patients ready to visit your dental surgery. SOE has plenty of solutions to help grow your practice’s online presence; why not book a call with an expert to talk through the perfect solution for you.