Social media: Not a passing fad

Sep 24, 2009

Editor's note: Helaine Smith's column, The Mouth Physician, appears regularly on the DrBicuspid.com advice and opinion page, Second Opinion.

Last year I lectured in a rural area of the Midwest to a group of dentists on cosmetic dentistry and the components necessary to market and communicate effectively to potential patients. One of my favorite topics (other than cosmetics) is the use of social media to market your dental practice. At this lecture, this concept was met with more resistance than an all-ceramic posterior crown. I could tell they thought I was crazy. Even some of my friends who practice in metropolitan areas do not see the value of social media as an effective means of advertising your practice.

“Social media has brought marketing to an exciting new level with endless possibilities.”

Now here it is a year later and social media is even more important and pervasive in our society, dominating how we make buying decisions and gather news and information. It is not a trend that will dry up like the dot-com era; it is increasingly the way our culture communicates, and it is evolving rapidly. Digg, Twitter, Facebook, ebooks, and blogs are now commonplace for both business and personal use on the Internet, and it is time to incorporate them into our dental practices.

The basic principles of marketing are to know your customer. I have two practices just 5 miles from one another, and each has a specific marketing plan tailored to its demographics. One is geared toward families; the other strictly cosmetics and implants. But both include the use of social media as the primary advertising source.

Social media is the biggest shift in communication in decades. Facebook grew from 100 million to 200 million users in just eight months, according to various reports. (To put that statistic in perspective, if Facebook was a country, it would be the fourth largest in the world.) Earlier this year, it was reported that in a single month YouTube had topped more than 100 million U.S. viewers who viewed 6.3 billion videos.

The push-pull concept of marketing is reversed with social media, and products and services will find us. There are 1.5 million pieces of content, Web links, news stories, blog posts, and more shared on Facebook daily -- yes, daily. This is a people-driven economy, and the public searches and controls what information they want to learn about. Your office should be part of that information.

An optimized Web site for your practice is no longer an option -- it is a must. It can be used as a means to educate your patients and allow them to leisurely learn about your practice and philosophy, and is a great source of new patients. Even if you argue that word of mouth brings in the best new patient, a Web site and a blog support this theory. And I can guarantee your new patients already looked for you on the Web.

Social media has brought marketing to an exciting new level with endless possibilities. In addition to my Web site and blog, for example, I am able to supply important information to my patients by writing ebooks on periodontal disease and disease transmission via the oral cavity.

I encourage all of you to explore how social media can be applied to your practice and enhance your ability to be a true mouth physician.

The comments and observations expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the opinions of DrBicuspid.com, nor should they be construed as an endorsement or admonishment of any particular idea, vendor, or organization.