Get a "Virtual Counselor" to convert more leads

Web Marketing is more than just getting lots of traffic. It is also critical to convert website leads into new clients. Some dental practices have invested in telephone intake (hiring the right people, training them and developing protocols and resources) to ensure they succeed, but have done nothing to ensure the same success in their email leads.

Consider the following:

-McGraw Hill Sales Statistical Studies indicate that about 96% of all sales happen after 5.6 exposures to information.

-Internet researchers, particularly those conducting medical-related searches, are hungry for information.

-There is a sometimes a small window of time and opportunity when consumers research dental services and are in the market for a dentist.

-The majority of website-based leads come in the form of emails, rather than phone calls.

What does all of this mean?

It means that you only have a concentrated period of time to do multiple follow-up with email-based leads if you want to convert more of them into patients. If you only rely on one superficial, follow-up email you may be losing more than 90% of potential business!

Why? Because most consumers don't buy or engage in anything when they first hear about it and the Web allows them to be "in the market," yet remain somewhat anonymous or voyeuristic. They want to hear and see more before taking the next step.

Some suggestions to improve your practice’s ability to convert more website leads into patients:

-Secret shop your practice’s website and your biggest competitors' to see how you compare. Don't make the mistake of assuming you are the only website a prospect visits or contacts.

-Develop more strategic follow-up emails that do more than just tell them to call you. Superficial, text-only responses that don't offer something new, or provide web-friendly "next step" actions, fail to keep potential patients moving down the decision-making path that leads to your front door.

-Implement Virtual Counselor, an online database that captures all website leads and automatically follows up each one individually with strategic emails. After your initial efforts to convert an email lead, Virtual Counselor takes over and keeps you in front of each prospect during this crucial window of time, without burdening you or your staff.

Talk to your Page 1 account manager to learn more.

Bill Fukui
Page 1 Solutions

Who Owns Your Domain Name?

If you are like most dentists, you probably assume that you own your practice’s domain name. (A domain name is a website address - e.g., www.mypractice.com.) Obviously, you should own your own domain name, but sometimes your webmaster will have registered it in the webmaster's name. While this is usually not a problem, sometimes it can become one if you have a falling out with the webmaster and decide to have another website marketing firm handle your practice’s internet marketing.

Following are two things to consider in connection with your domain name:

• Check your registrar account. Go to a registrar like Network Solutions, GoDaddy, or Registar.com. Each of these registrars offer a "Who Is" search that will allow you to see how your account is set up. You or your practice should be listed as the "Registrant." It is OK for your webmaster to be listed as the Admin, billing or technical contact. If you are the registrant, you will ultimately be able to control the account by faxing instructions to your registrar on your letterhead even if you have a falling out with your webmaster.
• Know your Registrar Account's login and password. I can't tell you how many times we have tried to transfer a client's website and the client does not know the login and password for his registrar account. Without that information, we can't point the domain to our webserver.

Another idea would be to get a letter from your webmaster early on confirming that you - and not the webmaster - own your domain name. Do this while you are on good terms with the webmaster and it may avoid a problem down the road.

If you have a falling out with your webmaster and your webmaster decides to play "hardball", one tactic we have seen used is to claim that the webmaster - and not you or the practice - owns your domain name. Usually, they back off, but not always. Sometimes you need to get control of it through the registrar and that process is a whole lot easier if you are listed as the registrant. Otherwise, the webmaster can claim that it was just subleasing you the domain.

In a similar vein, make sure you own your website design and content. But that story will be told in another posting.

Dan Goldstein
Page 1 Solutions

I’m getting leads, now what?

So your dental website is up and live, your search engine optimization is kicking in, and you started receiving emails. Now what? It’s surprising how little thought is put into the follow up to the initial email lead. You’ve spent all this money getting people to your website, money on creating a website and money convincing people to email you, only to follow up an email lead with something like this:

Call our office to schedule an appointment.

Signed,
Dr. Joe

You may think this is all that’s needed, but what’s differentiating you from the three other dentists this potential patient has contacted who are undoubtedly doing the exact same thing? If it takes you longer than six hours to respond to the email lead, does the lead even remember who you are? The answer is most likely not. In the end, you’re wasting the opportunity to develop a relationship with a potential patient by not giving him what he wants.

For instance, the email lead references pain in his jaw due to TMJ. If you respond with the type of email above you aren’t answering any of the questions your potential patient is asking. Not only that, but it comes across as an uncaring and dismissive response to there genuine inquiry. These people have decided to look into improving their dental health and in turn their lives. Speak to that and make them feel like you are responding to their individual concerns.

A good way of doing this is with a detailed and informative email response with links back to your website. The potential patient will remember your website and create the visual connection between Dr. Joe and your website. That’s step one in cementing the relationship. Step 2 is including links to specific pages within your website that cover the issue presented by the lead. Send them a link to your TMJ facts page, or to your page of testimonials – if they asked about TMJ treatments, send them to a page about that. It might not be the exact information they need, but at least you are creating the desire to learn more and contact you over the phone.

A good follow up email should look like this:

Dear First name.

Thanks for visiting our website, www.yourpractice.com, and requesting information regarding TMJ relief.

The best way for us to help is to schedule a no risk consultation. Simply call us at 555-5555.

In the meantime, feel free to get more information about frequently asked TMJ questions (include link to page), or read our list of testimonials from patients of our practice (include link to testimonial page). This will help prepare for your consultation.

Feel free to also learn more about us and our ability to serve you (include link to your “meet the team” page).

We look forward to hearing from you and taking a closer look at how we can help you with your dental health needs.

Sincerely,
Dr. Joe
www.yourpractice.com
555-5555
Address

Your email response now has four or five links back to your website. The response can be tailored very simply to whatever type of lead you receive, just insert the appropriate links. As a result you will help create the visual connection between your name, email and website, branding your practice through emails. In addition, your response will not seem manufactured or trite, because it isn’t. Above all, you will be differentiating yourself in ways your competition has not even thought of. If five doctors respond similar to the first email and one responded with the detailed message, what first impression does that send to your lead?

Also, remember that it is not enough to just respond by email. If the prospective patient inquiry includes a phone number – ALWAYS call. And, until you have communicated with the patient at least five times (or the patient has scheduled an appointment or told you to stop), keep following up. Here at Page 1, we have a great program called Virtual Counselor that allows our clients to automatically follow up with a series of personalized emails without tying up your staff’s time.

Aaron Gerblich
Account Manager
Page1Solutions

Testimonials Through Blogs

Today, I thought I would check out Page 1 Solution’s blog to see if there were any new posts. Lo and behold, there was and it was great! The blog, “My Own Porcelain Onlay," was written by one of our writers. In it, Jenny was talking about a recent experience that she had at the dentist. It was written in such a manner that it put my mind at ease about some dental work that I may have to have done in the near future. Dental work that has me really nervous because I am afraid that it will hurt. After reading her post, my mind has been put at ease (for the most part) and I realize that things aren’t going to be as bad as I have been imagining.

Another important thing that Jenny’s blog did, was show how happy patients can be a great marketing tool for their dentists. What better advertising is there than word of mouth from happy, satisfied patients? Before I read Jenny’s blog, I didn’t have a dentist. Now that I have read it, I know exactly where I am going to go. Just like that, I’m sold!

One way to capture this advertising opportunity is to encourage your happy patients to write a blog about their experience in your office. Have them write about what is it that they like about the office, the doctors, the atmosphere, etc. People want a dentist where they can feel comfortable and at ease and most of the time they don’t know anything much about the practice before they actually visit. They don’t know the people and the atmosphere of the office. Wouldn’t it be nice to go into the dentist’s office and already feel like you “know” the people and the atmosphere? I personally think that would be great. Just make sure that they put a link to your website so people can go straight there and fill out one of your valuable mini-contact forms. These links are valuable in your link building.

Blogs are becoming more and more popular nowadays and lots of people are blogging, whether it be on their personal websites, work websites, myspace.com, etc. Why not take advantage of this and get some quality referrals from your happy patients? With a little help from them, you could make a lot more people happy!

If you have any questions about blogging, getting your patients to blog, or anything else, please contact us! We are more than happy to help!

Jessica Espinoza
Page 1 Solutions