Social media is becoming a primary means of communication, marketing, and education, and Chris Barrow urges endodontists not to miss the boat



In previous articles, I have made reference to the establishment of a referral study club as being a primary means by which an endodontic practice can grow. Certainly, in these times of recession and spending review, it is all too easy for general dental practitioners to simply “forget to refer” as their priorities become more self-focused.

I work with a number of specialist referral practices around the UK and have noticed an almost universal drop in sales. However, the purpose of this article is not to be a prophet of doom but simply to accept the reality that times are tough and that we all must work much harder to secure the business that we earn. An interesting transition seems to have taken place since 2010 from a subject that has historically been known as “Internet marketing” into “social media marketing.”

Definitions
I think it’s useful to get some basic definitions in place—and I need to stress that I am writing this article as a non-technician or “geek” in the world of information technology. I’m a businessman who simply recognizes the role that this new world can play in practice development.

We start with the basic website that emerged in the late 1990s and the early part of the 21st century as an online brochure. Website visitors almost expected to see a virtual equivalent of the practice’s new patient welcome packet or dental referral packet that, in some cases, they could either browse through or download as a PDF document.

Change
Much has changed since 2000. Clearly, as more than 75% of British homes now have access to broadband Internet, we have become a nation of “browsers” and will often conduct retail research into any product or service on the Internet before we jump in our cars and take the risk of a good or bad customer service experience. Nowadays, however, the website itself has moved on from virtual brochure to virtual shop window.

When I visit a website (whether it’s for leisure or for professional services), my expectation is that I’m going to see lots of moving graphics, video tours of premises, or video interviews with business owners, team members, and satisfied customers. I also expect a website to feature special offers that are going to make me come through that actual front door at a later stage.
Finally, I expect to see a telephone number (traditionally in the top right hand corner and in huge print) and an invitation to pick up the phone and call or make an online approach. One of the items most commonly missed in website design is the number one reason for having a website homepage in the first place—and that is data capture.

Regardless of whether a patient or potential referring dentist actually picks up the telephone following that first visit to your site, it’s far more important to encourage them to deposit their name, address, telephone number and email so that you can then send them periodic broadcasts, making them aware of any additional products, services, or offers that you will have available in the future. In this way, you can build up a database of curious individuals over a period of time who have not yet made the commitment of a visit, but who are available for you to entice with future offers.

The role of social media
Let’s use an example to illustrate the role of social media. On my website (www.coachbarrow.com) you will see on the top left-hand side of my homepage a row of icons that relate to the connections that you can make to my various social media profiles (Twitter, Facebook, etc.). I’m seeing more dental practices adopt a similar approach with those familiar social media icons appearing on their own home pages. Take a look at my website as you read this, and read the explanation for each item.
The calendar icon is a link to a summary of any events at which I am speaking or events I am organizing. For an endodontic specialist, this could include dates of study group meetings or any other conferences or meetings that you are attending or have attended and are happy to be engaged in a conversation about.

The Facebook icon will connect through to my Facebook page for The Dental Business Club. In your case, this could link to either the Facebook page for the referral practice or alternatively, to the dentist’s own personal Facebook profile (I use both in different ways).

The YouTube icon can guide the viewer to a series of video blogs that I have created during my travels—the same can be done by the dentist on his/her own personal YouTube channel (which can be created free of charge). This area can include personal interviews, interviews with team members, interviews with existing referring dentists, testimonials from happy patients, and even “outside broadcasts” created at meetings or conferences.

The LinkedIn icon leads through to my professional profile and gives a more serious overview of my business activities, primarily used by the professional community—again, increasingly used by dentists, but also by those patients who themselves work in the professional or corporate community.

The Twitter icon leads through to my Twitter page and represents an area in which I can either post profile updates that will coordinate with my Facebook page or alternatively engage in conversation with key individuals.

Finally, there is a link to my blog page—a blog that is updated on a daily basis and linked in to the other profiles. The blog gives me an opportunity to add a running commentary on my observations on business and on life.

My expectation is that a good, professional homepage for any business (including a general dental practice or a referral practice/specialist) would contain a similar group of icons, enabling those interested to connect with the dental professional in a variety of ways.

A final browse around the homepage of my website will reveal that there is a means to contact my personal assistant and business manager in the top right hand corner of the page and also an iPhone application, which allows people to follow my blog and video updates on an Apple iPhone. Incidentally, I am often asked how much it costs to develop one’s own personal iPhone app, and the answer is less than $1,600.

Benefits
The benefits of creating such an elaborate social media profile include:

•    They connect with each other, and thus significantly increase the amount of activity on the website that Google registers
when it’s returning search results

•    Different individuals have different preferred methods of communication, whether it is audio, visual, or tactile, and
having these different profiles enables the dentist to appeal to a much wider audience

•    Clinicians can report what is going on personally, what’s going on in the business, and what’s going on in the world of
endodontics in real time, reaching a large audience in an instant

•    Over a period of time, the endodontist can build up a reservoir of interested people to contact to make them aware of any
initiatives, special offers, or courses being offered.

In my own case, it has not taken very long to build up a community of around 2,500 people in British dentistry who follow me through these various mediums—and I probably invest no more than 15 to 20 minutes each day in updating various aspects of my social media profile.

I have recently hired a freelance social media manager who makes sure that everything I do is coordinated. Any dentist can do exactly the same and positively differentiate himself/herself from the competition. It will also establish a direct contact with those dentists and patients who are going to provide future business connections.

It’s getting harder to do business—the economy, competition, regulation, and compliance are all against us. All practices must innovate. Social media is becoming a primary means of communication, marketing, and education; make sure you don’t miss the boat.

Bio
Chris Barrow has been active as a consultant, trainer and coach to the UK dental profession for over 14 years. Chris acts as a consultant to Integrated Dental Holdings Ltd as well as continuing his freelance consultancy work for corporates, PCTs and independent practices. His current focus is as principal of The Dental Business Club, creating training, consultancy and coaching services for the top UK independent practices. Under the name of coachbarrow, his social media sites include Facebook and Twitter. Visit Chris’ website at www.coachbarrow.com.