Practice management and marketing is an area that we learn little about in dental school. When asking students from various schools, it seems that in general, many schools lack a curriculum that includes instruction in company/practice management, marketing, branding and financial management. Through my involvement in ASDA, I have learned the majority of what I know regarding management and marketing at ASDA conferences and workshops. The ADA Guide to Internet Marketing did a fantastic job at filling the gap and opening up the complex world of how the Internet can play into your management.
The guide not only provides direction for new dentists, but even for the practice management of experienced dentists. In a time when ads were only in newspapers, bulletins and word-of-mouth referrals, dental professionals had an easier time planning and coordinating advertisement for their practices. Introducing and executing a successful Internet marketing plan takes time and maintenance. One of my favorite parts of the guide was the advice on responding to negative posts. Another highlight of the manual was the chapter regarding blogging (which actually is co-written by ASDA past-presidents Dr. Colleen Greene and Dr. Chris Salierno!). The system and art of blogging described in the chapter closely resembles what we do here at Mouthing Off. Having a constant influx of new ideas, while maintaining our foundation and blogging goals. A variety of personal, interesting as well as informative posts is essential.
Here are some quick but important definitions of terms you need to know if you plan to implement an Internet marketing strategy into your practice:
SEO = Search engine optimization. Configuring your website so that it is easily found at the top of the search results on Google and other search engines.
Social Media = A growing platform of Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and many more. Social media can be leveraged for your digital marketing campaign.
Reputation Management = Protecting your company’s reputation and building good rapport with your patients. Being ethical and instilling trustworthiness in your practice and Internet presence. (This actually starts right now.)
Patient Engagement = Harnessing the power of fans, followers and likes. Allowing readers to interact, reply and ask questions on your site.
Content Creation = Updating your website with your own creativity and variation!
If you are looking to implement Internet marketing into your practice but need a crash course in making it effective, check out the ADA’s Practical Guide to Internet Marketing and unleash the potential of your (future) business online. As an experienced blogger, I still found a ton of useful pointers and increased my depth of understanding of branding and marketing from a business perspective.
Do you want your own copy of the 2015 ADA Practical Guide to Internet Marketing? Comment in the section below with your favorite dental website or blog and why! Our favorite comments (up to 2 winners) will win a free guide. Contest closes April 1, 2015.
~Neek LaMantia, San Francisco ’16, electronic editor
You can get 25% off the member price of ADA catalog products just by being an ASDA member. Visit ASDAnet.org to access your special discount code. ASDA member discount cannot be combined with any other offers.
I think Mouthing Off & The Dental Geek are my two favorte dental blogs – I check them both several times a week and always find informative information.
Awe, thanks Erika!
My favorite websites related to dentistry are the BCD ASDA website that I personally created and the igniteDDS website made by Dr Rice trying to team up dental students with actual dentists for a mentoring program.
My favorite blog is ASDA’s Mouthing Off. I never heard of dental geek but just subscribed (thanks Erika). I also resonate with the White Coat Investor. White Coat Invstor was a website started by a physician who got ripped off one too many times in the finance world. The information on investing and retirement planning is sound for dental professionals as well.
Thanks for doing this give away! We definitely need some more discussions on these blog posts.
My favorite blog by far is ASDA’s Mouthing Off! Mouthing Off covers so many diverse topics and sends out blogs almost every day. I slowly have gained so much knowledge about the dental field by simply reading approximately 500 words a day. I also really like Mouthing Off gives advice for people of all ages including undergraduate students, dental students, and dentists. In addition, another blog I like is the Dental Warrior. The Dental Warrior is updated frequently and discusses a wide range of topics dental related including tips and ideas. One of my favorite things about this Blog is it gives a lot of advice on how to talk to a patient properly and without making them feel insecure about their teeth. Overall, I really like both of these blogs!
My favorite dental website is dentalcare.com, a Crest-run website with tons of great CE articles. If I have free time (yeah, that happens a lot in dental school!) then I can quickly browse the articles and find some useful information to improve my skills/knowledge in clinic. It’s ADA CERP recognized so I can trust it’s accurate.
I enjoy reading Dentaltown. It has case discussions with dentists from around the world. I’m a townie!
I really enjoy reading the Dental Warrior and ASDA’s Mouthing Off Blogs. I love the breadth and depth of topics presented on both blogs. Dental Warrior is especially interesting because it discusses clinical topics as well as important life topics. I really like how the Dental Warrior expands on his hobbies aside from dentistry.
i really enjoyed your blog i love reading about internet marketing techniques.
My favorite blog is The Curious Dentist, which is actually written by Dr. Salierno. It has a load of practice management advice that we never get in dental school!
Thanks for this post, Neek! I hope everyone enjoys this ADA guide – it was lots of fun to work on with Dr. Salierno.
i enjoyed your blog! but my favorite blog is ASDA’s Mouthing Off.
My favorite blog is mouthing off because 1) I will be honest, it is the only dental blog/website that I read or am even aware of and 2) It seems to address every concern and worry I have about dentistry exactly when I need it to. It sometimes even addresses worries that I haven’t even worried about yet and I think to myself, “this is AWESOME.” I receive and save posts from mouthing off via email, and I find myself referring back to them often. The frequency and lengths of the posts are perfect for a busy student like me. I sometimes feel like I am biting off more than I can chew by going into dentistry, but mouthing off provides such practical and simplistic advice on such a wide range of topics that I feel reassured and reenergized about my decision with each post.
I like the University of Toronto’s Dentistry Library blog! It serves as an excellent hub for peer reviewed articles complete with summaries as well as links to dentistry in the news! Plus it’s nice while studying in the US to hear things from a Canadian perspective as they are an accredited country that accepts US DDS/DMD degrees:
http://uoftdentistrylibrary.blogspot.com/
I like the University of Toronto’s Dentistry library blog! It serves as an excellent hub for peer reviewed research articles complete with summaries, as well as links to dentistry in the news! As a dental student in the US it’s also nice to hear things from the perspective of our accredited neighbors to the north: http://uoftdentistrylibrary.blogspot.com
Great post! I would definitely recommend SEO to any dentist looking to get more leads online. It is a little time consuming, but the results are outstanding!
Setting up online marketing will cost you a lot of time and effort. In this digital era, the most direct way to communicate with your market is through online social media platforms and website. An expert in digital dental marketing will be of great help to minimize your time in this setup process. http://www.spargoconnect.com