The fact that so many people are afraid or anxious about going to the dentist means that dental practices especially need to be mindful of their online reputations. When an already nervous person sees a one-star review, it only reinforces their fears.
The stronger your dentist marketing strategies, and dental practice’s reputation, the better you’ll be at overcoming fears, anxieties and phobias — and the more patients you’ll win over.
How to build a strong reputation for your dental practice
#1. Create an exceptional patient experience
Believe it or not, online reputation management for dentists starts within your practice. If you want to get five-star reviews, you need to provide five-star care to your patients.
Put yourself in your patient’s shoes. Think about what you would want in a dental visit. Here are just a few things people look for when they visit the dentist:
A relaxing, clean waiting area with plenty of magazines to pass the time
Friendly, professional staff who are gentle and compassionate
Explanations of steps and procedures before they happen
An honest, personable and friendly bedside manner
The better the patient experience you provide, the more likely you are to get five-star reviews.
#2. Ask your patients for reviews
Providing an unbeatable patient experience won’t necessarily mean an increase in reviews, but it will mean that when you get reviews, they’ll be a lot more likely to be positive. That’s because a lot of people don’t think about writing reviews without being prompted.
Most people will be more than willing to write a review for your dental practice if you ask them to. So, whether you want to improve your average star rating or just get more reviews for your practice, the best place to start is by asking for them.
When a patient is signing in or settling their invoice at the end of their visit, simply have your reception say something like, “We value you as a patient and want to provide the best possible experience. Would you mind telling us about your experience on Google or Top Rated Local®?”
Another good option is to send out a review request to patients in a follow-up email after their appointment. Ask if they had a positive or a negative experience. If they had a positive experience, send them to a site where they can leave you a review. If their experience was negative, send them to an internal feedback form that only your team will see.
This method allows you to drive positive feedback to the right review sites and address concerns before they turn into negative reviews.
#3. Respond to patient feedback
Reviews are probably the most powerful form of marketing a dental practice has, but they’re also the form that’s most out of your control. That lack of control can make many dentists and other small business owners nervous.
You may not have any control over what a patient says about your practice in a review, but you can control how you respond. And when it comes to negative reviews, how you respond is often even more important than the review itself.
Here are a few tips to help you respond to negative reviews the right way:
Apologize that they had a bad experience, even if you feel that the review is unfair or untrue
If you’re upset about the review, give yourself a few minutes to cool off before responding
Don’t get in a public argument; give them your email address or phone number and invite them to take the conversation offline
Responding to negative feedback shows your patients (and anyone reading your reviews) that you’re really listening and you care. The right response can help you turn a negative experience around, as well as win over prospective patients.
#4. Monitor your reputation
When a patient writes a review for you, they expect you to respond — and they expect that response to come quickly.
A review response is much more powerful when it comes within a day or two of when the review was written. The longer you wait, the less meaningful your response will be. But, how do you know when someone leaves you a review?
Monitor your online reputation so that you’re always in the know when someone leaves you feedback — and that you’re always in the know about what your patients are saying about your dental practice online.
Use reputation management software, like the Marketing 360® Reputation app, to notify you when someone leaves a review for your practice. It’s also important to monitor social media for any mentions of your practice.
#5. Embed the Top Rated Local® widget on your website
A strong reputation can help your dental practice flourish like nothing else, and reviews are a convincing form of social proof that turns consumers into patients.
Take advantage of your five-star reviews and great reputation by embedding the Top Rated Local reviews widget on your website.
There are two big reasons to embed a reviews widget on your website. First, it allows your website readers to easily read your reviews from across the web. Second, it makes it easy for your patients to write reviews for you in just a few clicks — without having to find your dental practice on Facebook or Google.
So many people are already nervous about going to the dentist. If your reputation isn’t up to par, you’ll only make them more nervous.