Dental Marketing & Practice Management

3 Top Social Media Trends in 2021

Tue, 12 Jan 2021 19:58:19 GMT

Does one of your New Year’s resolutions include posting more frequently to your practice’s social media profiles? Well, you are in luck! In this post, I’ll share with you the most important trends to implement into your social media strategy for 2021.

With people now spending more time at home due to the pandemic there is a significant increase in the time individuals spend connecting with family, friends, and even brands online over social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Now more than ever it’s important to know how to stay relevant to your audience, capture their attention, and get the engagement that can drive the success of your social media channels.

Keep reading to discover the top 3 trends to implement into your social media strategy in the new year.

Trends for Social Media Success in 2021

Authenticity Matters. Brands with a strong online presence generally stick to their core values, speak with authority, and provide valuable content. What is it that makes your office special or different from competitors? What do you want your audience to learn or take away from following you on social media? These are some guiding questions to ask yourself while you are crafting your social media strategy. The more you can put your own unique and knowledgeable voice into each of your posts the more memorable and meaningful you become to your audience.

Videos. The use of videos and video apps such as TikTok have grown in popularity over the last year with growth expected to continue throughout 2021. You don’t have to download TikTok to start making videos. Instagram also has two video features you can start utilizing: stories and reels. Videos on social media are meant to be quick, funny, and attention-grabbing. Here’s an easy way to get started: Hop on your Instagram profile and start making short weekly dental tips for your patients to use.

Community Engagement. Social media is quickly becoming the easiest way for your patients to contact you. Performing quality customer service over social media is just as important as phone, email, or in-person at your office. We recommend checking and responding to all social media comments and messages on a daily or weekly basis.

Having a successful social media strategy in the new year is all about cultivating a strong community by staying true to your core values and knowledge base, spending time engaging with your audience base via messages and comment sections, crafting informative content, and getting creative with video. Incorporating these tips will help grow your digital presence and help enable you to stay relevant to your target audience.

As always, the Sesame Social Team is here to help you with all your social media needs. Please contact us if you have questions about utilizing any of these tips.

Happy posting!

—Jennie Rogers, Social Media Specialist 2, Sesame Communications

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The Best Shots + Tech Specs for Videos of Practices

Tue, 05 Jan 2021 18:59:03 GMT

After determining that you want to include custom video footage of your practice on your website’s homepage the next step is to plan it out.

Attention spans on the Internet are minimal. If you can’t capture site visitor attention right away there’s a good chance they will leave and never come back. That’s why having a strong array of shots at appropriate durations is an absolute must.

Within this post, I’ll cover the most effective video shots for practices as well as recommended durations and aspect ratio.

Shots that Work Well

Your custom video will serve as an introduction to your practice. So, you’ll want to highlight all of the best elements of your practice and give a brief overview of the patient experience in the way only a video can. You can use friends and family to stand in for patients to give a “day in the life” feel to your video.

Entrance to the office – This is an important shot because it will tell your patients exactly what to look for when arriving at your location.

Entering the office/front desk – Show the opening of your front door, maybe have a patient filling out forms at the front desk, or have your receptionist wave to the camera.

Treatment area – Capture your doctors and staff in their working space, interacting with patients, and showcasing your tools and technology.

Dr./patient relationships – Show your doctors giving patient consultations.

End on a high note – Get some fun shots of the staff waving at the camera, high-fiving etc. to add some fun to the video.

The number of cuts in a video will determine the feel of it. A cut is a change of scene/angle. A large number of cuts will allow you to show more of your office, and the video will feel fast and energetic. Here is a good example of a fast video with many cuts.

Alternatively, if you want a slower-paced video, using fewer cuts and longer shots can help make the video feel slower. In place of cuts, the videographer can use slow panning shots, like in this one. Using this style, you won’t be able to show as many different aspects of the office, but you can focus more on the most important parts.

Technical Aspects

20 seconds – Sesame recommends that your video, custom or stock, be no more than 20 seconds long. We have found that this length is the perfect compromise between video picture quality and website load time.

The real number behind the 20-second limitation is 10 megabytes (10 MB). Ten megabytes is the maximum file size for keeping your website load time under 3 seconds (the target for all Sesame websites). We have found that an HD video cannot be longer than 20 seconds and be under 10 MB at the same time. If your videographer is able to get a longer video under the 10 MB limitation, then go for it! The 20-second rule is a guideline, not a firm rule.

Aspect ratio – for a homepage, we recommend 1920×1080 pixels (1080p) for a full HD video. Our websites are typically 1000 pixels wide, so this common aspect ratio will give you the best quality for the space.

By utilizing combinations of the recommended shots in this post in addition to 20 seconds or fewer durations and a 1920×1080 pixels (1080p) aspect ratio you stand a good chance of creating a successful custom video for your practice.

If you’re unsure of whether or not to use a custom video or stock video on your site please have a look at this post for more information on the merits of each option.

As always, we’re happy to help with any related questions you may have!

—Brennan Smallwood, Web Producer, Sesame Communications

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Options for Adding Video to Your Homepage

Tue, 29 Dec 2020 18:31:56 GMT

Adding a video to the homepage of a practice’s website can be a great way to attract prospective patient attention and increase engagement.

The two primary options for adding a homepage video are stock videos and custom videos. I will cover the pros and cons of each option below.

In my next post we’ll get into the best types of shots and technical specifications for optimizing your video content, so stay tuned for that one as well!

Option #1 – Stock Video

If you don’t have a video theme already created for your homepage a stock video may be the right choice. It’s a great option for practices who don’t have the time and/or resources to shoot a completely custom video but still want the benefits a video opening can achieve. For example, Sesame partners with an external video platform to offer a large library of stock video content to choose from.

It is considered a best practice to remove any sound from your video, as studies have shown that users can get annoyed by websites automatically playing sound when they are loaded, and this can decrease the amount of time a user spends on your site.

Themes

A stock video can help establish the theme of your website, and picking the right video will help keep visitors on your website. Stock videos typically do not have cuts and different angles, rather they function more like a moving photograph. They are usually 10-15 seconds in length, and loop to the beginning automatically.

Skyline or Landmark

If you live in an urban area, and have a modern, cutting edge design, then a video of your city skyline or significant landmark can establish an immediate sense of place for your users. These videos typically have 1 slow, steady panning shot or drone footage. Here is a great example of a stock video that adds motion and establishes place without distracting from the content the user is there for. This is another good example of the “moving photograph” style of video.

Stock videos such as these are typically only available for large urban areas and culturally significant landmarks. People who create and upload videos to shared online platforms often pick cities that are heavily populated to maximize the number of downloads they get.

If you are located in a more rural or suburban area and are unable to find a video of your town, or if the area you are in is not as important to emphasise for you, there are plenty of other options available.

Patients

People-focused stock videos are a good option for websites that want more smiling faces on their homepage. This approach provides a good opportunity to emphasize the patient-focused approach of the practice. The following is an excellent example of a people-focused stock video that could be suitable for any location. Here is a good example of putting smiling faces with braces on your homepage as well.

For people-focused videos, finding a diverse group of people can sometimes be a challenge, especially if you are hoping to showcase multiple different demographics. Finding 2-3 different videos, or using pictures to represent the diversity you are looking for can often be easier than finding that one perfect video that hits all of your target audiences perfectly.

Nature

The final popular stock video option is a nature-focused video. These types of videos lend a calm, relaxed, spa-like feel to a website and can put visitors at ease while researching something they potentially have anxiety about.

Practices in Florida or Southern California often opt for a beach-themed video, like this one – while practices in a more mountainous area might opt for trees and hills like in this example.

Option #2 – Custom Video

If you have the time and resources to create a custom video for your website, it can be a great way to introduce your practice to prospective patients right away with no reading required.

Unless you have previous experience with shooting videos, we recommend hiring a videographer to create a video for you. Homemade videos filmed on smartphones can work, but will not look as professional as a videographer-produced effort.

Before embarking on the journey of a custom video, you should know that the process can take as long or longer than your new website build, meaning a fair amount of time. Scheduling time to shoot, getting permission from staff and patients, plus filming and editing can be a time-intensive process. However, if done effectively the payoff can be worth the effort!

In short, the simpler choice for a homepage video on a new or existing website is to opt for a stock or already created option. However, a custom video can be a very effective way to draw prospective patients into your practice so consider that route if time and resources are less of an issue.

If you’re unsure of which route to take or in need of related support please reach out to Sesame for additional information!

After deciding a homepage video is right for your new or existing website the next decision will be where and how to get that video.

Stay tuned for our post about the most effective types of video shots + recommended technical settings!

—Brennan Smallwood, Web Producer, Sesame Communications

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Understanding PPC Account Structure

Tue, 15 Dec 2020 18:21:32 GMT

When practices begin Pay Per Click (PPC) marketing efforts plenty of uncertainty usually exists. Whether done through a marketing agency or internally many crucial initial decisions must be made.

Among them are what the ad budget should be, which keywords to select, where and when ads should run, as well as an abundance of others.

However, one crucial yet frequently overlooked element of setup is the account structure. The way an account is set up forms a lasting impact on performance. That’s why selecting a tried and true structure (at least to launch an account) is a wise decision.

To learn more about how search account structure works and to get a proposed layout that works for almost any practice read on!

What are Campaigns and Ad Groups?

Themes in Google Ads and Microsoft Advertising are structured with a top-down approach. That begins with “campaigns” which are used to house the main themes of your advertising efforts. You can have as many as 10,000 campaigns per account in Google Ads but most accounts have far fewer (perhaps even just a handful).

Housed within each campaign are ad groups. Think of ad groups as sub-themes for a given campaign, meaning they provide a more granular break out of the general theme a campaign offers. You can have as many as 20,000 ad groups per campaign in Google Ads but from a best-practices standpoint it’s better to have a maximum of 5 – 10 per campaign, and fewer than 5 is totally fine.

Keywords that have been selected for targeting and the ads that show up for those keywords in search results live within each ad group.

So, how does this all look? I love the clarity of the following example from Wordstream which lays out the top-to-bottom structure perfectly from a visual perspective.

An Account Structure that Makes Sense

Now that we’ve covered what campaigns and ad groups actually are what’s the best way to structure an account?

I’ll begin by saying there is no perfect fits-all option. However, for most practices, it makes sense to build an account by location and services. Specifically, that means that campaigns should be divided into services a practice offers by location and ad groups should be subservices of these main themes.

Let’s use an example. I’ll use a fictitious dental practice with locations in Seattle and Bellevue (a Seattle suburb) called “Happy Dental.” Their services fall into the “preventive” and “cosmetic” dental buckets.

So, their best option is to create campaigns targeted by location (read this location-targeting post on how that’s done). For both locations, they’ll have a brand campaign for people who are searching for terms like “Happy Dental in Seattle.” Each location will also have location-specific campaigns with a focus on either “preventive” or “cosmetic” dentistry. Under the campaign themes will be sub-themes like “dental implants” by location and “crowns” by location.

Here’s a visual of how it would all work:

Seattle Location

Campaign #1

Brand – Seattle

Ad Groups Within Campaign #1

Happy Dental – Seattle

Campaign #2

Preventive Dentistry – Seattle

Ad Groups Within Campaign #2

Dental Implants – Seattle

Sedation Dentistry – Seattle

Laser Dentistry – Seattle

Campaign #3

Cosmetic Dentistry – Seattle

Ad Groups Within Campaign #3

Crowns – Seattle

Bridges – Seattle

Teeth Whitening – Seattle

Bellevue Location

Campaign #1

Brand – Bellevue

Ad Groups Within Campaign #1

Happy Dental – Bellevue

Campaign #2

Preventive Dentistry – Bellevue

Ad Groups Within Campaign #2

Dental Implants – Bellevue

Sedation Dentistry – Bellevue

Laser Dentistry – Bellevue

Campaign #3

Cosmetic Dentistry – Bellevue

Ad Groups Within Campaign #3

Crowns – Bellevue

Bridges – Bellevue

Teeth Whitening – Bellevue

Once you understand account structure separating campaigns by location and services makes the most sense for keeping the layout organized. It will also allow you to optimize based on service priority and performance, which will help lead to a maximization of return from PPC efforts.

Please feel free to reach out to us if you have any questions or are in need of PPC support for your practice.

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

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It Pays to Use All Available Ad Copy Space

Tue, 08 Dec 2020 18:00:48 GMT

Visibility is a crucial pillar of successful marketing. Catching the eye of one’s target audience is the never-ending challenge marketers face.

In the digital ads realm that means effectively leveraging the ad copy space Google and Microsoft (Bing) allocate. Luckily, because ads are their biggest revenue generator search engines continue to innovate and expand the optional visibility they give to marketers.

Within this post, I will cover how Google Ads character limits have changed (for the better) over time and how you can leverage the ad space they make available.

A Brief History of Google Search Ad Character Limits

When Google AdWords (now known as Google Ads) launched in the year 2000 ads appearing within search results, known as search ads, were limited to 1 headline with a maximum size of 25 characters and 2 description lines each 35 characters in length.

However, in 2016 Google launched “Expanded Text Ads” and gave advertisers up to 2 headline spaces (30 characters each) while switching the description experience to one, 80 character line.

Still, in 2018 Google went even further and launched the current iteration of Expanded Text Ads – up to 3 headlines (each 30 characters) and up to 2 description lines (each 90 characters).

To easily exhibit these changes I put together the following table:

	Original Text Ads	Expanded Text Ads	Further Expanded Text Ads
Headline(s)	1 headline – 25 characters	2 headlines – 30 characters each	3 headlines – 30 characters each
Description Lines	2 description lines – 35 characters each	1 description line – 80 characters	2 description lines – 90 characters each

Why Character Count Matters

Each time Google increased the available character count of its ads they granted more space for advertisers to describe their services and products. For dental, ortho, or specialty practices having more ad space equates to the ability to provide more information to prospective patients. The more relevant and compelling provided information about elements like location and services offered is the higher the quality of ad clicks a practice will gain.

Taking up more ad space also draws more attention to your ads and pushes competitor ads further down results pages. More visibility generally translates to more clicks.

When Google first released Expanded Text Ads in 2016 the average advertiser saw an increase in average click-through rate (ratio of times your ad is clicked vs. how many times it’s shown) of 20%. In short, the data illustrates that adding more details to an ad attracts more clicks to it.

The Next Steps

Now that we’ve established how great Expanded Text Ads are what’s next? It’s time to test.

If you’ve been running PPC campaigns on Google (also Bing) for many years now you may have some original text ads still running. It’s possible that they’re even performing well. However, as of 2018 while they’re still eligible to run you can no longer edit text ads in the original 1 headline + 2 description lines format.

So, the best option is to keep your existing ads running (even if they’re in the old format) while adding new, Expanded Text Ads, to your ad rotation in the same campaigns and ad groups. You’ll then rotate them evenly for a while until you have a good sample size of click data. Thereafter you will look at the data and keep the winning ad type running while pausing the poorer performing ad format.

Google’s (and thereafter Bing’s) move to allow advertisers more available characters within text ads has resulted in better performance for advertisers who take advantage of the latest format.

Still, it makes sense to test new ad layouts vs. existing ones in order to ultimately come up with the one that works best for your practice.

If you have any questions about the creation of Expanded Text Ads or you’re in need of PPC support for your practice please do not hesitate to contact us!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post It Pays to Use All Available Ad Copy Space appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Utilizing Appointment Reminders for Safe Virtual Communication

Tue, 01 Dec 2020 21:33:38 GMT

Now, more than ever, contactless communication is needed to keep your practice functioning.

Automated reminders have been an essential tool for dental and ortho practices for years, however in the time of COVID-19, adding additional messaging that can be quickly updated as needed will ease patients’ concerns.

Information to include can consist of the following:

Links to Online Patient Forms and Health Questionnaire

Studies have shown that sending patient forms out, prior to an appointment time, leads to less no shows. Including links to your online forms in your appointment reminders will allow patients enough time to provide necessary information safely from the comfort of their homes.

Safety Precautions Taken Upon Arrival

In order to set expectations for the patients next visit, outline these steps in your message. This could include how early to check-in and how to alert you once they have arrived. Include office requirements such as wearing a mask, pre-COVID screening of symptoms, etc.

How to Properly Reschedule Appointments

Provide your current policy for rescheduling or cancelling an appointment along with the best way to contact the office.

Emergency Care Information

Though this information may be on your website, adding a link to the specific page will be a helpful resource. Along with contact information specifically for emergency cases.

Communicating Safety Steps Taken

This messaging may include how you are using additional PPE, cleaning and disinfecting waiting areas more frequently, and/or how you have invested in upgraded technology. Reassuring patients of their health and safety is key during these times.

By utilizing your automated reminder system, you will effectively spread the word on important information and will ensure a streamlined visit for your staff and patients.

For more information about what you can do to prevent the spread of COVID-19, please visit the World Health Organization website.

—Christina Curtis, Senior Onboarding Specialist, Sesame Communications

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Setting Up Geographic Ad Targeting in Google and Bing

Tue, 17 Nov 2020 18:20:19 GMT

People in the United States and Canada have grown accustomed to convenience. From food to entertainment and services, nearly every need or comfort can be delivered quickly or is just a short car ride away from where a person lives. This is especially true in large cities and suburbs.

So, given the accessibility people now enjoy and expect, it’s not surprising that they hold the same demands for their dental service providers. When it comes to finding a dentist, orthodontist, or speciality practice people do not want to travel far from home or work.

In recent posts I covered why location-specific keywords and ad copy are important. In this post I’ll describe how to limit ad targeting to a specific geographic area.

Geographical Targeting

Because accessibility is a driving force for success in most communities a practice’s patients often live close to its physical location. That makes geographic targeting a simple process!

The first step is to determine where your patients live. Do they generally come from the same town as the practice’s physical location? Do they primarily live in one or a handful of zip codes? Figure out where (in general) your patients live by city, county, the closest larger city (more rural practices), or zip code. If your practice is physically located in a large city you can even target by borough or neighborhood.

Setting Up Geographical Targeting in Google and Bing

Once you have an understanding of where patients live you can set up platform-based targeting for each existing or new ad campaign you create. Geographic adjustments are typically made in the “Settings” area of each campaign.

The first decision that needs to be made is to determine if you want to do “location” targeting or “radius” targeting. With location targeting, you can pick the targeted location based on existing geographic parameters like city, region, neighborhood, and borough. Here’s an example of options that pop up when I type in “Seattle” on the Google Ads platform:

It’s also possible to set up multiple and even overlapping targets. For example, you can target by zip code and city.

The other targeting option you can set up is by radius. You can set up a radius for your ads in miles or kilometers around the name, address, or coordinates of a location. In turn, the platforms will ensure ads for the campaign with radius targeting will only show for people located within the radius you specify.

In short, by setting up geographic targeting you’ll ensure your ads are targeting only prospective patients within physical locations you select. Setting up geographic parameters will save you a considerable amount of money and increase the quality traffic driven to your practice by ads from Google and Bing search results.

If you have any related questions or needs please contact us!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post Setting Up Geographic Ad Targeting in Google and Bing appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Great Methods for Digital Lead Tracking

Tue, 10 Nov 2020 20:25:42 GMT

Building a practice isn’t easy. Not only must you ensure your staff, equipment, and facilities are ready to provide the best possible service for your patients, but you also have to get patients in the office! This is where your marketing comes into play.

You may have people in the office working on your website, Search Engine Optimization (SEO) efforts, social media profile management, and digital paid advertising or you may hire a third-party to handle these efforts for you. No matter who does your marketing, there is one thing in common – you are spending your hard-earned money for it.

So how do you know whether or not those dollars are being put to good use? You have to track your leads!

Internal Platforms

Let’s say that you signed up for an SEO service and a few months later you start to see an uptick in patients. Can you contribute those to SEO work that has been done?

At Sesame we have a call tracking feature (Sesame First Call) that tracks phone calls coming from organic searches. Calls are recorded for offices to easily know if people coming in from search results are converting and becoming patients. This tool also applies to other Sesame services like Pay-Per-Click (PPC), Social Media, and Social Media Advertising.

Google Analytics + Other Platforms

What if you don’t have call tracking features available to you but you still want to make sure your marketing dollars are working? The answer is simple: ask your marketer how they’re tracking performance!

Your marketer should be using Google Analytics or another prominent web analytics tool to track performance. In honor of performance transparency if you ask for access or at least a performance breakdown that person or company should be happy to provide it.

Ask Patients How they Found You

It typically takes less than 30 seconds to ask patients how they found you and they are almost always happy to offer up that information. Don’t be afraid to ask clarifying questions as well.

The most typical answer you will hear is “online” or “on the Internet”. While that is true most of the time (as around 90% of searches for a new doctor begin online), that also doesn’t tell you much.

The broad spectrum of “the Internet” could include a general Google search, paid advertising, or even on a social media platform. Asking if they recall exactly how they found your information is important to really know how you are performing.

If the patient doesn’t recall or offer that information, then simply move on. However, doing all you can to reconcile your marketing efforts with the money you are spending on them goes a long way when it comes to ensuring your practice’s success.

By consulting internal platforms used by marketers, well-known tracking platforms like Google Analytics, and asking patients how they found you online you can gain a strong understanding of how your digital channels are performing. In turn, you can focus attention on different channels based on performance.

Please feel free to reach out to the Sesame Team if you have any related questions or needs!

—Phil Horton, Sr. Search Manager, Sesame Communications

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3 Best Practices for Selecting PPC Keywords

Tue, 03 Nov 2020 18:55:35 GMT

In the digital marketing world, the more targeted you can be with messaging towards your desired audience the better.

This rule holds especially true in the realm of Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising. Strategic keyword selection and targeting are two of the most important PPC optimization factors. If keywords are irrelevant or too generic, money spent on clicks is destined to be wasted.

So, to help you get on the right track for selecting relevant keywords I’ll cover three of the most important things you can do to ensure your PPC keywords are effectively targeted towards prospective patients.

1. Focus on Services + Location

Focusing keywords on the various types of services your practice can provide such as “cosmetic dentistry,” “oral surgery,” or “orthodontics” is a logical strategy. Simply consider what services your practice offers to patients as well as what terms patients use (in other words, not medical terminology) and you’ll come up with some good keywords.

Often forgotten, though, is that people don’t like traveling for dental-related care. Prospective patients want to find a provider in their town or city, if possible. In large cities they may even want their provider to be in their neighborhood so minimal travel time is needed to get there.

How does that translate to keyword selection? For non-brand terms make sure you’re including your practice’s location in keywords.

Here are some applicable examples that include the location instead of just the service alone:

“Dentist in Seattle”

“Orthodontist in Raleigh, NC”

“Periodontist in Chicago, IL”

If your practice is located in a REALLY large city like New York, consider being even more targeted and build keywords around the part of the city such as:

“Oral Surgeon in Brooklyn, NY”

As a reminder, ads and platform targeting will also need to be geographically targeted.

2. DO Include Brand Keywords

Some businesses and marketers are hesitant to spend advertising dollars on people searching for their name because they believe “if they’re searching for us they’ll of course click on our search result.” That assumption is incorrect.

Because of competition and the ever-evolving nature of search results, brand search clicks always landing on your practice’s result is not a given. That’s why it’s important to also have keywords focused on your practice’s name. If your practice is named “Happy Dental,” make sure and have a brand campaign containing keywords around that name.

Creating keywords that push ads for your name will not only make it easier for prospective patients to find your practice but it will also help keep traffic away from competitors if they’re trying to show up in search results for keywords with your name in them.

Because search engines like Google and Bing favor brands in their PPC algorithms the price you pay per click is very low for brand terms relative to non-brand terms. It’s not uncommon for brand terms to be 50% of the cost or less on a per-click basis relative to non-brand terms.

3. Match Type Matters

Keyword match type provides a measure of how targeted (or not targeted) a given term needs to be in order for an ad to display within a search query. For Google and Bing there are 3 levels of granularity.

The most granular is “exact match.” With exact match, only the exact term or close variations of the term will trigger an ad. For example, if the term is “dentist in San Diego” only that precise term and very similar terms (for example, “dentists in San Diego”) will trigger the ad.

Thereafter, “phrase match” terms are triggered when a phrase is used in a search query. In using the same example, “dentist in San Diego” would need to be used BUT any other terms could also be thrown into the query and still trigger an ad.

The least targeted match type is “broad match.” Broad match allows anything even remotely relevant to a search term to trigger the ad. To use our existing example, hypothetical searches like “dental news in San Diego” or “San Diego dentist’s organization” could very well trigger ads for this term. To take a step back, you can make broad match a bit more targeted by adding anchor terms, meaning terms that must appear within a search query in order for the ad to trigger. By adding “+Dentist +in +San +Diego” you would require each of those words to be included in someone’s search query in order for the ad to trigger. Still, this is a less precise bidding option than exact and phrase offer.

The overview of match types now begs the question of where should you begin? It’s wise to start with exact match. People looking for the exact terms you’re targeting are most likely to hold higher customer intent levels than the more general traffic offered by the other match types. Obviously, the higher the traffic intent the greater the volume of prospective patients will reach your website.

If you have additional ad budget after testing all relevant terms via exact match, expand to phrase and modified broad match. DO NOT use broad match on its own unless you still have budget to spend after testing the other match types with your keywords. Broad match terms are certain to generate a lot of visibility but also clicks from people who are unlikely to become patients.

By keeping keywords targeted towards services your practice provides and your physical location you can target prospective customers effectively. Adding in brand terms will increase the volume of relevant traffic you’re receiving and if you focus keyword match type primarily on exact you can limit the volume of irrelevant clicks coming into your website from PPC traffic.

If you have any questions or related needs please feel free to reach out to us!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post 3 Best Practices for Selecting PPC Keywords appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Getting Started With Link Building

Tue, 27 Oct 2020 18:53:37 GMT

When a search engine like Google crawls a website it checks the page content plus inbound and outbound links to conclude how relevant that site is for keyword searches.

Inbound links are links that point to a website from other websites. They are also known as backlinks. Outbound links are links that point outward from one website to external websites.

Even though you may be the top provider of a service in your area, a competing practice that has created a successful online campaign through link building could rank higher based on Google’s perception of which one is the “trusted & preferred brand.” In this post, I will go over different types of links and their value to your practice.

Inbound Links From Charities

Charities and nonprofit organizations often have a donor’s page. If your practice donates to any charities check out their donor’s page and make sure there’s a link back to your website. By sponsoring yourself, friends, relatives, employees, and patients you’ll exhibit support for your community while also gaining a business advantage via the link.

Links From Associations + Organizations

If you’re a part of an association or organization, chances are they have their own website. If they do, find out if they link out to their members and get your website’s link added to their page. It’s important to be creative when campaigning for links!

For example, do you sponsor a little league team, reading club, or local school? Teams, clubs, and organizations welcome community connections for exposure and support! For instance, perhaps a local high school you sponsor can drive traffic to you by saying “Happy Dental would like to offer our athletes a free consultation. Give them a call today!” The word “Happy Dental” would link out to the practice’s website.

Reviews

Getting your business plenty of reviews should be a top priority and is also a great way to support your link building efforts.

Having the reviewer link to your page or responding to a review by supplying a link are both great practices. For example, being reviewed by a patient could look like this: “Dr. Sam and the whole Sesame Dental staff was amazing! They really made the Invisalign process a positive experience!” In this case, the link to the website would come from the “Sesame Dental” wording.

Responding to a review might look like this: “Thank you for visiting our office! We are glad you are having a good experience with the Invisalign process. We like to make sure you have all the information you need at your fingertips, so please check out our Invisalign page for a digital copy of care instructions!” The link in this scenario would be included from the words “Invisalign page.”

Referring Websites

If your business is a member of the Better Business Bureau or the local chamber of commerce they both typically have free online directories where you can submit your business information. Doing so can give you added visibility online to other businesses and community members.

Online community newspapers + bloggers who have mentioned your practice should also make sure and point a link to your website when they mention it. If they don’t, a polite request usually will result in a link!

Overall, reciprocal linking is a nice option in most cases. If any of these types of groups are willing to link to your website on theirs you can link to them on your “Meet The Dr.” page. That’s a good location to touch on your community involvement. Mutual linking is great for increased traffic and better rankings.

You can start the link review process by determining what links you already have. Think about the groups and organizations you are a part of in your community and go to their websites to determine if they’re already linking to your site or not. If they are not, ask them nicely and offer to provide a reciprocal link if they need an incentive to link to your site.

If you have any further questions or would like professional support with your link building efforts please reach out to the Sesame Team!

—Naomi Newell, Lead SEO Specialist, Sesame Communications

The post Getting Started With Link Building appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

New Instagram Features Your Practice Can Utilize

Tue, 20 Oct 2020 19:51:21 GMT

One of the most challenging aspects of social media management is keeping track of the ever-evolving trends and updates within the different platforms. Being an up-to-date social media user is crucial for staying relevant to your followers.

In this post, I’ll go over the latest features Instagram has rolled out over the last few months and how you can use them to your advantage. Keep reading!

Reels

Instagram has a knack for mimicking successful parts of a competitor’s app and incorporating it into their own. Instagram’s latest “Reels” feature is no exemption. You will notice it’s a direct replica of the latest popular video App “TikTok”.

Reels allows users to create short 15 second videos. You can also browse Reels made by other users from your Instagram main feed by selecting the movie icon on the bottom row. Once you are watching, get inspired and create your own by selecting the camera icon in the upper right corner. You can add music and use various filters to make your Reel extra eye-catching. Don’t have time to make your own Reels? You can share your favorite Reels to your Instagram Stories!

New Instagram Fonts on Stories

If you need a quick rundown on what Instagram stories are and how to post them check out our blog post here.

In addition to the fonts already in use on Instagram’s Stories, they recently added four more fonts to choose from to make your story pop. The new stylish fonts are:

Serif in Regular and Cursive: A classic font choice.
Sans-Serif: A bold easy to read font.
An Editorial Inspired Font: Give your Instagram stories more of an edge with this font pick!
Comic Sans: A playful favorite!

Pin Comments Option Now Available to Everyone

Another new feature Instagram recently rolled out is the option to pin a comment at the top of a photo’s comment section. If there’s a comment you want to highlight, slide the comment to the left and select the pin icon. You can choose up to three different comments!

This is a great way to connect with your followers and make them feel like a special part of your online community.

We hope you feel motivated to get on Instagram and explore all the different ways you can get creative! Please contact us if you have any related questions.

—Jennie Rogers, Social Media Specialist 2, Sesame Communications

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Creating Engaging Instagram Content

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 20:20:56 GMT

In recent years, Instagram has skyrocketed in popularity to become one of the most visited and influential social media networks.

According to recent reports, there are on average over 500 million active users on Instagram every day. When it comes to Instagram, it is important your audience is connected and engaged with your practice. Now more than ever, it is essential to create content your followers want to interact and engage with.

Be an Expert

Instagram is all about showing off your office’s unique personality. Your followers are following you for a reason – they want to see updates from your office and staff! Posting in-office updates can help you become a trusted expert in your community. Genuine posts coming from trusted experts can be both informative and fun!

Another tip is to ask questions. They can be as simple as “what kind of toothpaste do you prefer?” Trying to start conversations online will typically result in increased engagement.

Keep it Simple

When it comes to photos for Instagram, the goal is for all your content to be thoughtful, high quality, engaging, and consistent with your brand. Clean, simple, and well-lighted content tends to encourage more engagement out of your followers. Don’t overthink it! Finding a spot in the office that’s well-lit and has a simple background will go a long way towards making your photos look more professional.

Action!

Play around with different forms of media on Instagram. Quick videos and GIFs can be attention-grabbing and result in increased engagement.

A simple video of the doctor giving a tutorial or an occasional patient testimonial can be an easy way to connect with your followers on a more personal level. Also, don’t forget about Instagram Stories! They are quick videos and photos that disappear after 24-hours that help highlight office happenings in a unique way to drive engagement.

Patients follow you on Instagram to keep up with the ongoings of your office. While the Sesame Social Team may be providing you with regular quality posts, the superstar pieces (the ones we typically see get the most organic engagement) often come from you. Take risks, try new things, and most importantly – have fun with it!

—Tyler Harris, Lead Social Media Specialist, Sesame Communications

The post Creating Engaging Instagram Content appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Simple Steps for Creating Excellent Ad Copy

Tue, 06 Oct 2020 16:39:58 GMT

First impressions matter in the world of digital marketing. Your Practice’s Pay-Per-Click (PPC) ad is likely to be seen only one time by a prospective patient.

That’s why optimizing ad copy is an absolute must. The more you can cater your copy to the needs of your audience the more clicks you will receive from prospective patients.

The good news is that there are some basic practices you can adhere to that will help ensure your ads have a great click-through rate. In this post I’ll cover some easy-to-implement search ad copy ideas for practices to utilize.

Use All Available Ad Space

In July of 2018, Google Ads released its latest version of Expanded Text Ads and Microsoft Advertising (formerly Bing Ads) has since followed with a similar layout. Previously there were two 30-character headline spots available but now there are three 30-character slots. There are also now two 90-character description lines available instead of just one 80-character line under the old format.

Here’s a pretend ad I created to exhibit the new layout:

The new layout provides advertisers with considerably more space for ad copy. By using all of the available headline and copy space an ad becomes larger and, hence, more visible in search results. That pushes competitor ads further away and increases the likelihood of a prospective patient clicking on your ad in a relevant search result, which is the desired action. In short, make sure and use all available ad space!

It’s also crucial to take advantage of ad extensions such as sitelink, call, and callout extensions. Including optional extensions within ad copy will make a given ad’s presence within search results even larger, resulting in more visibility on results pages and likely driving further gains in clicks.

Get Local

People don’t want to stray far from home when they’re looking for a new orthodontist, dentist, or specialty dental care provider. That’s why it’s important to include local themes in ad copy.

Specifically, mention the city or even the area of a large city in which the practice is physically located. That will appeal to anyone looking for a new provider close to where they live or work, which should be most prospective patients.

Using the sample ad I created to exhibit the latest expanded text ad format, here are some possibilities for integrating location into ad copy:

Be Direct With Services

Be direct with the services your practice provides. Don’t create ad copy that makes people guess what your practice can do for them.

By stating your services within ad copy you will help ensure that people clicking on your ads are truly interested in what you can offer them. Thus, the quality of clicks going to your website or landing page will be much higher than it would be with more generic or vague ad copy.

In the example being used within this post, the first line of ad text explains exactly what the pretend practice can do for prospective patients:

Have an Obvious Call to Action

Make the action you want people to take very clear. Most likely, your practice will want prospective patients to call you directly or to schedule a consultation. In any case, don’t make people guess what the next step is. Spell it out!

Use the body text within the ad to invite prospective patients to click on the ad and take the desired action. People doing research are unlikely to know the precise next step they should take, so tell them.

Let’s reference the aforementioned ad example one more time. The final body line spells out why someone should click to contact the practice to learn how they “Can Help Your Smile + Get a Free Consultation!”

To briefly recap, by taking up maximum available ad space and including mention of your practice’s local market you can improve your odds of attracting the attention of prospective patients. By clearly indicating the services your practice offers and listing a call-to-action within ad copy you’re much more likely to turn that attention into a click through to your website or landing page.

Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions you may have!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post Simple Steps for Creating Excellent Ad Copy appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Referrals Alone Are Not Enough

Tue, 29 Sep 2020 18:40:13 GMT

Word-of-mouth advertising has always been an amazing source of lead generation for all business types – especially healthcare. It’s something we hear all the time at Sesame when we speak with new practices: “I get all my business from word of mouth.”

In reality, though, in the digital age potential patients don’t simply accept a friend, relative, or acquaintance’s advice. They also perform their own online research.

So let’s answer the question. Is word of mouth all you need to get new patients? The long and short answer is…no.

The Typical Process Undertaken by Prospective Patients

When is the last time someone gave you a referral and, without even Googling their name, business, etc., you just gave them a call? It’s probably been a while. Potential patients don’t do that either.

When your business regularly gets great referrals, you definitely have a leg up over your competition. Still, potential patients who just learned about your practice from someone else typically pull out their phone and start analyzing your online presence. This process often includes reviewing your website, your online reviews, and your social media profiles.

Imagine you just got referred to a business and, when you try to look them up online, their website looks outdated or maybe they don’t even have one. Then you try to look at reviews and they have just a few from multiple years ago with questionable ratings and their social media profiles haven’t been updated in months or years. Many prospective patients will be turned off in such a scenario – even with a referral from someone else.

That’s why ensuring that your digital presence and marketing efforts are consistent with what is expected from prospective patients is an absolute necessity.

Requirements for Digital Success

You need a modern website that is easy to navigate and provides information existing and prospective patients need. Your practice also needs to build up quality reviews and consistent information on sites like Google My Business, and it’s important to have an active and engaging social media presence.

Someone knowing either your name or your practice name is a great start, but a strong online presence to help convince the referred person to become a patient is equally if not more important.

—Phil Horton, Sr. Search Manager, Sesame Communications

The post Referrals Alone Are Not Enough appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Incorporating Seasonality Into Your Blog Posts

Tue, 22 Sep 2020 16:15:36 GMT

If you’ve read our previous posts on tips and tricks for writing and maintaining your website blog then you already know the blueprint for what makes up a successful blog post. Now that you know what goes into crafting a readable and engaging blog it’s time to choose a topic. Need help coming up with ideas for some new topics? Today, I’ll discuss incorporating seasonal content into your blog.

Seasonal vs. Evergreen Content for Your Blog

Many argue that a truly successful blog post consists of “evergreen content”, meaning that your topic doesn’t have an expiration date in relevance. An example of a post containing evergreen content would be one about brushing and flossing. It’s a timeless subject that readers will return to again and again. While seasonal content for your blog is only relevant at certain times of the year, differing from evergreen content, it’s still an effective way to drive traffic to your blog and engage with your readers.

Why Seasonal Blog Posts?

There are numerous advantages to incorporating seasonality into your blog posts. Here are 2 primary points to consider:

Trending – Choosing a seasonal topic meets the immediate demands of your readers and can drive up your blog traffic briefly.
Relatability – Seasonal blogs can be an opportunity to share something a little more personal with your readers and connect with them.

Seasonal Blog Topic Ideas

Seasonal content falls into two categories: Event-Based and Time-Based. Time-Based topics discuss the changes of the seasons or one season specifically like a blog post about your favorite fall activities. Event-Based topics celebrate holidays or other events either in your community or at your business. An example of an Event-Based post would be a current promotion your office is having, a charity you’re involved with, or how you plan to spend Thanksgiving or other holidays.

When it comes to choosing between the two, both Event-Based and Time-Based posts should be focused on equally. Both cover different aspects of seasonal topics that can keep your readers up-to-date with the latest happenings both in and out of the office. Also, be sure to include photos!

In closing, finding the right balance of evergreen and seasonal content will help you achieve blog success and keep your readers coming back!

—Jennie Rogers, Social Media Specialist 2, Sesame Communications

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Content Should be Fun and Topical

Tue, 15 Sep 2020 18:07:38 GMT

One of the biggest challenges with posting content to a blog or social media profile exists with selecting themes your audience will be interested in.

People only gravitate to certain types of content. That’s why keeping reader interests in mind is a necessity.

To help narrow down the selection and creation path I’ll cover themes, types of content to stay away from, and what typically works well in an online setting within this post.

Stick to Industry Themes

Stick to what you know. In this case, that means themes should generally be related to dental/ortho/specialty topics. Visitors to your site or social profiles are looking for content related to your area of expertise.

In general, patients and prospective patients are not interested in your opinion on anything outside of what your practice specializes in or the collective personality of your office and how patient interaction is conducted.

This is a general rule. There are some exceptions. One hypothetical scenario involves a beloved sports team in your market. If your practice decides to support the team by wearing jerseys on game days, posting occasional group pictures on social media may endear fellow fans to your practice and it can help illustrate that the practice employees are actually humans.

Stay Away From!

Perhaps it’s obvious, but don’t talk about politics, sexuality, or anything remotely controversial on your official practice channels. It’s also wise to avoid the use of potentially offensive language and imagery that could be at issue for any current or prospective patients.

Less straightforward, though, is the quoting and re-posting of medical studies and themes. Launching content from trade journal articles or topics with copious amounts of dental professional language will NOT be of interest to most of your audience.

If you think a study or professional article contains interesting tidbits that will appeal to your audience, quote the interesting info and provide a link to the rest. That will allow the few people interested in the finite details to inspect them as they please.

Popular Themes

So, what types of themes are appealing to people?

Let’s start with layout. On the internet people scan content rather than read it in its entirety like they would with a book. That means being brief is important. Shorter paragraphs and plenty of strategic spacing is advisable. Sprinkling in bullet points and images can also help make a longer piece of content appear more palatable.

Layout is great but what do people like to read? In truth, there’s no one correct layout formula. However, one simple suggestion is to consider the audience. What information will benefit patients and prospective patients personally? Focusing on ways to save time, money, or improve dental health are likely to attract interest. After all, nearly everyone is interested in personal growth in each of the aforementioned areas.

Another winning formula is the cute, funny, or adorable content route. This requires more audience awareness, though. What is funny, cute, or adorable to one person may not elicit the same reaction from another person.

By sticking to dental industry themes that are not offensive but provide personal appeal to your audience your practice will set itself up to gain positive visibility on search engines and social media channels. Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions you may have!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post Content Should be Fun and Topical appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Explaining Local SEO and Why it’s Important

Tue, 08 Sep 2020 19:04:34 GMT

Where your office physically exists is one of the most important factors influencing your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) efforts.

We would all love to rank in the top of the search results no matter where people search from. The reality, though, is that locality is and should be the focus of how search results are displayed. Optimizing for “local search” is the focus of this blog post.

A Brief History of Local Search

Back in 2016 and again in 2019, Google released updates to its search algorithm. With these updates, Google decided that one of the most important factors in ranking was the location of a business and the location of where a search originated from, meaning the searcher’s physical location.

The reasoning is simple. The majority of searches are some variation of “service + city” or “service + near me” and Google is always trying to deliver the best possible results for search queries.

Optimize for Your Location

Two people searching for the same thing but standing a mile apart may get two completely different sets of results.

Consequently, it is imperative that you optimize for the community in which your business is physically located. When creating content for your website, make the city or town the focus. By all means, include neighborhoods around you, but the further out you go, the more difficult it will be to rank well in search results.

Relevant Information is Crucial

With location being so important, the information posted about your business online must be thorough and accurate.

As more and more directory listing websites have come into the mainstream, they’ve provided additional signals to Google about where your office is located.

Unfortunately, many of these sites pull from other sources so if the information is inaccurate on 1 directory, chances are, it’s off on others as well. If Google can’t locate your correct address and other business information, your overall presence may be penalized, meaning your visibility in relevant search results could decrease. To summarize, making sure that your directory listings are correct will help you with local search results.

The Role Played by Directory Listings

Speaking of directory listings, one of the most important aspects of your local search rankings is your Google My Business profile. This profile literally tells Google exactly what your business does and where you do it.

When it comes to local SEO this is obviously incredibly important. The information included within Google My Business is the #1 ranking factor for determining how your business appears on search engine results pages that feature a map (also known as map pack or snack pack).

The most important step is to make sure that you have claimed and verified your Google My Business profile and all of your core business information is correct. The more information you can add about your business, the better chance you give yourself to rank in the map pack.

SEO is ever-changing as search engines try to deliver the best possible results to their customers. However, one static factor is your practice’s physical location and the prospective patients looking for it. Making it easy for the search engines to understand your location and target audience is a necessary step for maximizing your visibility on results pages!

—Phil Horton, Sr. Search Manager, Sesame Communications

The post Explaining Local SEO and Why it’s Important appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Homepage Updates for Better Search Engine Visibility

Tue, 01 Sep 2020 19:22:56 GMT

On most websites, the homepage is more important than all others. It acts as the gateway to relevant information featured in different sections of a website, such as services provided. It’s often the page that gets the largest volume of site visitors.

Thus, given its level of importance, practices should prioritize available marketing time and attention towards their homepages before spending considerable time elsewhere.

In this post I’ll cover four different elements of a homepage that should be optimized in order to improve search engine rankings. Improving rankings often leads to higher volumes of relevant traffic from current and prospective patients.

Optimize the Title Tag

Title tags show up in the heading for search results listings and at the top of a visitor’s web page browser once the page is loaded. The title tag’s purpose is to inform search engines and website visitors about the main theme of a given page.

That’s why it’s important to have a title tag that’s relevant to your practice. Being direct, concise, and location-specific is the best course to take when devising a new one.

For example, for a fictitious orthodontic practice in San Diego named “Ortho Excellence” an applicable title tag would be:

Orthodontist in San Diego, CA | Ortho Excellence

For more information, please feel free to visit this post on title tags specifically.

Have a Relevant Page Heading

The homepage heading should provide a clear representation of what a practice can do for prospective patients. If the wording doesn’t immediately lead to recognition of available services, even in a broad sense, a website visitor unfamiliar with the practice is likely to leave the site immediately.

Let’s look at the made-up practice in the previous example. A simple, yet effective, title line for that website could be something like:

Orthodontist Serving San Diego, CA and Surrounding Areas

Being direct, rather than trying to be cute and creative, is almost always the best option.

Feature Your Most Important Content First

Search engines and website visitors want to be able to find the most important content on your homepage easily. Due to the nature of websites, scrolling to reach content further down on a given page is often necessary depending on the device type someone is using.

As a result, it’s important to list the most important content on a web page first. That allows people and search engines to find the information they’re looking for quickly.

In carrying over the orthodontic practice in San Diego example, within the first 1 – 2 body paragraphs of the homepage content, the fictitious “Ortho Excellence” practice should talk about being “an orthodontic practice that serves San Diego.” The most important elements of the practice are its specialty area and physical location. Presenting this information towards the top of the homepage will help illustrate this practice’s relevance to search engines and site visitors for both.

Create a Customized Meta Description

The meta description is the brief summary of a search results page that the search engines display for a given result.

For Sesame’s homepage, the text within the box featured in the following example is the meta description.

While the meta description has no bearing on search rankings, having an optimized meta description does heavily influence the number of people who click on a search result.

By optimizing this brief snippet of text a practice can describe itself and provide a call-to-action such as the “Learn more today” line Sesame uses.

For the previous “Ortho Excellence” example, a good meta description could be something like:

Ortho Excellence is the premier braces + Invisalign provider for the San Diego area. Learn how we can help make your smile look even better!

It’s very important to note that the search engines will truncate the description if it’s too long. That means having something that’s between 50 – 150 characters is a best practice so that the whole statement is visible in search results.

Any practice following these four homepage optimization steps will position itself well for improved visibility within relevant search engine results for its homepage.

If you have any related questions, comments, or needs please feel free to reach out to us!

—Mike Fitterer, Sr. Marketing Manager II, Sesame Communications

The post Homepage Updates for Better Search Engine Visibility appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

How PPC Can Supplement Your SEO Efforts

Tue, 25 Aug 2020 17:53:14 GMT

When deciding if Pay-Per-Click (PPC) marketing is right for you, ask yourself “will it help my practice’s visibility in search results?” To answer that question, we first need to learn more about what search engine optimization (SEO) entails and how it differs from paid advertising.

Onsite SEO is based on the foundation of your website. SEO entails optimizing the content on your website to answer questions such as “Why your practice?,” “What service do I need?,” and “Where can I receive this service?”

It also refers to modifying your website’s code to help search engines gain a greater understanding of the themes and topics you present.

The overall goal of SEO is to get your website listed in the top unpaid search engine results positions in order to drive more relevant traffic to your business.

PPC, on the other hand, entails paying on a per-click or impression basis for your ads that show up in search results. Rather than having a search engine algorithm decide where your listing ends up like with organic search, with PPC you largely decide which keyterms your ads will show up for in search results and how much you’re willing to pay.

Here is a quick overview of the benefits of PPC in relation to SEO:

Drive Additional Traffic to Your Website

All roads lead to traffic, because traffic = potential patients. By paying for relevant traffic you increase the volume of prospective new patients becoming aware of your practice leading to the likely scenario of more new patients for your practice.

Reach Outside of Your Geographic Proximity

SEO focuses primarily on hyper-local results. If you do not have a physical presence very close to where someone is performing search queries, you may not be able to reach them organically. PPC allows you to broaden your footprint to reach areas that may be a significant part of your business by targeting whichever geographic proximity you please with your ads.

Target struggling keywords

If there are terms your practice is not ranking well for in organic search results PPC can help. Because you pay for keyword positioning in search results with PPC, you can pay to show up prominently for really important terms that you may not be ranking for from an organic search perspective. In essence, you can buy visibility in search results. That’s often a good policy for ensuring prospective patients can find your website for relevant search terms that have a lot of competition from rival practices.

Bringing PPC traffic to your websites should only a single aspect of your overall digital marketing strategy. You must have a website and search presence that answers patient’s queries such as “Why your practice?,” “What service do I need?,” and “Where can I receive this service?”

Each marketing channel has its own value in your digital strategy and they all support one another. For example, without effective content, you will pay for clicks that do not result in calls. By having a great PPC presence supplemented with excellent SEO and a positive focus in other channels like social media and email you’ll generate a wholistic approach towards reaching your target audience of prospective patients.

—Rebekah McBride, Senior SEO Specialist, Sesame Communications

The post How PPC Can Supplement Your SEO Efforts appeared first on Dental Marketing & Practice Management | Sesame Communications.

Rules for Creating SEO-Friendly Website Content

Tue, 18 Aug 2020 19:50:44 GMT

In order to drive new patients to your website, your website content needs to represent your practice. Whether you think about it this way or not, your practice is a brand. It’s up to you build your brand so that it’s positively perceived by patients and prospective patients.

Patients assume that you are qualified. However, with competition patients need to know who you are as a person and a community member. Is your office perceived as being family-friendly with a fun staff? Do people view you as focused on high-quality results with no frills?

Whatever your practice’s focus is, your website should reflect it. The content on your site needs to be filled with pictures, videos, and written content showing off what makes you unique.

In this post I’ll unpack some key items to consider when writing great content that will help with your SEO efforts.

Be Consistent

Consistency is crucial in your branding and positioning. When someone arrives at your website, are they seeing your brand? Your website should effectively express who you are and how you want your practice to be represented.

Once a prospective new patient arrives at your site they should instantly see what makes you special and sets you apart from your competitors. When you use content unique to both your practice, Google recognizes that information and ranks you higher on relevant search engine results pages. It also goes a long way towards leaving a good impression on prospective new clients; they want to know what it’s like to get treatment at your practice specifically.

Include Local Themes

Google gives businesses ranking priority for search results in their physical location. That means that if your practice is physically near the person searching for you online, your chances of showing up in local search results are higher than if the person is physically far away.

This is why a concerted focus on location throughout your content is so important; you will always rank higher for searches where you are physically located.

Topic Relevance and Distinction

The service(s) you are trying to rank for should be prominently mentioned on your website.

If you want to rank for something, be highly relevant for that topic. This is why it’s important to consider a separate page for each service that your practice offers. It gives your SEO Specialist greater ability to target specific relevant topics and gives the practice the ability to showcase results and manage patient expectations.

This is why SEO experts so often promote the importance of unique content. I cannot stress enough how important unique content is in terms of rankings. Typically, most dentists and orthodontists use generic, duplicate, content for each of their common procedures. No matter how successful your practice is, rankings will plateau or take a dive when Google crawls a website and the crawler confirms that the content you have isn’t tailored to your practice specifically.

A Productive Activity for You + Your Staff

With the aforementioned points in mind, there’s one great exercise you can do with your staff to help devise new content.

Take out a sheet of paper and write down your primary services. They will likely be things like cosmetic dentistry, teeth whitening, Invisalign, and such.

Once you have written these services down, go through your website and see if you have an existing landing page for each one. Make a check next to each service for which you have an existing page.

If you identify a primary service you offer and can’t find content for it on your site, circle the service and remember that you will want to add content for that service. If you’re an existing Sesame SEO client, contact your Sesame SEO team and we can take it from there!

Prospective new patients can identify whether or not you are the right fit for them based on the information presented on your website. If you can account for these geographical and personal identifiers it should help your search engine rankings moving forward.

—Naomi Newell, Lead SEO Specialist, Sesame Communications

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