You’ve long since established a website for your dental practice, and it does everything you need it to do. It introduces you to potential patients, showcases your skills and the procedures you offer, has your location and contact information, and has a blog and social media component.
You’re good to go, right?
Yes – and no.
Your site does what it needs to do, but is it producing results? Is it generating interest in your practice? Is that interest, measured by site traffic, bringing in new patients?
If the answer to either of these questions is no (or “I don’t know”), then it may be time to upgrade your site.
There are certain things that visitors expect from your website. Its appearance should be up-to-date. It should be easy to navigate. And perhaps most important, it should be mobile-friendly.
- Appearance. Your site doesn’t need to be ground-breaking or trend-setting, but it should be modern. To put it plainly, if it looks old or outdated, visitors will assume that it is. An up-to-date appearance will gain their confidence.
- Easy to navigate. Visitors should be able to see, at a glance, how they can find the information they seek. You’ve got a grace period of about five seconds. If visitors are unable to figure out where they need to go in that brief period, they’re going to lose interest and leave.
- Mobile-friendly. People visit websites using everything from desktop computers to smart phones. As we have stressed before on this blog, the trend toward mobile is growing steadily, so your dental practice site has to look good and function properly on mobile devices. (It’s a strategy called mobile first.) If you haven’t designed your site for mobile devices, put that at very the top of your to-do list.
Content
Your website may meet all the above criteria. But is its content effective? If your site isn’t generating enough interest in your practice – too few leads, in marketing terms – improving its content with rewritten copy is often enough to correct that. In particular, better calls to action can address this issue. Get visitors to ask a question or make an appointment.
Are you giving it fresh content on a regular basis? This is a must. Search engines love fresh content. Fresh content, like a regularly updated blog, attracts them. Your site will be crawled and indexed more frequently, which helps to improve your search ranking.
Search engines may love fresh content, but your website, at least ostensibly, is meant for users. And guess what? Users love new content, too. It keeps them coming back. And the more they come back, the more likely they are to convert from site visitors to new patients, and the more likely they are to recommend your site – and your practice – to friends and family.
None of this is easy, but you don’t have to figure it all out yourself. ProspectaMarketing is an Internet marketing firm that helps dental practices reach their audience. We use the tools of Internet search marketing to reach key prospects looking for what your practice has to offer. Our unique and thorough approach provides visibility, financial accountability, and ongoing refinement and improvement. You can find out more by contacting Lane Anderson toll-free at 1-877-322-4440 Ext 101, by email using the form on our Contact Us page, or online at ProspectaMarketing.com.