Have you ever spent money on a shiny new thing and realised the one you already owned was more useful? Maybe it was a car, a fridge or a phone. We’ve all done it, but realising that new isn’t always better can be tough.
The same is true of patients.
If you’re targeting growth, it’s understandable your first thoughts turn to new patients. Blogs, social media campaigns, special offers – there are many creative ways you can appeal to new patients. But what about the people already sitting in your waiting room? Retargeting existing patients with new messages could open up a wealth of treatment opportunities. And it will cost you a lot less per treatment booked.
Why you should retarget
50% of your business growth may exist in either additional sales to your existing patient database, or in the people that they can introduce you to. Attracting new patients is an important part of practice growth, but there are two major reasons why retargeting existing patients can be a more cost-effective strategy.
Trust. Existing patients already have the level of trust that it can take months to build with brand new patients. You know them and they know you. The hard work is already done.
History. You already have patient records and know their dental history. You can build on that to suggest what other treatments might be of interest or use to the patient.
These facts may seem obvious, perhaps even banal, but consider how much time, effort and money marketers in commercial sectors put into building trust and customer databases. When you’re marketing anything, trust and historic data are invaluable, so make sure you’re not overlooking opportunities to offer relevant treatment options to receptive patients.
Retargeting in practice
Once you’re in the mindset of capitalising on the opportunities in you waiting room, you still might not be sure where to invest your efforts. So, we’ve outlined five effective ways you can start targeting existing patients:
Waiting room ads. Promote treatments in the waiting room with eye-catching posters. Could an Invisalign patient be interested in whitening? Do you offer facial aesthetics? Shout about it!
Surveys while they wait. When patients come in for their regular check-ups, get them to fill in a ‘Smile Evaluation’ form to find out how they feel about their smile. Ask questions like: how would you rate your smile on a scale of 1 to 10; if you could change one thing about your smile what would it be; what stops you from improving your smile etc.
During an appointment. Pay attention to the condition of your patient’s teeth, are there any areas you could recommend that need work? Use your knowledge of your patients’ smiles with their the Smile Evaluation form answers to pinpoint patient concerns and offer options at different price levels to make them feel more comfortable.
Social media. Invite your existing patients to follow you on social media and do regular posts on the different treatments available and promotions you’re running.
Refer a friend. Encourage word of mouth referrals. If your patients trust you, they’ll refer their friends to you.
This is a list of five common and effective approaches. The list isn’t exhaustive and every practice is different, so keep an eye out for other approaches that will help you introduce relevant treatment options to existing patients.
DenGro makes retargeting easy
When you target marketing messages at existing patients, the keys to success are no different as when you’re converting new patient leads: tracking and follow-ups.
With DenGro, tracking and conversion are effortless. Here are two ways you can use DenGro to track and convert treatment interest into treatment starts:
- If you’ve got an existing patient interested in a new treatment, add them to DenGro so you can keep track of their decision progress.
- Add multiple treatment interests to a lead’s profile. You can record their interest in a treatment at any time and then schedule smart reminders to make follow ups simple.
Not signed up yet? Find out how DenGro can benefit revenue growth for your practice. Book my quick online demo.