Not all dental offices are created equally – this list will be focusing on properly building your brand with seemingly small, but significant tactics that will help to maintain your individuality, create or build upon your reputation and brand strategy, and attract the new patients you want. Below are some industry tips to ensure your dental office stands out, not only to your current patients, but to any prospective ones that may be doing their research.

Before we dive into the tricks of the trade, let’s go over why a professional brand is essential for the success and recognition of your dental marketing strategy.

  • Branding reduces the implied risk a potential patient faces when choosing new businesses to invest their time or money in. We know that when a dental practice is strongly branded, they have invested plenty of energy, resources, and time into doing so, and will therefore deliver effective results with their services.
  • Branding also builds credibility for your dental office, which creates trust between the members of your team, and new and existing patients. With a strong brand that has proven to deliver good service, you typically know you’re in good hands, and your staff feels proud to be a part of such a functional, effective team.
  • People will pay more for a brand. Brands are a symbol of status, especially if the brand is well known – if the word gets out about the great services you have to offer, becoming a patient will be naturally desired.

Now that we’ve refreshed ourselves on the benefits of communicating your brand, let’s discuss how to go about effectively branding your dental office to attract the clientele you want, and how to maintain what you already have with a great brand promise.

 

Create a Logo That Clearly Reflects Your Values

This may seem obvious, but creating a high quality, detailed logo with strong graphic design that’s reflective of your dental office’s mission statement, and the clientele you want to reach, will send a strong, clear message to your prospective clients.

Your dental office will be recognized by the said logo, so make it your own, make it unique, and make it specific. Who are you trying to reach with your brand? Who is your target demographic? What image do you want to represent what your dentist office does, and how do you want this represented? These are all things to take into consideration during the design process, and will display strong brand management.

Are you trying to reach young patients that may be scared of the dentist? Try a positive, almost cartoon-like graphic to convey to parents that you’re focused on pediatrics, and to the young patients that there’s nothing to be afraid of.

Have you grown tired of the molar graphic that has become infamous with old and new dental offices? If you are, you’re most likely not alone in this – the graphic is played out and symbolizes a removed tooth, something that can be directly associated with pain and discomfort. Our advice would be to avoid the graphic altogether; even oral surgeons in the business of pulling teeth have discarded this logo.

To put it simply, if you’re a family or general dental practice, you’ll want to create a logo reflective of family and care. If you’re an oral surgeon, you’ll want to choose something reflective of your mission statement, without appearing harsh and sterile.

 

Choose a Location That Will Cater To Your Target Demographic

Your location should be suited to the clientele you’re trying to reach, and if not perfectly tailored to them, at least easily accessible. If your desired clients are families with young children, you may want to consider a location in proximity to suburban areas or schools.

If your dentist office is targeting a quieter, more professional atmosphere, you may consider options downtown, or in business parks within your city for working teenagers and adults to easily access. When in these areas you can establish a local presence by delivering flyers or pamphlets to schools, businesses, corporations and restaurants, even doorsteps, to let them know you’re there and ready to help them.

These small advertising campaigns help to boost awareness for your dental office to those that may not currently be searching and is just one of many dental marketing ideas that will get more local recognition.

 

 Deliver a Consistent Patient Experience

If your brand makes a promise to deliver on something, it must do so to keep your brand message strong – promising one thing and doing another will have a negative impact on the way your patients perceive your brand and will render your branding efforts an expensive mistake.

Do you promise short wait times, free consultations, the acceptance of multiple forms of insurance, a child-friendly/oriented environment? Whatever it is that you encourage your patients to expect from you should be properly implemented so as not to disappoint, and to keep your brand strong, and memorable.

 

Select a Color Scheme That Ties into Your Logo and Overall Theme

As with most primary care offices, you’ll want to select a few colours for your dental office that are both calming to patients, and visually appealing. Select 2-3 colours that complement each other and utilize them in your logo, throughout your office, in your technology, and wherever else you see fit. Ensure you use them enough for them to be recognized, while still leaving white space as not to overwhelm.

Sticking to a consistent colour scheme will help with recognition while making your dentist’s office a warm, welcoming environment for your patients to feel comfortable in.

Due to the nature of the profession, you may want to stray from using hot colours in the office and logo design, such as reds or oranges. In addition to this, using too much white throughout the office will reflect the sterile environment of a hospital, which will do little to ease patient anxiety.

 

Encourage Your Patients to Write Testimonials

With most turning to the convenience of online searches to research your dental office to determine if it is a proper fit, you’ll want a strong, credible online presence.

If you have loyal clients you know are satisfied with your services, it doesn’t hurt to reach out to them to ask them to leave a quick, positive review. These can add a lot of value to your dental website! Online reviews are also very effective with local people in the community and establish even more credibility for your business if someone recognizes their neighbour, friend, or family posting positively about your dental office. Word of mouth goes a long way!

Having reviews goes hand in hand with digital marketing – if your social media, website and other platforms have positive content, that’s positive exposure you didn’t pay a cent for, and may even attract new clients with little to no effort on your part.

 

What is the Competition Up to?

Branding is all about the act of standing out, and defining your brand – mimicking the methods, products or services, logo, or colours of any local competition can cause brand confusion for your patients, or give the wrong impression that all the practices available to them are all the same, so it doesn’t matter which one they choose for their dental needs. You’ll want to be easily identifiable when potential patients are looking for what best suits their needs in their area.

When researching your competition, you’ll want to look into a few key points that will help you differentiate yourself, and touch on any areas they may be lacking in. You’ll want to look at:

  • What services you offer that your competitors don’t
  • What sets you apart – is it a convenient location, the experience of your dentists?
  • What the most common imagery and branding techniques are that your competition uses so you know to stray from them, and create something great of the complete opposite

Setting yourself far apart from anything other practices are doing will ensure you’re offering something unique to your patients, allowing them the opportunity to make an educated decision about who they think the best practice for their needs is – if you fit the bill, all you have to do is deliver!

 

Create Something Universal

Fabricating a message that patients of all genders, ages and demographics can feel properly represented by will send a very positive, inclusive message to your patients. You want to be specific enough to your services and goals that everyone knows what you stand for, but not specific to the point of discouraging any potential patients from reaching out.

Be relatable, approachable, and make everyone feel welcome. Think of creating a brand story that everyone can relate to in one way or another, a story that reflects your core values, but brings your dental clinic closer to your desired demographic.

These are just a few ways to get you started on successfully branding your dental office – remember that the point of creating and establishing your brand is to stay consistent with your goals, values, what will attract new patients, and what will satisfy your current ones.