5 Ways Dentists Can Save Time & Maintain Quality In Social Media Marketing

Are you and your team stretched to capacity? Are you carrying full loads, wearing multiple hats, or looking to replace team members? When schedules get tight, marketing and patient relationships can fall by the wayside. This is dangerous for business because the day will eventually arrive when you need patient flow. The best way to ensure your patient flow and production remain consistent is to keep up with essential marketing and patient communication strategies.

Social media has moved from the nice-to-have category to the must-have category. It’s crucial in helping to maintain visibility with existing patients and create connections with potential new patients. There’s an old adage to tell your partner you love them before someone else does and the same applies to your existing patients. Keeping your name and face in front of patients and growing relationships helps to ensure patients will remain loyal. 

Here are five things dentists can do to save time on their social media marketing, while maintaining or enhancing quality:

1. Plan and schedule content in advance

In talking with dentists, I estimate only 30% of practices are planning and scheduling content in advance. This means there are a large majority of dentists not using this time-saving, not to mention strategic, technique. Instead of posting content on the fly, create a social media content calendar and plan your posts in advance. This allows you to allocate specific time slots for content creation, ensuring consistent posting and saving time in the long run. You can use social media management tools like Facebook’s Business Manager, Hootsuite, Buffer, or even better, our Connect90 program to schedule your posts in advance across multiple platforms.

2. Focus on the right platforms 

Not all social media platforms are equally effective for every practice. Identify the platforms where your target audience is most active and engage with them there. By focusing on a select few platforms, you can avoid spreading yourself too thin and dedicate your time and resources where they will have the most impact. For most dentists the most important platforms are Facebook, Instagram, and Google Business. While Google Business is not a social network, it’s a platform where you can post content which is a great opportunity to take advantage of. Patients who find you via your Google profile, where your map and reviews live, will then be able to peruse your content and get to know you better. 

3. Batch photo taking and repurpose content 

Some dental teams struggle getting photos for their social media. In just 15 minutes you can take a variety of photos that you can use for future posts. Block 15 minutes of time after your next team meeting to take a batch of photos (and short video clips while you’re at it). Let your team know in advance so everyone shows up camera ready. You can then take a variety of candid looking photos to use in the future. Repurposing content involves using some photos again. You can use tools like Canva to remove backgrounds, or add frames or graphics to make the photos look fresh. By repurposing content, you can maximize its reach without starting from scratch each time, saving valuable time and effort. Be careful not to use the exact same photos too many times as it will lose engagement with overuse. 

4. Implement social media marketing strategies  

You might think implementing strategies will take even more time. The truth is that creating a monthly strategy is one of the best ways to save time. Assuming you are using a content calendar and scheduling tool, each month you can plan out your content for the month ahead. Use an 80/20 guideline for approximately 80% of content to be social and 20% can be more promotional. Dentists can also share with their team which procedures they want to do more of, which treatments they enjoy, or what they want to be known for. Imagine a team member spending valuable time creating and posting content that is not in alignment with your business goals. A detailed strategy will help your content creator save time, and it will also produce better results for you!

5. Enlist outside help

Some dentists are under the impression that no one can do social media as well as it can be done internally. Whether you are outsourcing or managing internally, what is essential is using your own photos and video in your content. It’s also important that the dentist communicate what their goals are. As mentioned earlier, there is no bigger time waster than creating content that doesn’t support your goals. One method we’ve found extremely successful in saving teams time and providing tools, support, and curated content is our Connect90 program. It’s everything a dentist needs to be successful, while most importantly allowing teams to use their own photos and videos to personalize their content. Most teams in our Connect90 program spend about 60 to 90 minutes per month to create their personalized social media marketing strategy.

Remember, while these recommendations can save time, it’s important to strike a balance and not compromise the quality of your social media efforts. Many patients today see your social media presence as a reflection of your practice quality. 

Social media is a valuable opportunity to establish and grow trust with patients so they are more likely to convert and remain loyal. I hope you’re able to allocate enough resources to maintain a strong social media presence for your practice. If not, reach out to us to discuss options. A healthy online presence will continue to plant new patient seeds for you and will keep that vital flow of referrals coming in as well.

Learn about our Connect90 social media program designed to save time and help dentists get better results, here.