While it is possible to market your practice completely on your own, some practices prefer to partner with one or more marketing consultants. Any dental practice that decides to hire outside partners should regularly receive detailed reports that may be available either as an online dashboard that’s easily accessible anytime or as a written report that’s provided monthly via email. Your external marketing representative should provide you with detailed information about:
- Number of impressions, or the number of times your content is displayed
- Number of interaction/clicks, or two-way communication, and use of the links you share
- Number of calls generated by the campaign
- Number of callers who scheduled appointments*
- Number of callers who kept appointments and accepted recommended treatment plans*
- Return on Investment (ROI) on the money invested in the campaign
- Recommendations for improving the marketing plan
Reputable marketing partners provide complete access to data collected on your campaign; some even offer 24/7 online access to those metrics. A marketing partner should also give you resources, like your logo and font treatment, so all digital and print materials have a consistent look and image.
If you decide to keep your marketing in-house, be realistic about how much time you and your staff can dedicate to developing a campaign and managing and tracking the effectiveness of different elements. Also consider whether the team member assisting you is interested in this type of responsibility and whether they have relevant knowledge, training, or expertise.
If your staff doesn’t have the time or expertise available to properly manage your marketing efforts, consider hiring a college student or intern on a part-time basis to coordinate these activities in consultation with your marketing consultant(s). Anyone involved in marketing your practice should have a complete understanding of your practice and how it operates so they can accurately and effectively represent you and your practice to your marketing partners as well as your current and prospective patients.
*It’s possible that your practice might need to provide its marketing partner with data regarding the number of callers who schedule appointments and the number of callers who kept their appointments and accepted the recommended treatment plans since that information may not be available unless it’s provided by your office. Keep in mind that your marketing reports will be more accurate and comprehensive if you and your team collaborate with them so one, comprehensive report can be compiled.