In my last post on SEO and Google, we talked about the first two steps to get found online by the people who need you most – those in your community. We went over the age, authority, and quality of your website. Not to mention the importance of staking your claim in all of the directories.

At this point, you’ve got a secure, responsive website and hundreds of citations of extremely consistent NAP data. Now what?

With the first two steps completed, search engines need proof that you exist and that you’re worth recommending to their users. How does this happen?

Local SEO Domination in Dentistry

Step 3: Social Engagement and Reviews

Consistency in social media is key. If you’re never going to tweet, don’t get a twitter account. You need to be active where your patients are active. For most of us, that’s going to be Facebook, Instagram, Google, and Yelp.

Pediatric and orthodontic offices should strongly consider putting content out on Musical.ly and Snapchat.  Twitter and LinkedIn are wonderful for connecting with other professionals. Participate in conversations on social media and search engines will know you’re a real live business.

They don’t, however, have any idea how good you are until you get reviews. Again, consistency is key. Don’t get too hung up on volume.

A consistent stream of reviews, as little as one per week, will do better than a brief campaign that produces the same end volume in a month’s time and quits. Native reviews direct to sites like Google, Yelp, etc. have more weight than those acquired by aggregation software like DemandForce, SolutionReach, or RateABiz.

Also, because of geo-location enabled devices, you can look forward to reviews written away from the office being ranked higher. Ask for them consistently, especially when a patient offers a compliment, and you will see results.

Step 4: Go Forth and Create!

The last step is simple but probably the hardest. Be active!

Build your library of content, whether it’s in the form of blog posts, podcasts, or vlogs. Steady streams of updates send the signal that you are a living breathing organization that deserves to be noticed and recommended.

Always keep the subject focused on what benefits your patients experience. I like to divide my content in equal parts – personal interests, professional interests, office updates, industry updates, and local news. This simple post I wrote in 2017 on conservative dental therapies gets as many views as our “about us” page.

Now go and share with the world how awesome you are and crush the competition while doing it!

Gone are the days of feeling good that everyone in your community can find you because you paid a single fee for an ad in the yellow pages.  

Today, you need your dental practice to be visible when people in your area are looking for services like yours. More and more people are using their phones and computers to do this.