It's All About the Words!

As dental practitioners, you are often at a loss to understand why the words in your new and current patient communications aren't getting a better response.   Although an offer can fail for many reasons, it is recommended that you look first to the words used in your marketing communication.

Why? Because even if you reach the right target audience, if your message doesn't connect with them, you won't get much payoff from that exposure. Once your words really speak to new and current patients, you'll get more "bang for your buck" from more marketing pieces.

Here are 5 things you (or your agency) can do to maximize your effectiveness in marketing communications:

1. Have a Clear Focus for What You are Offering.

When you aren't clear on the ultimate outcome that is being delivered by your new service or procedure, you sometimes try offering every dental service under the sun.   There are so many different ideas included, the reader's brain can't wrap around them all. There's no central theme or image on which they can focus to understand what is being offered. Instead of thinking, "Wow! I'd get a lot from this experience," they walk away thinking, "I'm confused."  An example of a focused offering could read:

A Sparkling Smile for Everyone

Natural tooth color varies from person to person, from white to yellow or gray-looking even when teeth are new.  Teeth discolor with age.  They can be stained by food or by drinks like coffee, tea, or red wine.  Smoking stains the teeth.  And teeth can stain under the surface due to certain antibiotics or minute cracks which take up stains.  Your teeth may now be dull or stained, but regardless of the cause, Dr. Jones can brighten your smile with teeth whitening procedures that are gentle, proven, safe, and fast.  Call our office today.  Let our beautiful, bright results make your smile sparkle!

2. Include Verbal Markers that Say "I am talking directly to you!"

When we try to be a fit for everybody, we end up being a fit for nobody. Even when we think we believe in the law of attraction, our words often reflect our indecision or confusion about whom we want to reach. There should be concrete "identifiers" in your copy. By identifiers, I mean phrases like "as a working mom," "as a business owner," "as a Baby Boomer," These concrete markers confirm for the audience that your marketing communication was written for them.

3. Include Insights into Your Audience's Struggle

It's no longer enough to let your audience know that you feel their pain. You have to quickly demonstrate that you have valuable insight into that pain and products and/or services that can help. That gives them hope that what you are offering isn't the same old tired solutions that they've heard of before.   An example of this copy could be:

Porcelain Veneers for a Perfect-Looking Smile

Do you hide your smile due to crooked, widely spaced or stained teeth?  Porcelain veneers are strong, thin sections of porcelain which fit over the outer, visible surface of the teeth.  They can correct stained or discolored teeth, repair chips and cracks, close gaps, and give a straightened appearance to crooked teeth.  Speak with our office - veneers should be the perfect fit to give you a smile you want to share with everyone.

4. A Visible Plan for Delivering on Your Promise

Once you've shown that you know your audience, and you have a dental solution to offer them, the communication shifts. Your reader is no longer asking, "Am I interested?" She is asking, "Do I believe this person can deliver on what they are promising?"

Testimonials are one way to establish credibility, but what testimonials don't do is create a picture for your audience that leads them step by step to the solution you've promised. When the way you deliver the promised result is a mystery, you're asking people to take a big leap of faith. When you describe your logic, process, or philosophy in a limited number of steps, your audience can see how your steps or ingredients add up to the outcome you are promising.

For example, if you are offering an exciting new bad breath solution you can describe with simple bullet points the actual steps the patient will undergo to achieve their results.  This offers the reader an understanding of the process and immediately allows them to believe more strongly that you can deliver.

5. Let your words carry your passion and energy

Your readers can sense if you are writing from a place of excitement about the product, service, or procedure you offer or from a place of caution and ambivalence.  Let your words carry your passion and whole-hearted energy. The more you select words and phrases that stir the readers' soul and spark their interest in what you're offering, the greater your success will be.  Some examples of copy which incorporates your own excitement are:  

Dental Implants

Restore Your Smile - Renew Your Self-Confidence

Of all dental technology to date, dental implants are the closest thing to natural dentition available.  If you have suffered the loss of one or more teeth due to decay, injury, or disease, you may be candidate for dental implants.  Health more than age is a determining factor in regard to placement. If your health will allow you to have a tooth extracted, it is probably sufficient for you to receive implants. 

Besides offering outstanding appearance, implants give a natural-feeling comfort; an enhanced ability to chew and enjoy your food; allow you to speak with confidence; and provide support and protection for any remaining teeth and for your jawbone.  With so many benefits, dental implants offer near-perfect tooth replacement in every way. 

Please don't suffer any longer with the discomfort, embarrassment and health consequences associated with missing teeth.  Call our office today for a free evaluation.  With dental implants, we're restoring smiles and renewing lives!

                                                                                Invisalign®                                                                                       Your "Clear" Alternative to Braces

Love straight teeth but hate the look of braces?

Invisalign tooth aligners are clear medical grade acrylic and have a shape similar to tooth whitening trays.  Each aligner is worn for approximately two weeks and is then replaced by the next aligner in the series, moving your teeth incrementally until the final desired positioning is achieved.

Unlike traditional braces, Invisalign aligners are free of metal.  And they can be removed when eating meals and cleaning your teeth for greater comfort and improved home oral care. 

Dr. Brown uses a 3-D computer to prepare your treatment plan and from this imaging your series of clear, custom-made aligners is produced.  You will view your own computer-generated virtual treatment plan before you begin, enabling you to see what your straightened results will look like!

Because Invisalign® is virtually invisible, no one has to know you're straightening your teeth unless you tell them!  Call our office today and learn if Invisalign is right for you. 

Ready to join? Sign up for your PREMIUM MEMBERSHIP today.