When designing a website it is important to identify its purpose, it’s not good enough to create a website because one is required and everyone has one. If a dental practice has been running since before the advent of the web it may be a logical question to ask if it is necessary to have a website. Like everything else in business, if you stand still and allow the opposition to overtake you, you will lose out on future business and stop growing and perhaps eventually even close down. There is no point in fighting progress no matter what discipline is involved, it is better to embrace the future. These days good dental websites are considered essential to enhance the credibility of a dental practice. In any practice over time patients are lost, either due to moving house or by death, so it is important to gain new patients to maintain growth. A website provides a presence and most people are now familiar with the process of searching the web for everything, including a dentist.
Let customers know and understand the practice
Unless a dental practice embarks on an expensive marketing campaign investing in brochures, pamphlets and mailing lists which all take time and money, it can be difficult to attract the volume of new patients required to maintain business growth. Dental websites identify a myriad of ways to attract new patients through an online presence. Publishing patient reviews is one of the best ways of showcasing the practice’s expertise and patient satisfaction.
Establishing a brand identity
More than just creating a logo, a dental practice needs to demonstrate an identity that allows patients to connect. This is what a dental practice must create to show what their core values are and what makes them different from any other dental practice. It is important to stand out so that patients are proud and confident to refer their friends and acquaintances to their dental practice.
Making a dental website attract hits
It’s all about being found on the web. Like all websites it’s important to attract as many patients as possible to find a particular web page. It may appear that by typing in a particular question or set of words a list of websites appear as if by magic. That’s where SEO comes into play SEO stands for ‘search engine optimisation’, but to the layman that means little. We all know that if a website is not on the first page of the search the searcher will probably decide to choose one of those on the first page listing. Search engines rely on crawlers to get all the information regarding all the content on the net, which is then subjected to an algorithm which in turn matches the relevant data to the searcher’s enquiry. The real art is in ensuring that the content is easily understood by the search engine. The technique of writing SEO friendly content starts with the website name.
The importance of links
To attract more patients the website must also incorporate links. Search engines are attracted to websites that use anchor links and the use of redirection. Links from credible websites enhance the information gathering process and increase the chances of an algorithm identifying a website as a hit. The copy needs to be as SEO friendly as possible so that the conversion rate optimisation can convert the content quickly and easily, making it possible to allow the website to appear on page one of a search.
