For businesses that haven’t built the same kind of reputation as say, Lamborghini, it can take a certain amount of positive reviews and interactions before a large volume of customers start trusting the practice based on their reputation alone.
But with a steady flow of recent, positive reviews, your practice may be more likely to appear in search results when people look for dentists in their area. That means more people will see your practice listed in their search results. And they will be more likely to see your reviews and read all the positive — and recent — things your patients have to say about you.
That combination of search engine optimization and recent, positive reviews keeps your reputation marketing engine running smoothly.
As more people find you, more people see your reviews. As more people see your reviews, more people trust you and give you a chance. As more people give you a chance, more people get the same positive experience as the patients whose reviews attracted them to your practice in the first place. And when you ask these patients to share a review as well, the cycle continues.
But to build, fuel, and tune up your reputation marketing engine, you need to be both proactive and responsive with your patients and your practice.
Proactively Fueling Your Reputation Marketing Engine
Implant practices that commit to proactivity instead of reactivity with collecting reviews have much better success when improving their reputation in the market. Many businesses don’t think twice about their reputation until some kind of crisis occurs. Then they have to do damage control.
Other businesses proactively build their reputation, and because they care about the way their customers view them, they also practice business with integrity. More often than not, businesses proactive about reputation avoid crises altogether.
Have A System In Place For Asking EVERY Patient For Feedback.
One proactive method to improve your practice’s reputation is to ask for reviews and testimonials rather than merely waiting for them. That’s why the first three steps of the simple reputation marketing plan are so important.
Asking every patient for feedback and adjusting your practice in response to constructive criticism that reveals inconsistencies between your vision and the reality of your practice helps ensure mistakes are uncovered quickly. And when mistakes are uncovered quickly, your chances of receiving a bad review go down drastically. That’s because, if you change whatever’s inconsistent with your vision, only one patient will have that poor experience at your practice.
Asking every patient for feedback is easy to do using software like BirdEye, which automates much of the process for you.
Being Responsive to Online Feedback Helps Give Your Reputation Marketing Engine Much-Needed Tune-Ups
When you ask patients for feedback, you will receive lots of positive responses. Take screenshots of positive reviews left on Google, Yelp!, and other websites. Then showcase them on your practice website and share them on your social channels to celebrate and thank your happy patients.
While most of your reviews will likely be positive, you will also encounter negative reviews. While that might seem negative, implant practices should embrace and address any negative reviews in a timely fashion. When a dissatisfied patient leaves a negative review, avoid reacting emotionally. Instead, thank the patient for their feedback and let them know you will take action to improve patient experience based on feedback.
If someone leaves a bad review, avoid replying emotionally, especially if it would violate HIPAA to do so. Instead, contact the patient over the phone to discuss their concern. That will often cause them to update their review, sometimes even changing the review to a positive one. In fact, when an implant practice changes positively in response to negative feedback, they can turn some dissatisfied patients into brand advocates.
When A Dissatisfied Patient Leaves A Negative Review, Avoid Reacting Emotionally. Instead, Thank The Patient For Their Feedback And Let Them Know You Will Take Action To Improve Patient Experience Based On Feedback.
If you do want to reply to the review, keep it short and sweet. Thank them for leaving the feedback and let them know you will reach out to better understand their concern so you can help achieve a positive result. Remember when responding to a review that your response will be more important to other people than the reviewer. Thus, before you upload the response, ask yourself whether a potential patient would be more likely or less likely to want you as their dentist if they read the response. Ask a colleague or team member the same question. Many times, the best response to a negative review is no response at all, at least not online.
As you build your reputation marketing engine, having an experienced team by your side can make all the difference in the world. At Driven Dental Implant Marketing, we have the expert care you need to attract a steady flow of high-quality implant patients that match the reputation you want to build for your practice. To get started, schedule a free strategy call with us, today.