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What is social proof and how and why does it work? Linda discusses how your dental practice can capitalize on social proof participation to grow your practice.
Linda provides dental professionals actionable marketing knowledge they can use to grow their dental practice.
Linda Mettler: using social proof is really a must for converting people, potential new patients into actual patients especially if you're utilizing digital marketing to promote your practice, so it
doesn't require a ton of work. Welcome to the Mettler Marketing Podcast where we will talk about marketing strategies and tactics to grow your practice. I am your host, Linda Mettler and I have worked
with dental practices for several years now. And I want to share my knowledge and experience with you so that you can gain valuable and actionable steps on how to grow your practice. We will talk
about the latest and greatest and marketing features some guest speakers so that you can hear firsthand what is and is not working and help you unravel the complexities of the digital marketing world.
I work really closely with my clients. So we will also delve into some other issues that affect your practice from time to time, such as staffing problems, COVID protocols and similar issues. Good
morning, everybody. Today, I want to talk to you about a buzzword that I've been seeing and hearing a lot lately. And I want to explain it to you. Because it's probably just confusing or adding
another layer to your digital marketing confusion already. And that buzz word is social proof. So we all know what social media is, of course, you know, Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, but social proof
is a buzzword that's been floating around. So I want to just take the mystery out of it and explain it to you this morning. So what is social proof? So social proof is what potential customers and new
patients use when they are trying to make a decision. And they have multiple options for a product or service. So there are multiple dental offices out there. So that potential new patient is looking
for a way to decide. So what they what most people will do is look for other people that have used that product or service. So they'll go onto Google and look for reviews, and testimonials. And they
want to know if other people have been to your office. And what their feedback is, that is called social proof is when people potential new patients are looking to the experiences of others to make a
decision on whether or not to come to your office. So that's why you see social proof all over the place. You know, testimonials, reviews, comments on your social media page. Those are all examples of
social proof. So you know, and actually that term was originally first coined back in 1984, but has just become a buzzword of late, I just keep seeing it and hearing it everywhere. But it definitely
plays a vital role in attracting new patients. So especially in the world of digital marketing. So let's talk about some different ways to increase your social proof and social awareness and how to
use it in your digital marketing. So the number one way to use it and but hands down, my recommendation is reviews and ratings. So and testimonials, and there's a little bit of a difference between
reviews and testimonials. So testimonials, you definitely want to have those from your existing patients. And they're great to put on your website, you can create an entire page of testimonials,
written testimonials from your existing patients, and have a whole page of those. And then you can also link that page or have a link on your website to reviews. And reviews are a little different
because reviews are hosted on a third party platform. So for instance, Google reviews, and you there's lots of tools out there for you to get Google reviews from your patients to get you can use
demand force. We have a link that you can text to your your patients phone and they and it goes directly to Facebook or Google Google and they can leave a review for you. A lot of patients will leave
reviews on Yelp. I'm not a huge Yelp fan. I'm more of a google google fan. But so reviews are hosted on a third party platform, but you link to them from your social media or your website and
potential new patients can see those reviews and then testimony nails are going to live on a separate page on your website, where potential new patients will see those as well.
So off site customer reviews, again, those are the ones that are on Google, Facebook, Yelp, things like that. So, you, you also want to get user generated content and testimonials. So you want to get
people to talk about your service on their social media sites. So I, you know, come up with some ways to encourage you, or maybe a contest, or maybe interacting with your current patients on your
social media sites, you know, reaching out to them, you know, telling them how great they look, encouraging them to share their smiles and their dental work with their friends on their social media
sites. That's called user generated content. So that's a great way, you know, to enhance and your social proof as well. Some offices and some other services will use influencers, for that user
generated content. So maybe, if you're an orthodontist, and you have some, some younger clients that are maybe in their 20s, or teenagers, and they, you know, have a huge following of fans on
Instagram, or Facebook or Snapchat, and you want to, you know, incentivize them because they are an influencer, in that social world. You can work with them to promote your service, you know, maybe
you've, you know, give them a discount on some veneers and in exchange for, you know, them promoting it on their social media. So that's, that's sharing your product or your service in use with some
user generated content, because that is coming from that influencers or that person's social media, not from yours. So I don't know too many offices that are really using influencers, to be honest
with you. And I actually really think it's better for you just instead of trying to buy or pay or you know, incentivizing a so called social media influencer, I think it's really better just to ask
your patients to share their smile and maybe tag you in their social media posts. You know, hey, look at my great new smile. I got these veneers from, you know, Dr. Mettler, they look how great they
look. I mean, I think that's better than using an influencer. But it's up to you. I mean, if you know somebody that's, you know, a big influencer on social media and you want to utilize them, that's
great, too. That's awesome. Basically, it's just all about using social media, and reviews and testimonials and other people's opinion of your service, to promote to promote yourself. That's really
what social social proof is about. Also, social proof. Another way to you utilize social proof is from industry experts. So if you do work with, you know, one of the big dental companies, maybe one of
the dental supply companies, maybe Burkhart, or dentsply, sirona, or shine, or Colgate or Sonicare, maybe if you can get them to tag you in their social media. And how do you do that, you start
tagging them in yours. So you when you're promoting and your social media, you start promoting their products, and giving them some shout outs, at some point, they're going to reciprocate and give you
a mention or a thank you or a shout out as well. So that's another way to use some social proof is to get some of these industry, you know, some of the bigger players in the dental industry, to
recognize you on social media, that's definitely going to get the attention of Google and of prospective new patients to do that, for sure. So you can also collaborate with other other experts. So you
know, maybe if you're a general dentist, and you do a lot of referrals to an endodontist you should be tagging each other on social media, and, you know, working together to collaborate and create
some social proof and some social media around both of your practices to you know, create that buzz and, and get more prospective new patients. So, but yeah, basically, social proof is just all about
giving people a reason to choose your business, over another business or your office over another office. You know, so don't overlook social proof. Don't overlook the power of reviews and
testimonials. Don't forget to tag other experts and other authors. says that you refer and work with, because that's all going to build your social proof. So don't forget to do that,
you know, and utilize it. And it's really a must, using social proof is really a must for converting people, potential new patients into actual new patients, especially if you're utilizing digital
marketing to promote your, your practice. So it doesn't require a ton of work. It just requires, you know, a little bit of effort, you know, rather than just, you know, being on your Facebook page,
and, you know, putting out content and pictures all the time just, it's really just about reaching out and interacting with those industry experts and getting more reviews and testimonials from your
existing patients. So give that a try. You know, integrate that into your social marketing and your digital marketing and let's see what happens and hopefully get more brand awareness and more new
patients. So if you have any questions as always, feel free to reach out, give me a call. message me, Look, look me up on my website, lots of ways to reach me. I'm always here to help. And remember
that making a great having a great day is a choice and I want you to make the right one. So instead of going out and having a great day, I want you to go out and make it a great day.
Ed Bejarana: Are you committed to the growth of your practice Mettler marketing can help at medtner marketing. We help dental practices gain new patients increase referrals and maximize patient
retention with customized Marketing Solutions tailored to fit your needs. Visit www dot medtner marketing.com to schedule a free consultation and learn how we can help grow your practice. Thank you
for tuning in to the Mettler Marketing Podcast. Please share this episode with your friends and colleagues. If you would like to be a guest on our show, visit Mettler marketing.com and drop us a note.
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