With the UK dental industry on the rise, is it time to invest in a new website design? Here’s everything you need to know.
professional and high-performing website. Learn these essential website tips to advance your dental brand.
Following a 3.5% decrease in market value between 2017 and 2022, the dentistry industry is set to increase by 14.2% in 2022.
So as the industry bounces back to pre-covid levels, a broad range of opportunities awaits forward-thinking dental practices. In particular, the possibilities of digital and a new dental website design.
What is a purpose of a website for a dental practice?
In today’s digital-first marketplace, 88% of all consumers research online before making a purchase. So, if your dental practice doesn’t have a website, you lose a large proportion of the market.
The purpose of your website is so potential consumers can find you and do their research before making a decision.
Secondly, after your online user has found your dental company, your website allows converting an ordinary user into a consumer/patient. This transition relies on your website design and relevant information quickly showing the user what they need.
Investing in a professional web development team with industry experience will ensure you add value to your consumer experience online by displaying all the relevant information they require through an easy navigational website.
After establishing a website, you can build an online presence and relationship with your patients by regularly updating important information and investing in SEO, PPC and social media campaigns.
What benefit will a website give my dental practice?
Investing in a new website for your dental practice will bring multiple benefits, including:
Increased revenue
With more users becoming aware of your business, you will generate new sales and service requests. A damning report into dentistry showed people were having to wait over three years for an appointment while others were removed from practice lists altogether.
If your dental practice can serve patients quickly, then there is an opportunity to grow your business.
Establish an online presence
For your dental practice to shine over the local competition, it must display strong and consistent branding. Treat your website as the company headquarters online by setting the standards for how you wish your business to be received.
There are so many features to utilise. All these features are facilitated or supported by your website, such as:
- Dental services and products
- Brand history and identity
- Patient reviews
- Blogs and articles
- Patient forms
- Social media
- Online chat
- News updates
A new website for your dental practice becomes the essence of your online presence. With the right web design and marketing strategy, your dental business can begin to dominate the landscape in your local area and beyond.
Inform patients and generate authority
The benefit of a website is that it doesn’t conform to opening hours like your dental practice. Instead of patients calling to ask for information, they can find out online via your website.
Informing your patients can include a ‘news and updates’ page on your website alongside blog content discussing the latest improvements to the practice in technology, staff, or facilities.
Providing patients with information gives them value and installs loyalty to your business. In dentistry, loyal patients are what keep practices ticking over.
The process of providing valuable information to your patients will also add credible content to your website and boost your online rankings across search engines.
Before submitting content to your website, take some time to conduct some SEO research. Optimising the content with relevant keywords and phrases will produce online visibility for your brand.
Patient insights
Using analytics tools will reveal consumer preferences and online behaviour. Apply these insights to your content and overall website design.
Other ways of learning about your patients include forms, questionnaires, and reviews. Making these applications accessible can help you provide a better service to your patients and improve the way your dental practice operates.
What are the disadvantages of not having a dental website?
The possibility of your dental practice not having a website is almost not worth addressing. Such disadvantages include the following issues:
- Loss of sales
- No online brand awareness
- No digital marketing
- No online information
- No organic traffic
To thrive, let alone survive, in the current economic climate, it’s paramount for any business to have an online presence.
Trust is a crucial aspect of patient-provider relations in dentistry. Can we honestly expect a new patient to trust a dental practice if they don’t have a website? Probably not.
Will a dental website generate leads?
A professional and easy navigational dental website will undoubtedly generate leads compared to a dental practice without a website. If your website showcases the quality of your business with the ideal features and necessary information in place, customers will begin to request services.
Combining a new website with a digital marketing strategy and social media campaign will steer users to the website, adding even more incentive for patients to purchase services, treatments, and products.
I already get leads through traditional methods. What will a website do?
Unlike traditional methods, a website will enter your business into the digital world. With the potential scope and reach of the internet, your business will generate far more leads than any traditional method.
Factor this with the capabilities of a marketing strategy, including SEO, PPC, and social media services. The potential for new business goes way beyond any traditional methods of lead generation.
Does my dental website need to look good?
The significance of the right aesthetics online is imperative, especially in the dental industry. Imagine your website is the online version of your physical practice. It must remain clean and professional in the same manner.
Alongside high-quality imagery and design, the essentials to include on your dental website are:
- Address and location
- Contact details
- Services
- Reviews
Online users do not waste their time. Once they make it to your site, they need to find what they seek without issues or confusion. Enable your patient to meet their needs with simple features and ‘white space’.
Too much information will spoil the online experience. Keep it clean and concise while allowing space for your user’s eyes to scan for what they need.
Other features for your website can include:
- Background information and expertise
- Appointment scheduler
- Online chat
- Blogs and articles
- Interactive map
- Feedback form
- Advanced search bar
The significance of setting a good impression with your online user is essential to gaining their trust and subsequent loyalty as a patient. With an average industry bounce rate of 70%, the competition for your user’s trust is challenging.
To get in the top 30%, ensure your website design is simple, attractive, and professional.
Should I build a dental website myself?
Unless you have website development experience, we’d highly suggest hiring a professional website development company. Cutting corners on cheap web builders will not do online impressions any favours.
Building a dental website comes with multiple complications. So, trust a specialist to do the job for you. After all, you wouldn’t let someone with no experience perform dentistry on one of your patients. Apply the same rules to website design.
Speak to an expert dental website designer in Birmingham
Now you’re aware of the importance of hiring a specialist to build your dental website, it’s time to speak to an expert dental website designer in Birmingham.
At Amay Digital, we provide dental clients across the West Midlands and beyond with bespoke WordPress website packages. Every site is built for lead generation and to enhance your online presence.
For more information, get in touch today.
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