by George J. Newton
In the dental industry, you’ll need to announce your services to consumers more than just via word of mouth—no pun intended. While working to provide great smiles is essential for a dentist, it’s sometimes not enough to settle for bare-bones marketing. Marketing is becoming more and more digital, so your dental practice should accommodate your many consumers who now rely on technology to learn about new things and new services.
One aspect of marketing that has stood the test of time is photography. These days, photography integrates well with digital marketing so that your overall marketing efforts are more modern and reliable for your practice.
What role does photography play in dental marketing?
“Photography is essential to any form of marketing, especially in the dental industry,” says Jonathan Wilder, a recruiter at Britstudent and Write My X. “When it comes to branding, photography helps you and your dental practice stand out. In this way, your patients will not only recognize you better but, if you provide them with excellent service, they’ll also recommend you to others looking for a good dentist. Plus, photography can make your dental website pop, along with your social media platforms. Therefore, when thinking about your dental branding, photography is essential.”
What makes a dental website reputable?
Dental professionals know that dental anxiety is common—did you know that affects approximately 36% of the population?1 In fact, the US National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) suggests that an additional 12% of people have extreme fears of going to the dentist. That’s why potential patients want reassurance that a dentist can improve their smiles in the best ways possible.
To that end, people want to know the following about your dental practice:
- Your treatment options
- Case studies
- Legitimate patient testimonials and reviews
- A portfolio of your dental work
With that portfolio, you’ll need to provide images of your work, such as:
- Cavity fixings
- Dentures
- Emergency tooth procedures
- Fillings
- Implants
- Veneers
- Whitening procedures
- X-rays from case studies, etc.
By using photography (versus solely using generic photos from the web), especially in your portfolio, you'll make your website more reputable.
How to build consumer trust with photography
“The primary rule of building trust with photography is to stay clear of being generic,” says Jake Luther, a business writer at Originwritings and 1day2write. “In other words, you don’t want to copy from your competitors in the dental industry. If you want to take inspiration from said competitors, then that’s okay. However, if you opt for generic imagery, then that will dampen your chances of gaining trust from consumers.”
One of the best ways to get your dental photography out into the world is through social media. From Facebook to Instagram to other popular platforms, social media is abundant with publicity opportunities and marketing campaigns.
However, there’s a catch: Your images must look really good to your users. In other words, high-quality photos with catchy captions sell. Plus, when accompanied by relevant hashtags—say, #dentistry, #smile, etc.—your photos will garner more traction from online users.
“People want to see quality in the photos that they see online,” adds Luther. “So, investing in a good camera and photo editing software can do wonders for your website, when you display your works for online users. Especially since search engine algorithms are changing all the time, photos with the most traction and the right keywords in their captions will get pushed up the search results.”
Photography can truly do wonders for your dental website. If you’re looking to garner a fantastic reputation for your dental practice in the digital realm, then consider using photography to your advantage. High-quality photography can take your marketing efforts to the next level, make your dental website reputable—and most important, help establish trust from consumers who might be apprehensive about dentistry.
Reference
1. Beaton L., Freeman R., Humphris G. Why are people afraid of the dentist? Observations and explanations. 2013. Med princ prac. doi: 10.1159/000357223
George J. Newton is a business development manager and content writer for Research Paper Writing Services and PhD Kingdom. He also contributes his work to websites such as Buy Coursework.
