Five tips on how to make you practice website a valuable business asset

1. Always build with your practice with business goals in mind

Designing a dental practice website and knowing where to start and where to go could be a daunting task. The simple approach is to focus on business objectives, as this will provide a clear direction for your website’s existence.

While multiple purposes can exist, choosing a primary one that aligns with your overall long-term business strategy ensures that your website works to achieve your long-term goals. For a dental practice, this could be anything from booking appointments and showcasing your team’s expertise to offering discounts on specific treatments. Secondary purposes will coexist.

Potential dental practice objectives:

• Attracting new patients - by providing helpful information and showcasing the practice’s expertise and professionalism.
• Creating mailing lists of prospects for specific dental treatments.
• Increasing visibility and credibility - a well-designed website with high-quality content can help a dental practice establish itself as a reputable and trustworthy provider of dental services.
• Allow for online appointment booking - dental practices can make it easier for patients to book appointments and improve their overall customer experience; some patient management software providers offer this functionality for their systems;
• Enhancing communication - ask questions, raise concerns, or give feedback, and all receive prompt responses;
• Staff recruitment;
• Allow targeted referral from dentists; 
• Promote events for patients or refer dentists;
• Selling courses to fellow dentists;
• Help patients with their treatment payments.
• Download free dental health guides;
• Provide the ability for users to buy vouchers for friends and family.

2. Always tell the website user what to do next - the call to action

Choosing a compelling call to action is one of the most critical aspects of designing a website. This call to action should reflect the main objective and be placed throughout the website to maximise its impact. 

The psychology behind a “Call to Action” (CTA) on a website involves using persuasive language and design elements to encourage visitors to take a specific action, such as making a payment or filling out a form.

Several psychological principles can be used to create effective CTAs:

1. Urgency: Urgency is a powerful motivator that can drive visitors to take action. CTAs that convey a sense of urgency, such as “Limited Time Offer” or “Act Now”, can create a sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) and encourage visitors to take action quickly.
2. Social Proof: Social proof is the idea that people are more likely to act if they see others doing it. CTAs that leverage social proof, such as “Join the thousands of satisfied customers” or “See what our customers are saying”, can create a sense of trust and credibility that encourages visitors to take action.
3. Benefits: CTAs that focus on the benefits of taking action, such as “Save time and money” or “Get instant access”, can be more effective than CTAs that ask visitors to take action. By highlighting the benefits, visitors can see the value of effort and be more motivated.
4. Clarity: CTAs should be clear and straightforward, using simple language and design elements that make it easy for visitors to understand what action they need to take. The CTA should communicate what activity the visitor is expected to take and what they can expect to gain from taking that action. Confusing or vague CTAs can create uncertainty and reduce the likelihood of visitors taking action.
5. Placement: CTAs prominently displayed, such as in the header or above the fold, are more likely to be seen and clicked on than CTAs that are buried in the footer or on a secondary page.

And let’s be honest; no one wants a website that’s all bark and no bite. So, you can choose your call to act wisely and watch your patient base grow.

3. Understand the type of users of your website

The types of users that visit a dental practice website can vary but typically fall into the following categories:

1. Prospective patients - these are people who are looking for a new dental practice and are interested in learning more about the practice’s services, staff, and facilities. They may be searching for a specific type of dental care, such as orthodontics or cosmetic dentistry, or may simply be looking for a dental practice that is convenient and trustworthy.
2. Current patients - these are people already receiving dental care from the practice. They may visit the website to schedule appointments, access post-op instructions, make a payment or want to bring in their friends or family.
3. Referring dentists - other dental professionals that refer their patients to the practice for specialised services or consultations. They may visit the website to learn more about the practice’s areas of expertise and facilities and access referral forms or other resources ( training, webinars or mentoring ).
4. Future associates or staff - are people who are interested in working for the dental practice and may visit the website to learn about job openings, employee benefits, and the practice’s culture and values.
5. Researchers - these are people who are interested in dental health and may visit the website to learn about the latest research and trends in the field. They may also be interested in learning about the practice’s approach to dental care and its use of innovative technologies and techniques.

For a comprehensive list or website visitors groups please visit "The 11 types of visitors for your dental practice website" article.

4. Provide your website users with what they want without having them thinking

Steve Krug, a usability expert and author of the book “Don’t Make Me Think”, recommends designing websites that are easy to use and understand so that users can quickly find the information they need without thinking too hard. Here are some tips on how to give dental practice website users what they want, as recommended by Steve Krug:

1. Please keep it simple.
2. Use clear and descriptive headings and labels for each section of the website so that users can quickly scan the page and find the information they seek.
3. Ensure that the website prominently displays the practice’s contact information, including phone number, email address, and physical address. Users should be able to find this information easily.
4. Anticipate users’ questions about the dental practice and its services, and provide clear and concise answers on the website. This can help reduce users’ need to contact the course for more information, reducing the reception workload.
5. Use visual cues, icons or images to help users understand the website’s content and access the needed information. For example, use a tooth icon to indicate information about dental services or an arrow icon to indicate a link to a new page or section.

Overall, the key to giving dental practice website users what they want is to design a website that is easy to use, easy to understand, and provides clear and concise information. By following these tips, you can create a website that meets the needs of your users and encourages them to take action.

5. Integrate the website with business operations.

1. Appointment scheduling, medical history update, billing and payment processing, marketing and human resources.
2. Please ensure that all staff understands the website’s functions and that they promote it to the patients.
3. Measure website performance;
4. Link the website with the practice’s social media channels;
5. Improve the website as per users’ and patients’ feedback.

Are you building a business asset?

If your website is built around aesthetics and personal ego, it will not be a business asset. Some might find this statement brutal, but it is the truth. 

When designing a website or improving on one, start by thinking about the struggles of your practice and then find designers that would help you integrate solutions into the website that tackle those struggles. A practice website can only solve some problems and can alleviate others. Use your imagination and ask for your web designer’s advice and help!

Read more such articles or invest in the ultimate dental practice website launch checklist to save hustle and always get a business asset and not just a website.