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Online Tutorials
Last week I told you a little bit about Twitter and why I don't think it's an appropriate avenue for a dental marketing campaign. That article raised some interesting issues that I'd like to discuss further.
First of all, if you want to use Twitter for dental purposes, use it with your peers. Stay up-to-date with your study group. Ask other dentists if they've used a piece of equipment, encountered a pathology, ordered from a particular dental lab, etc.
This touches on an important issue: online identity management. The first people to really become aware of this issue were college students on Facebook whose professors started using the social networking site to stay in touch with their students. Kids quickly realized that though they might want to share the photos of last night's kegger with their friends, they didn't want their profs to see them.
As a dentist, you're in a similar position. Before you sign up for an account with Facebook, Twitter or any of their ilk, you should consider who your audience will be. Your patients? Your dental peers? Your personal friends and family? You have three different identities, and you won't do yourself any favors by muddling them.
| Consider which audience cares about what | |||
| Patients | Professional Peers | Friends & Family | |
| Discounts? | They want to know | they don't care | they don't care |
| Scientific issues? | they don't care | They want to know | they don't care |
| Your personal life? | they don't care | they don't care | They want to know |
I thought this dentist's comment was right on the money:
"Have you ever considered that our patients may actually rather not think of us on a daily basis? They have other concerns in their lives, and let’s not kid ourselves. We’re only their dentists.
"I agree with Jim. I don’t think Twitter has a future in promoting one’s practice in the traditional blast-marketing sense."
He goes on to explain that he uses Twitter for demanding answers from stingy administrators, blasting self-interested CEOs, and the like. He's using it to try to get his voice heard, not to appeal to potential new patients.
"Here’s what’s neat. My patients have no idea about my nasty alter ego. And should they find out, who cares? They’d probably join others in cheering me on as I do my part to clean up the community by sending PR types and dental consultants on down the road."
On the other hand, another commenter felt that Twitter was a natural choice for dental marketing:
"I think all of you are missing the point regarding social networking and dentistry. It is not about getting new patients per se; it about keeping a presence on the web without paying an arm and a leg.
"For example, Madow Bros. have a public profile on Facebook. Align Tech (Invisalign) has a pubic profile on Facebook. These companies and dentists would not be doing this if it did not work…
"In marketing a practice, this is the most cost-effective way to direct patients to your website. The internet is the New Yellow Pages."
Well… the Internet may be the new phone book, but a local dental practice isn't the same as Invisalign. The same marketing techniques that work for the big guys won't necessarily work for your practice. Lots of major companies have set up headquarters in the online universe of Second Life, but that doesn't mean your dental practice should too!
One dentist dental marketer who's an expert in dental SEO shared his experience with Twitter:
"From my own experience, after nearly a thousand posts (updates) and 1600+ followers, Twitter has resulted in only one client. The total time invested to achieve the above was several hundred hours, which means it was an absolute failure, a ROI disaster and a BIG waste of my time. Compared to search engine traffic, visitors referred by Twitter are not pre-qualified, highly targeted prospects interested in my offer, but only mindless curiosity seekers. At least 50% of the clicks originate from other countries too."
Like I said last week — it's all about the ROI. If you want to waste some time and have some fun, then Tweet away. But if you want to spend your energy where it will be most profitable to your practice, then you might look elsewhere.
Post a comment
July 1st, 2009 at 12:20 am
An honest mistake, Jim — though to be correct, I’m not a dentist.
Your last quoted comment (above) was mine and indeed it was sincere.
I have since connected my site’s blog to Twitter, so instead of wasting time there, now whenever I post to my blog it auto posts a snippet and link to Twitter too.
Even still, I stay so darn busy with client projects that I have little opportunity to post more to my own blog. I dare say I may never be the prolific blogger, Jim Du Molin!
John Barremore
Houston, TX
July 1st, 2009 at 6:47 am
While I don’t tweet for our practice, my experience is in Facebook. However, the only benefit that I’ve seen is that reporters looking for stories seem to find us and interview us.
July 1st, 2009 at 8:02 am
Since we’re discussing modern innovations in communications, here is a brand new use for Twitter that has barely been touched on elsewhere: The inevitable unorganized labor negotiations in dentistry that are coming soon. Twitter could be an incredibly nimble and quick public platform for transparent negotiations between dentists and the Obama administration and/or dental insurance companies. Think about it. Truth, manpower and patients are on our side, not theirs. We’ve actually had the advantage for a long, long time, but lacked an effective and inexpensive way to communicate… until now.
When Twitter is used alone or in conjunction with dedicated, independent bloggers, anyone can see that the effort can pay off with incredible political power, leading to better working conditions for us and better care for our patients. Sounds revolutionary, doesn’t it? Beware: Should you continue to read my comment, by default, you will continue to participate in a proof-of-concept trial simply because it will increase the page-rank of this concept. So watch out.
When marketplace transparency all but eliminates managed-care from dentistry because of value issues you and I have been aware of for decades, control of dentistry will be returned to the hands of dentists who have always been the only ones who truly care for the welfare of dental patients. Only then will the millions of dollars currently wasted on ineffective preventive care limited to 12 month PPO contracts, be returned to consumers’ wallets.
In a free and transparent market, personal care is always rewarded, and middle-men shunned. With social networking, the time has come for incredible market improvements which will overcome the grip of public and private parasites who unfairly and needlessly inflate our patients’ dental bills and limit their choices. As an example of the change in attitude, currently there is serious talk of repeal of the 1945 McCarran-Ferguson Act which protects insurance companies from anti-trust suits. Wouldn’t it be entertaining in an ornery way to watch the FTC nip at BCBS’s huge butt for once instead of the ADA’s huge butt!
I’m sorry if all this sounds just a little too fresh for you to yet accept, but I can confidently tell you that this is the event horizon of dental history. Our patients’ concerns are our concerns, and they have been inadequately represented for decades.
To get a look at the latest in my adventure, I invite you to check out my Twitter response I posted yesterday to breaking news that Trajan King, formerly CEO of ADA/IDM was not ousted after all. He quit. (Gasp!) Have you not heard that the only dental marketing business in the nation to receive the ADA Seal of Approval, and a business partner for every ADA member, is rumored to be on the rocks? I started that rumor a couple of months ago. It will be another week before it is confirmed on ADA News Online.
As I said, Twitter is quick, nimble and hairy while most bureaucrats are dinosaurs in an economy turned cold.
D. Kellus Pruitt DDS “@Proots”
July 1st, 2009 at 4:48 pm
Barrymore, Dingo and Pruitt obviously do NOT have thriving dental practices or they could not possibly find the time to “blog and twitter away their time”. I also do not know a single other dental college (with a dental practice) who has the time or inclination to read Facebook, twitters or blogs. I hardly have time to urinate when I need to no less go to my computer to find out how often someone else is doing whatever.
July 1st, 2009 at 5:23 pm
Karlj — You’re correct — I do NOT have a thriving dental practice. In fact, I’m not a dentist.
However, I do take time to first READ about others before I post. While I’m sure your intentions were good, please read the comment attributed to me, in full.
John Barremore
Houston, TX
July 2nd, 2009 at 9:24 am
Karlj, as a sincere, concerned fellow dentist, I must share that I sense you are not happy. You seem to be irritable, and perhaps bitter.
I recognize bitter. I’ve been there. Those never-ending, anxious feelings of being trapped without desirable options are still simmering under the surface of my emotions on any given day – even though I’m now out of danger. I have to concede that at times the economy worries me deeply.
I suffered significant business setbacks a few years ago, but I seem to be coming out of the slump. Although I am not nearly as busy as you are, I would say that my practice is thriving, nonetheless. So far, 2009 is the best year yet, and I’ve been in practice 27 years.
And to top it off, my practice motto is: “Dentistry unhurried.”
Like Barrymore and Dingo, I find the time to do what I enjoy. I enjoy taking my time doing dentistry, and I enjoy writing. I find no shame in that. I sincerely wish you peace, Karlj.
D. Kellus Pruitt DDS
July 2nd, 2009 at 10:13 pm
If anyone is interested in witnessing how dentists can use Twitter in conjunction with blogs like this to challenge Delta Dental executives to defend what I and others consider unfair business practices, please take a moment to look at what bobcain and I put together this afternoon in response to a DrBicuspid article titled “Rhode Island bans fee capping for uncovered procedures,” written by Rabia Mughal.
http://www.drbicuspid.com/index.aspx?sec=sup&sub=pmt&pag=dis&ItemID=302230&wf=34
Mughal interviewed Tom Dolatowski, vice president of business development at Delta Dental Plans Association, for the article. For being a common bureaucrat and not a dentist, Delta Dental employee Tom Dolatowski blurted out bold, courageous statements that until recently would have been impossible for a trouble maker to challenge. Get this: Dolatowski claims that if Delta’s preferred providers are forced to discount their fees 30% for even those procedures that Delta doesn’t cover, the impact will be “minimal.” I am certain that Dolatowski didn’t expect bobcain’s in-your-face demand to back up his words with data.
Can you believe Delta Dental vice president Tom Dolatowski would assume that we are such idiots? I am infuriated with his insult, and you should be infuriated as well. You should be pissed off enough to go on to DrBicuspid.com right now and let Tom Dolatowski know exactly how you feel about his plans to cut your pay by 85% (assuming 35% net). If we work hard enough, we could send a message to Delta Dental. I bet we could get the vice president fired if we insisted. What do you think?
“If Proots on Twitter gets a hold of Dolatowski, I have a feeling he’ll make the vice president wear that remark for a long time.” – bobcain.
Thanks for the confidence, bobcain. Watch how I use the following string of words to help move this comment here on The Wealthy Dentist blog to Tom Dolatowski’s first page when he does a vanity search tomorrow. Won’t he be surprised!
Hey you, DDPA vice president Tom Dolatowski. Resign now. D. Kellus Pruitt DDS
July 14th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
Latest news… ADA is splitting up with Intelligent Dental Marketing…
http://www.dentaleconomics.com/display_article/366143/54/none/none/IndNw/ADA-issues-statement-regarding-phase-out-of-ADA-Intelligent-Dental-Marketin
July 20th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
So ADA/IDM turns out to be a costly and embarrassing mistake for the ADA Business Enterprise Inc. (ADABEI). What about CareCredit – another ADABEI subsidiary?
Jim, it’s been a week since you mentioned the failure of ADA/IDM, and I’m sorry I missed it until now. As one might suspect, that’s not the end of the story. I have no idea how many are still following this thread, but please let me bring you up to date. Things are still going sideways for Dr. Robert Faiella’s ADABEI – the profit-making department of my non-profit professional organization.
Recently, in an effort to boost sales of CareCredit, ADABEI purchased a low-quality ad on DentalBlogs.com titled, “Press Release: CareCredit Adds 24-Month, No-Interst [sic] Payment Plan.” Even though I agree that it is compassionate to extend credit to dental patients with dental problems that will only get worse, that is no excuse for the leaders of CareCredit to ignore even one ADA member’s concerns – especially now that we know about ADABEI’s reckless leaders.
Since my concerns were summarily censored on DentalBlogs.com without explanation, I had no choice but to corner an anonymous editor whom I now call “Nancy.” Today, I discovered that after rejecting my signed comments for weeks, Nancy allowed others to post anonymous comments following the PR piece for CareCredit. That is why I submitted my third comment today which I copied below. I haven’t yet told Nancy that I am sharing this with readers of The Wealthy Dentist blog. Won’t she be surprised!
As you can see, my comment with three stinker questions is still awaiting moderation.
I will not be ignored. Darrell
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http://www.dentalblogs.com/archives/administrator/press-release-carecredit-adds-24-month-no-interst-payment-plan/comment-page-1/#comment-35270
D. Kellus Pruitt DDS // Jul 20, 2009 at 10:52 am
“I see the question now. DentalBlogs was on vacation last week!” – dentalblogs.com, 7/20/09
Dear Editor, DentalBlogs:
Whoever you are, you just won’t believe what happened on your Website while you were on vacation.
On July 9, days before your vacation, I submitted this sincere and timely question to the anonymous author of the CareCredit article about no-interest loans:
“If the Red Flags Rule is not delayed for the third time in three weeks, how will it affect those who offer Care Credit?”
August 1 is the deadline for compliance with the Red Flags Rule – which has everything to do with offering CareCredit through one’s dental practice. Editor, your vacation delayed many ADA members from receiving important information for 11 critical days – even if you post this comment immediately. That is regrettable. It would be clearly foolish for a dentist to sign up for extending credit at this point in time with the FTC deadline now only 10 days away. In less than a month, CareCredit could have some very angry members who are owners of the ADA subsidiary with shy leaders. Then again, I don’t know for sure. That is why I asked the July 9 question that you sit on, Editor. I really wish I had a name to address.
Instead of actually posting my question, “Nancy” posted the reassuring message “Your comment is awaiting moderation” until today.
This morning, I discovered that “Jayne,” “Emergency dental richmond hill” and “Administrator” all successfully posted their anonymous comments on July 17, 19 and 20. My two signed comments were not posted, and I am no longer reassured that they are “awaiting moderation.” Here are my second and third questions:
“On July 9 at 4:54 pm, I submitted a sincere question concerning how the Red Flags Rule will affect ADA members who sign up for CareCredit. Instead of posting it with the promise of an answer, you regretfully chose to censor an ADA member. Today, July 13, I have a second and third question: Why did you ignore my first one and who is your boss?”
Now, Nancy, I am waiting on answers to three questions. (No phone calls, please).
D. Kellus Pruitt DDS
Your comment is awaiting moderation.
July 21st, 2009 at 11:38 am
Things are happening fast concerning ADABEI, ADA/IDM, DentalBlogs.com and Nancy. I’ll not repeat today’s events here since I posted descriptions of the adventure on PennWell blogs and Medical Executive-Post in two comments, “Surrender, Nancy” and “Fresh, squirmy prey.” They’re as ballsy as the titles hint.
Jim, I appreciate you letting me park my thoughts here. This thread is already so far back in history that nobody will read it anyway.
D. Kellus Pruitt DDS