Millennials consist of anyone born between the years 1976 and 2004. This generation will soon outnumber baby boomers as the most populous living generation in America. The world is changing to cater to the youngest generation, and as a result, your practice may need to start making dental marketing adjustments to reach this younger generation.
A lot of articles online about Millennials have tried to lump them all together to explain their behavior, when in fact Millennials are the most diverse generation in American history. Despite what articles may say, Millennials are real people that are not the product of a cookie-cutter. What we can look at is how they are vastly similar due to their environment and draw conclusions based on that.
The most notable similarity between all millennials is their relationship with technology. The younger generation never had to adapt to new technology because they grew up using it- digital natives. This is not to say that every Millennial is able to fix every computer problem, but they probably have a much higher chance of knowing how to effectively search Google for the solution. It’s just natural to them – they live online.
To accommodate these internet-savvy folks, your practice (and every other business) must adapt to the digital realm.
Here are top ways to adjust your dental marketing for Millennials:
1. Have an Attractive Dental Website. 75% of people judge the credibility of a dental website based on its design. A website that looks like it hasn’t been updated since the nineties will send a Millennial running faster than no free Wi-Fi. Even if your dental website is functional, if it’s just plain outdated then traffic will be deterred. Bottom line: it’s key to have a professional, up-to-date website.
2. Make Information Easily Available. Humans now have a shorter attention span than goldfish. But, they want to also do their research and shop around on their own before calling a business. Therefore your dental website must be intuitive and include the right information that prospective patients are looking for, and make it easy for them to get it. Couple great content with prominent calls to action and your contact information, and you’ll persuade your site visitors to contact you in no time.
3. Be on Social Media. To reach Millennials, you must be social. 81% of Millennials have Facebook accounts, with the median number of Facebook friends being 250. Today, people are putting their entire lives on Facebook, and expect companies to be equally as transparent. Interacting with prospective patients online is a great way to grow your network, showcase your expertise, and help you communicate your personality – all of which are important for your dental marketing strategy!
4. Get Online Reviews. Getting referrals from trusted friends and family has been a business booster since before the Internet age. Today, up to 88% of Internet users will also trust reviews from complete strangers. The more reviews, the better, and there’s no better way than just to ask! Encourage patients to write you a review on your practice’s online business listings. Be sure to respond to each review as well!
5. Optimize Your Dental Website. The age of the yellow pages is over, and its newest iteration is search engines. If a Millennial needs a dentist, they won’t be going to a newspaper, they will do a Google search or post a status on Facebook asking their friends for recommendations. The best thing to do is to make sure your practice shows up at the top of the search results. This is called search engine optimization, and we can help you with it. Find out more here!
