Website Conversion Latency
Dental website conversion is often postponed. A prospective patient could be searching dentists in the dead of night, or looking in advance of moving to a new community, or even prior to gathering funds for expensive treatment.
For multiple reasons people will bookmark your site, send themselves an email, write down your phone number and stick it to the fridge, told their spouse about you, etc. The point is that they found your website, it appealed to their senses and they documented in some fashion how to reach your practice later as needed.
Personal preferences along with the usability/accessibility of the site itself, a future patient may decide to come back again if the website is memorable enough, or makes the patient feel comfortable.
Perceptions are important
Think of how an open house plan with lots of windows and uncluttered space makes you feel — compare that with a website with clean lines, crisp images, cool soothing colors and organized content. This is the type of site that makes a good impression — and makes the future patient feel comfortable.
Use the right images
The dentist’s website is “selling” the finished product — not instructions on how the dentist does it. Use photos that show gleaming, healthy smiles. If someone wants to learn how it’s done, there are plenty of informational sites on the Web to explain and illustrate dental procedures.
Patients are mainly interested in the results available to them, not the clinical, anatomical, or gory operational procedures behind the benefits. Show the prospective patient the “new car”, not the steel smelting, grease and assembly lines behind its manufacture.
Delayed conversion
The superior dental website will engage its visitors’ senses and establish a positive first impression quickly. If successful, prospective patients may, and often do, save your contact details to schedule an appointment with your office later — perhaps long after they’ve visited your site.
