Google is the biggest search engine in the world by far. In November 2018, an incredible 73% of online searches occurred through Google, as opposed to 7.91% on Bing. Most people don’t even think about it anymore, using Google as your first port-of-call has become second nature for most people.
In many ways, to ‘Google’ something has become synonymous with using the internet at all. Simply put, audiences are far more likely to use Google to find their dentist than any other online platform. Therefore, Google is where you need to direct your efforts. Done correctly, using Google Ads for a dental practice can really help your marketing take off.
Google’s reach is huge
As we have already said, Google is the largest search engine in the world, and this doesn’t look like it is going to change any time soon. Each day there are 3.5 billion searches made on Google, that is 40,000 a second! Compare that to the year 2000 when Google saw a measly 33 million searches per day! Imagine how far Google’s reach will be in 5, 10 or 20 years!
Using Google AdWords is an easy, simple and relatively cheap way of getting your name directly in front of those audiences. Google doesn’t just let you show your adverts to the entire world, it allows you to define exactly which audiences, which types of people, you wish to see your advert.
Action Point
Google’s immense reach as the largest search engine globally, with 73% of online searches, makes it crucial for dental practices to focus their marketing efforts there. With 3.5 billion daily searches, Google Ads offers a targeted and cost-effective way to reach potential patients, ensuring visibility to the right audience at the right time.
Target Specific Audiences
With so many users on Google each day, it is important to let Google know exactly who you wish to advertise to. There is no use showing your advert to someone on the other side of the world; if there isn’t a good possibility a user will find your advert relevant, you’re wasting your money. Google allows you to decide who should be shown the advert based on a large number of data points. Some of the criteria by which you can filter your audiences are:
- Location
- Age
- Sex
- Interests
- Online behaviour
- Previous online activity
You can tell Facebook to only show your ads to audiences who have visited a certain page on your website, who have searched for products and services similar to yours, you can even define audiences based on their lifestyles and milestone events, such as those recently married, or new parents. The ability to target only the people to whom you want to advertise doesn’t just make your adverts for efficient and effective, it keeps the cost down! Google has masses of data on each user’s habits, use it!
Action Point
With Google Ads, you can precisely target specific audiences based on criteria like location, age, interests, and online behavior. This ensures your ads reach the most relevant users, maximizing efficiency and keeping costs down by avoiding irrelevant clicks. Utilize Google’s vast data on user habits to tailor your advertising strategy effectively.
Using Keywords
In PPC marketing, keywords, as they do with SEO, act as tags that allow search engines to match up your advert with a user’s searched term on Google. If the keywords you have associated with your advert appear in a user’s search, they will see your advert.
When choosing your keywords, it is important to understand that you are trying to guess what your intended audiences are searching for. You can’t tell them what to search to find you. You need to get inside their minds, figure out how they behave online and understand what they are searching for. Then you can mimic their searches in your keywords and ensure that yours is the advert they see.
A good tip with keywords is to group them together by category. Instead of using separate keywords such as “London”, “Orthodontics” and “emergency”, group them together as “London Emergency Orthodontics”. This helps to further narrow down the audience and really target the most likely leads.
It is also possible to tag your adverts with negative keywords. Negative keywords are the keywords with which you DO NOT want your advert to be associated. For instance, imagine your practice is in York and one of your adverts has the keywords “Emergency Dentist”. You may see some of your adverts being shown to, and being engaged with, audiences who have searched something like “Emergency Dentist Portsmouth”.
Obviously, you do not want audiences 200 miles away seeing your advert, it’s a waste of their time and your money! Google gives you the option of adding this as a negative keyword, meaning anyone who performs the same search in the future will NOT see your advert.
Action Point
In PPC marketing, keywords play a crucial role in ensuring your ads appear when users search on Google. To effectively target your audience, choose keywords based on their likely search terms and group them by category. Utilize negative keywords to exclude irrelevant searches and optimize your ad budget. This strategy helps ensure your ads reach the most relevant users, maximizing their effectiveness and minimizing wasted clicks.
Fast results
There are 2 main ways of getting yourself to the front page of Google; SEO and PPC. SEO is great; it’s organic, it’s free and it works. However, you could build the perfect website for SEO, but it will still take Google time to index your website as first-page material. The process is not instantaneous, sometimes it’s not even quick! You could make endless improvements to your website and only see it creep up slowly.
There are so many factors governing Google’s ranking algorithms, and Google do their best to keep them secret! The good news is, there is a quick and easy fix. With PPC, you can pay to have your advert appear immediately, within seconds, at the very top of the very front page of Google.
Action Point
When aiming for immediate visibility on Google’s front page, PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising offers a swift solution compared to the gradual process of SEO. With PPC, your ad can appear instantly at the top of search results, ensuring immediate exposure to potential customers. This speed and efficiency make PPC an ideal option for those seeking fast results in their online marketing efforts.
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Google wants you to succeed.
As a marketing platform, your success is in Google’s best interest. Google has made advertising on its platform easier and cheaper in recent years. Of course there is lots of data you can work through, lots of small changes and tweaks you can make, but for the most part the user interface is simple, straightforward and easy to use for even the average business owner. You don’t need a degree in computer analytics or a lifetime’s worth of marketing experience to make it work or to see results.
Furthermore, the user interface is straightforward. More importantly, the user interface you see is exactly the same as the interface that mega-corporations see and use as well. There are no hidden features that only the big hitters can access. You have access to the same features as companies such as BMW, Calvin Klein, or Apple.
Also, there are mountains of blogs, videos, and articles out there explaining how to get good results from Google Ads. Many of them were written by Google themselves!
Action Point
Google has simplified its advertising platform, making it accessible to businesses of all sizes. With a user-friendly interface and abundant resources available, even novice marketers can navigate Google Ads effectively. Whether you’re a small business owner or a corporate giant, you have access to the same features and tools, ensuring a level playing field. Plus, Google offers ample guidance through various educational materials, including resources authored by Google experts themselves.
Google Ads for a Dental Practice: Conclusion
Google is, without question, the largest search engine in the world. This makes advertising on Google a no-brainer. If the vast majority of your potential patients are hanging out online in one place, and that place just so happens to be where they will be going to look for you, why wouldn’t you advertise there? In terms of reach and demographics, Google is absolutely your best option. Furthermore, Google’s platform is relatively cheap and easy to use. You do not have to be a technical or marketing wizard to use the software! Advertising on Google can bring you quick, easy results at a fairly low cost per click.
Our Expert Opinion
“Google ads are the best way to advertise your dental practice, hands down. Whether you’re starting out or trying to get more patients for an established practice, get some Google Ads running. They can be cheap, they can be narrowly targeted, they can work really well without too much input on your end.
Google try to make it as easy as possible for you to make them work. If you think you can attract customers from further afield, it’s the easiest way to get yourself to the top of the search. Even if you’re only targeting your immediate area, they work really well.
Remember that you’re competing against your local competitors and it’s an auction. It’s not just about how good your ads are, it’s about how much you spend. But even a modest budget can reap dividends in the long run!”
Chris O’Shea
Head of Digital Marketing
Marketing a Dental Practice: Further Information
For further information on how to effectively market a dental practice, check out our Learning Centre here, where you can find articles and webinars like our guide How to Market a Dental Practice.
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Reviewed By:
Arun Mehra
Samera CEO
Arun, CEO of Samera, is an experienced accountant and dental practice owner. He specialises in accountancy, financial directorship, squat practices and practice management.
