Newly opened and established dental practices are always looking for ways to bring in new clients.

Successful marketing of a practice consists of placing billboard ads in strategic high traffic areas should increase the success of bringing in customers that are seeking a dentist.

A great way to bring in new clients who live and work near your practice is through billboard advertising.

Billboards located along high traffic areas are a great way to increase your client base and get the word out to the public letting them know the name of your practice and all the info you want to relay about your business.

Most people travel the same route everyday and ideally you want to get the word out about your business as they pass by the billboard in their vehicles. There is a very good chance that if they need of what you have to offer, they will give your business at least one opportunity to gain their business.

To start the process of marketing through billboards you will need to drive the area where you want to gain clients.

Once an ideal location for the billboard is found, look along the top or bottom rail of the billboard. The name of the company will be prominently displayed here. Once the billboard company name is found to online and Google the company. Be sure to include your state. This will bring up the nearest office that is located nearest to you.

The next step is to call the company to let them know you are considering running a billboard ad in your area.

A sales rep will set an appointment to visit your office. This will begin the process of starting your billboard marketing ad campaign..

Ideally it is a good idea to check to see if there is more than 1 billboard company in your area.

It is best to shop around and compare rates to receive the best rate. It's acceptable to let the competitor know the pricing the other company has quoted you. This may help you to get a lower rate on your billboard ad.

Usually a billboard contract will allow your billboard to run and be on display anywhere from 30 to 60 days in one location and then move to another location in the area you choose for another 30 to 60 days, Six months is the average contract period. .

The advantage of using a billboard for marketing is the fact you have quite a bit of space which allow you to use your creativity.

It's possible to use a big white smile or use a humorous phrase to gain attention and new clients at the same time.

Eventually over time people become familiar with the billboard and when the time comes and the need for a dentist arises, the odds are very good you may get a call from a potential client.

Always ask a new client to find out how they heard about your business.

Once they let you know they saw your ad on the billboard you will know whether to reinvest your money in another billboard campaign once your contract expires. .

Billboard costs depend on where the board is located. If the area has a high traffic volume the price will be higher to rent the billboard.

The advantage of having a billboard is the fact it is a salesperson that is out working for you to get the name of your practice out 24 hours, 7 days a week.

For some new practices that have cash flow issues the cost of running a billboard ad may not be possible.

The fact that marketing a business will lead to more cash flow puts the dentist in a catch-22 situation. A practice needs additional cash flow to survive but when the cash flow is not coming in it puts the dentist in a difficult situation because he has to then choose whether to continue marketing the business or find other ways to increase cash flow. .

If the practice is less than 3 years old it will be difficult to procure a bank loan for marketing.

Many banks only will lend to established businesses that have at least 2-3 years of credit history.

There is a way for dentists to gain the funds that will allow them to begin a billboard marketing campaign.

Dental Practice Loans are available for dentists that are looking for additional cash flow.

As long as the practice has been in business at least 6 months they are eligible to receive funding through a dental practice loan.

The process is quick and hassle free and the funds may be used for any purpose including marketing the business through billboards.

Once the process is complete and the dentist receives the funding, the exciting process of marketing the practice through billboard advertising can begin.

Over the past decade, marketing mediums have changed and expanded, especially mediums such as Yellow Pages and daily newspapers have taken on a diminished role in terms of the audience that can be reached through advertising.

This is due to the fact that these types of marketing avenues are not as important in reaching audiences as they once were due to the rise of the internet.

Television, radio, magazine and billboard are still very effective in reaching audiences as they did years ago without much change. What ties all these types of marketing medium together is the fact that they all can be very expensive and take a large portion of money out of the financial budget at some point in order to bring in new clients.

The main purpose of marketing is to effectively communicate and reach your local community where your business is located. There are many ways to do this, but one method that has not changed throughout the years is word of mouth advertising.

In order to achieve a good word of mouth advertising campaign for your chiropractic practice, you have something interesting about it that can relayed to a potential new client. By connecting with your community you can really show how special your dental practice is by the fact that you are doing all possible to help your local community.

It doesn't matter if you have bought state of the art equipment or have a beautiful waiting room if your competitor is doing something that connects with the community.

If your competitors are doing something that stands out in the community and drawing interest you will never get an opportunity to show off your gorgeous new waiting room.

You have to ask your current patients why they enjoy coming to your practice. This information is key to knowing how to bring in other patients who may enjoy the same things.

Social media such as Twitter and Facebook allow you to immediately reach your local community and have interaction with potential new clients while communicating with your current clients.

Many new clients are found simply through making your current clients aware of your social media website and allowing them to pass the word onto their friends and relatives online by sending them the link to your chiropractic website, Facebook or Twitter page.

The cost of social media is non existent. Basically all you need is a computer and access to the internet which is something you already have as a business that is currently in operation.

You may want to employ an expert in the field of social media, however it is possible to have a successful social network online without one.

Surprisingly if you have teenagers, they may be a resource to the best way to reach your audience online.

There are dentists who allow 16 and 17 year old high school students to run and monitor their social media pages and communicate with their audiences using simple marketing techniques by making the public aware of what you are currently offering and relaying the benefits of visiting your dental office.

The great benefit of social media is the fact that you can pretty much control any type of negative complaint toward your business immediately.  

However, the negative can be through receiving a negative review. On many websites which give reviews,  negative posts cannot be deleted.

It is the job of practice owner to monitor online any negative info and go into damage control mode by responding to the negative post and giving your side of the story. 

With social online media, if someone has a complaint about your practice online, you may immediately address and handle it professionally. This gives you the ability to put your practice in a good light and impress potential new clients.

Other word of mouth advertising techniques go back to on of the fundamentals of marketing which is reaching the community directly.

The most fundamental ways to do this is through personal networking, community events and local charitable activities.

These are very low cost but effective ways to reach new clients and help others at the same time and draws very positive PR toward your practice.

Using online marketing techniques such as content marketing, social media marketing and search engine optimization (SEO) are also very important today in reaching your audience.  The down side of this is the fact that it can become very expensive to do SEO professionally in order to receive optimal results. 

These various methods effect the positioning of your website online which is the face of your business when it comes to using the internet.

Today, a large percentage of your customers use the internet. The better positioning you can receive on search engines such as Google will go a long way in reaching new clients who are searching online for dental services in your area.

When it comes to social media and word of mouth marketing you have to realize you cannot measure how effective your campaign is in the same way.

Just because someone clicks "Like" on your Facebook page does not mean it will translate into a new client. However by carefully monitoring the number of "Likes" you can measure how many people are actually going to your page which means that if you are putting an effective message on this page you eventually may start receiving new clients.

Ideally you may want to hire a professional social media consultant that specializes in marketing campaigns. You will need to spend money to accomplish this.

Although the cost associated with hiring a social media consultant is nowhere near the amount it costs for radio or television ads, it can still effect your budget if you do not have the cash flow or planned the amount it costs in your budget.

If you have a steady stream of clients you may have the cash flow that is needed to hire a social media consultant.

If this is not possible and you don't have the budget you may try your local bank.

In order to get a bank loan you will need to have at least 3 years in business. This will give you the credit history that is needed by the bank to qualify for a loan.

Most banks will not lend less than $10,000 which may be substantially more than you need to hire a social media consultant that can put together a program to reach new clients.

Alternative funding sources are another way to come up with the cash flow needed to hire social media consultant. If you have been in business at least 6 months and have a checking account you would be eligible to apply for a dental practice loan. These types of loans are a great way to establish credit and the minimum amount you can borrow is $5000.

Once your have the funding available to hire a social media consultant you want to give parameters on what type of program you are looking to put together.

You don't want an online program that is too complicated or one that has so much information or decisions to make they will leave the site.

Many people today are very busy and don't have the time to focus on anything due to the limited time they have in their schedules.

When trying to reach your potential new clients online by using your Twitter or Facebook page, you will want to focus on asking your current customers simple questions about how they liked your services.

Once others see the great benefits of using your dental services, they will want to give your business a visit to see what you have to offer in person.

Ideally people want to receive the same great services others have had and written about on your website or Twitter page. This is how word of mouth advertising begins, once one person has a great experience they always want to let someone else know and hopefully the process will repeat itself.

Many dentists like to cater and specialize in various age groups to meet their dental needs.

Geriatric dentistry comes into play due to the fact that the American population is aging.

In general, people are living longer due to advancements in the medical field and with improved medical care, sanitation and public health and living conditions have allowed people to live longer than they did years ago.

With increasing life expectancy there are many more older people that are in the US due to the baby boom that occurred after World War II at the end of July 1945.

Many soldiers came home following the war and the US birth rates expanded. Many of the children that were born during and after this until 1964 are known as the "baby boomer" generation.

Baby boomers make up a large percentage of the population in the US. This population now has individuals who range from 48 years on up to 70 years old.

This group still has not embraced the computer world and dependence on cell phone technology as the younger generation has done.

Many baby boomers still operate as they did 20-30 years ago.

There are some who are up to speed on all the latest technology but many still use methods of communication that was used in the 1970's and 1980's.

For dentists who want to reach this audience it is surprising to know that many people who are aged 65 and up still do not have access to computers and do not know how to operate one.

In order to market to this audience it is still necessary to use one of the most prolific forms of marketing that was very popular during the 70's and 80's is Yellow Page advertising.

Many older people still use Yellow Page directories to find what they need to function.

When they need a plumber, repairman or even a dentist in their area they go to the Yellow Pages to find an advertiser who has an ad they feel comfortable with and contact them.

Dentist that want to reach the older market should still invest in a large Yellow Page ad.

The problem is even though this is a dying marketplace, the pricing is still expensive.

A large Yellow Page ad can run anywhere from $2500 a month and as much as $10,000 a month based on the market size of where the ad runs.

The return on investment is greater based on the amount of money that is spent for the ad which is hopefully recovered in new business clients looking for a dentist.

Dentists do not always have a budget to accommodate the high cost of Yellow Page advertising.

A good way to find the additional funding needed to market in the Yellow Pages is to procure an alternative source of funding such as a dental practice loan or a bank statement loan.

The process to receive an alternative loan is hassle free. The main requirement is the fact that you only need a minimum of 6 months in business.

Banks require that a business be established for at least 2-3 years which will allow them to track your payments record and credit history.

Unless you have an ongoing relationship with a bank that spans over a period of years, it is very difficult to receive a bank loan.

Once the funding from your dental practice loan is received from a an alternative funding source such as Small Business Loans Depot,  you may then begin the process of marketing potential older clients who are in need of your dental services.

You will increase your client base and the number of new elderly clients for your dental practice with a Yellow Page ad. Also the fact may be added that for every directory ad you place you will receive a comparable listing online.  Ed Rogers

It is very important to begin in the initial year of your dental practice on a successful note.

Your main focus for the first year of your practice should be on getting new patients for your practice.

It will take time and effort to implement your marketing plan that you have put in place following dental school.

You will need to put together and implement a marketing strategy that is not too expensive realizing that money will needed to bring in initial clients.

Funding is a necessary part of getting your practice off of the ground. You will need to use your personal finances at least for the first six months.

Since banks are reluctant to lend to new businesses for at least 2-3 years, there are alternative funding sources that offer dental practice loans and medical practice loans to practices that have been established for at least six months.

During the initial start up period you will need to research and find the best options to market your practice on a limited budget.

The best way to begin your marketing program is to begin observing your competition.

Find and seek out other practices in your area to see what types of marketing they are doing.

Type their name into Google to see what type of online marketing they doing.

Immediately, you will be able to see if they have Yellow Page ads because this form of advertising offers internet postings as a part of their marketing program. Also, you will notice any internet marketing that is being done by this particular dental office while you are performing the Google search.

There are many types of marketing programs that may be implemented cheaply in your immediate area such as coupon type marketing that allows customers to sample your business at a discounted rate. Many dentists have stated that they have seen a big boost in patients who use these types of advertising and see a high patient return rate for a 2nd and 3rd visit.

You have to invest in having at minimum a phone book listing. This is a very inexpensive way to market your practice because people have to know you are in business. If you have the budget you should place a small ad to get your practice recognized.

Your outside sign is very important and gives the potential client a good feel about the type of practice you are running. If you have a small, dull unimpressive sign it will give the potential client the feel of a unsuccessful business which is something you definitely do not want.

You should create an exciting atmosphere by holding a grand opening event. The fact that you are opening a new business is exciting and people love to be a part of something exciting.

Make the most of the fact you are starting a new business and write a press release letter to your local newspaper to let them know about your grand opening. They may possibly cover it and possibly feature your business. This is a wonderful way to receive free publicity for your business.

If you have any type of marketing budget ideally you will want to place ads in a local magazine publication. Many middle and older residents love these types of magazines and they are a good draw to bring in new customers. Ideally you want to place your practice in magazines that have glossy or semi glossy print which will help to improve and boost the image of your practice. .

Branding and placing your name in publications that have a good reputation will go a long way to build a credible image to the public.

Creating a website is one of the most important things your dental practice can do to promote a business.

It is a good idea to find a freelance or someone who can build your website that has great credentials and examples of their work. It is even better if they can do it at a great rate.

If someone has given you a list of referrals and companies they have built websites for, be sure to contact them and ask questions about the potential company you will have building your website.

Ideally you want your practice to portray a friendly, professional atmosphere and your website will make the difference. First impressions are very important. Your website will be the very first impression they have regarding your practice. Make the first impression a good one

You want to make sure all vital information regarding your business is on the website such as contact info and the physical address of the building. You will want to include crisp, colorful photos of your your practice and be sure to show the facility and staff. This will give the potential client a good idea of what to expect when they arrive.

A very inexpensive marketing piece that is necessary is a business card.

Once your business cards are complete, be sure to visit every restaurant in your local area and post them if the establishment allows this.

Make sure to purchase cards that are of good quality with graphics that stand out.

Don't be shy and be sure to hand them to everyone you meet.

Don't forget to purchase quality business cards to hand out to everyone that you meet.

Finally, realize that every practice is looking for an unlimited amount of potential customers and you have to do something to get people's attention and let them know why they should choose your practice over another.

Many practices have dentists who are very good at what they do. The different between your practice and their's will be in how you market. Make you sure take the time and effort to do everything possible to let the public know what you have to offer.

Your personality is the best asset your practice has to offer. Show the world your great personality and let them know what your practice has to offer in your local area.

Curious potential customers will be key in bringing in new clients. Once the potential customer experiences a visit to your office you will hopefully gain a customer for life.

Be sure to tell your new customers to refer their friends and relatives. In time, your amount of clients will increase exponentially through word of mouth advertising.