One of the biggest mistakes that dentists (or their web designers) make is forgetting to put the phone number at the top of every page.  Make it prominent!  After all, one of the biggest reasons most dentists pay for websites in the first place is to drive new patients to their practice.  Receptionists are already trained to answer the phone, schedule an appointment, and welcome the potential patient to the practice so there is no new training involved.

Why Phone Numbers Should Be Prominent

We live in a fast paced world and technology is getting lightening quick.  If a potential patient searches for a dentist in San Diego, clicks on one of the website results, and doesn’t see what he wants in the first few seconds then he’s going to leave and click on one of the other 2.5 million results that show up.  Now many people may need to be prompted to pick up the phone but just as many will get a good first impression, see the number, and call.

Email Addresses Are Great Too

Some dentists may argue that the whole point of the website is for people to find the site and schedule appointments via email without having to pick up the phone.  Scheduling can be more complex online and will normally result in a phone call from the dentist office anyway.  But if the dentist is insistent and really doesn’t want people calling then replace the phone number with an email address or a link to “Schedule an Appointment.’  The whole point it to create a call to action, which deserves a section for itself.

Create a Call to Action

Phone numbers, email addresses, “View our Online Demos” or “Join Our Mailing List.”  There may be different reasons some dentists build their websites.  For every reason, there is at least one call to action.

If a dentist merely wants patients to join his mailing list so they receive monthly educational newsletters then the website should utilize the top right (or left) of the site on every page and ask patients to “Join the Mailing List.”  Newsletters and email campaigns are excellent tools that can be used to remind patients to schedule a new appointment, to remember their existing appointment, or to upsell patients by showing them monthly specials and new (or unknown) procedures.

Be clear about your main focus for your website and be sure to create a prominent call to action.

Steve Presser
New Dental Web
www.newdentalweb.com