Are you missing a section of your community with your patient marketing tactics? A 2015 survey of dental consumer attitudes reveals a number of things, including how underserved groups are attracted to a dentist's office, common beliefs about when pediatric dental care should begin, and considerations for choosing dental insurance.
Key Findings:
- More than 48 percent of respondents believe the recommended age for a child's first dental checkup is greater than two years.
- African-Americans, Latinos and millennials all expressed strong interest in using "daily deal" websites to save on dental care.
- Respondents with household incomes less than $35k were more likely to use an emergency department for dental care, and less likely to see a dentist regularly.
- Total out-of-pocket cost was the greatest concern for African-American respondents when choosing dental insurance.
How these findings can help you reach the patients who need you most:
First, consider putting more educational content into your promotional pieces, such as the recommended age of a child's first checkup. The AAPD recommends that a child's first dental checkup should be either age 1, or six months after the eruption of the child's first tooth.. According to the AAPD, preventable tooth decay is the biggest childhood disease and can have a significant effect on a child's health and socialization.
Second, consider promoting your practice through online coupon sites or through the use of "specials" for hygiene and checkup appointments, which might help you reach more patients. Discounts need not be significant, but building this initial contact through the methods these customers are most familiar with helps to build a relationship, in turn encouraging them to come to you rather than the emergency department.
Finally, consider integrating materials that show a breakdown of the overall cost of treatment. Presenting these different cost contributors in a straightforward, easy-to-follow manner may be more effective conveying to patients that their overall financial well-being would be served best by investing in their health now—before expensive emergency treatment becomes necessary.
Source:
Consumer Attitudes: Dental Treatment and Insurance. (2016, January). Retrieved February 01, 2016, from http://www.fairhealth.org/
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