YouTube is transforming the way we discover information on the web. Bought by Google in 2006, YouTube is the second most popular search engine in the world, making it one of the most powerful promotional tools at your disposal. Still unsure? Let the numbers do the talking!
- YouTube has one billion unique monthly visitors.
- YouTube processes more than three billion searches every month.
- Nearly one out of every two Internet users are on YouTube.
- YouTube reaches more US adults between ages 18-34 than any cable network.
- YouTube is bigger than Bing, Yahoo, Ask, and AOL combined.
- YouTube is the fastest growing video sharing website in the world at the moment.
How Can Dentists Use YouTube?
- Testimonials. Patient testimonials build trust and give your video credibility. Good testimonials are powerful and can help convince even tough sell visitors that the services you offer truly made a difference in those patients’ lives.
- Procedures. Animated and interactive videos can educate patients about high-dollar, targeted procedures, such as dental implants or laser gum surgery. If you’ve completed the training necessary to offer these procedures, you may already have free access to educational videos that you can upload to your website.
- Office Tours. If you’ve invested time and money to make your office an inviting, serene environment, don’t just say it – show it! Hire a videographer to create a video touring your office and showcasing your practice’s amenities, such as Wi-Fi, refreshment bars, high definition televisions, and massaging dental chairs. Is your location convenient? If so, you might choose to highlight the town’s proximity to nearby cities and public transportation.
If you’re not utilizing video in your dental marketing strategy, you are missing out! Because Google owns YouTube, videos can help increase traffic to your website and improve your search engine ranking, making it easier for potential patients to find you. The tips below will help you make the most of this monster marketing medium.
Maximizing Your YouTube Marketing Impact
- Keywords. Strategically integrating appropriate keywords and tags into online content is crucial to helping potential patients find you. You can use tools like Google’s keyword planner or try to put yourself in the patient’s position and brainstorm lists of different keywords and phrases they might use to find a dentist who serves their needs. Pairing these keywords with the geographic location will boost your practice’s web visibility and make it easier for prospective patients to find you. Bonus Tip: Be sure and use these keywords in the title text, description, and tags to maximize your visibility.
- Length. Just like you, your patients are busy people with their own affairs to attend to each day. By keeping your videos between three and four minutes long, you’re less likely to lose their attention.
- Shares. There are numerous ways to market your videos, including posting them on your website, embedding them in your blog, announcing them in tweets, and sharing them on other social media channels like LinkedIn, Google Plus, or Facebook.
- Likes. Ask people to like your video – this will increase its ranking on YouTube, which in turn increases your number of views.
