As a dental practice owner, how often have you heard a marketing expert tell you that you should be blogging? It’s true; you really should. On average, companies that blog generate 67% more leads than those that don’t. Yet the number of dental practice websites I see that don’t have a blog is astounding.
Essentially, regular blogging helps you engage with potential patients, builds trust and positions you as the go-to dentist in your area.
So if you are considering blogging but don’t know how to start a dental blog, don’t worry. I’ve got you covered.
In this post, I’ll talk you through how to start, where to start and what to do to ensure consistency.
So, let’s get into it.
Step #1 Have a plan
The first step in understanding how to start a dental blog is to develop a blogging plan. The key to successful blogging is consistency, not just week after week but month in and month out.
If you don’t have a plan in place, it’s easy to run out of ideas and (eventually) steam.
Documenting who is responsible for writing the blogs, when it’s being done and what is being written about makes the process more transparent.
But more importantly, because the process is written down, it kind of makes you more accountable for getting the job done.
Here’s what you need to do:
Consider how often you want to produce content
Is it daily, weekly or monthly?
You want to opt for a timeframe that’s not only reasonable but achievable too. Remember, it’s something you’ll need to do consistently, so don’t commit to blogging 2-3 times a week if it’s not sustainable in the long term.
For best results, I would suggest blogging once a week to start.
Consider when you want to post
There are numerous articles indicating the best days to post. Some say Saturday; others say Tuesdays and Wednesdays are ideal for maximising reader engagement.
Essentially, I would argue that the day isn’t overly important. Instead, what matters is that you post the same day every time.
Why?
Because people are creatures of habit and we like routine.
So, when you have subscribers, they look forward to receiving your post. If you start posting on a Tuesday, then switch it to Friday the following week and then a Monday the week after, it can be off-putting.
Remember, you’re trying to build a rapport with your audience, and irregular posting is not the way. So pick a day that suits you or your team and make posting the blog part of your workday routine.
Consider what to post
Coming up with relevant content week in and week out is perhaps the most challenging part of blogging. I use a technique known as ‘content bucketing’.
So what exactly is that?
In any industry, there are key areas (topics) that collectively make up that industry. For example, in the personal fitness niche, you could have:
- Workout Ideas
- Diets
- Muscle Building and
- Fat Loss.
In the dental industry, this could be:
- Cosmetic Dentistry
- Preventative Dentistry
- Dental Education
- Emergency Dentistry
Each key area can be classed as a unique content category (bucket) to which you will add your content.
Within each designated category, you can probably develop ten blog ideas. For example, within the cosmetic dentistry category, you could have:
- Does Professional Teeth Whitening Work?’
- Veneers vs Crowns – Which Is Best For You?
- What Is A Smile Makeover?
Under preventative dentistry, you could have:
- 6 Easy Ways To Keep Gums Healthy
- What To Expect During A Dental Check-Up
- How To Prepare Your Child For Their First Dental Visit
Dental education might involve blogs like:
- The Best Foods For Teeth and Gum Health
- Is An Electric Toothbrush Better Than A Manual Toothbrush?
- The importance of Regular Dental Check-ups
And so on. And so forth.
If you have, say, five content buckets (categories) and come up with ten pieces of content for each bucket, that’s 50 content ideas. Post once a week, and that’s nearly a year’s worth.
Essentially, content buckets are a great way to develop multiple content ideas quickly.
Now you have the how, when, and what of content planning, it’s time to write it down.
Here’s a rough example of how a simple blogging plan would look on paper.
Of course, you can make it as straightforward or as complex as you like. The rule is to document everything and follow the task through.
Productive Content Blogging Calendar
| Post Number | Month | Day | Date | Blog title | Status |
| 1 | April | Thursday | 6th | Does professional teeth whitening work? | Posted |
| 2 | April | Thursday | 13th | 6 Easy Ways To Keep Gums Healthy | Posted |
| 3 | April | Thursday | 20th | What To Expect During A Dental Check-up | Being written |
| 4 | April | Thursday | 27th | Electric Or Manual Toothbrush- Which Is Better? | To write |
| 5 | May | Thursday | 4th | The Best Foods For Teeth And Gum Health | To write |
| 6 | May | Thursday | 11th | What Is A Smile Makeover? | To write |
| 7 | May | Thursday | 18th | How To Prepare Your Child For Their First Dental Visit | To write |
| 8 | May | Thursday | 25th | Veneers vs Crowns – What’s Best For You? | To Write |
| 9 | June | Thursday | 1st | The Importance Of Regular Dental Check-ups | To write |
| 10 | June | Thursday | 8th | How Do Dental Implants Work? | To write |
Once everything is documented, it becomes far easier to follow, and this, in turn, removes any worries and stresses of consistent blogging.
Step #2 – Start writing
So you’re ready to write your first blog but wait a minute?
Where do you start?
How do you turn a blog title into a cohesive and engaging post?
As a top tip – Start by addressing a problem. Talk about the topic or concern concisely. A question is always a great way to engage readers immediately.
For example:
If you’re writing a blog on teeth whitening, you could say something like:
“Did you know that 52% of people are unhappy with the appearance of their teeth?”
If you have a link to that statistic, then even better.
Then, try to engage the reader further. After all, if they’re reading a blog on the benefits of professional teeth whitening, chances are they want to know more about how it works, right?
So, you can say something like:
“If you can relate to this, then chairside teeth whitening may be for you.”
Once you’ve grabbed their attention, you might want to discuss the benefits of professional chairside teeth whitening versus over-the-counter brands.
Remember, people rarely read articles word for word. Instead, most people scan when they are searching for information on blogs.
So, ensure the use of subheaders and break longer sentences up for ease of scanning.
Finally, summarise the article and finish with a call to action (CTA)
Once you have the bones of the article down on paper, check it over for flow and grammar.
As a top tip, AI-powered writing assistants like Grammarly are incredibly useful and can help you to polish up your post.
Once you’re happy with it, get a colleague to read it. A fresh set of eyes may pick up something that you missed.
When you’re good to go, the final thing to do is to add a relevant picture.
Step #3 – Post and share
So that’s the post written. Now’s the time to take a deep breath and hit the publish button. Once you’ve done that and it’s live on the World Wide Web, you’ll want as many people to see it as possible. If you already have a mailing list, why not send a quick email enclosing your blog post or incorporate it as part of a regular newsletter?
Additionally, don’t forget to share it on your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn pages.
The benefits of a consistent dental blog are far-reaching
The more you write, the better you get and the easier the process becomes. Moreover, every blog post is another page that links back to your main dental site. The more pages of quality SEO-Friendly content you have, the better the chance of ranking higher in the search engine.
In essence, having an up-to-date dental blog is something many dental practices don’t manage to do. So once you know how to start a dental blog, you will, at least, be one step ahead of your competitors.
If you need help with your dental blogging, you can always contact the team at Dental Writers. We’re a small team of experienced industry writing experts who help dental practices and dental-related businesses with their content needs.
Need help? Email dale@dentalwriters.com or visit the Dental Writers website for more details.
