It's not surprise that the holiday season isn't the best time of year for healthcare professionals to acquire new patients. With insurance programs expiring and household spend focused on holiday gifts, routine appointments are often an uncommon concern. This guide will help you increase new patient referrals, even during that tough holiday season.

2. Introduction
Whether you’re the owner of a high-profile
dental practice or managing small specialty
practice, everyone experiences a slow
season. The holiday season in particular
marks an increasingly slow period for health
industry professions; while your patients
are out shopping for seasonal gifts or
traveling to visit family, their pocketbooks
typically turn away from many health-related
expenses.
So the question remains, how do you
increase revenue during the holiday season?

3. 1
Your Website is the Foundation
Many practice owners think having a website is enough to make them thrive, which isn’t always
true. Your website should be the cornerstone of your web presence, but during a slower holiday
season, a website alone may not provide you the exposure you need to keep your appointment
books full.
Time and time again marketing professionals stress the importance of managing your social
networks – so here it is one more time. Social media is critical; each platform gives your practice
added exposure, and managing the social profiles is an inexpensive and easy way to spread
news about your practice. To benefit from your social media accounts, provide regular posts
and updates about your practice. Patients want to know what’s going on with your practice, and
when you post valuable information, they become more likely to share this information with their
individual networks.

4. If you are especially slow during the holiday season, use any extra time to stockpile social media
posts. You don’t have to come up with clever updates on-the-spot. Creating a supply of social
media posts will help you maintain a steady posting schedule during a busy season by simply
copying, pasting, and publishing a stockpiled post onto your social media profiles.
Blogs are also a proven source of beneficial web traffic. A blog allows you to write regular
articles or shorter blurbs about events your practice sponsors, or new cutting-edge technology
your practice acquires. By providing an inside look, current and prospective patients gain further
insight about your education, experience, and specialties. Again, blog posts can be written ahead
of time and saved to be posted at a later time.

5. 2
Online-only Specials
The digital revolution has allowed information to travel at an alarming rate; cash in on the
opportunity. During a slow season, the most cost-effective and broad-reaching method of
advertising is online, and nothing speaks to an empty pocketbook quite like a “good deal.”
While many other practices are cutting back on marketing initiatives during the holiday season,
you can take advantage of this opportunity to win over new patients by offering more competitive
pricing. Creating a Facebook-Only or Twitter-Only special will reach current and prospective
patients, capturing their attention and enticing them to employ your services.

6. Consider running specials on services that patients and prospects need compared to elective
services. During the holiday season, patients are more frugal, but extending a discount on a
necessary service, such as an exam and cleaning, will make patients more inclined to schedule an
appointment.

7. 3
Hit the Refresh Key
If you haven’t refreshed the design or content on your website in a while, a slower season
is the perfect time to revamp. Since Google announced their “freshness” update, we know that
periodically updating your site can have a positive impact on search engine optimization (SEO)
efforts. Amplifying your SEO endeavors will help you stand out on search engine results, making
you the go-to practice for an online prospect.

8. 4
Create the Cure
You can increase patient loyalty and gain new patient interest any time of the year by “curing”
your patients. For example, Halloween may cause children to garner new cavities. If your services
can cure a problem caused during your slow season, let your market know.
For Example:
You could create social media posts that say: “Did you over-indulge on holiday sweets?
Prevent new cavities from forming with a post-holiday check-up! Contact us to schedule your
appointment today.”

9. 5
Reach Out to Exisiting Customers
When marketing your practice, don’t forget to reach out to your current patients. Many
professionals unintentionally drop marketing efforts to prospects as soon as they become patients.
Remember that marketing to current patients has increased earning potential – especially during a
slow season.
If you want to get the attention of current patients, direct mail is one of your best bets. You may be
thinking “no one looks at junk mail”, and you’d be completely wrong.
•
Studies indicate that 89% of people with families open all the mail they receive.
•
76% of people make a purchase based on the mail they see.
•
These numbers increase when the mail is directly addressed to the recipient.

10. To use these statistics to your advantage, capitalize on direct mail by targeting your current
patients and mailing them coupons or promotional information that will be valid during your slow
season.
Also, not everyone is living in a technical world; some people aren’t plugged in to Twitter and don’t
want to search the Internet to find your practice. Completely ignoring these consumer preferences
allows your competitors to capitalize on your missed opportunity. To cater to this audience,
consider sending informational mailers marketing your practice.

11. 6
Speak Their Language
As means of communication improve and increase, some people become less inclined to
actually communicate. Text-messaging and emailing have become the “way of the world”, and if
you don’t adapt to it, you may be faced with frustrated patients.
In fact, studies show 80% of practitioner office patients prefer a means of alternate
communication, such as email or text-messaging. Electronic appointment requests and email
communications allow your patients to receive alerts and reminders on-the-go and enable them
to respond on their time, not yours. It’s an added convenience that many practices are not taking
advantage of. During a slow season, little details, such as these, could win over new patients. Also,
electronic communication reduces the amount of phone-tag your receptionists have to play with
patients, freeing them up to focus on other details.

12. 7
Accommodate Your Patrons
Working the standard 8 to 5 used to be par for the course, but as schedules change, the
economy shifts, and holiday seasons slow business traffic, you have to adapt to your market’s
demand. If you find patients increasingly scheduling early morning appointments, shift your
schedule to accommodate these early risers. Similarly, if you’re losing patients because they
work the same hours you do, any practice staying open later to gratify them is likely stealing your
business.
Compete by shifting to later open and close times. Putting your patients’ needs first will satisfy
your existing patients, making them less likely to leave, and will allow you to accommodate new
patients who may prefer your schedule over their previous provider’s.

13. 8
Create a Holiday Promotion
Whether shopping on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, or the day after Christmas, holiday shoppers
are savvy consumers and are always looking to score a great deal. If you notice slowing during
this season, make the most of the careful consumer:
•
Create a holiday promotion, such as “12 Days of Discounted Services”, and market them
in mailers and/or online. Create holiday-themed promotions to show future and current
patients you’re offering great deals.
•
Offer a seasonal referral program that extends a free service, such as teeth whitening for
a dentist, to any existing patient who refers a new patient to the practice. Not only will this
referral program generate new business, but it will benefit your practice by increasing your
number of patients and improving current patient appreciation. Because each profession
has different rules about referral programs and “referral gifts”, be sure to abide by state
regulations.

14. 9
Ask for Testimonials
In addition to referring their friends and family, happy patients are also more inclined to give you
happy feedback. This creates the perfect opportunity to ask patients to post details about their
positive experiences online, so future prospects can see how pleased others are with your services.