Stories Over Noise, Pt 2: Clicks & Conversions

In part one of this series, we talked about what impressions mean in the marketing world and how we help clients put their best foot forward in a profession where standing out is necessary. For Dr. Bruce of Lagniappe Dental in Fairhope, Alabama, making a lasting impression in his competitive market came down to staying true to himself and the strong brand he created — and trusting us to bring it to life visually.

Establishing a brand is a crucial step that cannot be skipped. Before you can present yourself to your audience, you have to know who you are. But we know that every practice owner is most eager for what comes next: meeting your new patients. Seeing them come through the door, showing them expert care, and doing the work you do best is what you’re all about.

We could say that the first step, branding, is about making a good impression.

But turning those impressions into an engaged audience (aka potential new patients) is all about strategy. That’s why we track clicks and conversions.

Clicks

As you might recall from the Marketing Funnel (here it is for reference), clicks indicate that someone is taking action. They could be:

• Exploring more pages on your website
• Finding the information they need on your local listings
• Getting hooked by an ad

Whatever it is, they’re getting one step closer to making a decision about coming to your practice.

When we ask ourselves (and our clients) what action we most want users to take, the answer is almost always: Hit that Request Appointment button! Call the office to schedule! That’s the most important click, because that click is a conversion. Just short of them actually being in your chair, you’ve got a new patient.

As website builders and marketers, conversions are at the top of everyone’s mind — from SEOs to Creative Strategists, Designers and Web Developers. We’re all thinking about how to attract your ideal patient, and what path they take through your digital spaces to make that final click. Part of our job is knowing how to predict user behavior so we guide them in the right direction and position those buttons in the sweet spot.

Foundations of UX Design

When Dr. Bruce and I first talked about the website he wanted to build, back in May of 2023, he said the main thing he wanted was something that didn’t look like every other cookie-cutter site. That’s why a lot of our clients come to us! They’re looking for something unique, which means our creative team is always trying to strike the right balance between breaking some rules (so sites are one-of-a-kind) and giving users something they know how to use intuitively.

The internet has been around long enough for humans to have learned, and learned to rely on, some specific models and patterns. Because we’ve grown with it and around it, most people understand the elements of good web design, even if they can’t explain why. (Believe me, we’ve come a long way. I remember when AOL looked like this.)

One of the primary principles behind good UX (user experience) design is giving users what they already expect. This means things like precise menu placement, putting contact information in the footer, strategically choosing when and when not to use animations, leaving the right amount of margin, and the list goes on*. Knowing about these, and things like eye tracking and heat maps, is what we were studying while you were becoming an Invisalign Gold Provider (congrats, you!) 😊

Caveat: Interestingly enough, many of these are the exact same things that Google and other search engines, including generative AI, look for.

The bottom line here is that good UX design leads to easy clicks. It removes the friction between users and the action you want them to take. To capture users who are ready to take action, information like this needs to be exactly where they expect to see it:

• How to schedule an appointment
• What services you offer
• Where you’re located
• Will you have coffee available at their 7am appointment?

We balance these UX principles with the creative elements that tell your story, like:

• Clear, compelling copy
• Design that feels like you
• Custom photography and video
• Web development that brings it all together and guides the user forward

That’s the formula: clear enough for users to find exactly what they need, and impressive enough to get them to explore. And your ideal patient is probably visiting more pages than other potential patients, because your story was crafted to connect with them.

Conversions

"A great website is not the only piece of the puzzle."
— Dr. Bruce

We lumped clicks and conversions together because it’s hard to separate them. At this point in the funnel, there have been many decisions and pivot points already, and the data can’t tell us exactly what brings a clicker to their final decision. It’s impossible to read their mind, but if we have a successful strategy, this person ticks the boxes of your ideal patient.

The best source for uncovering this mystery is usually a very special person: the employee behind your front desk who answers the phone most often. They are on the front lines and able to ask people right in the moment, “How did you find us? Why did you choose us?” A new patient call script can be a complete game-changer in tracking that data and bringing that patient in for care. We’ve provided one for you below (and covered more of this topic in a recent article: Click to Call)

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• Info about Call Tracking
• Overview of the Leads Dashboard
• Call Script Worksheet

The information your team shares with your S8E8 strategists is crucial, and often the last piece of the puzzle we need to maximize your marketing dollars and bring in the people you most want to serve.

Strong strategies take time, and with any campaign there’s a period we call the “learning phase.” While you’re collecting data through conversations on the phone, we are watching the numbers rise and fall on your dashboards. For the best results and confident decision making, we give campaigns the time they need to collect as much data as we can about the client journey thus far. After a few months, we can look into the analytics to answer:

• What webpages were the most frequently visited, which had the most key events (clicks), and how much time do users spend there on average?
• What platform are the most calls coming from?
• How many contacts didn’t convert, and what were the primary reasons they gave over the phone?

How Stories Over Noise Works In Clicks & Conversions

"Who are you, who do you want people to think you are, and how are you going to stay true to that?"Dr. Bruce

When it comes to this deeper phase of marketing, after first impressions, Stories Over Noise becomes about putting up the bumpers so users don’t get distracted or confused about who you are and what you offer. It’s also about getting your ideal patients further into the funnel, while possibly letting those who aren’t the right fit self-select to a practice that’s more their style.

With clicks, “noise” is anything that puts friction in the way of a conversion, like:

• Unnecessary information on your website(Other channels, like social media or YouTube, may be a better fit for some of your content!)
• An unhelpful experience on the phone
• Confusing CTAs

And at this phase, “story” is when your brand starts to become an experience.

• You’re not just saying you treat patients like family, you’re practicing it during phone interactions.
• People discover more about what your practice values, and what to expect as a patient, as they explore your website.
• When they interact with your profiles, your audience feels a human presence on the other side.

When you have solid marketing and creative strategies working together, you start building relationships with your patients before they even schedule. And we love that for you!

Don’t forget to download our free resource for new patient call scripts, call tracking, and the leads dashboard! Keep it handy for anyone answering the phones, get comfy with it, and see what a difference it can make.

Next time in Stories Over Noise

We’ll be with Dr. Bruce again, talking about what happens after a successful campaign. Maybe you’ve reached your first milestone and are wondering what’s next? How can you level up your marketing or pivot your message to fit your practice as it grows?

In the meantime, we have more helpful content coming your way, and if you have any questions we’d love to hear from you. Reach out to our team below for more about Studio EightyEighty and how we serve the dental network!