ORM stands for Online Reputation Management. If you’re brainstorming orthodontic marketing ideas in 2023, boosting customer reviews needs to be at the top of your list.

A wealth of highly rated reviews improves your SEO, but more importantly, it encourages prospective patients to choose your practice over your competition. In fact, this report on USA dental practices with the most Google reviews shows how many reviews the top practices have across the country. If you want to compete you should shoot for a minimum of 1,000 reviews.

Check out these strategies on how to increase your reviews, and watch your practice fly to the top of Google search results.

First, it’s important to make sure your patients can easily find your practice on both Google Search and Google Maps. Update your business profile to include images, your current address and phone number, and a working link to your website.

If you’re new to Google Business, be sure to claim your business officially. After signing up with a profile, you’ll be able to verify your practice and begin collecting reviews.

Check out this reputation management guide for more tips on getting your business squared away online.

One of our favorite marketing strategies for orthodontists is to get the whole team involved in a campaign for more patient reviews. The key to a successful internal campaign is to keep it short (maybe a month long at most) and have a strong goal in mind. If your ortho team sees an average of 30 patients per day, you might shoot for 100 new reviews over the next few weeks.

Incentivize your team to participate with cash and prizes, and maybe even a party at the end of the campaign for reaching your goal.

If you’re not sure how to get started, download our complimentary Google review campaign materials. These free printables make it easy to bring up reviews with your patients and facilitate a natural way to wrap up appointments.

You can even make a flexible script for each team member to practice, like this Orthodontic practice group with more than 50,000 Google reviews began doing at the end of patient visits.

In between team campaigns, another great way to build a strong online reputation is to automate your Google review process. Our reviews acquisition software automatically sends a text message to your ortho patients after their visit, with a link directing them to your Google business page. This tool also integrates with Healthgrades and Facebook, in order to further bolster your practice’s online presence and reputation.

On top of asking for reviews, your practice can also send review responses automatically. Consistency is one of the keys to building a great online reputation, so let our software do the work of remembering to respond.

Of course, when responding to any review online, it’s important to remember to stay HIPAA compliant. Avoid disclosing any patient information, including using their full name if it’s not listed in their profile.

I know that sounds kind of odd. But HIPAA regulations state that you are not allowed to confirm that a review is from a patient, even if they say they are.
This review response is an example of what not to do, since the orthodontist confirmed information in the review that indicated they were a patient. He specifically disclosed personal information by confirming that the family has moved.

The following response is much more general, and HIPAA-compliant, while still showing appreciation. There is nothing in the response that indicates or confirms that the person giving a review is a patient.

We all know that unsatisfied customers are much more likely to leave reviews than satisfied ones, but did you know it takes 40 positive reviews to make up for one negative review? The power of opinion is strong, so pay attention to complaints and concerns. Take a look at these tips on how to respond to negative reviews:

Respond Quickly

The sooner you reach out, the better. Respond directly to their review with a comment so that they get a notification from Google right away. This lets your patients know you’re aware of them, you’re on top of things (from an administrative standpoint), and that you care about what they have to say.

Don’t Argue

Even if you did nothing wrong, never ever get into the arena with a negative reviewer. Arguing or being passive-aggressive might feel like the right thing to do for your ego, but it will only make matters worse for your practice. If you’re feeling worked up, take a breather before responding.

Always Apologize

Offer empathy and apologize so the reviewer feels heard.

• “I understand your frustration.”
• “Our team is expected to perform with only the utmost professionalism, so I can see why you would be upset.”

Even if you doubt the legitimacy of their complaints, or feel unjustly criticized, offering an olive branch will do wonders for your practice’s reputation.

Offer Solutions

Emphasize that you want to make things right, and let the reviewer know where to reach you to discuss things further. If the complaint is over a specific service, offer a free replacement or re-do. If it’s something more vague like a personality clash, reassure them of your practice’s values.

Ask For an Updated Review

Once the negative reviewer has responded and you have reached an understanding, ask politely if they might consider updating their review. This step is key, because updating the review overwrites the previous review. Any improvement will help!

Report Problematic Reviews

With all of that being said, sometimes a negative review is made out of spite or personal vendetta and isn’t worth responding to. If you encounter a review that’s defamatory, threatening, or inappropriate, don’t hesitate to report it as being in violation of Google’s terms of service.

If you’re still wondering how to get more dental reviews, try focusing on improving the culture of your practice. Finding ways to make your team feel important and valued will make a huge difference in workplace attitude, and happy employees = happy patients! Some ideas to improve office morale could be:

• Weekly employee breakfast
• Employee of the month spotlight
• Update office decor with fun/modern pieces (including employee photos)
• Increase vacation days and encourage employees to take time off

Another way to boost your Google reviews is to focus on your practice’s social media presence. In fact, TikTok orthodontic marketing is one of our favorite marketing ideas for orthodontic practices. By showing off your personality, knowledge, skillset, and sense of humor, patients get a better sense of who you are, and are more likely to leave positive reviews.

We’re chock-full of orthodontic marketing ideas, so stick around and we’ll help straighten out your practice in no time.

Get our free online reputation-building Ebook, and start boosting your Google reviews today.