Success Stories
Case Studies

Internet-based Marketing and PR Campaign Gives Cosmetic Dentist Helaine Smith Something to Smile About

Dr. Helaine Smith wanted people to find her Website in the search engines, but didn’t know where to begin. She had heard about Dianna Huff through an online network of associates from business school, and decided to contact her.

Huff began by optimizing Dr. Smith’s Website, restructuring it so that prospective clients looking for a cosmetic dentist in the Boston area would be able to find the site easily via search engines. The project was challenging due to fierce competition on search engines for terms such as “boston cosmetic dentists.” Huff focused her changes on the following:

• The home page for Dr. Smith’s Website was a graphic – so search engines couldn’t read it. Huff created a new home page that clearly explained Dr. Smith’s services, addressed prospective clients’ concerns about cosmetic dentistry, and included a clear call to action.
• Instead of a single Services page with generic copy, Huff created five new pages, each specifically matched to key phrases prospective clients were using to find cosmetic dental services in Boston. Each new page featured information about the service, along with a call to action.
• Huff and Dr. Smith began systematically adding content to the site, both to boost search engine rankings and to advance prospective clients through the sales cycle. For example, Huff created Dr. Smith’s new semi-monthly newsletter, “Successful Smiles,” which addressed important consumer concerns such as dental tourism and screening for oral cancer. DH Communications began adding press releases about Dr. Smith’s new products and achievements to the site.

With the Website up and running, ranking well in the search engines and consistently attracting more traffic than before, Huff began to explore other ways to help Dr. Smith establish a presence on the Internet. Dr. Smith often sent Huff opinions about the news she was reading, so Huff set up a blog where Dr. Smith could post her views about industry trends and news events. Dr. Smith also asked Huff to begin developing podcasts, while she undertook to develop a series of videos on YouTube, both covering many of the same topics in the newsletter.

Huff also recommended that Dr. Smith revamp her Website design to give it a more professional look and feel – and to accommodate all the new content being generated. Sonora DesignWorks, of Amesbury, MA, worked with Huff and Dr. Smith to develop the new site, which incorporates a press room, a virtual tour, and an expanded “Before and After” section.

The impact of all of this activity on Dr. Smith’s practice has been significant.

• Dr. Smith climbed towards the top for important search phrases on Google. Dr. Smith, who asks all of her patients how they found her, began booking several new appointments every week with people who had learned about her via the Internet.
• The number of visitors to Dr. Smith’s Website increased by seven times over a three-year period – from 500 visitors in March of 2005 to 3500 in March of 2008. The number of visitors continues to climb.

The volume of business generated by the Website increased. Dr. Smith estimates that the Website is generating $5,000 to $20,000 a month in additional business. The increased business volume enabled her to open a second dental practice.

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