Professional Courtesy Thomas Giacobbi, DDS, FAGD Editorial Director, Dentaltown Magazine

 
What is Your Web Plan?
– by Thomas Giacobbi, DDS, FAGD, Editorial Director, Dentaltown Magazine

Practice Web sites are old news, and I firmly subscribe to the notion that every practice should have one. While the current technology available to Web developers allows a wide range of options and features, do not let these choices paralyze your decision to get real estate online. There are many Web site hosts (who store your site) and developers (who can design/build your site) that can help you get started. Spend 30 minutes on Dentaltown.com and you can find a wealth of conversations on this topic.

Web Site Remodel
We have had a Web site for our practice since we opened our doors eight years ago, and the time had come to update my site. Through a friend, I contacted a local Web designer named Matt Rhoton, and I think he did a terrific job. The difference in my home page is dramatic. I had a number of goals in mind as I began the remodel: create a site that is easier to maintain, improve online visibility and incorporate social media. We started by building the new site on WordPress. WordPress is an open source blog publishing application that has evolved into a great tool to develop an entire site. The blog is a key feature of our new site because it provides a simple interface to add fresh content and improves site visibility on the Web. Also, the WordPress interface is very simple to use when you need to make changes to any part of your site. Facebook and Twitter accounts have been created for our practice and I am in the early stages of using these vehicles as additional outlets for our practice marketing and patient education. One simple example, new blog posts on my practice site can be referenced and linked on our Facebook and Twitter accounts. These additional links create more connections to your practice and improve online visibility. My YouTube account is the most underutilized at this point in time as I simply host a video tour of my office there, but I will add more video in the future. If you need to develop a site from scratch or it is time to remodel your existing site, I suggest you contact Matt Rhoton by e-mail: info@inside-look.com or phone: 602-300-3098. If you want to view my practice site, visit: www.chandlerdentalhealth.com.

Mobile Visibility
Dr. Dan Hillis is a Townie in Mason, Ohio, who recently told me about an idea he had been working on with a friend. Dan described an Internet application, called an iApp, developed by his friend, Scott at ProMedDevs.com. This application is essentially a mobile version of your Web site that can automatically be displayed on a patient’s smartphone whenever they enter your Web address. In other words this query is automatically redirected to the mobile version by code in your Web site that detects the mobile device automatically. In addition to the easy navigation, the mobile site takes advantage of the phone’s capabilities by allowing one touch dial, mapping of directions to the practice and the ability to send email with just a click. If you would like to see an example of this site in action, pick up your smartphone and enter www.masondentalcare.com in the address box. There are three packages to choose from with cost starting at $1,850. This is a turnkey solution to secure your mobile presence on the Web. There are piles of statistics that demonstrate the continued growth of Internet enabled mobile phones. Visit www.promeddevs.com for details.

Have a question or topic suggestion? Send me a note: tom@dentaltown.com.
Sponsors
Townie Perks
Townie® Poll
Who or what do you turn to for most financial advice regarding your practice?
  
Sally Gross, Member Services Specialist
Phone: +1-480-445-9710
Email: sally@farranmedia.com
©2025 Dentaltown, a division of Farran Media • All Rights Reserved
9633 S. 48th Street Suite 200 • Phoenix, AZ 85044 • Phone:+1-480-598-0001 • Fax:+1-480-598-3450