How to Grow Your Dental Practice With SMS (+Free Templates)

Was your dental practice built on referrals? While word of mouth is a tried-and-true dental marketing strategy, it’s not enough to grow a business in this digitally-driven age. If you’re not using dental SMS marketing to promote and expand your business, you may discover that attracting and retaining customers is becoming more challenging.

Since the average new dental patient is worth twice as much as an existing patient, the average dentist requires 24–50 new patients per month to continue to grow their practice. In addition, each no-show can cost more than $200, so it’s critical you keep your patient pipeline full. Coming up with new dental marketing ideas is a must to maintain a successful business.

The following SMS (short message service) sample templates can help your dental office engage current customers and generate new business. Simply copy and paste the following templates into your SMS text messaging platform, and then edit them as you like to reflect your branding and tone. Remember, every message should include the name of your dental practice or dentist to identify you to the prospective or current patient. 

New Patient Welcome 

Make new patients feel valued by sending them a new patient welcome text. 

Welcome, [Name]! We’re thrilled to have you as part of the [Practice Name] family. If you have any questions, feel free to call us at [Phone Number].

Dentist Profile

Introduce yourself (and your staff) with friendly profile texts that put your patients at ease. 

You know Dr. Garcia’s smiling face from your appointments, but there’s more to him outside of the office. Get to know him here! [Link]. 

Hygiene Tips

Take a break from transactional texts by sending helpful dental hygiene tips and reminders.

Sore gums got you down? You may not be flossing enough. Get the 411 here: [Link]

From your friends at [Practice Name].

Procedure Information

Dental fear, anyone? Put your patients’ minds at ease by educating them on upcoming procedures.

[Name], root canals can be intimidating. But the better you understand the procedure, the more comfortable you’ll feel. Learn more here: [Link]

Advance Check-in

Send same-day advance check-in texts that also confirm their attendance.

Hello, [Name]. Your appointment with [Dr. Name] is scheduled for 10am today.  Click here to confirm your appointment: [Link] 

Appointment Cancellation & Rescheduling

Make it easy for patients to cancel and reschedule their appointments.

[Practice Name] appointment confirmation: [Time], [Date]. Reply Y to confirm, N to cancel, or R to reschedule.

Appointment Reminders

Everyone is busy! Reduce no-shows with helpful appointment reminder texts. 

Reminder: You have an upcoming appointment at [Practice Name] at [Time] on [Date]. Reply Y to confirm, N to cancel, or R to reschedule.

Changes to Operating Hours/Location

Are you moving your office location or changing your hours? Don’t lose patients by sending them to the wrong place at the wrong time. 

[Name], [Practice Name] has moved! Check out our new location here: [Link]

Special Offers

Who doesn’t love a special offer? Sending promotional texts is a great way to upsell patients on complementary procedures.

Hi, [Name]! Thanks for being a valued patient. Get 20% off your next appointment with code SMILE20. [Practice Name]

Referrals

Word of mouth is especially effective for dental practices -- no pun intended!

Share your smile with friends and family! Give them a free teeth whitening with your referral code BRIGHTSMILE. [Practice Name]

Ratings & Reviews

Ask your patients to share the love by leaving a rating or review on your dental website, Yelp, or social media channels.

A patient review is the best compliment you can give. If you are happy with your treatment, please leave us a note! [Review Link]  [Practice Name]

Patient Testimonials

Patient testimonials are worth their weight in gold. Remember to send a follow-up thank you text if a patient sings your praises publicly.

If you’re happy with your dental treatment, will you help us make more people smile? Share your experience here — we appreciate you! [Link]

Social Follows

Increase your social media reach by politely asking for follows on channels like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Want more from your dentist? Follow us on social media for tips to keep your smile bright and your mouth healthy, even between appointments. [Social Media Link] 

Choose Textedly to Build Your Dental Practice With SMS

Automating your mobile marketing efforts through Textedly’s SMS platform helps your dental practice save time and reduce missed appointments. The dental SMS templates above can help communicate appointment confirmations, cancellations and special offers to patients. 

Textedly provides SMS solutions that are easy to set up, so your dental office can start messaging your target audience right away. With easy-to-implement appointment reminder texts for dentists, there's no reason for your dental office to lose revenue because of a missed appointment. 

Plus, Textedly offers an intuitive performance dashboard, giving your office staff a convenient and trusted way to send dental SMS marketing messages.

Get started with a free Textedly trial here!