Unlocking the Power of Google Ads Audiences for Your Dental Practice
When considering Google Ads targeting, your initial thought might be keywords. However, a game-changing aspect that often goes overlooked is audience targeting – delivering ads to individuals based on who they are rather than just what they’re searching for.
For dental practices, audience targeting can be a powerful way to connect with the right patients. Whether it’s new residents in your area, parents seeking paediatric dental care, or individuals researching cosmetic dentistry, audiences allow you to fine-tune your approach and maximise your advertising efforts.
In this guide, we’ll explore the various audience targeting options available in Google Ads and how you can utilise them to grow your practice.
Overview of Google Ads Audience Targeting
Google Ads provides a comprehensive suite of audience targeting capabilities, which can be divided into four main categories:
- Google’s Audience Segments: Pre-defined categories such as detailed demographics, in-market, and life events.
- Your Data Segments: Retargeting patients who have interacted with your website, YouTube channel, or shared their contact details.
- Custom Segments: Creating bespoke audiences based on search terms, websites, or apps relevant to dentistry.
- Other Segments: Advanced options such as combined segments and optimised targeting.
Let’s delve deeper into each category and see how they can help your dental practice thrive.
1. Google’s Audience Segments
Google offers four “pre-packaged” audience types that provide an easy starting point for your campaigns:
Detailed Demographic Targeting
This goes beyond basic age and gender demographics to include significant life stages and lifestyles. For dentists, this could mean targeting:
- Marital status: Newly married couples often look for a family dentist.
- Homeownership status: Renters or homeowners in your area who may need a local dental provider.
Affinity Segment Targeting
Reach people with stable interests or hobbies, ideal for brand awareness. Examples for dentistry include:
- Health and wellness enthusiasts: Promote preventive care or cleanings.
- Beauty mavens: Showcase cosmetic services like teeth whitening or veneers.
In-Market Segment Targeting
Target those actively researching products or services, such as:
- Dental insurance plans: Patients seeking practices that accept specific insurance.
- Teeth straightening solutions: Ideal for promoting orthodontic services like Invisalign.
Life Event Targeting
Capture patients experiencing major life changes, such as:
- Moving to a new area: New residents may need a local dentist.
- Getting married soon: Couples might explore cosmetic dentistry for their big day.
2. Your Data Segments
Remarketing Audiences
Remarketing (now referred to as “your data”) allows you to reconnect with people who have already interacted with your dental practice. Options include:
- Website visitors: Target those who visited your website but didn’t book an appointment.
- App users: If you have an app for booking or managing appointments, target users who engaged but haven’t returned.
- YouTube viewers: Reach individuals who watched your dental videos.
- Customer Match: Upload your existing patient list to target them with promotions, like discounts on cosmetic treatments.
Similar Segment Audiences
Find potential patients with similar online behaviour to those in your existing audience. For instance, target individuals who exhibit behaviour similar to your loyal patients or those who have booked high-value services.
3. Google Ads Custom Segments
Custom segments allow you to define audiences uniquely relevant to your practice. Options include:
- Search-based custom segments: Create audiences based on search terms like “dentist near me” or “teeth whitening”.
- Website-based segments: Target users browsing dental directories or oral health blogs.
- App-based segments: Engage users with apps related to health, fitness, or beauty.
For instance, if you’re promoting dental implants, you could create a segment for users searching terms like “dental implant costs” or those using apps related to health recovery.
4. More Advanced Targeting Options
Combined Segments
Combine multiple criteria for highly targeted campaigns. For example:
- Target individuals in-market for dental insurance AND newly moved to the area.
- Exclude those already on your patient list or who have recently visited your website.
Optimised Targeting
Leverage Google’s machine learning to find potential patients who align with your goals. This is particularly effective for discovery campaigns, where Google identifies high-value audiences based on your existing data and objectives.
Summary: Choosing the Right Audience Targeting for Your Practice
Here’s a quick recap of Google Ads audience targeting options for dentists:
Google’s Audience Segments
- Detailed demographics
- Affinity segments
- In-market segments
- Life events
Your Data Segments
- Website, app, and YouTube remarketing
- Customer Match
- Similar audiences
Custom Segments
- Search-based
- Website-based
- App-based
Other
- Combined segments
- Optimised targeting
By tailoring your campaigns with these audience targeting options, you can enhance your reach, improve engagement, and attract the right patients to your practice. Whether you’re promoting routine check-ups, cosmetic services, or orthodontics, audience targeting can make your ads more impactful and cost-effective.
Not run a PPC campaign before? Benefit from £400 in ad credit when you spend £400 – contact our dental marketing experts to learn more.
More posts from our team
Five Star
Reviewed Marketing
"Would definitely recommend to a friend"
"I cannot recommend Dental Design highly enough"
"Really great company to deal with"
"Very professional, efficient & adaptive to new situations"
"I cannot recommend them highly enough"
"Has been invaluable and gone out of her way to help us"
"We love the look of our practice website. Very professional!"
"Dental Design stood out both in their knowledge of the industry and their professionalism"
"The team and package offered at dental design was unrivalled"
"absolutely fantastic and are always on hand to help"
"Dental Design are fantastic to work with"
"always met with a swift and professional response"
