Branding Your Practice: SG’s Email Advice
Dear Stoked Group,
My practice is in the process of building a website and creating an online presence, and I’m open to having patients contact me directly via e-mail with questions. On our site’s contact page, can I just list my gmail account, or do I need to set up a new, separate e-mail account that matches the URL of the website? (I really don’t want to add another account to check daily!)
MS, general dentist, Seattle
Dear MS,
Do you want the good news or the bad news first?
Let’s start with the bad news, but instead of calling it “bad news,” let’s call it “smart advice.” Yes, you really should set up a new e-mail account to list on your practice website, and it should match the URL of your website. So, if your site is www.dentistofseattle.com, your new e-mail should be something like info@dentistofseattle.com or drms@dentistofseattle.com.
A dentist’s e-mail address might seem like a little thing, but it’s really an important component to branding. Think of it as another opportunity to solidify your business’s name with current and potential patients. It’s one more way to shine a spotlight on your name and your practice!
Also, a professional e-mail address that uses the URL of the company name lends credibility to the business overall, along with the perception of a more secure e-mail system. If the e-mail address doesn’t match the business or domain name, the perception might be that you just don’t know how (or didn’t take the time) to set it up. And the less your patients trust and respect your professional ability, the less likely they are to interact with you over e-mail.
Now for the good news: beyond the fact that creating a matching e-mail account is an opportunity to showcase your brand and build trust, the (other) good news is that you don’t need to set aside time to check two accounts daily! It’s easy to set up the new account so that it automatically forwards to your existing email account. This way, your personal and professional e-mails will show up in one central spot while still maintaining the credibility of your business URL. If you have questions on how to do this, contact your IT professional.
