Keep a dental post to five hashtags, the most Instagram allows: two or three naming the service or the person (#DentalCrown, #DentalHygienist), one for your town (#SanDiegoDentist), and the practice's name. Tag what you offer rather than the result; outcomes differ from patient to patient.
The hashtags worth using for a dental practice
What your practice offers
Name the service the post is about or the person it introduces. #DentalCrown suits a post about same-day crowns; #DentalHygienist suits one welcoming yours. #DentalOffice is the American word and #DentalPractice the British one.
Where you are
Patients pick a dentist near home or work, so one tag with your town and the word dentist belongs on most posts.
The pattern: #[Town]Dentist or #[Town]FamilyDentist
- San Diego: #SanDiegoDentist #SanDiegoFamilyDentist
- Cardiff: #CardiffDentist #CardiffDental
- Calgary: #CalgaryDentist #CalgaryDental
Your own tag
Use it on every post from the practice. Patients rarely post their own dental visit, so treat it as your own index rather than a tag that fills up by itself.
For example: #JuniperHillDental
Five tags for one real post
The post: “Same-day crowns are here. From this month, a crown takes one visit instead of two.”
What the post shows, where the business is, and its own name. Five tags, each one earning its place.
Tags to skip
- #smile, #teeth, #health. #smile is mostly selfies and #health covers everything from gym routines to supplements. A family choosing a dentist in your town won't find you there.
- Result tags like #SmileTransformation or #PerfectSmile. They promise an outcome, and results differ from patient to patient. Describe the service, and check your regulator's advertising guidance before you post any patient's before-and-after.
- A patient's name. Even a delighted patient's name in a tag links them to your practice in public search. Get written consent for any patient photo, and leave names out of the tags.
Seasonal tags
- February (US): #NCDHM #ChildrensDentalHealthMonth
- March 20: #WorldOralHealthDay
- Mid-May to mid-June (UK): #NationalSmileMonth
- October (US): #NDHM #DentalHygieneMonth
- Halloween (if you run a candy buy-back): #CandyBuyBack
Only on posts that are about that season. A Christmas tag on a plain Tuesday loaf is noise.
More for your dental practice
- Post ideas for a dental practice, each with a finished example post.
- How posthell runs social media for a dental practice, from one note a week.
- Hashtag counter to check a caption before you post it.