Tanglewood Dental Associates
Reimagining a 65-Year-Old Dental Practice Through UX
Role
UI/UX Designer & Web Developer
Industry
Healthcare
Duration
4 months
https://www.tanglewooddentalassociates.com/
Client Overview
Tanglewood Dental Associates is a dental practice with a 65-year legacy, thriving solely through word-of-mouth referrals. Serving a multi-generational client base that leans toward the older demographic, the clinic has never engaged in formal marketing or had an online presence. The practice focuses on providing remarkable dentistry through sincere relationships, aiming to build long-term connections.
Software Used
Notion, Asana, Figma, Webflow, ChatGPT, Claude AI, Relume, Trello.
North Star
To kick off the project, I collaborated with marketing head Brendon in a 90-day planning session to define our north star—establishing the first-ever marketing and web development efforts for a 65-year-old clinic that had never needed them before. I shadowed the staff to understand their workflows, technologies, and patient interactions, ensuring our strategy aligned with their trusted approach.
https://www.tanglewooddentalassociates.com/
Client Overview
Tanglewood Dental Associates is a dental practice with a 65-year legacy, thriving solely through word-of-mouth referrals. Serving a multi-generational client base that leans toward the older demographic, the clinic has never engaged in formal marketing or had an online presence. The practice focuses on providing remarkable dentistry through sincere relationships, aiming to build long-term connections.
Software Used
Notion, Asana, Figma, Webflow, ChatGPT, Claude AI, Relume, Trello.
North Star
To kick off the project, I collaborated with marketing head Brendon in a 90-day planning session to define our north star—establishing the first-ever marketing and web development efforts for a 65-year-old clinic that had never needed them before. I shadowed the staff to understand their workflows, technologies, and patient interactions, ensuring our strategy aligned with their trusted approach.
Key Findings from Patient Interviews
Based on interviews with multiple patients at the dental practice, several consistent themes emerge:
Strong emphasis on maintaining dental health rather than cosmetic improvements
High value placed on trust and long-term relationships with dental providers
Fear and anxiety are major factors in dental care decisions
Personal referrals and word-of-mouth heavily influence provider selection
Limited use of internet research for dental information or provider selection
Willingness to travel significant distances for trusted dental care
Practice atmosphere and staff friendliness are key differentiators
Key Findings from Patient Interviews
Based on interviews with multiple patients at the dental practice, several consistent themes emerge:
Strong emphasis on maintaining dental health rather than cosmetic improvements
High value placed on trust and long-term relationships with dental providers
Fear and anxiety are major factors in dental care decisions
Personal referrals and word-of-mouth heavily influence provider selection
Limited use of internet research for dental information or provider selection
Willingness to travel significant distances for trusted dental care
Practice atmosphere and staff friendliness are key differentiators
Positioning & Messaging
To refine our approach, I presented and iterated on the key positioning and messaging strategy with Dr. Lawnin and head of marketing, ensuring a cohesive and patient centered content strategy moving forward.
Content Strategy
With the north star in place, we implemented an AI-powered content strategy to attract organic traffic to our future site. Since the clinic had never engaged in marketing before, the goal was to build an educational and trust-driven content library that would position TDA as the best authority in the field. We generated weekly content that addressed common patient concerns through interviewing dental hygienists and doctors.
Brand Writing Guide & AI-Powered Content Pipleline
To maintain consistency, I developed a brand writing guide focusing on empathy, expertise, trust, and aesthetic care. I built a pipeline to generate nine pieces of content weekly.
Visual Design Identity
I wanted to hone in on the distinct visual design identity for Tanglewood Dental Associates because we were in the process of a new office, website, and content pipeline. The design merges our primary brand color with vintage/modern minimalism aesthetics.
Golf and vintage elements subtly reflect the approachable personality of Dr. Lawnin and his staff, ensuring a cohesive, genuine patient experience across digital and physical spaces. This identity serves as the visual foundation for our UI, digital content, and brand strategy.
Visual Design Identity
I wanted to hone in on the distinct visual design identity for Tanglewood Dental Associates because we were in the process of a new office, website, and content pipeline. The design merges our primary brand color with vintage/modern minimalism aesthetics.
Golf and vintage elements subtly reflect the approachable personality of Dr. Lawnin and his staff, ensuring a cohesive, genuine patient experience across digital and physical spaces. This identity serves as the visual foundation for our UI, digital content, and brand strategy.
Website Strategy
I began by discussing Dr. Lawnin’s frustrations with traditional dental websites, which he felt contained excessive fluff and failed to center the patient as the hero of their own dental journey. Many of these sites were too focused on showcasing the clinic and the doctor rather than addressing the patient's concerns which include: cost, problems, comparisons, best of, and reviews.
One of Dr. Lawnin’s primary concerns was ensuring long-term patient relationships. While he is recognized for excellence in aesthetic restorative dentistry, his goal was to cultivate a practice where patients prioritize sincere lifelong oral health with his team.
Website Strategy
I began by discussing Dr. Lawnin’s frustrations with traditional dental websites, which he felt contained excessive fluff and failed to center the patient as the hero of their own dental journey. Many of these sites were too focused on showcasing the clinic and the doctor rather than addressing the patient's concerns which include: cost, problems, comparisons, best of, and reviews.
One of Dr. Lawnin’s primary concerns was ensuring long-term patient relationships. While he is recognized for excellence in aesthetic restorative dentistry, his goal was to cultivate a practice where patients prioritize sincere lifelong oral health with his team.
Web Design
While reviewing dental websites in the area provided helpful context, we deliberately chose not to follow conventional approaches. Instead, we focused on developing a unique positioning for Tanglewood Dental that authentically reflects the clinic's distinct vision and mission.
The high-fidelity homepage prototype was designed to reflect warmth and trust through refined aesthetics and a softer more inviting font that aligns with the clinic's down-to-earth nature.
Web Design
While reviewing dental websites in the area provided helpful context, we deliberately chose not to follow conventional approaches. Instead, we focused on developing a unique positioning for Tanglewood Dental that authentically reflects the clinic's distinct vision and mission.
The high-fidelity homepage prototype was designed to reflect warmth and trust through refined aesthetics and a softer more inviting font that aligns with the clinic's down-to-earth nature.
User-First Navigation: Writing for Patient Understanding
I designed the navigation following minimalist principles championed by Tesla. Instead of cluttered menus, we focused on essential services with meaningful, patient-centric labels.
For example, rather than using traditional terms like 'Cosmetic Dentistry' or 'Smile Design' that emphasize aesthetics alone, we chose 'Smile Restoration' to reflect our comprehensive approach. This intentional language shift communicates that we're not just focused on surface-level appearances, but rather on restoring both the function and beauty of your smile for lasting oral health.
User-First Navigation: Writing for Patient Understanding
I designed the navigation following minimalist principles championed by Tesla. Instead of cluttered menus, we focused on essential services with meaningful, patient-centric labels.
For example, rather than using traditional terms like 'Cosmetic Dentistry' or 'Smile Design' that emphasize aesthetics alone, we chose 'Smile Restoration' to reflect our comprehensive approach. This intentional language shift communicates that we're not just focused on surface-level appearances, but rather on restoring both the function and beauty of your smile for lasting oral health.
Validating User-Friendly Navigation with Tree Testing
I knew that our dental clinic site's navigation was unconventional which led me to conduct a tree test using Optimal Workshop. The goal was to validate the clarity and effectiveness of our site's navigation structure, ensuring that patients can easily locate critical information such as aesthetic restorative treatments, general dentistry, pricing details, and our clinic's background.
Validating User-Friendly Navigation with Tree Testing
I knew that our dental clinic site's navigation was unconventional which led me to conduct a tree test using Optimal Workshop. The goal was to validate the clarity and effectiveness of our site's navigation structure, ensuring that patients can easily locate critical information such as aesthetic restorative treatments, general dentistry, pricing details, and our clinic's background.
Tree Test Results
Navigation label | % of users that got the task correct |
|---|---|
Smile Restoration | 100% |
Cost & Coverage | 100% |
Book an Appointment | 100% |
Lifelong Care | 70% |
Learning Center/Your Questions Answered | 70% |
Learning Center/Our Story | 100% |
After receiving the results, we decided to further iterate over our navigation labels. Users seemed to get Lifelong Care confused with Your Questions Answered. We decided to change Lifelong Care to Lifelong Services to clarify that this where you can find information about preventative care.
Tree Test Results
Navigation label | % of users that got the task correct |
|---|---|
Smile Restoration | 100% |
Cost & Coverage | 100% |
Book an Appointment | 100% |
Lifelong Care | 70% |
Learning Center/Your Questions Answered | 70% |
Learning Center/Our Story | 100% |
After receiving the results, we decided to further iterate over our navigation labels. Users seemed to get Lifelong Care confused with Your Questions Answered. We decided to change Lifelong Care to Lifelong Services to clarify that this where you can find information about preventative care.
Building Trust Through User-Centered Design
Moving beyond the conventional blog format, we developed a learning center that positions Tanglewood Dental as the go-to resource for dental education. Each article is crafted to address real patient questions and concerns which include questions we get asked daily from patients.
Instead of overwhelming users with a chronological blog feed, we created distinct categories that align with common patient needs and questions. From practical 'Cost & Coverage' information to engaging 'Myth Busting' content and personal 'Smile Stories,' each category serves a specific purpose in the patient's information journey.
Building Trust Through User-Centered Design
Moving beyond the conventional blog format, we developed a learning center that positions Tanglewood Dental as the go-to resource for dental education. Each article is crafted to address real patient questions and concerns which include questions we get asked daily from patients.
Instead of overwhelming users with a chronological blog feed, we created distinct categories that align with common patient needs and questions. From practical 'Cost & Coverage' information to engaging 'Myth Busting' content and personal 'Smile Stories,' each category serves a specific purpose in the patient's information journey.
Web Development
Webflow Development: I chose Webflow as our development platform because it is the industry leader for CMS-heavy sites, making it the perfect solution for our content-driven approach. Additionally, I integrated HubSpot CRM, the best-in-class tool for customer relationship management, ensuring that we had the best of both worlds. To streamline the development process, I used Relume, an AI-powered tool that generates wireframes and components directly compatible with Webflow. This allowed for an efficient transition from design to development, making the build process swift and highly effective.
SME Collaboration: Gathering insights from subject matter experts to refine treatment descriptions and service structure on our site.
Brand Positioning and Messaging on Site: Developed trust-building site content like "Our Commitment to Excellence" instead of a traditional "awards" section to reflect authenticity.
Web Development
Webflow Development: I chose Webflow as our development platform because it is the industry leader for CMS-heavy sites, making it the perfect solution for our content-driven approach. Additionally, I integrated HubSpot CRM, the best-in-class tool for customer relationship management, ensuring that we had the best of both worlds. To streamline the development process, I used Relume, an AI-powered tool that generates wireframes and components directly compatible with Webflow. This allowed for an efficient transition from design to development, making the build process swift and highly effective.
SME Collaboration: Gathering insights from subject matter experts to refine treatment descriptions and service structure on our site.
Brand Positioning and Messaging on Site: Developed trust-building site content like "Our Commitment to Excellence" instead of a traditional "awards" section to reflect authenticity.
Key Takeaways and Impact
Content Strategy Success: Established a scalable content production model, ensuring consistent, high-quality content.
Improved Brand Messaging: Aligned the practice’s online presence with its core values, making it more approachable and patient-focused.
Innovative Website UX: Shifted from conventional dental website structures to a unique, high-converting design that prioritizes patient experience.
AI-Powered Efficiency: Leveraged AI tools to expedite content creation while maintaining brand authenticity.
Key Takeaways and Impact
Content Strategy Success: Established a scalable content production model, ensuring consistent, high-quality content.
Improved Brand Messaging: Aligned the practice’s online presence with its core values, making it more approachable and patient-focused.
Innovative Website UX: Shifted from conventional dental website structures to a unique, high-converting design that prioritizes patient experience.
AI-Powered Efficiency: Leveraged AI tools to expedite content creation while maintaining brand authenticity.
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