There are many ways to approach your dental practice and dentistry marketing. There are dental marketing companies that provide clip-on concepts, no-fail strategies, amazing online packages and/or exclusive territory systems. While I produce and sell customized packages, there are dentists that will be successful using these other approaches.

But there is a limit on who can be successful using these strategies. For example, dental marketing firms that have exclusive territory systems automatically eliminate you from their program if they already have a dentist client in your ZIP code or region.

These exclusive territory groups can also put themselves in a potential conflict of interest bind. As the client of one of these dental marketing agencies, you are automatically restricted on your marketing options.

Let's imagine that their mailers would actually work better if you sent them to 5,000 households with incomes above $100K in a 5-mile radius rather than the $60K 3-mile radius they have "given you". Or what if sending to both groups - different messages -would double your business rather than just increase it 20%?

Their exclusive territory strategy is great for their business plan - they can get more clients that way - but not necessarily for you. Remember that all the territory is YOURS! Imagine Wal-Mart giving up territory to K-Mart. While that might sound courteous - it's bad for the consumer - they should have all the options open to them. Your expertise should not be limited to 12 square blocks or two ZIP codes.

With these kinds of dental marketing systems, schemes and concepts bouncing around out there, it is important that you take steps to make sure you are aware of what you are actually getting and what it could actually do for your image and bottom line long and short term.

Choosing a Dental Marketing "System"
• Something you believe in
• Something you will follow through on
Dental Marketing Conflicts Of Interest
1) There are easy dental marketing concepts to sell and hard things to sell.
2) Do one-trick pony dental marketing agencies give you everything they know?
3) Dental Product Selling is easy. Dental Consulting is complex.
Dental Marketing Prejudice
• The NEWEST THING Prejudice
• The PERSONAL PREFERENCE Prejudice
• My Dental Marketing Prejudice
• Avoid Your Own Dental Marketing Prejudices
Dental Marketing Tricks And Secrets
Dental Marketing At A Glance
• What Has Worked Before (Traditional Marketing)
• The Newest, Latest Marketing Technology
Top Ten Dental "Tricks" To Remember
Conclusion: Dental Marketing That Really Works

CHOOSING A DENTAL MARKETING "SYSTEM"

When choosing a system, strategy or scheme - and the dental marketing company to create and implement it - make sure they are and their concept is:

Something you believe in

If you half-heartily believe in the dental marketing concept - you are destined not to put much time or thought into it. While many dentists are too pressed for time to research marketing - let alone work with dental marketers to develop a long-term vision - I think "cut and paste" dental marketing concepts can diminish your dental brand.

These "easy" dental marketing concepts might save time and money initially but often they have little serious effect on your bottom line for the long-term. If a serious competitor comes into the market, you will find yourself back in the same position. Not everyone needs dental consulting or custom work, but like dental health care - "success" comes in various packages: stopgap and long-term solutions.

Something you will follow through on

"I will try that dental marketing postcard one time and if it works, I will call you back." "I will have one tooth restored in front and if that is successful - I will do the other 12 teeth you recommended." Marketing and dentistry have some common attributes. Success is built on many steps. Doing one dental marketing thing (or restoration) might show the value of it - but often value is created with multiple elements not with one installment (or dental unit).

For example, my website and the clients I have worked with that have gone beyond a basic web presence have seen their sites rise very high in the search engine hierarchy. It was little things, strategic things, continuous things and over time things that made this happen - not just the throwing of a switch one day in the past.

DENTAL MARKETING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

You should also be aware of the conflicts of interests dental marketers have in promoting various dental marketing strategies:

1) There are easy dental marketing concepts to sell and hard things to sell.

For example, a dental marketer has a great dental postcard system to sell you and tomorrow the XYZ dental marketing concept turns out to be a better way to market dentistry. But it would be hard for the dental marketer to sell this efficiently and make money. Will the dental marketing agency suggest this to anyone until they can figure out a way to make money at it? Will they shoot down the other good marketing thing just because they don't do it?

2) Do one-trick pony dental marketing agencies give you everything they know?

What if the company does dental radio and TV ads and does not do newspaper advertising, but newspaper will work the best in your town. Is the dental marketing agency going to give you this tip? A dental marketer sells pay-per-click advertising and says it is the best thing since sliced bread - do they let you know that upwards of 35 percent of clicks could be bogus, which you pay for? Either competitors or Internet bots are the reason for this problem (Inc. Magazine, August 2005).

My favorites are the dental web site companies that have no off-line marketing elements. While the web offers lots of dental marketing formats that are effective, the Internet is a very passive medium. Computers are often located in the home office, in the kids' playroom and not in the kitchen or on the three-season porch. The laptop is increasing the "mobility" of this medium, but booting it up and all the other issues involved in computers still make them problematic.

If the average adult user is on the computer one or two hours a day (doing personal things), think about the 12-15 hours a day you are missing out on communicating with them. When computers are in front of us 8-12 hours a day (for personal use) maybe we can talk about the Internet age for dentistry.

3) Dental Product Selling is easy. Dental Consulting is complex.

If you are ready to buy a dental marketing concept you saw on the web, will the dental marketer answering the phone steer you toward something better or just take your money? Most companies are set up to sell - not to consult. Calling a dental product "selling company" makes things easier for everyone involved. You only need to provide a credit card, fill out some forms about your practice and services, and write up a bio and send some photos. Turnkey is the buzzword for these "easily" implemented systems. (Very quick and easy way to access your credit card.)

A dental consultant asks what you want to accomplish? What have you tried? What has worked? What are your dentist competitors doing? This is not simple. It's not cheapest way to go. Obviously, it will still involve some selling - but it gives you more awareness to build a long-term business not just sell a few more crowns. You are not a franchise or a generic brand so why do these dental marketing companies think a turnkey marketing system will work for your business?

DENTAL MARKETING PREJUDICE

Another major issue you might run into when approaching a dental marketer is marketing prejudice. There are two basic reasons why prejudice occurs in dental marketing: the newest thing and personal preference.

The NEWEST THING Prejudice

This involves the concept of selling something as if it is "now the best way" to market dentistry, but ignoring dental marketing concepts that work as well or better but aren't so new.

Websites, Pay-per-click ads (PPC), emails and other online concepts are very exciting and often produce great results. Yet once competitors enter this area of dental marketing - the stellar results originally promoted drop off quite quickly and the concept becomes just another part of the background.

If every dentist has a dental website, does everyone get a 40% boost in their revenues? Possibly there is something deeper that needs to be understood about dental marketing than just trying to ride the wave of the newest marketing vehicle.

The PERSONAL PREFERENCE Prejudice

I believe certain things about dental marketing. You believe certain things. These beliefs become dangerous prejudices once we start closing our field of vision. We start to make assumptions with emotions and/or limited ideas buffeted by minimal research and the complementary but peripherally narrow ideas of those we closely associate with (friends, family, other dentists, consultants, etc.).

I too have succumbed many times, but find ways to pull myself from the pack and look around. "Research takes time - I could be selling." But only focusing on today's money can be damaging to your/my future. Once the gradual slide starts, it often is very difficult to stop the deluge of rocks and mud.

In Clayton M. Christensen's book, The Innovator's Dilemma, he tells the story of the sailing industry and how NOT ONE of these great companies made it to the steamship era. The sailing guys laughed at these slow moving heaps that chugged up rivers, never thinking they could cross the big water. Sadly, we don't have that much time to watch the sea change and turn our ships around. And, the options are not as easy to see - dental marketing can work in the OLD and the NEW formats, just in different ways with different groups of people. You could make good money selling sailing vessels now if you knew the niche well.

A more recent example: I read some good marketing information from a guru in dental marketing - who is touted by a number of dental outlets and organizations - who said direct mail and newspaper are the best way for dentists to market. He says that public relations is oversold as a way to market dentistry. Yet there are many companies that have built their businesses on PR and continue to use it. Some use PR exclusively.

Yes, PR is not right for all dental practices, but it really depends on a number of factors. These factors include the personality and potential image and credibility level of the practice and/or doctor.

This guru dental marketer sells "direct response" marketing ideas. He is able to simply articulate the value of his concepts and dentists buy the concept because the reasoning seems sound and has large flashes of common sense. He has done this type of dental marketing for years and touts the success of his dentist clients.

His personal preference is direct response marketing, which often means tagging a dental coupon on to your marketing. He believes you are able to track its success better than any other marketing. While this is often true - it does not explain away the value of other marketing.

First, most dental practices are not like other businesses. They have built much of their current business on referrals. Dentists often have not marketed in an external proactive way. Many who do "regular" marketing, use the Yellow Pages exclusively, a passive medium. If the dentist has marketed proactively, it was often hit and miss. Therefore, on this clean slate doing anything consistently would provide obvious results to track, direct response or not.

Secondly, offering a coupon and asking the consumer to bring in it in or remember some type of direct response concept is not roundly accepted by every consumer. If you are performing $20,000 worth of quality dentistry - what kind of discount coupon do you offer? Do you have to treat your services like the local pizza restaurant or furniture outlet to get patients?

Finally, what's wrong with building a rapport with the consumer and your patients that doesn't include a dental coupon or promotion? Can you track the friendliness of your staff? Does that make it less important? Direct response might be something you'll want to do, but other things work. As a dentist, measuring results might seem like the best way to go - but human beings are more complex than the coupons they clip!

His prejudice will work for many dentists. However you should know what you're getting before you purchase it. Just because it "works" does not mean it is for the dental brand you want to create.

MY DENTAL MARKETING PREJUDICE

As for my prejudice when it comes to dental marketing, I prefer taking the road less traveled. Some call it reality. I call it looking for substance and building real value.

I could provide some hokey "simple answers" to building a business and sell you the "secrets of dental marketing". However, at some point you will subject these kinds of concepts to the light of day. I would rather start the relationship with the curtains open. Then we clear off the kitchen table (ask many questions) and get to work (do some deep research). That's where we'll find real ideas for your real business.

AVOID YOUR OWN DENTAL MARKETING PREJUDICES

There is no perfect marketing concept that fits every dental practice. Avoid thinking you have to follow the crowd because almost anything (old or new) can work if the concept surrounding it appeals to the consumer.

DENTAL MARKETING TRICKS AND SECRETS

It seems there are millions of marketing formats promoted with these themes. These tricks and secrets are not all bad - it just is not always that easy, except for how they get your credit card information. Look these over to make sure they really are creating the type of long-term, value oriented dental practice you want to have.

The most strategic "trick" is to employ a good dental marketing strategy that another dentist is not using and build it around human emotions and needs: not just dental health issues. If you regularly see a mailer from a dentist that piles on the discounts and promotions to attract new patients, it would be difficult to do a similar mailing and expect to get the same results.

The same goes for the newspaper insert or ad that focuses mostly on deals on dental care. This is especially true if this dentist has "owned the market" in this type of marketing for a number of years.

Of course, each dental mailing or ad has a slightly different "time in the life of the consumer" perspective. On Wednesday 10 people might be ready to buy and Thursday it might be 15. There are always consumers ready to buy - if you are the one to market to them on their best buy day - you get those patients. In reality, almost anything will work because of the dearth of dentists marketing, and your day is open.

I think there is room in the market for both money-off dentists and those dentists who want to avoid those tactics. I work with dentists who would rather not discount their expertise - but the type of dental patient they want is not the only kind of patient there is. Some people cannot afford dentistry without discounts. As a dentist and a businessperson, you need to decide which group you would like to attract and/or which image you want to project. Then develop a dental marketing plan that moves you in that direction.

DENTAL MARKETING AT A GLANCE

Here is a quick rundown of what is possible with the various marketing vehicles available and what is inherently good and bad about them. If I were in to hype, they would be called my "Dental Marketing Secrets". However, I like a lower volume that respects my audience.

I separated them into "what has worked before" and the "newest things" on the market. I also have some tips to remember when hiring a dental marketing firm: TOP TEN "TRICKS". Hopefully they will open your eyes to more and better ways to market your dental practice.

What Has Worked Before (Traditional Marketing)

Broadcast TV:

It is expensive and is "so yesterday", but it still reaches a ton of people. There are companies reaping TV's benefits, while most businesses stand on the sidelines wondering what to do. Few dentists will even consider this type of marketing so you have a huge opening even in this old medium.

Newspaper:

There are fewer people now reading the newspaper - but they have more money, and are more educated then the general public. Get in there with something that respects their intelligence.

Direct Mail:

It can cost more than a Yellow Pages ad or Google, but that means fewer dentists are marketing that way. PLUS it actually gets into the dental consumer's hands and gives them new ideas and pushes them to act sooner on their needs and wants.

Yellow Pages:

It does not work as well as it did before the consumer Internet, but it is still much easier to grab and open than booting up most computers or finding a good place to search online. It is also often more local and more complete than many local online Yellow Pages and search engines. Plus it is a habit many people older than 40 (now) are not likely to drop until they drop for good. Other Facts: The dentist section is in the top ten of YP headings out of hundreds. The Yellow Pages also has significant statistics/proof on how it brings in dental patients.

Radio:

Yes, podcasts will eventually take away the current value of radio - but in the next 10-20 years there will be plenty of us aging dental consumers still listening - even though we have to keep turning up the volume.

Magazines:

These are often very targeted. They are invited into the home (unlike direct mail) and people are relaxed and will take in more because they are relaxed.

Public Relations:

Few do it well. There are big agencies with connections, which you pay more for. There are smaller ones that are scrappier and you pay less for. There are ones that know dentistry and others that position you with plastic surgeons. There are ones that focus on your specific brand/expertise rather than dentistry in general. Find one that gets it.

The Newest, Latest Marketing Technology

Cable TV & Digital Satellite Television:

Cable technology straddles the old and new but has finally come into its own with help from its digital satellite cousin. After 50 years, it finally reaches 97-99 percent of households. The price is often more comfortable than broadcast TV and it can be targeted very tightly. However, it is fragmented and requires significant frequency to grab the attention of the small audiences watching each of the 500 channels. Before you get locked into a contract sold by a dental marketing agency that will give you "exclusive territory", check out broadcast and see what is possible there.

Dental Websites:

It is a very passive medium - like Yellow Pages - it waits for visitors. Dental Web sites work but now there is a lot more of them. Dental patients can pick and choose, even a dentist from another state. Most dentists are still just putting up lots of information - with little branding or focus. Dentists are still serving every audience and do not see the value in becoming a specific place for specific dental consumers. Consumers want a certain "experience". It is difficult to communicate this experience when the dentist is saying everything.

Google, Yahoo & MSN Dental Pay-Per-Click Advertising:

I use them. They "work". But most dentists are like most dental web surfers and just click and call (or in my case email). They know little about me and do little researching even on this site. Hectic clickers are often window shoppers and/or not really ready to buy. They are just checking things out. I need to do more marketing/communicating with dentists to create believers. You need to do more with your prospective and current patients to make them believers in your value. Do it before they click, so they are prepped!

Dental Emailing or eNewsletters:

Depending on whom you ask, emailing was a lot better a few years ago or the Wild West. Now the government is involved, spammers are ruining a lot of it and consumers are more wary. Various gatekeepers (AOL, MSN, SBC, etc.) are blacklisting emailers for many reasons. Even if you sign up for an email from Niche Dental (Agency) - double opt-in - your email provider might not let us in. This "protects" the consumer - but it makes emailing less available as a dental marketing tool. While it still works and is very powerful, the reality is that it has NOT changed everything.

DVDs and Video Stuff Online:

These dental products, if done well, have a powerful impact. Visual, verbal and emotional elements are very engaging. Negatives: The infomercial style does not appeal to all. Try something unique. The cost of DVD/Video development can make it a one-time shot. Then you don't market again or for a long time. Plus you need people calling your dental practice before you can send them out or visiting your site before it will have the impact you expect. Plus technical issues in accessing video online are still problematic. A mass mailing of DVDs to people who aren't prepped would be very expensive. If your patients/consumers mostly expect minimal dentistry, a video about smile makeovers might not be that effective.

Podcasts, Dentist/Dental Blogs, Cell Phones:

Wow, these are exciting technologies! However, these are very new even to the most tech savvy advertisers. You can do your own podcast or dental blog, but that requires time commitment and consistency over and above everything else you are doing. And there is no template for success. It is freewheeling and much is unknown. Like the gold rushes of yore - you might hit a vein or you might just break your back. Cell phone advertising could provide some outlets for dentistry but you either need to get in early and benefit from uniqueness (very risky) or wait till things shake out (more is known but more competitors). Watch out though, you might be buying the flash and not the print?

TOP TEN DENTAL "TRICKS" TO REMEMBER

Review the following items. Then use them when you hire your dental marketing firm.

10) Look At Patient Value over Cost

o Rather than look at your marketing costs through purely a monthly dollar amount - consider the patients you want.
o If your average patient has two teeth restored/enhanced, then determine what your profit margin is on this type of case.
o Gauge how many patients like this you would need from that dental marketing source to make it worthwhile.
o For example, direct mail often produces a 1-3 percent response rate: "about" 50-100 patients for a 5,000 mailing.
o Of course, the dental mailing can be designed to attract either those expecting low value and those who want high value.

9) Be consistent and frequent

o I like Yellow Pages because it is always there. Unfortunately, only 1 in 10 dentists are doing anything to get the word out about what is now available to their patients. Choose a couple things that you WILL do regularly that are outside of the office dental marketing - like a dental Yellow Pages ad and a dental newsletter. Consumers are missing a lot: answer their questions before they get in the dental chair and anxiety sets in!

8) Customer Relations is your best Public Relations

o Losing patients should not be an option. Find ways to make them happy and keep them in the loop so they will upgrade their care when you recommend it (otherwise they will think you are just "selling" them).

7) Be Different/Look At Dentist Competitors/Learn from all the dental marketing you can find

o Look at other dentists. What kind of dental marketing are they doing? Ask a few good patients what they would like you to say or do that others are not.
o Gather up local dentist competitor ads, materials, and search online for what other dentists are doing around the country/world, and work out a strategy - so you can do dental marketing on your own or communicate your needs better to a dental consultant and keep us in line.

6) Design and Writing is important - it should speak to and grab people and standout

o After paying for 12 months of dental Yellow Pages ad, it is like a punch in the stomach for many dentists to pay a designer hundreds of dollars to do an ad. But few dentists choose the professional design option (they let the YP guys who design pizza ads do it) and it shows. I guess I would want to stand out.

5) Avoid sinking all your money into one idea

o This is difficult because it is easier to do one thing (a Yellow Pages ad) and move onto other things besides marketing. But everything has it limits. Dental Websites and Yellow Pages are passive. Direct Mail is proactive and tactile. Radio and TV can be very emotional. Get a good mix of two or three things.

4) Everything flattens out and falls in line at some point.

o As explained about emailing above, even great new technology (that looks like it will change everything) only captures part of the market - specific age group, etc. - and the old things hang on and still influence dental consumers.

3) Challenge assumptions (mine/others/yours) don't just follow "current" thinking

o We get stuck on certain things and form prejudices. Try shaking those off for a while before you decide what to do.

2) Talk to people - string things together

o Don't decide without calling some competing interests…
o Niche Dental (Agency) and others - Yellow Pages, Radio, TV and Newspaper - Your colleagues, other businesses in the area

1) Ask "Dumb" Questions - get me or the other dental consultant or sales rep to cough up the goods

o What if I really want your product but do not want to sign now - can I still get the deal next month?
o What can you promise me: complete success, partial success, something else?
o It is great that I am saving money, but what do I get after that?

CONCLUSION: DENTAL MARKETING THAT REALLY WORKS

There are many things that "work". As a dental consultant, I try to go beyond cranking out dental marketing things that I can sell you. Rather than predicting beforehand what you need, I want to discover what you are about and where you want to go.

I add local research and my experience with over 150 dentists around the country (even Japan and England). Then I plug this research into a plan that works within a responsible budget. Dental marketing planning like this "really works" because it addresses your entire business mission. It works with your image, around your competitors and into the hearts and minds of your patients and the general public.

You have many choices in dental marketing firms. If those choices seem shallow even though their breadth is as big as the Internet, call me. I am not a marketing miracle worker with hype as my sidekick, but I will work earnestly to help you build the business and the dental vocation you want.

Keep your eyes wide open when choosing a dental marketing firm so you get what really works. But more importantly, we need to open the eyes of consumers by communicating with them more often.