Message Boards
Today's Active Topics Today's Active Cases Browse Forum Categories My Recent Activity My Messages Private Groups My Marked Threads My Subscriptions
Today's Active Images Today's Active Polls Most Active Topics Global Townie Map Advanced Message Board Search Message Board Terms of Use

Going the Extra Mile in Marketing by Bryan Bauer, DDS, FAGD

Start Discussion


I know that many Townies dream of the day their practice's success is based solely on their clinical skills, but the reality is, the perception of quality is far more important to recruiting and maintaining patients than actual quality.

As a whole, Townies are highly skilled and passionate dentists. Knowing that those of you who are reading this are quality-oriented makes me hope that you will embrace the marketing of your practice with the same ambition you have used to turn yourself into the clinician you are today.

You owe it to yourself, your family, your team, and the members of your local community to let it be known—in terms the public understands and uses—that you are a quality practice. Those terms are primarily technology, personality and customer service. It takes marketing to get people to recognize that you have these things.

Getting beyond the waiting room
Our team at Bauer Dentistry and Orthodontics, located in Wheaton, Illinois, participates in a plethora of community activities. Whether it's sponsoring and being involved in local 5K runs, providing dental health education at schools, or participating in the local city summer festival, all of our team members are active and willing participants. Wheaton is fortunate to have a small zoo, which requires both volunteers and donations to keep it running. We make sure we are involved in most of the zoo's marketing events. These are a few of the ways we circulate our name to the public—by actively being "out there."

Keeping a high profile at these events is a good way for me and my wife, Danielle (an orthodontist), to give back to the community and market the practice at the same time. To make an impact at these events, it is not enough to simply hand out goodies (which we do)—you must interact with people and make a connection. That means talk to people!

Remind your team of this before every event and take the most outgoing members. Since technology is so important, we always talk about i-CAT 3D imaging. We either have a flyer or waterfall brochure solely about our i-CAT. This marketing piece, in an easy-to-read, bulleted layout, outlines how we use the information from this imaging modality:
  • Dental implants
  • Orthodontic treatment
  • Wisdom teeth extractions
  • Teeth impactions
  • Airway assessments and sleep apnea
  • Full facial and jaw 3D images
  • Endodontic lesions (of course, we say root canal on the flyer)
The brochure also outlines the benefits for patients, such as low-dose radiation, increased comfort, and easy data-sharing with patients so they can make more educated decisions. This gives patients a great background about what we offer and how it will help them.

But don't give away the practice
In our marketing efforts, we do not utilize discount offers—that is not the image we want to project for our practice or profession. We do donate complimentary whitenings and electric toothbrushes to be auctioned off at charity events. We will also offer similar incentives to patients who refer a friend.

In addition, we place ads in local magazines and utilize the Internet so people can read about us and our practice. We are fortunate to have a really effective search engine optimization (SEO) team. People jokingly tell me, "I can't get away from you guys; you're popping up everywhere!" We use an SEO company for general marketing and another professional company to help manage social media platforms. In addition—and I think this is crucial—a staff member adds personal touches by including photos of our patients (after they've signed the appropriate release form).

Rather than utilizing stock photos, we show actual patients showing off their beautiful smiles. To educate potential patients about our technology, we feature our i-CAT on the home page of our website—it alternates with a few other carefully selected images.

Show why you're better
I believe that general practitioners who want to do implants or other specialized procedures must spotlight their technology—for example, 3D imaging. When patients hear that you may have more innovative technology than some specialists, and they understand how the technology can lead to better care, they realize that your practice is specialized in its own way.

The internal marketing of 3D imaging is amazing. On our consultation visits, when we sit together and view their scan, many patients are seeing their mouth in 3D for the first time. I virtually place the implant for them right before their eyes.

I tell them, "Here is the implant. I will put it right here, and this is what it will look like." They are impressed that I can digitally place it right in front of them. That starts them thinking things like, "Maybe this is not so scary. This GP has the technology to do it. I will stay with this office."

After they understand what I can do clinically, I move the 3D image of their skull in a nodding motion and joke, "This is you saying, 'Yes, let's do it!'" That gives them a chuckle after all that seriousness. Danielle does many of the same things for her ortho patients. We have even printed an image of the patient's skull onto a shirt for him (or her) if he acts really excited (the patients who go for this are usually young boys who think skulls are "cool").

Don't go it alone
Over the years, I've learned a lot about marketing from the Dentaltown message boards. There are so many great minds to borrow ideas from. For me, being a Townie is all about learning and getting feedback on cases.

Recently, I posted about a case referred from a periodontist's office. Tooth #10 appeared to be in perfect position on the PA. Unfortunately, it failed about 10 months after restoring. The scan quickly showed the reason for this failure—the implant was almost completely facial to the bone. The ability to shoot a low-dose quick scan of any implant has greatly increased my awareness of the perils of implant dentistry and certainly makes me a much better clinician.

Go the extra mile—and so will patients
All of the different types of marketing take a lot of effort, but it can be fun, and it works. I've had two large implant case patients recently walk through the door, brought in via totally different marketing strategies. A 12-implant case FMR patient came in after reading some blog posts I wrote featuring the i-CAT and talking about hybrid dentures.

Another FMR case patient came in needing 11 implants after a word-of-mouth referral. Someone at his workplace told him that our practice was the go-to place for implants! He lives and works in Chicago, and there are easily hundreds of doctors between him and my office who place implants.

These two patients show that multiple formats of marketing need to be constantly utilized to increase your opportunities to treat larger cases. The right education and technology make these types of cases doable, but it's the marketing that allows you the opportunity to treat them. Whether it's newer forms of marketing, like blogs, or good old word-of-mouth driven by excellent customer service, many forms work if you put in the effort. After every event or charity run, we return to the office knowing that our marketing efforts will pay off in the long run—with new patients, more educated patients and patients who know that we are prepared to go the extra mile for their dental care.

Disclaimer: Dr. Bauer has no financial interest in i-CAT.





Dr. Bryan Bauer is general dentist with an emphasis on implant and cosmetic dentistry in Wheaton, Illinois. He attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he earned a bachelor's in biochemistry. Dr. Bauer went on to attend UIC College of Dentistry, graduating in 2004. He currently owns Bauer Dentistry and Orthodontics with his wife, Dr. Danielle Bauer. His website is Bauersmiles.com.


Dentaltown Magazine
April 2024
Dentaltown Magazine April 2024 Read Current Issue Read Archived Issues
Sponsors
Townie Perks
Townie® Poll
Have you ever switched practice management platforms for your practice?
  
Site Menu
Message Boards Magazine Continuing Education Podcasts Blogs Classifieds News Events Townie® Poll Ebooks Townie Choice Awards
Company Info
Contact Us Advertise With Us Howard Farran DDS, MBA Policies and Agreements
Site Help
Sally Gross, Member Services Specialist
Phone: +1-480-445-9710
Email: sally@farranmedia.com
©2024 Dentaltown, a division of Farran Media • All Rights Reserved
9633 S. 48th Street Suite 200 • Phoenix, AZ 85044 • Phone:+1-480-598-0001 • Fax:+1-480-598-3450