1. Become the Official Dentist for a Sports Team or School
Dr. Hanasab at Mid-Wilshire Dentistry set the bar by becoming the official dentist for the LA Clippers. This partnership isn’t just about logos—it’s about weaving your brand into the fabric of the community and making regular appearances at NBA games. Approaching local pro or minor league teams, colleges, or high schools to sponsor their sports programs can open doors for your practice.
Offering free mouthguards, dental screenings, or custom gear for athletes, and hosting player visits at your office creates memorable experiences for staff and patients. If pro teams are out of reach, focusing on being the “go-to” dental brand for high schools or youth leagues builds loyalty from a young age and fosters lifelong patients. Still can start at the high school and club team level.
Norman Powell - NBA Player
The impact includes elevating your credibility, generating both local and national media coverage, and providing unique, memorable experiences. Leveraging these partnerships for exclusive patient events, such as ticket giveaways or autograph sessions, and cross-promoting with the team’s digital channels can further amplify your reach. The major advantages are a credibility boost, trust by association, access to new patient segments, and fostering community goodwill. However, this approach can require high costs and effort for pro teams, ongoing investment and negotiation, and may be less accessible for smaller or newer practices.
2. Design an Office That People Want to Show Off
Design layouts like Metropolis Dental, Smile in LA, and Sugarbug Dental prove that office design is a powerful marketing tool. Hiring a renowned dental design firm to create a visually stunning, Instagram-worthy practice with features like floor-to-ceiling windows, luxury furnishings, art installations, and signature views (such as the Hollywood sign at Smile in LA) transforms your office into a destination. Offering private tours to local influencers and encouraging patients to share their visits on social media, as well as displaying patient testimonials and before-and-after photos in stylish digital galleries, sets your practice apart. The result is a differentiated practice in a crowded market, more organic social sharing and word-of-mouth, and attraction of patients who value experience and aesthetics. The main downside is, of course, the high upfront investment in design and furnishings, but if executed correctly will exceed ROI in due time.
Metropolis Dental
Sugarbug Dental
Smile in Los Angeles
3. Saturate Your Immediate Neighborhood With Sponsorships
HD Orthodontics stands out by making a real difference right in their own backyard. By sponsoring neighborhood schools, local youth teams, block parties, and small-scale festivals, HD Orthodontics ensures their presence is felt at the grassroots level. Their pop-up booths at these events offer free dental screenings and practical swag like branded water bottles and dental kits, making them a familiar and friendly face to local families.
You’ll see HD Orthodontics featured in neighborhood newsletters, pop-ups, and local school events through cross-promotional events. These small, consistent touches foster real relationships and make HD Orthodontics a trusted part of daily neighborhood life.
Capturing these moments with photos and stories on their website and Instagram helps reinforce their commitment to the neighborhood. This hyper-local approach builds authentic loyalty, strong brand recall, and helps HD Orthodontics stand out from larger, less-personal competitors.
4. Make Every Visit an Event—VIP & Celebrity Experiences
The "dancing dentist" and "celebrity dentist" branding angles may have become somewhat passé. What once felt fresh and attention-grabbing now risks coming across as gimmicky or even alienating. Celebrity-focused branding can also scare away everyday loyal patients, who may fear higher prices or feel their care is less important—especially if they suspect that free or discounted celebrity services are being subsidized by other patients. Instead, the most successful practices blend VIP experiences with inclusive, community-focused care.
For example, offering luxury amenities like private lounges, curated playlists, in-chair entertainment, and welcome gifts to all patients—not just celebrities—makes everyone feel valued. Hosting themed events such as Smile Makeover Day, “Meet the Player” days, or charity drives that include local influencers and everyday patients alike creates shareable moments and generates buzz.
These events transform routine appointments into memorable, share-worthy experiences that deepen loyalty and drive organic referrals. However, exclusivity can backfire if it makes core patients feel left out or second-tier. Using these events for press releases and local media pitches is effective, but balancing exclusivity with accessibility is key. This tactic generates excitement, organic buzz, and referrals, attracts media and influencer attention, and can help justify premium pricing if executed inclusively. The risks include appearing exclusive, expensive, or out of touch, alienating loyal everyday patients, and the diminishing impact of gimmicky tactics over time.
5. Tried and True - Dominate the Digital Conversation
Best-in-class practices invest heavily in digital marketing by building a unified strategy across SEO, Google Ads, Facebook/Instagram, Yelp, Nextdoor, and local directories. Utilizing call tracking and consistent branding ensures that all inquiries funnel to your practice. Regularly updating your website and social channels with fresh content, video testimonials, and patient stories, as well as running targeted ad campaigns for promotions, events, or new services, keeps your brand top-of-mind. Monitoring reviews and responding promptly builds trust and authority.
Launching a content series such as “Smile Stories” or “Ask the Dentist” positions you as the expert and keeps your audience engaged. This approach offers broad reach and measurable results, builds authority and trust online, and allows for precise targeting and retargeting. However, it requires ongoing investment in content and ads, the space is highly competitive—standing out takes creativity and consistency—and negative reviews or missteps can quickly spread.