Sally McKenzie

There are few things as satisfying as setting a goal and achieving it, whether it's simply completing a mile on the treadmill or qualifying to run the Boston marathon, whether it's learning to boil water or fixing a fabulous gourmet meal for friends. There is great satisfaction in identifying your own personal summit and setting a course to reach it.

That couldn't be truer than in effectively marketing your practice. You dream of a flood of new patients all clamoring for your care. You imagine treatment acceptance like you've never experienced. You can envision not only meeting your profitability goals, but exceeding them.

Unfortunately, what you and too many other dentists don't see is what needs to happen behind the scenes in your practice before that grand marketing plan will ever achieve anything more than average results. The fact is marketing isn't a sprint it's a marathon. While it may not be as complicated as preparing a gourmet meal, it certainly requires more effort than merely boiling water.

The most effective practice marketing takes place long before the "campaign" is launched.  At its foundation is preparing your entire staff for their individual roles as key members of the marketing team.

It begins with examining each position in your practice and together with your team evaluating its role in the overall practice marketing process. Let me assure you, there is no one on your team who doesn't play a role in marketing. For example, your assistant should be doing far than merely passing instruments and turning over treatment rooms. For starters, s/he's a champion of treatment acceptance.  S/he should regularly emphasize the excellence of care provided. S/he is to build positive rapport with patients and look for opportunities during conversation to mention other practice services, such as whitening, veneers, implants, etc. S/he should readily provide educational materials to patients that clearly convey the practice brand. 

J. Breck Magill, DDS

Sometimes we dentists are so absorbed in providing quality dentistry to our patients that we don't stop and evaluate what it is we are doing.  Outstanding entrepreneurs realize the importance of monitoring and evaluating their business systems and practices.  Dentistry is no different.  Take some time to evaluate where it is you want to go.  If you don't have a destination, you will never know when you've arrived.  The current buzz word is "vision".  Vision is an excellent descriptor because if you can't see where you want to go the chances of obtaining your goal are diminished.   Work with experienced professionals to focus your vision and provide an objective analysis of where you are and where you want to go.  Then you can see clearly what needs to occur in a prioritized manner.  In dental terms you and I would say, "seek a comprehensive exam for your practice and establish an excellent treatment plan".  It makes sense for our patients...it makes sense for our practice.