Should Dentists Bother With Branding?

By Christopher Hall / PRDent Ltd

I recently visited “The Dentistry Show” at the NEC, Birmingham and listened to some of the lectures provided by industry experts.

During one such lecture I listened in astonishment when I heard a Dentist tell the audience that Branding was a complete waste of time. I discovered that the reason behind this bold statement was because Dentists do not have the same budgets as the likes of Coca Cola, Heinz and Walkers Crisps so there is little point in branding.

I do agree that Dentists generally do not have the same budgets as the big names but that is just about all I agree with. The large corporate companies gain brand recognition with a wide audience so therefore the cost is higher. Dentists should be appealing to a smaller audience so therefore the cost is proportionate.

Branding is incredibly important if you are a Dentist in private practice and you must get it right if you want success.

With Branding there are two aspects to consider. Firstly, there is the “experience” aspect of branding whereby your patients associate each point of contact that they have had with your practice. The patient experience is so important in private practice, especially if you are offering cosmetic procedures and you must identify the friction points and address them.

Secondly there is the psychological aspect of branding which is called the “brand image” whereby people create an impression in their minds about your dental practice based on the information and expectations that they have about your service. Again, this is important if you are offering cosmetic smile makeovers.

Whether your brand is the dentist, the dental practice, a product or service it shows what you are able to offer in the marketplace which means that your brand is a valuable element of your business. Maybe you want people to associate a certain quality or characteristic with your brand. If your prices are higher than your competitors you need a strong brand to make people want to pay a higher price.

First you must create your brand and then maintain it so that you can create value in the service that you offer to your patients. This is called “Brand Management”. Your brand identity will differentiate you from your competitors and will help you sell your service, especially if you do not want to be the cheapest in town.

Maybe you do not have the funding to compete with Britain’s top branded companies but you can gain brand recognition in your local community or within your target selected markets.

Today consumers are looking for a complete experience so that they can realise dreams and achieve the lifestyle that they desire. This is never truer than in private dentistry.

Has branding worked for you? I would appreciate your comments....

The Best Form Of Advertising?

By Christopher Hall / PRDent Ltd

Most people are aware that the best form of advertising is "word of mouth" but do you really know the power that this can bring to your business and why it is so important? I would hazard a guess that you know little more than the basics which really is not enough if you want your business to survive and get ahead of the competition.

Most of us think that if we do a good job with Mrs Smith then she will go and tell Mrs Jones how good the experience was. It is natural to think that if you treat several people like Mrs Smith and they go and tell several people like Mrs Jones then the word will spread. This theory is not totally untrue but word of mouth is far more powerful and diversified than this and is something much under utilised by dental clinics.

Why is word of mouth powerful? Unlike advertising where your audience subliminally undervalues your message, word of mouth is a testimonial from other people who may have used, researched or read about your business. The value of this to a prospective patient is considered much higher than a straightforward advertisement. The power of this message is so strong that communication can pass between people who do not even know each other!

Techniques utilising the word of mouth principle can be adopted in your marketing plan, on your website, in publications and in literature. In fact, it can change the way you do business all together!

Imagine if one of your patients featured in a well known magazine and she told her story about how she spent many years alone and without the prospect of finding new love. Then one day she visited your dental clinic and had a smile makeover which gave her the renewed confidence to improve her social life and find new love. Although many readers will not know that patient personally, many will be able to relate to her and some readers will be totally inspired to find you and commission you to give them a new smile. Now that is word of mouth on a mass scale!

There are many ways in which this principle can be adopted in your clinic and working with a marketing company can lead to success whilst you focus on being a dentist.

First of all, remember that learning about the principles is one thing but adopting those principles in your business takes knowledge experience. Secondly, bad news travels faster than good news so you have to work that much harder to charge good news into your marketplace.

I would love to hear from anybody who has experienced the power of word of mouth and how it has helped them increase business.

Why Dentists Should Not Cut Back On Marketing During A Recession

By Christopher Hall / PRDent Ltd

Dentists who own their own practice are primarily health care providers who also happen to be business people. Some Dentists are exceptionally good business people whilst others clearly need support.

It is common knowledge that during a recession the smaller bespoke practices and the cosmetic clinics are hit hardest. The temptation to reduce business overheads has never before been more tempting. Whilst reviewing your business is always a good idea, hastily reducing your expenses is a natural knee jerk reaction during a recession and one that may not be totally necessary.

Please remember three things:

1) Restorative dentistry is more of a need than cosmetic procedures and wants are always fi0rst to go during tough times.

2) It may get a bit tougher to find but the new business is out there if you are prepared to work a bit harder

2) Expenditure is more controllable than income when push comes to shove but do not stop or cut back on your marketing.

The marketing that you do is a key component in your business and making sure it is still working for you is a high priority now that the recession is firmly influencing the economy. This is essential for business survival and unless you take control soon your business may not live to tell the tale or it will take years to recover.

Reviewing your marketing plan with your consultant, making absolutely sure it is still relevant and that you are still executing the tasks set out in your plan properly is business basics. I cannot emphasise enough that marketing is the tool for bringing in new patients to your dental practice and that taking your eye off the ball is potentially business suicide.

During a recent exhibition at Earls Court I engaged with several people who had severed ties with their marketing company in an attempt to reduce business expenditure. After a little digging it became obvious that the marketing companies in question were resting on their laurels and simply collecting in monthly retainer fees and giving little in return. The result was obvious in that the client did not see the value anymore and the financial contract was duly broken.

Your marketing activity is essential to raising profit within your practice, lifting the profile of the dental clinic and perhaps the key people within by using a variety of techniques. If you do not have a marketing plan (dentists often don't plan in this area) then get one. If you do have a marketing plan then ensure that it is still working for you. Industry changes and you must ensure that you are not courting the wrong target market. If you are then you are wasting resources. Perhaps your target market has changed now that we are in a recession or maybe you’re not identifying consumer demand. Unless you like going to work everyday and working hard without enough benefits then keep a lifeline going with your marketing consultant.

Toothache won’t go away just because we are in a recession which means that basic dental care is always needed.
Consumer spending maybe down but I cannot emphasise enough that the recession is not affecting everybody and some people are in the market for private cosmetic and restorative dental treatment. You just need to make sure that you are reaching out to them.

During hard times we all need to take a good look at ourselves and if necessary adapt to the changing environment. Ensure that what you are offering is what your target market wants / needs and make sure you drive home the message using a variety of methods.

Consider offering finance to patients to make treatment more affordable. There are specialist finance companies that can help you offer finance packages to your patients. In recent years the 0% finance phenomenon has taken the dental industry by storm which has increased profit and improved cash flow for the dentist. Consider offering orthodontic, endodontic and periodontal treatment if that is what your target market needs. Offering teeth whitening solutions can also increase profits for your clinic but please research before jumping in feet first.

Here at PRDent Ltd we keep in contact our clients and ensure that the marketing plan is still effective, especially if a major event such as recession changes the face of things. As a minimum our clients appreciate the call and at best we stop resources being wasted.

Before cutting back on marketing think about reviewing what you have or even increase your marketing activitiy to see you through hard times. Id done right it should pay dividends.

Most importantly we take the hard work out of marketing so that the Dentist can concentrate on patients who are king and queen.

Cost of Advertising vs Value of Publicity

by Christopher Hall / PRDent Ltd

Some dental clinics do amazingly well with little more than a listing in the local telephone directory, whilst other dental clinics need a wide and varied mix of marketing to achieve the desired results. It very much depends on a number of factors!

As a business owner I once shared the illusion that marketing companies had large advertising budgets to bring in new business. Several years ago I realised that this was a two dimensional approach after seeing what marketing can do for a business.

Many companies unfortunately have the same illusion and I regularly see new companies using brute force by throwing large amounts money at advertising campaigns with marginal success. Sadly, a lot of these companies go to the wall without really knowing where it all went wrong. Advertising has it’s place but it should be part of the marketing mix.

For you to really believe how marketing can work for your dental clinic you need to understand the difference, work at it and start getting positive results.

Advertising is generally referred to as “paid inclusion” which means that you pay the publication to print your message which is aimed at your target market. So far so good but few realise that readers will subliminally under value your advertisement. Why? Well those who pay rarely point out the negatives about their service.
This is where the other elements of marketing come into the equation or more accurately, Publicity! If something goes to print which has been impartially written by another person such as a journalist and it is positive then readers are more likely to become patients. The downside is that negative comments are hard to control but good PR account executives like me can keep on driving home positive messages to the media.

If you want your dental clinic to stand out amongst the crowd then consider other forms of ammunition and do not solely rely on advertising and leaflet drops to get random traffic through your dental practice.

I will be glad to receive your comments and experiences with advertising