“The Marketing Cookbook”
“The Language of Orthodontics”
“The Masters of Orthodontics” -about the men, women and mind-set of many highly successful orthodontists.
By Dr. Terry Daugherty & Dave Daugherty, Principals of Daugherty Consulting

Having been an orthodontist, I know what many of you are thinking: “I just want to straighten teeth and still have a life outside the office. How can I find the time to generate new referrals, convert those referrals to starts and motivate my staff to help with marketing?”

According to our consulting company’s research, when it comes to marketing, most orthodontists feel like the “Lone Ranger.” Somewhere between creating a new marketing strategy and getting the staff to implement it, the odds are enormous that the opportunity will simply fall through the cracks. No matter how mature the practice or how experienced the staff, we find that orthodontists are burdened by three basic marketing issues:

1. Filling the referral pipeline with a continuous flow
2. Converting a substantial percentage of referrals to starts
3. Managing and retaining staff to reduce unwanted turnover

The one ingredient that can dramatically impact all these issues is a staff that’s as passionate, committed and engaged in the practice as the doctor:

• a visionary team that appreciates the importance of continuously generating new patients;
• a proactive team that’s motivated to create and implement successful marketing programs, both internally and externally;
• an enthusiastic team whose job satisfaction attracts top professionals to your staff.

Let’s look at three strategies for creating such a “Dream Team.”

Success Strategy #1: Create your practice culture from the inside out.
The first step isn’t better recruiting or benefits. A great team begins with the doctor’s mindset. You must know who you are as an orthodontist and what you want your practice to be. Then you must communicate this to your staff, translating it into your practice culture – an outward expression of who you are, how you work, how you want to succeed. Once you accomplish this, you’ll easily attract your perfect team. They’ll be eager to provide their input and share responsibility for marketing and growing the practice, but the vision has to start with you.

Success Strategy #2: Transform your staff into “Valued Partners.”
Your second step is to show your staff how their contributions are valued. Help them see how they impact the success of the practice and the lives of their patients. Then use your practice culture to encourage continuous learning and personal mastery by every team member. This strategy will transform your team into “knowledge workers” who reject mediocrity and indifference. Again, this strategy begins with you. You must create the structure and give permission for becoming a “valued partner” – THEN you can expect your staff to grow into that role.

Success Strategy #3: Ignite your marketing with a “cookbook” of successful strategies.
Most practices need to build or buy a “cookbook” of successful marketing strategies that can be customized to fit the workload, budget, practice culture and referral community. You want a basic framework that will consistently convey your marketing message in different venues over time. When you turn your staff into a dream team of valued partners, they’ll be ready to support you with this step.

Marketing anything is a full-time job, and you may need some help involving your staff. Yet the more team members who actively participate, the more extraordinary your results will be. More importantly, your practice will profit, and you – and your team – will have fun.

Back to Top