Bill Dorfman Marketing Lecture at Toronto Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry

The Toronto Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry has always had great speakers lined up to educate members on different topics, speaking superstars like Paul Homoly and more.  Its one of the best organizations a dentist can belong to if they are interested in growing a cosmetic practice.

This October 29, 2010, Dr. Bill Dorfman, the founder of Discus Dental and the dentist made famous from his appearances on ABC's Extreme Makeover will be speaking to the TACD about marketing.  I love it when big name marketers from the United States come to Canada to educate doctors about their marketing successes.  Having specialized in marketing dentists online for close to 11 years, Canadian dentists have always be slow to adapt external marketing in comparison to our dental clients in the US.  The dentists in Toronto and other major Canadian cities that did start Internet marketing early on have sky rocketed their success and accomplished in 5-10 years what many have taken 20-25 to accomplish. 

Marketing Restrictions Placed on Dentists in Canada

The dental profession has always placed restrictions on how dentists market themselves to the public.  Many of these restrictions in our opinion are unfair and the way they are policed is inconsistent. The restrictions in Canada are even greater than in the US.  The fact that any dentist can make an anonymous complaint to the Royal College of Dental Surgeons about another dentist is cowardly.  We are not talking about Children's Aid cases here, we are talking about competitors making life very difficult for their colleagues by launching frivolous complaints. 

This is post is not directed to those complaints they are serious in nature like reporting dental insurance fraud and other serious matters. It is for instances like ratting out some doc who placed an external marketing ad that says "spa-like atmosphere" or "advanced technology" which are are prohibited marketing phrases. 

Think about this for a minute...

Dental office "A" is a cold sterile office with a sliding glass partition and a grumpy front desk manager, there are always 3-5 people waiting to have their appointment and there is nothing on the walls.  There has been no investment in making the patient experience the best it can be. No training of office staff on customer service, no aesthetic improvements to the office and you feel like a number waiting for your name to be called.

Dental office "B" has gone out of its way to make your dental experience one you will never forget.  There are aroma therapy candles burning, when you arrive for your appointment the front office manager asks you if you would like a refreshment, there are beautiful smile photos on the wall and the atmosphere is very relaxing.  While receiving dental treatment you receive parafin hand waxing, you have a cozy blanket, neck pillow and your favorite DVD playing on a flat screen above the dental chair.

Dental office "B" continues to grow their practice through word of mouth because they have provided this exceptional patient experience in a warm and relaxing spa-like atmosphere unlike most dental offices.  Dental office "B" wants to let the world know about their service and places an ad or makes a statement on their dental website that they provide "Dental Care in a Warm, Relaxing, Spa-Like Atmosphere" 

The dentist at dental office "A" sees the ad arrive at his or her doorstep, maybe its a direct mail piece, maybe they stumbled across dental office "B's" website and they get infuriated by the fact the advertisement says "Dental Care in a Warm, Relaxing, Spa-Like Atmosphere"  This dentist calls the board and makes an anonymous complaint because no dentist can say these things whether "True or Not" 

The dental board investigates and sure enough the advertisement has some prohibited words in it and dental office "B" is asked to pull the advertisment, take it off the website or face consequences like fines or in the worst case scenario, licence suspension.  Dental office "B" asks who made the complaint and the board says we can't tell you its an anonymous complaint. 

This picture is seriously wrong and needs to change.  So why the rant about marketing restrictions?  Well, mainly because its been ten plus years of watching leading practices marketing their services get pulled down into a pot of mediocrity by jealous doctors that quite honestly need to get a life. 

The fact that cosmetic dentistry is still NOT a recognized specialty is crazy when most if not all training occurs after dental school.  There are some dentists in Canada that are "Accredited by the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry"  and the boards prohibit these dentists from stating this in their marketing.  Why may we ask?  Is it protecting the public?  NOT !  Its ensuring a greater chance of prospective patients walking away with a less than excellent smile makeover.

The bottom line, make sure you attend this seminar to learn from a master marketer Bill Dorfman and if you need help with search engine marketing give us a call today at 646-761-7887.   When you start getting found and rising from the crop that's when someone will complain about you.  We've seen just about every possible scenario.

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