Counter Cards - Ask About Tooth Whitening

These attractive "Ask About Tooth Whitening" cards should be placed in conspicuous places in your waiting room and in each operatory. The reception area counter is a prime example, as the patient will see the card on both entry and exit. Instruct your Receptionist how to answer some of the most common patient questions about bleaching so he or she can immediately respond to your patients. Make sure a number of "All About Tooth Whitening" brochures are handy at all times.

Ask Me Button - "Are You Happy with the Color of Your Teeth?"

One of these intriguing buttons should be worn by each of your staff members. They stimulate curiosity in your patients and identify your staff as people who possess information that will help improve their lives. They are effective tools to help begin a dialogue between you and your patients. Remember – tooth whitening acts as a doorway through which your patients are introduced to your other esthetic services.

Statement Stuffers - Your Very Own Outside Salesperson

With teeth whitening, marketing is simply a matter of informing your patients and presenting them with enough information to come to the decision on their own. Our statement stuffers are compact, visually pleasing, and do not "push" the patient. On your next billing cycle, include one with each statement and watch the inquiries multiply! Each stuffer directs the patient to either speak to one of your staff members, or come in and pick up a free brochure. In either case, it is an invitation to your patients to examine the options your practice makes available.

Patient Brochure - All About Tooth Bleaching

Place a stack of these brochures on the reception counter and prominently in your waiting room. They will then be the first thing that your patients see to read. When your office is busy, and time is valuable for your staff members, instruct them to hand these out to curious patients. Make sure you have enough on hand so you can distribute a few to each patient who requests information. On the back of this brochure there is a place to stamp your name and the address and phone numbers of your office. Take into consideration that your own satisfied patients are the most powerful tool you have to promote your practice. These brochures are an outstanding tool for them to use to spread the word…and they’ll do so willingly.

Other Marketing Tips

Tooth whitening can be a very effective vehicle for you to spread favorable word about your practice. Recognizing that the bulk of the average dentist’s patient base comes from word-of-mouth referrals, it is well worth you time to invest in ways to both increase your patient base and make more people happy.

First and foremost, take care of your own. Invest a little time and materials on yourself and every member of your staff. Make sure your whole team looks their best by bleaching everyone’s teeth. Don’t even bother to consider charging any of your team members; this is a long-term investment that is sure to pay off.

Make sure you take good photos. If you can, set up a little corner of your office, or one of your operatories to accommodate a chair and small table. Use a 35mm camera with a ring type flash. Set the camera on a fixed base and either build a small platform on the table to hold the patient’s chin a fixed distance from the lens, or buy an attachment designed to accomplish the same purpose. Be sure to take "before" photos of each of your team members. Record the settings on the camera, including film type, for each session. Use the same settings when you take the "after" shots at the completion of bleaching.

When you take the photographs, let the subjects smile as widely as they can on their own without the use of unsightly retractors, and take a full mouth shot. Repeat at the close of the bleaching treatment, but also take a full face shot of your smiling Team Member. Each of these photos will go right into your "Family Album."

A benefit of working with your staff first is that you can work out any "bugs" in your system without inconveniencing patients. Whatever you develop with them, you will use for every bleaching patient you have in the future. Perhaps most importantly, no matter who the patient asks on your staff about bleaching, they will be able to say honestly, "I’ve had the procedure done myself. What do YOU think?"

Candidates for Bleaching

• Patients with yellow teeth - shades B3, B4
• Teeth with uniform discoloration
• Teeth discolored by age
• Former smokers
• Tetracycline stained teeth

Promotion Options

• Patient Newsletter
• Discount Coupons
• Gift Certificates
• Free Gift for Referrals
• Drawings for Free Bleach
• Before and After Picture Notebook