Educating Your Patients is Key in Dental Marketing

In reviewing a couple Yellow Pages ads for clients today, I noticed one thing common to them.They both listed CEREC as one of the features of their office."CEREC One Day Crowns/Onlays"Before I go any further, let me say that I love CEREC, it really provides a great service to the patient, and I think that no dental practice should be without one.With that said, the general public wouldn't know the difference between a CEREC and a Subaru.Just because I am in the dental industry, I know CEREC stands for Chairside Economical Restoration of Esthetic Ceramics. I also know that because I just checked the website.But ask any person off the street what CEREC stands for, and they will just give you a blank look. Heck, most people don't know what LASER or RADAR stand for, or even that they are acronyms.The fact is, if you are going to promote CEREC, you need to make sure to break it down into its pieces. Make it so simple, a 5th grader could understand it (that's the method USA Today uses). Don't trust that your patients know what you know. They don't spend years in dental school, attending CE courses, or even subscribe to DentalTown Magazine. They know little if anything about dentistry and the technology that accompanies it."Crowns in one visit" is a good start, but remember, how many people out there know what a crown is, and more importantly, what problems it solves. That's the key, and here is the advertisement - Do you experience or have:Pain when chewing?Sensitivity to cold or hot food and drinks?Chipped or cracked teeth?Then you may need a dental crown. Come in and experience the convenience of our ONE VISIT crown service with the help of our CEREC aided design. With CEREC, we take pictures of the broken, chipped, or cracked tooth then design, construct, and attach the permanent restoration to your tooth, many times in one visit. At other dental offices you'll have to wait sometimes up to 2 weeks for the restoration to return, but with our CEREC technology, we'll have your smile bright, healthy, and pain free in ONE VISIT.Ok, so it is quite a rough example, but you get the picture. With the advancements in dental technology now-a-days, you need to really educate your patients on how your services can benefit them.Also, this is a very focused advertisement, targeting only those with dental pain. It will not draw those in that are simply looking for a general dentist.And, most importantly, remember, 99.9% of your patients have never been to dental school.