July 27, 2016 by bettyhayden

Dental Marketing Ideas for your local School District

Hello Friends,

With back-to-school season in full swing, there is no need to wait until February’s Dental Health month to market to the local schools in your neighborhood, start early in the school year building relationships with school staff & the families that attend these schools.

These small marketing seeds that you plant, help to build relationships over time and you never know when and where those seeds will grow into new patients for your practice. (See Dental Marketing Seeds)

Here are just a few easy, inexpensive & effective ways for your dental office to reach out to your local schools.

Donations – Use your office as a community donation site for school supplies or new & gently used books to be donated to local children and/or schools in need. Advertise in office, on your social media sites, to local businesses and the news media via press release that your office is collecting donations for school supplies or books.

This is a GREAT way to bring in potential new patients… when folks come into the office to drop off their donations, be sure to warmly welcome them, give a brief tour of the office, hand out small thank you gifts that are imprinted with your office information or have a raffle they can enter to win a prize. Prize ideas: themed gift basket, electric toothbrush, gift card, teeth whitening, etc. Invite local businesses to contribute something toward the prize.

Gifts for School Staff – Choose one, two, or more schools (depending on the size of the teaching staff) and deliver some treats to show your appreciation for the work they do in caring for the children in the community. Some ideas are: Breakfast, Lunch, Snacks, Toothbrush goodie bags, Lip balm, Little gifts, flowers, etc. Be sure that your office information is clearly imprinted on any toothbrushes or small gifts. See my Pinterest boards for gift ideas…

AND/OR

Host a Favorite Teacher Contest. Invite local students to nominate their favorite teacher. Winning teacher gets FREE teeth whitening and a certificate stating they won for the favorite teacher contest. The classroom with the winning teacher gets a gift card for school supplies or pizza/ice cream lunch.

You could easily ask for donations from local businesses to add to the winning teachers prize or for the classroom.

This can be promoted via your office website, newsletters, postcards, emails, office social media sites, local newspapers and signs in your office.

Have fun with it and be sure to share lots of pictures on your social media pages.

Just a few more ideas…

Social Media Sites – Post school-related content to your social media sites, such as:

Back to School Tips
Healthy Lunch/Snack ideas
What to do in a Dental Emergency?
Ortho care while at school
Dental Health (importance of, regular check-ups, sealants, mouthguards, fluoride & braces)

Office Blog – Share short articles/videos on your office blog/website using the above topics.

Pinterest – On your office Pinterest page, create a school related board(s). See my Pinterest boards for ideas.

Book Fairs – Many schools will be hosting book fairs this school year. And if your local school(s) are anything like mine, these book fairs draw a very large crowd.

Create fun, interesting Bookmarks for your local schools that include your office contact information. Deliver these bookmarks as a gift to the local schools to use during their book fairs. Easy! Right?

Here’s another one, tooth bags. Make up some little bags with a “lost tooth” congratulations message from your office and space to write the child’s name. Deliver these bags to local elementary schools for them to keep on hand for when a student loses a tooth during the school day. Both of my kids have come home with a tooth wrapped in a napkin or in a plain ziplock bag. Why not take advantage of this opportunity to advertise your office?

For additional ideas to use with local schools see February’s Children’s Dental Health Month and October/November’s Candy Buy Back. Also, my Marketing Ideas for August has some nice ideas for you to use with students & teachers.

I have witnessed first hand just how effective marketing to local schools can be. The opportunity to bring in many new patient families to your practice is huge. If you are interested in hiring me to help your office create a custom marketing campaign, please contact me today at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com for a complimentary consultation.

Please feel free to share with me your ideas for marketing to local schools or if you have any dental marketing questions that I can help you answer, please comment below.

If you are not yet receiving my free dental marketing ideas every month to your email in box, please subscribe today.

We’re on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest stop by and say hello. Thank you 😀

Yours for Greater Success,

~Betty

May 10, 2016 by bettyhayden

Act As If You Are Happy

Hello Friends,

The following is an article that I shared a while ago on my Bacon & Kids blog ( a blog for working parents). I thought you all might appreciate it as well…

Act as if it is the happiest day of your life. Easier said than done, right? Especially if you’re having a bad morning, day, week, month, or year.

Why pretend? Why act as if? Why put a smile on your face, even though you don’t feel at all happy?

I’m not having a good day!

Research shows that even a forced smile can help to boost your mood and spirit. Did you know that if you’re smiling, other people will consider you as being friendlier and more approachable?

Along with a smile on your face, your appearance contributes to your happiness.

Clothing ~ Look the part. If you’re wearing clothes/or uniforms that are dirty, wrinkled, too big, too tight and or damaged it will only add to your bad mood. Wearing clothes/uniforms that make you feel good will help

Hair ~ CLEAN hair shouldn’t be a luxury. You may not have much time to style it but make sure your hair is clean. Although, taking a few minutes to style your hair will make you feel & look more confident and “put together.”

Nails ~ I’m not talking about your hands, we all know that the nails on our hands should be clean and polish free or clean with a fresh coat of nail polish. I’m talking about toenails. A silly, non-important thing right? Wrong. Have you ever been embarrassed when you caught someone staring at your feet, particularly your toes? And not just staring, but staring in disgust? Then you know what I’m talking about. Clean, trimmed, moisturized toenails is a really good thing. (Ladies, painting your toes may be the last thing on your already too full to-do-list, however, having a pretty colored, chip- free polish on your toes gives the appearance that you have it together and well, sometimes it’s all about appearance 😉 )

So now that you have a smile on your face, and are looking pretty good too, what else can you do to help make you feel happier?

Do a good deed ~ It’s a scientific fact, it makes you healthier & happier. Must be why the scriptures tell us “there is more happiness in giving than in receiving.” But, you might be thinking: “I don’t have any time to do a good deed.” Not so, here are some things that you can do that take just a few minutes.

Be friendly. When running errands think about the people who serve our daily needs, say hello, thank you, have a nice day. You just might make their day a little happier.

Send a text to a friend (or friends) telling them you are thinking of them and hope they have a great day.

Be spontaneous, hold the door for someone, pay for their coffee, help with the groceries, bring your neighbor’s garbage can up from the curb, etc.

Clear the clutter –

– Do you have any books you are no longer reading? Drop them off at your local library.

– Clothes or household items you no longer need or want? Drop them in a donation box or to a charity of your choice.

– Any extra non-perishable food items in the pantry? Take them to a local food bank or shelter.

– Recycle – Do your part no matter how small, to prevent waste, and help keep our world clean.

Instead of focusing on and being consumed by the negative things in life and our own personal problems, focus on what you can do for others, and do good deeds as often as possible without asking for anything in return.

So you might need to start off by “acting” to create your own happiness but when you do before you know it, you’re no longer acting, you truly are happy.

A happy day!

Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!

P.S. Please stop by and say hello to me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest

Yours for Greater Success,

~Betty

December 28, 2015 by bettyhayden

Tips To Improve Your Dental Office, Part 3 ~ The Little Things Matter

“It’s the little details that are vital.

Little things make big things happen.” ~John Wooden

Hello friends,

It’s the little things that can make the biggest impact on your practice growth and the happiness of your team. The little things that I am sharing today, are FREE or very low cost and most only require seconds of your time.

Here is a list of 25+ things you can do starting today to greatly improve your office and in turn your personal life too! All it takes is doing a little bit more.

If you didn’t get a chance to read Part 1 & Part 2 of my Improve your Office series, please check them out here: Improve your office – first impressions & Improve your office – Make a Change . Feel free to share them with your friends.

25+ Little Things to Improve your Office:

1. Hello, Good Morning! – Make it a point to greet your fellow team members every morning. Let people know that you see them and acknowledge them with a hello.

2. Smile More – Smiles are contagious. Smile before you pick up the phone, smile to passersby, smile to your team mates and smile in the mirror. Smiling will boost your mood, puts people at ease and makes you more likable.

3. Say my Name – everyone likes to hear his or her name. Greet your patient’s by name. Use their name during treatment. Thank them by name for coming in or calling.

4. Say “thank you” – Express your appreciation. Thank you Mr.Patient for coming in, Thank you Mrs.Caller for holding, Thank you employee for your hard work today, Thank you co- worker for your help, Thank you doctor for coming in to do the exam, you get the idea. Saying thank you Improves your Office and your Health! Check out this article: 7 Scientifically Proven Benefits Of Gratitude That Will Motivate You To Give Thanks Year-Round

5. Choose to be Positive – Your attitude is a choice and that choice is 100% within your control. Avoid spreading negativity by sharing bad patient experiences, personal problems, or problems with other team members. Choose to be happy and positive.

6. Be kind – Be kind to your patients, strangers, sales reps and callers.

7. I’m sorry – Accept responsibility when you are wrong. Be honest, simply say “I’m sorry I/We messed up”. (Tip: Keep small ($5) gift cards for coffee to give to your patients when you’ve messed up, ie: running late, lab case mistake, appt. mix up, etc.)

8. Friendly Greeting – Warmly greet every person that visits the office. Even if you’re on the phone or taking care of a patient, you can acknowledge the other person with a smile.

9. Say Please – Make it a habit to say please every time you ask for something.

10. Offer a proper handshake- A nice, firm handshake shows confidence and makes a good impression. (Tip: When a new patient comes in to the office, come from around the desk and welcome them with a handshake.)

11. Check it twice – Before you send that email, letter or text, check it for spelling errors.

12. Social Media Sites – If your office is using social media sites be sure to like and follow the pages of local businesses within your community. Click the LIKE button or comment on their posts. Easy way to build relationships.

13. No Cell Phones – Turn down the volume and put your cell phone away while you’re on the clock. Ask your family and friends to call the office line in the event of an emergency. Be fully present during work hours.

14. Write it down- start and end your day with to-do lists. Write a note or set an electronic reminder to check on that claim, call your patient, check voice mail, etc. Writing things down prevents you from forgetting things that are important. (Tip: Avoid placing sticky notes around your work station. Clutter is chaos to the patient. Place reminders in a notebook that you frequently refer to or set electronic reminders.)

15. Commendation – Commend a fellow team member when you catch them doing something “right”. Commendation boosts morale. (Tip: Employers, commend & reward the behavior and actions that you want to see more of.)

16. Business Cards – Carry your business cards with you and use them! Get your team personalized business cards to hand out to patients and people they do business with. (Tip: Use the back of the business card with a call to action invitation.)

17. Stay on Time – Respect your employees and patients time. Do all you can to start the day on time, stay on time and end the day on time. (Tip: If you are constantly running behind schedule it might be a good idea to review your scheduling protocol. How much time does it really take to…, Where should we schedule emergency patients… etc.)

18. Patient of the Day! – Select a patient from the days schedule to be your “patient of the day”. Give them a certificate, a small gift and take their picture to share on your social media sites. Fun and inexpensive way to exceed your patients expectations.

19. Post- Op Calls – Doctor and Hygienist, call your patients at the end of the day to see how well they are doing. (Tip: Call all patients that received an extraction, perio treatment, difficult procedure, were fearful or new to the office.)

20. Pre- Op Calls – Doctor and Hygienist, call the new patients on your schedule and let them know you are looking forward to meeting them. Start building your new relationship early by exceeding their expectations before their very first visit.

21. Send a Card – In this electronic age, rarely do people get “real” mail. Send hand-written thank you, get well, thinking of you, anniversary, sympathy and congratulation cards to your patients. They will truly appreciate it! (Tip: Keep a supply of cards on hand in the office.)

22. Everybody Clean Up – Pick up the piece of paper from the floor, Wipe up the spill up from the counter and Keep your work space clean.

23. Replace the roll of Toilet Paper – Yes, I said it. Even if there are still a few squares left to spare, replace with a fresh roll. While you’re at, go ahead and fold the toilet paper into a pretty fan. 😉

24. Huddle Up – The morning meeting is essential for a successful day. If you tried in the past to have a morning huddle and it didn’t work out… try again! However, this time, please follow these tried and true suggestions & tips for morning meeting success.

25. Negative Gossip – Refuse to listen to gossip and stop speaking & spreading gossip. Simple as that.

26. Dress the Part – If you want it to be a great day, start by looking great. Wear clothes that reflect the excellent care you give your patients. Professional, clean and wrinkle-free clothes. Brush & style your hair, if you’re a woman put on some make-up, wear a special piece of jewelry, etc.

27. Verbiage Matters – Use these words often: Absolutely, I’ll be happy to, My pleasure, You are very welcome, Certainly and Right away.

28. Memorable Goodbye’s – Make a great last impression with a friendly goodbye…be sure to use the patients name. “Thank you for coming in.” “It was great to see you today.” “We really appreciate having great patients like you!”

There you have it, 28 little ways to easily Improve your Office.

“I try to do the right thing at the right time. They may just be little things, but usually they make the difference between winning and losing.” ~Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

Do the right thing, as a team work together to implement these little things in your office every day. Print this list and review it at your next team meeting. Enjoy practice growth with a happier team and happy patients.

If you are not yet receiving my free dental marketing ideas every month to your email in box, please subscribe today. Feel free to share my blog with your dental friends. ~ Thank you!

Yours for Greater Success,

~Betty

October 28, 2015 by bettyhayden

Shake it Up Baby! How to Love Mondays

I love Mondays. I really do enjoy the fresh start to a new week. However, if you are miserable Sunday night because you just totally dread Monday morning, maybe feeling like my daughter in this short video clip:

If you feel like you just can’t do it! This might help:

Shake it up Baby!

That’s how you can start loving Mondays. Yes, I said it – Love Monday and Tuesday, and Wednesday and Thursday! You already love Friday, right? Well, get ready to love the others by Shaking up Monday.

How do you Shake it Up? First, you need to prepare for Monday on Sunday. Try this:

What will you wear?- Lay out your work clothes. (Make sure they are clean & wrinkle-free.)

What will you eat?- Prepare your lunch & healthy snacks.

What to do? – Make your to-do-list. (Purging your brain of everything you need to accomplish will help you sleep better.)

Where is it? – Put your keys, purse/wallet, coat/shoes, etc. near the door.

Go to bed early – . (Staying up too late will only make you crabby in the morning. Avoid using/watching electronics in bed.)

Okay, so there are some of your Sunday responsibilities. Here’s what you do Monday Morning:

Wake Up – Tell yourself this: “I’m going to make this a GREAT day!”

Eat a healthy Breakfast! Do not skip this important meal.

Dress the part, if you want it to be a great day, start by looking great. (Brush & style your hair, if you’re a woman put on some make-up, wear a special piece of jewelry, etc.)

Leave early enough to allow yourself plenty of time to arrive at work without feeling rushed.

So now, you’re getting ready to walk in to work – put a smile on your face and remind yourself that “you” are going to make it a great day. And here are some “Shake it Up” tips:

Act like it’s the happiest day of your life.

Greet your fellow co-workers. (If you are the only one there, look in the mirror and say hello beautiful…. kidding not kidding 😉 )

Start the work day with a morning huddle – this will keep everyone on the same page, and gives you the opportunity to set “the tone” for the day. Encourage everyone to share their ideas for marketing, better customer service and increased productivity. (See Morning Huddle/Meeting Tips Here)

Learn something new – Look to learn better & fresh ways of doing things by reading books, magazines, listening to podcasts, watching a webinar, attending seminars and learning from those around you. Remember this, you can learn a lot by getting feed back from your customers/patients (good & bad).

Get some fresh air – if possible, eat your lunch outside the office or take a short walk during your break. A breath of fresh air and change in scenery will help clear your mind and reinvigorate you.

Drink plenty of water and eat foods that refresh, not ones that make you feel tired & sluggish.

Work from a to-do-list. If there’s something that must be done, go ahead and get it finished. Get busy, get it done, and feel the freedom of no longer having it hanging over your head.

I really like this quote from Brian Tracy: “Your ability to discipline yourself to do what you should, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not,is the key to becoming a great person and living a great life.”

Great advice!

These are just some of the many suggestions and helpful tips out there to help you “Love Monday” – and if with all of these suggestions you still “hate Monday” well then, try this:

Turn the volume up on your computer, Play this video by the Beatles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVlr4g5-r18 and “Shake it Up baby!”

If you do not already subscribe to receive our free dental marketing and practice management ideas right to your email inbox each month, please do so today. Feel free to tell your dental friends about Hayden Consulting. ~Thank you!

We welcome your comments, questions and likes.

Make it a GREAT Day!

Yours for Greater Success,

~Betty

P.S. If you have children, I understand that your evening and morning routines can be quite challenging… I shared some tips over at my Bacon & Kids blog that might be helpful to you! It was written to help with the Back to School routine but the idea’s are helpful for any time during the school year. Here it is: Organization Tips

“Every moment is your opportunity to build a life that’s rich and full, so take a deep breath, aim for the stars, and make it happen.” — Ralph Marston