Orthotown October 2017 - 8

embrace progress

Are You a Product Pusher
or a Principled Provider?
by Dan Grob, DDS, MS, editorial director, Orthotown magazine

By now, you've probably seen the ad that features a loving couple sitting in adjacent
bathtubs, holding hands while they gaze at the sunset. It's hawking a treatment for male
performance issues. (If you haven't seen it, you probably aren't in the demographic the
commercial is trying to reach.)
Other print, web and TV ads promote products created to cure, prevent or manage
practically every ailment imaginable, from diabetes to stroke to arthritis. Most of the time
these commercials are informational; however, as we all know, many consumers look at
only the positive and selected messages these snippets provide. Most ignore the warnings,
spoken so rapidly at the conclusion of the TV ads or in the minute text that appears at the
bottom of the printed page.

A few examples of ad savviness
I recently made an obligatory visit to a dentist I wanted to become referral buddies
with. I'd found myself treating one of his patients, and I usually try to hand-deliver my
treatment notes and suggestions in such cases so I can visit with the practice staff to see if
there might be a future in the relationship.
At this office, the receptionist greeted me and asked what type of braces I used. I was
taken aback by her apparent knowledge but told her the brand; she wanted to know why
I didn't use another type that she was familiar with. That brand of brace, she said, didn't
require teeth to be removed.
At that point I decided to not get into a big discussion and offered to provide a lunchand-learn where I could explain my treatment thoughts and philosophy.
Recently we were forced to use a temporary assistant for six hours. The agency said she
was familiar with orthodontics and we worked with her for the day. Her experience was
limited to ... well, you know the drill: braces provided in a specific time frame. (say, close
to six months). We asked how that worked. She responded that most patients didn't get
finished in the time frame advertised and were put off by the large monthly payments, so
business was slowing down in that department. But the clever ad and logo is what brought
them into the practice in the first place.
That same day, I had two patients present for treatment. The younger of the two, not yet
even 8 years old, was just getting her maxillary lateral incisors. The chief concern was the
usual-just making sure things were OK, and wanting to do what was right for the child
(who was essentially Class 1 with some spacing). During the exam, the child and parent
mentioned that treatment had already begun on several of this young girl's friends. Some
were in fi xed appliances, some had expanders and one was even being treated with aligners.
The daughter was convinced that she needed aligner treatment now; her dad, not so much!

OCTOBER 2017 // orthotown.com

http://www.orthotown.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Orthotown October 2017