Marketing

Last week our lab sponsored Dr Howard Farran (CEO of dentaltown.com) to over 100 dentists and 14 vendors...See more exhibiting; It was ,as usual with Dr Farran, a raving success. Howard is a staright forward power-information type of guy that tells it like it is,and teaches the dentists how to succeed in a challenging economy.

The point is that it is events like these that can build your laboratory. Is it for everyone,of course not. But even if you do not 'want to' or 'cannot' get in front of a group to speak, let alone simply make an informercial and introduce your speaker, then all is not lost: simply have someone do it for you,perhaps your most outgoing tech, an outgoing office staff person,etc. However, I have to tell you, our lab is connected to 100 (yes,100) events a year, with study clubs, county societies, our own seminars directly sponsored & marketed by us, and with specialists looking to build & maintain their referral base.

Think about how long it would take you to be in frontof 20 (let alone 100) dentists and have their attention! Here you can do it, in a most memorable way, and at NO cost to you. (Should I repeat that: no cost to you)
Our lab has been using education honestly not just as a marketing tool, but as a genuine way of upgrading the dental community here in our target market(NJ), sometimes changing dentists lives(yes,I'll explain this in later posts), and filling a true void in continuing education,since we only have one dental school in the state.
I will talk about negotiating with venues,how to select venues,speakers:negotiating and selection, how to market & guarantee you'll fill up your seats, using telemarketing,direct mail,and networking to market your events but in a very cost effective way, and partnering with 'vendors' who want exposure to the dentists at your events! (I hope to write a detailed article for LMT on this)
Over the years our lab sponsored over 1000 events,including week long cruises to Carribean,Alaska and Mediterranean,and several weekend trips to Las Vegas.
Over half our clients come from continuing ed events,and it is also an opportunity to bond and maintain relations by seeing your current clients at these events,
Whether you are thinking of getting started in this arena, or you are a seasoned event planner,I am confident you'll find some pearls in my upcoming posts. But it's pretty late having driven back from an evening seminar tonight so,see you guys soon!