How Do You Sell Leads To A Dentist

65 replies
I set up a website.

Collected 3 leads over 2 days. One is a man needing service asap.

I emailed and called 43 dental offices.

Not 1 taker. As soon as paid referral or lead was mentioned the show was over.

I came at them from every direction I could. I even had them admitting that they performed the services my leads need, that they were accepting new patients, and that they were spending money on advertising (some even using tv ads).

But as soon as they were informed that the leads had a price, that was it.

Of course I had many of them that would be glad to take the leads for free.

The biggest response I got was that Dr. so and so doesn't buy leads.

On the rare calls that I actually spoke to the actual dentist,they seemed to have no clue as to what I was talking about. It was as if buying leads or referrals was as bad as burning down a church. I even had one ask me why people would give me their information instead of just calling him.

Over 70% of the people I talked to were down right rude after they found out that I wouldn't just give them the leads. I guess newpapers and yellowpages should just give them free advertising as well.

I have never met a bigger crowd of tight asses.I would rather pull teeth than have to deal with them again.

Has anyone here had any success with selling leads to dentist?

Are there any places online to sell dental leads to?

I learned several lessons with this deal.

1.People will trust you with their information if they truly need a service and your copy is decent.

2.Call around and find someone interested in buying your leads before putting up a website and driving traffic.

If you had told me 43 dentist would flat out refuse 3 hot leads than pay for them, I wouldn't have believed it.

I think I should just stick with online marketing.Everytime I try this offline crowd I have no success at all.

Last month I went to 40+ local businesses offering different services.Not 1 taker there as well.Spent most of the time giving marketing advice and watching eyes roll when price was mentioned.

In both cases I didn't bust in with a pitch fest.I built rapport and basically had the people admit they needed what I was offering.

My hats off to all the people that actually make money in the offline market.If I depended on the offline crowd to eat,I would be to weak to type this.
#dentist #leads #sell
  • Profile picture of the author Sebulba
    Doesn't surprise me a bit. The medical profession has themselves built up to be above marketing. They are only fooling themselves.

    I too am working on a similar business plan as you. I have even had software built to automate the process. I don't think I will approach Medical people first though. If I do I will probly leverage with a direct mail piece.

    My 2 cents

    Seb
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  • Profile picture of the author jayveen
    Thanks for this report, but I'm not surprised. I've had dentists that offer some kind of gift if you refer a friend, but I've never heard of anyone set up to handle pay leads. I have a site that ranks for medical and dental terms but I don't know of any way to monetize it. I'm thinking that big hospitals might have affiliate programs.
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Couple of things,

    True that the medical professional thinks their sheet doesn't smell, try contractors, trades people.

    Also, offer their first 5 leads for free. I guarantee you if one converts, they'll be calling you for more, that's when you hit them with the price.

    Selling services to business onwers, what are you offering and what are you charging?

    Peace
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  • Profile picture of the author redfoxseo
    The medical area is tough. I know around here dentists are actually turning peple away so they don not need leads..
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  • Profile picture of the author MarkAse
    Check into LeTip or Business networking international. Those types of networking groups usually have a dentist and that dentist is at least doing something to market himself.

    Might be worth a look.
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    • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
      Originally Posted by MarkAse View Post

      Check into LeTip or Business networking international. Those types of networking groups usually have a dentist and that dentist is at least doing something to market himself.

      Might be worth a look.

      Very good Idea........LinkedIn also
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  • Profile picture of the author FrankBowman
    Try some of these:

    Plumbers
    roofers
    electricians
    house painters
    heating oil companies
    home improvement contractors

    the only thing in "medical" I know works is Chiropractors........I sell a couple of them leads from time to time
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  • Profile picture of the author moneytime
    I will try some different markets than medical.I almost started with chiropractors,but figured they would be a tough sell.I know a couple of the local chiropractors and they are top grade a$$holes.

    I am going to send some emails out to different people and then follow up by phone.This time I will make sure I have a few people interested before putting up a site.

    The dental site didn't take much time,but it seems to be a waste now.With some very basic seo I had already got 1st page rankings.It would be nothing to dominate the terms in organic listings.

    All in all it was a good learning experience.I got some phone time in and found out how easy I can enter a local market with basic marketing.

    I was offering the leads for free as Frank mentioned above.That seemed to be the best strategy to get my foot in the door and build trust.As soon as I mentioned any possibility of future payments,that's went it all went south.

    It is encouraging to see other people have experienced similar results with dentist and the medical field.I was beginning to think I was the worst marketer in existence when I couldn't even give away 3 leads.
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    • Profile picture of the author bizman09
      I feel your pain.

      Earlier this year I set up several websites in several different cities for a highly needed semi medical type of service. I chose that industry because supposedily someone else was doing well in it. I wasn't going to reivent the wheel. Pretty smart, huh :rolleyes:

      Even worse than doing SEO like you did, I used google adwords to generate leads. i was getting good leads each day and was positive that businesses offering these service would want them.

      Long story short, I tried selling them first, then tried giving free samples through phone, email and direct mail. I couldn't believe that I had no takers. No one was even vagely interested. If someone offered me leads I would take them in a minute especially when they were given to me to test. All I had to show for my efforts was a sizeable Adwords bill.

      I'm sure there are businesses that are more receptive to purchasing leads but as you said if I ever try this again I will find the clients first, before I invest any time or money.

      Biz
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  • Profile picture of the author joshril
    What is your approach when you are contacting these dentists and offering the leads? Someone above mentioned offering some free leads. This is pretty common, and I have almost always negotiated free leads when I've bought them for my insurance agency.

    If you or your leads don't have a reputation with dentists, it's hard for them to know what type of quality you're offering.

    Additionally, the site you've created is not a waste. If you don't want to sell dental leads, why not sell the site that's generating leads to a local dentist? It's already proven to convert visitors into sign-ups.

    Good luck!

    On a side note... while targeting medical professionals can be lucrative, the downside is the ability to actually speak with a decision maker. Doctors, dentists, and other medical professionals seem to go out of their way to make it impossible to see them without an appointment.

    In some ways, I really don't blame them, but it makes getting your foot in the door from a sales standpoint much more difficult.
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  • Profile picture of the author xlfutur1
    I've had some of the same experiences with attorneys. In my case, I would give them the leads when they answered a simple legal question people asked on the website. Literally everyone who asked a question noted on the form they wanted to be contacted by an attorney. i can't even get the few attorneys I recruited to answer a damn question when it comes in. So these leads are basically going to waste.

    I do have one rectangle adsense block and that pays out gangbusters for clicks, upwards of $2 or more every time. So they will pay huge amounts to advertise, but when you actually have a lead for them, they could care less. Oh, and I have the site ranking in the top 5 spots for the term: chicago attorneys
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    • Profile picture of the author joshril
      Originally Posted by xlfutur1 View Post

      I do have one rectangle adsense block and that pays out gangbusters for clicks, upwards of $2 or more every time. So they will pay huge amounts to advertise, but when you actually have a lead for them, they could care less
      Have you tried calling the attorneys that are using PPC now?
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  • Profile picture of the author DogScout
    Actually what you are doing is technically illegal
    It is ok to market, but not to 'birddog' (or ambulance chase?)
    which is what it is called unless YOU are providing the service

    It is ok to get a lead for a doctor
    but not ok to get a lead and then find a doctor to treat the lead
    (as it was explained to me anyway)

    I am not a doctor, nor a lawyer
    but that may be the reason?
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    • Profile picture of the author joshril
      Originally Posted by DogScout View Post

      Actually what you are doing is technically illegal
      It is ok to market, but not to 'birddog' (or ambulance chase?)
      which is what it is called unless YOU are providing the service

      It is ok to get a lead for a doctor
      but not ok to get a lead and then find a doctor to treat the lead
      (as it was explained to me anyway)

      I am not a doctor, nor a lawyer
      but that may be the reason?
      I'm not sure about this, but I'm also not an attorney. Most states have similar laws for insurance agents because like attorneys, a state license is required. Lead companies sell thousands of leads to insurance agents every day.

      Now, if the lead vendors were asking for a percentage of the sale (commission), then there is an issue unless the lead vendor also holds a license in the state in which the transaction is taking place.

      I'm not an attorney, but I would think it's the same thing with any state licensed professionals such as realtors and attorneys.
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      • Profile picture of the author DogScout
        Originally Posted by joshril View Post

        I'm not sure about this, but I'm also not an attorney. Most states have similar laws for insurance agents because like attorneys, a state license is required. Lead companies sell thousands of leads to insurance agents every day.

        Now, if the lead vendors were asking for a percentage of the sale (commission), then there is an issue unless the lead vendor also holds a license in the state in which the transaction is taking place.

        I'm not an attorney, but I would think it's the same thing with any state licensed professionals such as realtors and attorneys.
        I live in Virginia
        here it is illegal to fill a customers gas tank for sending a referral to buy a car
        nice state, huh?
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  • Profile picture of the author billionareHuman
    I do have one rectangle adsense block and that pays out gangbusters for clicks, upwards of $2 or more every time. So they will pay huge amounts to advertise, but when you actually have a lead for them, they could care less. Oh, and I have the site ranking in the top 5 spots for the term: chicago attorneys
    Great point! Now for the OP and you, what you can do is start offering advertising space on your website to the dentists or whoever, let them customize the whole page to their business, there are many great selling points for this:

    - it's not an online business directory, their competitors are not there, the only person the visitor can call is them!
    - if they don't take the website someone else will
    - low monthly rental fee on a subscription (paypal) to their credit card
    - low management for you and them (don't have to qualify leads, chase up payments!)

    Remember these guys pay $1500 and over for 6 months+ for an online yellow pages listing that does nothing for them.

    So if you charge them $250 a month at minimum they will get their money back with 1 conversion probably! any conversions for the month after that 1 is profit for them, and that is another great selling point

    $250 x 12 months = $3000 a year, for very little work!

    you can always track clicks to the phone number on the website to see how many clicks they are getting to justify and increase in your price! Plus they won't mind if they really are getting business through your site they don't want to loose this to someone else!

    You may think $250/month is too cheap, well it depends on how many targeted visitors your website is getting, even if you are getting 5 a day that's a nice 150 a month possible leads for them, however not all of them are going to call for various reasons, even the ones that call doesn't mean they will convert for your client. So if you are getting 30+ visitors a day, by all means charge more, but for 150 to 300 visitors are month then $250 is about right otherwise the client cannot make money off your advertising. You want to over deliver not under deliver by charging a lot and they only get 2 conversions from you, that's not very impression to them, if you over deliver they will love you and willing to trust you on anything that = $$.

    oh and usually when talking to someone they understand about being on the first page of google, most likely their website is not if they have one! So once you tell them that 'my website is on the first page of google and I'm offering it to only 1 business to customize as their own so you get all the leads' they are very interested!

    Another benefit is that these clients can turn into your SEO clients, once they start seeing it's working, they start thinking wait a minute I could have my own website ranking rather than paying a monthly rental forever!
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  • Profile picture of the author johnhoefer
    The medical profession gets their leads by joining HMOs. Or they don't take insurance and they get their leads from word of mouth by high paying clients.
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  • Profile picture of the author moneytime
    This is the process I was using and how it all went down.

    1.Sent email to the dentists informing them that I recieve information from people looking to have dental work done.Provided my email and phone number to contact me if they needed more information.

    2.Didn't recieve any calls but did recieve 2 emails saying thanks but no thanks.

    3.Followed up by phone with the other 41 dentist.Out of these 41 only 3 actually got on the phone to talk.It seemed to offend them that someone would even consider selling fresh hot leads to them.

    The other 38 consisted of me dealing with the gate keepers.

    I would get put on hold and then told the dentist was busy with a patient.I had expected this to happen so I was not surprised by the run around.

    At this point I began informing the gate keepers about the reason for the call at their request.

    All is going well when I mention I have 3 referrals for the dentist.About half even get really excited and are more than happy to pass on the leads.

    Then the business of how I got the referrals and why I would pass them on came up.After explaining this process and the reason behind my motives that was the end.

    Here are some of the responses I got:

    1.Dr. so and so doesn't pay for leads or referrals (every dentist I contacted did some form of advertising be it newpaper,tv,radio,websites,ppc,or several of these).

    2.We are currently booked up or unable to take on new patients (at the beginning of the call I would ask if they were accepting new patients - and they all said yes).

    3.We are currently doing our own advertising (I would then inform them that I was not an advertising agency nor was I selling advertising) but that didn't matter.

    4.We already have a website to collect leads (I would then explain that I was not selling a website) but that didn't matter.

    5.We are just not interested.

    6.I even got a couple that said they had no interest in growing their business as David mentioned in his post above.

    7.Regardless of the responses I got,at least 70% became down right rude.

    So to sum up:

    All were more than happy to accept all and any leads I could come up with for free.And all asked how I came about the leads and my motives for offering them for free (which I fully expected and hoped they would do).I was completely honest and a straight shooter with them about my reasons.Shows over.

    None of them said anything about it being illegal,they just didn't want to pay.

    Even after I told them the 3 leads were free,the thought that I may ask for money down the road for leads seemed to be an abomination.

    My take away was that dentist will pay for newspaper,yellowpages,tv,radio,websites,ppc,and any other method,but would jump off a bridge before they would pay for hot leads ready to be closed.

    As mentioned in a few of the other post,they seemed to be above paying for leads.So much so that they turned down 3 free ones.

    If you are bored or would like to see how fast people can go from excited to absolutely rude,call some dentist tomorrow offering free leads but then mention the chance that money may change hands down the road.

    This has been a good experience in that I learned many lessons in how I go about offline marketing and lead selling.

    I enjoy reading all the post as well.I am always learning and looking for new insights to make the next time better.
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    • Profile picture of the author ozduc
      Originally Posted by moneytime View Post

      This is the process I was using and how it all went down.

      1.Sent email to the dentists informing them that I recieve information from people looking to have dental work done.Provided my email and phone number to contact me if they needed more information.

      2.Didn't recieve any calls but did recieve 2 emails saying thanks but no thanks.

      3.Followed up by phone with the other 41 dentist.Out of these 41 only 3 actually got on the phone to talk.It seemed to offend them that someone would even consider selling fresh hot leads to them.

      The other 38 consisted of me dealing with the gate keepers.

      I would get put on hold and then told the dentist was busy with a patient.I had expected this to happen so I was not surprised by the run around.

      At this point I began informing the gate keepers about the reason for the call at their request.

      All is going well when I mention I have 3 referrals for the dentist.About half even get really excited and are more than happy to pass on the leads.

      Then the business of how I got the referrals and why I would pass them on came up.After explaining this process and the reason behind my motives that was the end.

      Here are some of the responses I got:

      1.Dr. so and so doesn't pay for leads or referrals (every dentist I contacted did some form of advertising be it newpaper,tv,radio,websites,ppc,or several of these).

      2.We are currently booked up or unable to take on new patients (at the beginning of the call I would ask if they were accepting new patients - and they all said yes).

      3.We are currently doing our own advertising (I would then inform them that I was not an advertising agency nor was I selling advertising) but that didn't matter.

      4.We already have a website to collect leads (I would then explain that I was not selling a website) but that didn't matter.

      5.We are just not interested.

      6.I even got a couple that said they had no interest in growing their business as David mentioned in his post above.

      7.Regardless of the responses I got,at least 70% became down right rude.

      So to sum up:

      All were more than happy to accept all and any leads I could come up with for free.And all asked how I came about the leads and my motives for offering them for free (which I fully expected and hoped they would do).I was completely honest and a straight shooter with them about my reasons.Shows over.

      None of them said anything about it being illegal,they just didn't want to pay.

      Even after I told them the 3 leads were free,the thought that I may ask for money down the road for leads seemed to be an abomination.

      My take away was that dentist will pay for newspaper,yellowpages,tv,radio,websites,ppc,and any other method,but would jump off a bridge before they would pay for hot leads ready to be closed.

      As mentioned in a few of the other post,they seemed to be above paying for leads.So much so that they turned down 3 free ones.

      If you are bored or would like to see how fast people can go from excited to absolutely rude,call some dentist tomorrow offering free leads but then mention the chance that money may change hands down the road.

      This has been a good experience in that I learned many lessons in how I go about offline marketing and lead selling.

      I enjoy reading all the post as well.I am always learning and looking for new insights to make the next time better.

      Seems to me if you had done steps 1-3 above BEFORE you went to the trouble of setting up a website, driving traffic, collecting the data you needed etc . you would have saved yourself a lot of time and effort.
      Lesson learned the hard way I guess.
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  • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
    It's funny that you should bring this up. I have a friend who makes a fortune selling hi-tech medical equipment. The most successful sales people on his team are pretty young women. You'd think that the looks of a sales rep would hardly matter when it comes to hi-tech medical medical equipment used to perform such functions as brain surgery, but it does. Try hiring a bunch of gorgeous sales female sales reps and see if that helps.
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    • Profile picture of the author Neil V
      I have one client who is a dentist. It has taken me 8 months to crack through to this niche and i can tell you that it takes extremely hard work and patience.

      This dentist was actually my own dentist. After i built a relationship with him i found out he was paying for clicks and had some other companies doing SEO services for him.

      In order to get him as a client here is what i had to do:
      i set up a ppc account for him and optomized it. he paid for the clicks, i did not charge him for my time. after 2 months i demonstrated better ROI, cheaper clicks and higher quality leads and then only he decided to go ahead with a monthly retainer and pay for services.


      While interacting with him, here is what i found out. i actually did not believe him until i was in the office with him and got this first hand;

      He gets approximately 3 calls a day from companies who are seo experts, lead generators and ppc experts. Marketer in this area are relenteless and have created a bad rep for folks like us.

      he has tried all of them out in the past and lost money,

      To say he was jaded was an understatement.

      he was not willing to go through that again.

      However he wanted the leads and needed a fresh approach.

      I tried several strategies until i found a killer one that worked, did some free work and then showed him results. Now i have a solid client.


      For obvious reasons i cannot share the exact details of how i baited this client and got him to take action with me, but i am sure you already know how to figure that out.

      Also, i would not necessarily suggest that you do free work in advance. All i am saying is for this client, since he was my doctor i trusted him enough to take that chance with him.

      Anyway i hope you at least get some ideas from this, but don't give up if this is the niche you want to crack.

      It is going to take some time to work out your strategy and face to face contact if you want to grow it.,

      I will say it is very lucrative once you do it.

      If you need a little specifics, feel free to pm me.

      Good Luck
      Neil
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  • Profile picture of the author GuerrillaIM
    My dad was a private dentist for 40 years. In all that time he never advertised once and made sure he was ex-directory. Despite that he was always booked solid at least 3 months in advance.

    Dentistry is a funny business. From talking with my dad I can understand why a dentist may consider advertising if things are slow, but I can't imagine them actively persuing a lead. Their whole business is based on reputation and sales vs ethics in dentistry is a lively debate. I could never convince my dad to advertise. He had a certain type of patient that he liked and his business was 100% referral based. He always said that if he advertised he would end up deluged with undesirables.
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  • Profile picture of the author topcash
    Why not create a system to collect the leads for the dentist and then sell the system to them.
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  • Profile picture of the author billionareHuman
    He gets approximately 3 calls a day from companies who are seo experts, lead generators and ppc experts. Marketer in this area are relenteless and have created a bad rep for folks like us.
    You know why, because every marketer immediately thinks of these types of business: dentist, lawyer, plumber! I'm guilty of it too, but after putting in more research I've come up with gems, there's a big world out there, with thousands of different services!
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  • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
    I've done the obvious. It can work quite well. It is a matter of not being stereotypical salesy style, but just being more regular in delivery.
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  • Profile picture of the author j2200
    I was a dental assistant, front desk receptionist and eventually practice manager for over ten years. In addition, I've managed other unrelated retail enterprises and other types of healthcare establishmens (medical offices mostly)... now I'm selling to dentists!

    In order to sell anything to a dentist, you need to know how their practice works. A dental sales rep will tell you that dentists are the most unique creatures in the world, and sales techniques used for anyone else will not work on dentists (and vice versa).

    However, you need to get rid of the attitude - calling them "rude tight asses" isn't helping (even though you're not doing it to their face). If you're getting rude behavior from the dentists or assistants, you just don't know how to approach a dental office properly. They're not tight asses, they just come across that way if you don't know what you're dealing with.

    When a sales pro comes from another industry into the Dental Sales Rep field, we have to un-train them and send them for new training. Selling to dentists is... well, different.

    To help you understand:

    - Receptionists in dental offices are busier than any other office - period. Dentists average 10 times the amount of emergencies in one day than medical offices, and they typically have less staff and more impact on their schedule.

    - Dental practices oftentimes are so busy handling emergency patients, or difficult cases, that they work straight through lunch and after hours. It's easy for a dentist to put in a 12 hour workday, then come back at 3am for an emergency root canal.

    - Receptionists and dentists are approached, on average, 3-5 times a day (although sometimes upwards of 10 times) by marketing reps in person. By phone, they average at least 5 + sales calls a day. They have to handle this while dealing with cranky patients, rude people who won't pay their bills, insurance rejection, and hectic scheduling of emergencies. Phones can ring nonstop, and answering while juggling schedules is no easy feat. Generally, when a receptionist rushes to answer the phone, only to find out it's ANOTHER salesperson, they get annoyed. They don't always mean to, but their jobs are hard... sales people make it even harder.

    - Dental offices rarely have a problem generating new patients; in fact, you can basically count specialists (oral surgeons, endodontists, periodontists, etc.) out, because their method of marketing is completely dependent on referrals from general dentists, so as long as they accommodate emergencies and schmooze the dentists a bit, they generally have more referrals than they can handle. You may have a chance with general dentists though, but many are booked 6 months ahead, and are turning away new patients.

    - Dental offices have EXTREMELY high overhead. They pay sometimes thousands of dollars for a disposable tip that goes on a handpiece, and needs to be changed for each patient. Even though they may be overbooked, in this economy they're lowering their treatment fees to avoid losing patients, while their overhead just gets higher. They're not going to pay for anything unless they really, really need it!

    - Most dentists are working on patients all day and rarely have a few sacred minutes for lunch. Having your free time jeopardized by lunchtime salespeople, or sales calls at another inconvenient time will definitely cause them a lot of frustration. A dentist can't stop in the middle of a procedure; he'll risk contaminating the tooth. So if he comes out of the room for a phone call, thinking it's important, and finds out it's only a sales call, you bet he'll be annoyed! He has to backtrack and now that thirty second phone call just set him back a half hour! He won't care what you're selling, he'll just want to get back to his procedure or few minutes of lunch.

    - Five, ten, or even fifteen new patients is nothing, unless you're promising them that many per week (minimum). If you're going to offer leads, try to give them an idea of how many they'll be getting per week, on average. If you can't supply them with at least 5 new patients per week to start (with the promise of increasing over time), they're not going to bother. Unless you're offering a one-time service - in which case they're not going to pay for anything less than probably upwards of 100 leads, depending on your pricing.

    - And as far as offering free leads, I'd offer them at least 20 free leads within the first two weeks, if you can do that. Then they'll know you can actually produce results!

    - You CAN sell to dentists. Dental sales reps have techniques that help put the receptionists and dentists at ease, and don't get turned away as much as general sales reps. Some helpful hints:

    - Be extremely nice and charming. Make sure the receptionist (or dentist) knows you understand the difficulties of running a dental practice.

    - Make SURE you talk to them at a time that the receptionist or dentist chooses - that way you guarantee they're not rushing you off the phone. Maybe start out with a phrase like "I understand how busy your practice must be, and how hard your job is - but I wanted to offer you something that could really generate new patients - is there a good time I could talk to you about it? I'm offering a free initial service". That gives them an opening to discuss it on their available time, and many will take your info, give it to the dentist, or call you back later themselves. Some will even stay on the line with you then.

    - Target dentists who have already bad reputations, bad reviews, and are in desperate need of patients (look through reviews on Yelp, Yahoo, HealthGrades, etc.)
    Again, try to target only general dentists.

    - Put together a mini brochure, flier, or some sort of printed material; dental offices respond much better when they can look over information on their own time instead of hearing it over the phone. Make sure it spells out where these referrals are coming from and why they'll be a solid source of leads in the future - not just a one-time thing. Make sure the leads are local (within 20 minutes of the dentists location - many patients that travel more than that will eventually change to a closer dentist). Let them know your leads are local!

    - Again: be charming. Be understanding of the challenges dentists face when talking with sales reps. Don't assume they're rude or "tight asses" - assume they have good reason to act that way. Try to get into the mind of a dentist, and you'll be able to sell to one.
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    • Profile picture of the author JonTuckerUSA
      EXTREMELY well said. I'm sure that author (and other warriors like myself) really appreciate the insight.



      Originally Posted by j2200 View Post

      I was a dental assistant, front desk receptionist and eventually practice manager for over ten years. In addition, I've managed other unrelated retail enterprises and other types of healthcare establishmens (medical offices mostly)... now I'm selling to dentists!

      In order to sell anything to a dentist, you need to know how their practice works. A dental sales rep will tell you that dentists are the most unique creatures in the world, and sales techniques used for anyone else will not work on dentists (and vice versa).

      However, you need to get rid of the attitude - calling them "rude tight asses" isn't helping (even though you're not doing it to their face). If you're getting rude behavior from the dentists or assistants, you just don't know how to approach a dental office properly. They're not tight asses, they just come across that way if you don't know what you're dealing with.

      When a sales pro comes from another industry into the Dental Sales Rep field, we have to un-train them and send them for new training. Selling to dentists is... well, different.

      To help you understand:

      - Receptionists in dental offices are busier than any other office - period. Dentists average 10 times the amount of emergencies in one day than medical offices, and they typically have less staff and more impact on their schedule.

      - Dental practices oftentimes are so busy handling emergency patients, or difficult cases, that they work straight through lunch and after hours. It's easy for a dentist to put in a 12 hour workday, then come back at 3am for an emergency root canal.

      - Receptionists and dentists are approached, on average, 3-5 times a day (although sometimes upwards of 10 times) by marketing reps in person. By phone, they average at least 5 + sales calls a day. They have to handle this while dealing with cranky patients, rude people who won't pay their bills, insurance rejection, and hectic scheduling of emergencies. Phones can ring nonstop, and answering while juggling schedules is no easy feat. Generally, when a receptionist rushes to answer the phone, only to find out it's ANOTHER salesperson, they get annoyed. They don't always mean to, but their jobs are hard... sales people make it even harder.

      - Dental offices rarely have a problem generating new patients; in fact, you can basically count specialists (oral surgeons, endodontists, periodontists, etc.) out, because their method of marketing is completely dependent on referrals from general dentists, so as long as they accommodate emergencies and schmooze the dentists a bit, they generally have more referrals than they can handle. You may have a chance with general dentists though, but many are booked 6 months ahead, and are turning away new patients.

      - Dental offices have EXTREMELY high overhead. They pay sometimes thousands of dollars for a disposable tip that goes on a handpiece, and needs to be changed for each patient. Even though they may be overbooked, in this economy they're lowering their treatment fees to avoid losing patients, while their overhead just gets higher. They're not going to pay for anything unless they really, really need it!

      - Most dentists are working on patients all day and rarely have a few sacred minutes for lunch. Having your free time jeopardized by lunchtime salespeople, or sales calls at another inconvenient time will definitely cause them a lot of frustration. A dentist can't stop in the middle of a procedure; he'll risk contaminating the tooth. So if he comes out of the room for a phone call, thinking it's important, and finds out it's only a sales call, you bet he'll be annoyed! He has to backtrack and now that thirty second phone call just set him back a half hour! He won't care what you're selling, he'll just want to get back to his procedure or few minutes of lunch.

      - Five, ten, or even fifteen new patients is nothing, unless you're promising them that many per week (minimum). If you're going to offer leads, try to give them an idea of how many they'll be getting per week, on average. If you can't supply them with at least 5 new patients per week to start (with the promise of increasing over time), they're not going to bother. Unless you're offering a one-time service - in which case they're not going to pay for anything less than probably upwards of 100 leads, depending on your pricing.

      - And as far as offering free leads, I'd offer them at least 20 free leads within the first two weeks, if you can do that. Then they'll know you can actually produce results!

      - You CAN sell to dentists. Dental sales reps have techniques that help put the receptionists and dentists at ease, and don't get turned away as much as general sales reps. Some helpful hints:

      - Be extremely nice and charming. Make sure the receptionist (or dentist) knows you understand the difficulties of running a dental practice.

      - Make SURE you talk to them at a time that the receptionist or dentist chooses - that way you guarantee they're not rushing you off the phone. Maybe start out with a phrase like "I understand how busy your practice must be, and how hard your job is - but I wanted to offer you something that could really generate new patients - is there a good time I could talk to you about it? I'm offering a free initial service". That gives them an opening to discuss it on their available time, and many will take your info, give it to the dentist, or call you back later themselves. Some will even stay on the line with you then.

      - Target dentists who have already bad reputations, bad reviews, and are in desperate need of patients (look through reviews on Yelp, Yahoo, HealthGrades, etc.)
      Again, try to target only general dentists.

      - Put together a mini brochure, flier, or some sort of printed material; dental offices respond much better when they can look over information on their own time instead of hearing it over the phone. Make sure it spells out where these referrals are coming from and why they'll be a solid source of leads in the future - not just a one-time thing. Make sure the leads are local (within 20 minutes of the dentists location - many patients that travel more than that will eventually change to a closer dentist). Let them know your leads are local!

      - Again: be charming. Be understanding of the challenges dentists face when talking with sales reps. Don't assume they're rude or "tight asses" - assume they have good reason to act that way. Try to get into the mind of a dentist, and you'll be able to sell to one.
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    • Profile picture of the author ronr
      Thanks for the great insight.

      Not all dentists are doing well. Those who changed from general dentistry to specialize in cosmetic dentistry a few years ago because that's where the big money was, have seen their revenue drop 20-50% acording to my dentist friends.

      Ron



      Originally Posted by j2200 View Post

      I was a dental assistant, front desk receptionist and eventually practice manager for over ten years. In addition, I've managed other unrelated retail enterprises and other types of healthcare establishmens (medical offices mostly)... now I'm selling to dentists!

      In order to sell anything to a dentist, you need to know how their practice works. A dental sales rep will tell you that dentists are the most unique creatures in the world, and sales techniques used for anyone else will not work on dentists (and vice versa).

      However, you need to get rid of the attitude - calling them "rude tight asses" isn't helping (even though you're not doing it to their face). If you're getting rude behavior from the dentists or assistants, you just don't know how to approach a dental office properly. They're not tight asses, they just come across that way if you don't know what you're dealing with.

      When a sales pro comes from another industry into the Dental Sales Rep field, we have to un-train them and send them for new training. Selling to dentists is... well, different.

      To help you understand:

      - Receptionists in dental offices are busier than any other office - period. Dentists average 10 times the amount of emergencies in one day than medical offices, and they typically have less staff and more impact on their schedule.

      - Dental practices oftentimes are so busy handling emergency patients, or difficult cases, that they work straight through lunch and after hours. It's easy for a dentist to put in a 12 hour workday, then come back at 3am for an emergency root canal.

      - Receptionists and dentists are approached, on average, 3-5 times a day (although sometimes upwards of 10 times) by marketing reps in person. By phone, they average at least 5 + sales calls a day. They have to handle this while dealing with cranky patients, rude people who won't pay their bills, insurance rejection, and hectic scheduling of emergencies. Phones can ring nonstop, and answering while juggling schedules is no easy feat. Generally, when a receptionist rushes to answer the phone, only to find out it's ANOTHER salesperson, they get annoyed. They don't always mean to, but their jobs are hard... sales people make it even harder.

      - Dental offices rarely have a problem generating new patients; in fact, you can basically count specialists (oral surgeons, endodontists, periodontists, etc.) out, because their method of marketing is completely dependent on referrals from general dentists, so as long as they accommodate emergencies and schmooze the dentists a bit, they generally have more referrals than they can handle. You may have a chance with general dentists though, but many are booked 6 months ahead, and are turning away new patients.

      - Dental offices have EXTREMELY high overhead. They pay sometimes thousands of dollars for a disposable tip that goes on a handpiece, and needs to be changed for each patient. Even though they may be overbooked, in this economy they're lowering their treatment fees to avoid losing patients, while their overhead just gets higher. They're not going to pay for anything unless they really, really need it!

      - Most dentists are working on patients all day and rarely have a few sacred minutes for lunch. Having your free time jeopardized by lunchtime salespeople, or sales calls at another inconvenient time will definitely cause them a lot of frustration. A dentist can't stop in the middle of a procedure; he'll risk contaminating the tooth. So if he comes out of the room for a phone call, thinking it's important, and finds out it's only a sales call, you bet he'll be annoyed! He has to backtrack and now that thirty second phone call just set him back a half hour! He won't care what you're selling, he'll just want to get back to his procedure or few minutes of lunch.

      - Five, ten, or even fifteen new patients is nothing, unless you're promising them that many per week (minimum). If you're going to offer leads, try to give them an idea of how many they'll be getting per week, on average. If you can't supply them with at least 5 new patients per week to start (with the promise of increasing over time), they're not going to bother. Unless you're offering a one-time service - in which case they're not going to pay for anything less than probably upwards of 100 leads, depending on your pricing.

      - And as far as offering free leads, I'd offer them at least 20 free leads within the first two weeks, if you can do that. Then they'll know you can actually produce results!

      - You CAN sell to dentists. Dental sales reps have techniques that help put the receptionists and dentists at ease, and don't get turned away as much as general sales reps. Some helpful hints:

      - Be extremely nice and charming. Make sure the receptionist (or dentist) knows you understand the difficulties of running a dental practice.

      - Make SURE you talk to them at a time that the receptionist or dentist chooses - that way you guarantee they're not rushing you off the phone. Maybe start out with a phrase like "I understand how busy your practice must be, and how hard your job is - but I wanted to offer you something that could really generate new patients - is there a good time I could talk to you about it? I'm offering a free initial service". That gives them an opening to discuss it on their available time, and many will take your info, give it to the dentist, or call you back later themselves. Some will even stay on the line with you then.

      - Target dentists who have already bad reputations, bad reviews, and are in desperate need of patients (look through reviews on Yelp, Yahoo, HealthGrades, etc.)
      Again, try to target only general dentists.

      - Put together a mini brochure, flier, or some sort of printed material; dental offices respond much better when they can look over information on their own time instead of hearing it over the phone. Make sure it spells out where these referrals are coming from and why they'll be a solid source of leads in the future - not just a one-time thing. Make sure the leads are local (within 20 minutes of the dentists location - many patients that travel more than that will eventually change to a closer dentist). Let them know your leads are local!

      - Again: be charming. Be understanding of the challenges dentists face when talking with sales reps. Don't assume they're rude or "tight asses" - assume they have good reason to act that way. Try to get into the mind of a dentist, and you'll be able to sell to one.
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      • Profile picture of the author winston
        Originally Posted by ronr View Post

        Thanks for the great insight.

        Not all dentists are doing well. Those who changed from general dentistry to specialize in cosmetic dentistry a few years ago because that's where the big money was, have seen their revenue drop 20-50% acording to my dentist friends.

        Ron
        I would have to agree with this. As a technical service operations manger for a large national dental supply company I have had the opportunity to speak with different dentist to find out why one dentist is growing and another dentist is not. Specializing in cosmetic dentistry is a big one for no growth, cosmetic dentists were doing great up until a few months ago because of the influx of new older unemployed trying to compete with the younger unemployed for jobs. Thought being younger looking would help. This slowly subsided and general dentistry has continued to do well, but only the approach of making it easy for a potential client to get what they need without bankrupting them.

        I asked several dentist who were upgrading or adding new equipment and also had increases in sundry orders, why there practice's were doing so well. Making it work for the client easily was the number one reason.

        Most dentist don't know how to formulate a plan for growth. A dentist may be limited by what he/she is able to do himself/herself, but he/she can always grow with dental students (if the practices area of the country is desirable) or locating a dentist working with another practice that may want an opportunity to become a possible partner. They can also add assistants, hygienists and additional staff to help handle the increase in business.

        I am developing my own program for assisting dentist who have an interest in growing their practices. Its more than just marketing strategies! There are additional things a successful practice can even do to further their growth as well. So my intention is to implement a multi-phase approach, starting with a practices business plan.

        Don't try and sell a non-qualified lead that the dentist or his staff has to call and qualify, they won't do it. Get them a lead that contacts them directly or qualify a lead down and hand it off to the staff to just schedule.

        Offer the dentist an easy to follow system for your leads that's a no-brainer on their part. You can get more for your leads as well.
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    • Profile picture of the author Greg guitar
      Originally Posted by j2200 View Post


      - Target dentists who have already bad reputations, bad reviews, and are in desperate need of patients (look through reviews on Yelp, Yahoo, HealthGrades, etc.)
      Again, try to target only general dentists.
      This was a fascinating and insightful post, and I thank you for it. However, I must say that I hope nobody will follow the advice in this particular paragraph. It may be a good way to make you some money, and make bad dentists some money, but it is a downright disservice to the end user.

      If you want to have a business career you can look back on with pride and feel you've done some good in the world, promote only quality, reputable businesses-not crummy ones because they are so bad that they're desperate for your marketing help.

      If you've ever been the victom of a bad dentist, you know what I'm talking about-it can be a painful and costly experience.
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    • Profile picture of the author cityofangels
      Originally Posted by j2200 View Post


      - You CAN sell to dentists. Dental sales reps have techniques that help put the receptionists and dentists at ease, and don't get turned away as much as general sales reps. Some helpful hints:

      - Be extremely nice and charming. Make sure the receptionist (or dentist) knows you understand the difficulties of running a dental practice.

      - Make SURE you talk to them at a time that the receptionist or dentist chooses - that way you guarantee they're not rushing you off the phone. Maybe start out with a phrase like "I understand how busy your practice must be, and how hard your job is - but I wanted to offer you something that could really generate new patients - is there a good time I could talk to you about it? I'm offering a free initial service". That gives them an opening to discuss it on their available time, and many will take your info, give it to the dentist, or call you back later themselves. Some will even stay on the line with you then.

      - Target dentists who have already bad reputations, bad reviews, and are in desperate need of patients (look through reviews on Yelp, Yahoo, HealthGrades, etc.)
      Again, try to target only general dentists.

      - Put together a mini brochure, flier, or some sort of printed material; dental offices respond much better when they can look over information on their own time instead of hearing it over the phone. Make sure it spells out where these referrals are coming from and why they'll be a solid source of leads in the future - not just a one-time thing. Make sure the leads are local (within 20 minutes of the dentists location - many patients that travel more than that will eventually change to a closer dentist). Let them know your leads are local!

      - Again: be charming. Be understanding of the challenges dentists face when talking with sales reps. Don't assume they're rude or "tight asses" - assume they have good reason to act that way. Try to get into the mind of a dentist, and you'll be able to sell to one.

      Great insider advice.
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  • Profile picture of the author MichaelHiles
    Once the Healthcare Bill gets passed, there are going to be 60,000,000 new, regular patients enter the medical services market that previously weren't there.

    All of the healthcare providers understand this, and what it represents to their income over the next few years.

    Not all of the medical community is cringing over government healthcare - and a few ticker symbols in my personal investment portfolio reflect the forward thinking view of the market. These guys understand what's coming and won't have any problems getting new patients.

    That's one area I'd run away from here in the US.
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    • Profile picture of the author DogScout
      Originally Posted by MichaelHiles View Post

      Once the Healthcare Bill gets passed, there are going to be 60,000,000 new, regular patients enter the medical services market that previously weren't there.

      All of the healthcare providers understand this, and what it represents to their income over the next few years.

      Not all of the medical community is cringing over government healthcare - and a few ticker symbols in my personal investment portfolio reflect the forward thinking view of the market. These guys understand what's coming and won't have any problems getting new patients.

      That's one area I'd run away from here in the US.
      That and the FTC targets medical sites
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      • Profile picture of the author fcajon
        As a physician, let me shed a little light on this. The laws vary state by state, but Federal guidelines absolutely prohibit what's called patient brokering. This means you can sell leads (InfoUSA and a variety of other companies sell mailing lists of "ailment sufferers"- people with back pain, headaches, indigestion, etc), but you cannot under any circumstances collect a fee only if the person becomes a patient.

        You can sell a list of 50 "hot leads" for $500, but you can't have them pay you $10 for each new patient they get from your list.

        I hope this makes sense, and it may be part of the reason that they are so skeptical.
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        • Profile picture of the author Brian_Mahaffey
          Originally Posted by fcajon View Post

          As a physician, let me shed a little light on this. The laws vary state by state, but Federal guidelines absolutely prohibit what's called patient brokering. This means you can sell leads (InfoUSA and a variety of other companies sell mailing lists of "ailment sufferers"- people with back pain, headaches, indigestion, etc), but you cannot under any circumstances collect a fee only if the person becomes a patient.

          You can sell a list of 50 "hot leads" for $500, but you can't have them pay you $10 for each new patient they get from your list.

          I hope this makes sense, and it may be part of the reason that they are so skeptical.
          Then how do companies like 1800dentist and many others survive? There whole business is selling leads to dentists since 1986. I think the law is more like if you are a dentist and you refer someone to another dentist and then ask them for money for it.

          But of your a marketing company, setting up advertising to drive leads to the dentist that is different.

          Anyone have any further information on the legality of this?
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  • Profile picture of the author Donald Truehart
    How did you decide to choose dentists as your target market in the first place?
    Were you already in that niche doing something else or something?
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    • Profile picture of the author AndrewCavanagh
      This is a standard problem dealing with business owners.

      The problem comes about because you're putting yourself in the category of all the other people calling trying to sell them something.

      The crazy part is if you go through the process of getting to know a business owner and his business first then suggesting customized internet marketing solutions to increase their profits (including buying leads from you) then it's not hard to sell leads.

      But if you start out trying to sell them something specific your chances are really low.

      The exception is industries where buying leads is the norm and leads have a high value (eg. real estate and car sales).

      Generally speaking when you're perceived as an expert trying to help a business owner you can do well.

      When you're perceived as a salesperson it makes it very difficult.

      Kindest regards,
      Andrew Cavanagh
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  • Profile picture of the author n00b
    You also have to realize that doctors are NOT business owners, not in the same sense anyways. They can't take on more patients than hours in the day. They are trading hours for dollars and I think people tend to forget that since they get compensated so well. The concept of leveraging is oftentimes lost on doctors.

    Also, I think doctors and marketers like ourselves are about as opposite as can be. In all honesty most of their brains work differently than ours. They specialize in science and we specialize in emotion. We hone our skills to get the most result with the littlest investment of time, money, energy, etc. (leveraging) whereas doctors have a certain way of doing things like clockwork (I don't think I want a dentist doing a root canal to see if he can find a way to outsource it, do it quicker, split test it with another root canal, etc.). Doctors go to school for 8 years before they can even get started, many of us here couldn't wait 8 weeks to turn our first profit.

    So it's no surprise that doctors don't "get it". I don't get them. I'm inclined to question the sanity of someone that would choose the life of being a doctor, I see no upside to the profession (other than I guess warm fuzzies for helping people, which no doctor I've ever known ever mentions). I'm sure doctors think there is no worse profession than sales/marketing. Most doctors I know chose that profession because it is high paying, prestigious, and secure. Marketers and doctors are both after a great lifestyle, but each chose a completely opposite way of achieving it which is very indicative of the personality differences and different ways of thinking. These two groups of people are destined to not understand each other (at least for the most part and especially without practice at it).

    OP, I feel your pain and frustration. It doesn't seem to make sense. I don't understand it. This is why I'm so glad my business is to the point where everything is outsourced and right now I'm only in contact with clients of mine that were referalls from friends and pretty soon it's going to be phased out to where I will not have to have contact with any clients. To me that is being a true business owner.
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    • Profile picture of the author thunderbird
      Originally Posted by n00b View Post

      <snip> I'm inclined to question the sanity of someone that would choose the life of being a doctor, I see no upside to the profession (other than I guess warm fuzzies for helping people, which no doctor I've ever known ever mentions). <snip>
      Luckily some people are insane enough to learn medicine or dentistry. The dentist's job must come with an array of unique challenges, eg dealing with patients' bad breath. Doctors have to be around sick and diseased people all the time -- how fun is that?
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    • Profile picture of the author GuerrillaIM
      Originally Posted by n00b View Post

      So it's no surprise that doctors don't "get it". I don't get them. I'm inclined to question the sanity of someone that would choose the life of being a doctor,
      As I said before my father was a dentist for 40 years. Every month he would go off to a convention or exhibition to booze it up with his dentist pals and see the latest gadgets on sale. These conventions are very much like marketing conventions where they are given every marketing angle under the sun to increase their practises profits.

      To say that dentists "don't get it" is not right in my opinion. I would say the reason that they may act like "they don't get it" is because they have heard it 100 times before.

      If I was to approach a dentist for marketing purposes I would come from the angle that I could improve peoples perception of them and enhance their patients experience. The more prestigious a dentists reputation, the more he can charge.

      There is a guy (in australia if memory serves me) who has the dentist marketing market cornered. he sells a 300 page manual on how to make your practise exclusive and push up your rates by create a different level of service. If you want to learn how to conquer this market look at his material. I can't remember his name right now but if anyone is interested send me a PM and I will get the info.

      EDIT: I just remembered one bit of marketing that he did that he was completely comfortable with and gave great results. We create a monthly newsletter that gave a little bit of denatl health related information, new treatments available that sort of thing. Nothing in your face, just some nice information and some good reasons for having a regular checkup. On one he included some before and after photos also. Perhaps dentists could be looking for someone to manage their monthly newsletter?
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      • Profile picture of the author VegasVince
        To begin with...your premise is flawed.

        I would begin by repositioning your entire offer......

        YOUR ARE NOT SELLING LEADS TO DENTISTS.....BUT RATHER..... PUTTING PAID ASSES IN SAID DENTIST'S CHAIR.

        Rather then asking a dentist if he wants to buy your "leads".......ask him "how much he'll pay you for x amount of new clients.....because you have a long list of people who need dental implants....and you heard he's the best in town....." Etc. Etc.

        There is a big difference between the two "pitches".

        Selling "leads" to a dentists.....sounds a lot like the boiler room stock broker pitches they get hammered with...you know....the next great IPO etc.

        I learned this little trick from a strange but brilliant marketer named Azam Meo who calls it Transactional Financing......and by changing your approach you generally have the "client" pitching you.

        I have used this technique to get paid big time commissions in the past on Ferrari's and Yacht dealers ....and it can be applied to just about anything.

        NOBODY WANTS LEADS.

        THE WANT THE ULTIMATE BENEFIT THE LEAD PROVIDES....WHICH IS TANGIBLE MONEY....THEY CAN SPEND ON COOL STUFF.

        PUT IT IN LANGUAGE THEY CAN UNDERSTAND.


        xxx Vegas Vince
        Legend
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  • Profile picture of the author Derek Allen
    You say it like this, "Hey dentist buy my leads". That should work!! j/j!!
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    My Blog + Cool Stuff>> Self Made CEO
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  • Profile picture of the author Headfirst
    It's all in your delivery. Start buy asking them about their current advertising efforts. Once you know what where they are advertising inquire about the success of their efforts, i.e., how many new patients they get off of each ad buy.

    Then ask them how many 'guaranteed ads' they buy. When they ask you what a guaranteed ad is, explain ask them how often they buy an ad that they don't have to pay for until after they get the new patients. They'll tell you that they've never bought an ad like that. Then you start telling them about lead gen, but break into it carefully.

    Start out by stating something like

    'So you mentioned that you're buying a $500 ad in the Springfield Shopper every other month and you usually get 10 new patients from that ad. Based on that, what if I put together some marketing campaigns for you where you never had to pay upfront for the ads and were only charged $50 for when you got a new patient?

    This method allows you to free up your cash flow for other things and at $50 per patient you're basically paying the same price as you would for your print ads, but without the risk. Does that sound like a good plan to you?'

    Then start them on the first lead... "To show you how it works I'd like to send you a new patient today. This way you can see the quality of the leads I'm sending you and we can get the billing set up before I we get the campaign started. How would you like to pay for your first patient?'

    Then just go from there.

    It's not hard, it just takes practice and is going to take some work coming up with a script that simplifies the product offering into something that your prospects understand as a good value.
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  • Profile picture of the author jkovats
    If you are able to get past the medical professionals ego...then maybe. Otherwise, selling leads to them is like selling snow to an eskimo. Not gonna happen.
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  • Profile picture of the author iw433
    you gotta edjumacate folks. They just don't get it until some snake oil salesman comes around and ripps em off. then they bad mouth the internet. Do presentations to the medical crowd. Show them what a client is worth to them and how they can get these clients for far less using the power of the internet. edjumacate em.
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  • Profile picture of the author Dexx
    One of my first, actually he was the first, appointments I ever did with offline consulting was with an eye doctor (a friend asked if I could redesign their website and I used it as a way to get a meeting with the doctor)

    Here's what I found out in my hour meeting with him:

    1) He mostly marketed his practice by "traditional" methods like street signs, newsletters, and ads in the paper.

    2) He had been practicing for over 30+ years and was BOOKED SOLID, but was marketing for new patients because he was bringing additional optometrists into the practice and moving to a bigger location down the street.

    3) He was an extremely busy busy man, and eventually I (foolishly) gave up trying to schedule additional meetings with him after a month of having to re-schedule appointments and lack of returned calls (but then 2 weeks later I would get a call from a receptionist saying he's still interested?!)...so ya...eventually I got too pushy trying to schedule a time and I think I drove him away (hey...it was my first attempt at Offline Marketing at the time...I had to learn patience! haha)

    4) When I began talking about how he could replace the $500/mo payment for a monthly newsletter that gets mailed out to his patients, with an email follow-up system that would allow him to BUILD A RELATIONSHIP and EDUCATE patients about eye health and new products...HIS EYES LIT UP!



    Moral of the Story:

    These medical professionals (and most business owners) are BUSY PEOPLE, so instead of INTERRUPTING their business with "another sales call" why not call and mention to the reception that you are a local business owner, and you are trying to HELP YOUR clients find a quality Dentist in town, and would like to learn more about their practice...

    but instead of wasting their time, ask if there's an email address you can send your questions to...

    Then Interview the Dentist about his business (how long he's been in practice etc) and then ASK HIM if he would be willing to take on additional patients if you were to refer new patients to him on a regular basis...

    If he says yes...then refer him 5+ leads as a "trial"...

    But here's the money maker:

    You FOLLOW-UP with an email to see how the leads responded (do they convert?) and how he felt about dealing with them...if the Dr is happy with the business and thanks you for the referrals...

    Let him know that your business is actually one that generates new leads and sales for local professionals (lawyers, etc.) and you'd like to work with his practice...

    Ask if there's a time when HE IS AVAILABLE, to get together so you can learn more about what he does and how you could work together.

    You need to take a more personal approach with (most) business owners and build a relationship of trust and understanding ( at least I do) which will land you results...cold calling and trying to get THEM TO BUY FROM YOU = Just another salesrep.

    Be Unique =)

    PS - I recently got a Dentist referred to me by another business owner that does Home Renovations (and works on the Dentists home)...why do I mention this?

    Perhaps you need to find a way to NETWORK to get in touch with Dentists OUTSIDE of their "work environment."

    Food for thought!

    PSS - Social proof / testimonials always works wonders!
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    • Profile picture of the author hommi_16
      Here is how I would approach it if all else fails...

      1. Become a patient at on of the dentists
      2. Offer to rent the site instead of the leads (you can even give one of the dentists the site for free for a trial period). If it does good then you'll have a client.

      What you mention is exactly why I don't like contacting businesses for SEO. Its like you have to prove yourself before they will accept you and this is why I like renting the site.

      Good Luck
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      • Profile picture of the author midasman09
        Banned
        I've read every post here and not one has mentioned "contacting New Movers". Not just people who buy houses, which is way down nowadays but, people moving from one rental unit to another.

        Every month in every community in this country, PEOPLE MOVE! The "average" is, they move every 4 years.

        They move across the street, across town, to a new town.

        These people are prime targets to be contacted by a Dentist (or any other business or profession that wants to contact new movers)

        These "New Movers" would be VERY RECEPTIVE to receiving a Giant PostCard (8 1/2 wide by 5 1/2 high) with a Discount Offer (as an incentive to try the dentist) like, "$25 OFF initial visit" or, "Free Ininital X-Rays" or, "FREE Cleaning".

        You could get the New Mover names each month and charge a fee per Card. (The usual charge is $1.50 per card)

        AND...you could set up a New Mover Website for ALL businesses interested in contacting New Movers (Painters, Decorators, Plumbers, Electricians, Roofers, Pest Control, Dentist, Doctor or Clinic, Chiropractor etc)

        The Giant PostCard would have the site address.

        And...I think you could easily get $250/mo from each business, for;
        1) The Website Listing
        2) The Card (all participants with their discount offer could be on the Card)
        3) the New Mover List so they could follow up

        This is a specialized type of "Welcome Service".

        Midas Man
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        • Profile picture of the author Adam Nolan
          I have a client that is a dentist...

          Here is how to position it. Don't sell them leads. Sell them an advertising / SEO package which generates leads for them for free.

          My dentist client paid me $2500 upfront and 250 a month ongoing for a year. If you can justify the cost of the advertising based on the avg profit from a new client then you're golden.

          Thoughts?
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      • Profile picture of the author marciayudkin
        Did you check first to make sure what you were proposing to do is legal in your state?

        I once had a direct mail project for a client who was selling a web-based service to physicians, and the client got very far along in setting it up only to find out that the business model they were using was going to be construed by the medical authorities as paying for leads, which was illegal.

        I don't know if this was illegal only in Massachusetts or nationally in the U.S.

        But the client had to radically revamp their business model because of this.

        I was glad that I wasn't responsible for proposing the business model, because I had had no idea whatsoever that this could have been considered illegal.

        It's a fair assumption that what is illegal for doctors would also be illegal for dentists.

        If I were you, I would look into this before going any further with it.

        Marcia Yudkin
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        • Profile picture of the author David B.
          Originally Posted by marciayudkin View Post

          Did you check first to make sure what you were proposing to do is legal in your state?

          I once had a direct mail project for a client who was selling a web-based service to physicians, and the client got very far along in setting it up only to find out that the business model they were using was going to be construed by the medical authorities as paying for leads, which was illegal.

          I don't know if this was illegal only in Massachusetts or nationally in the U.S.

          But the client had to radically revamp their business model because of this.

          I was glad that I wasn't responsible for proposing the business model, because I had had no idea whatsoever that this could have been considered illegal.

          It's a fair assumption that what is illegal for doctors would also be illegal for dentists.


          If I were you, I would look into this before going any further with it.

          Marcia Yudkin

          How and where can I get lists of "new movers" in city/location?
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          • Thank for sharing this post, however I'm not really stunned. We have got dental offices that offer some sort of treat in the event you send a pal, however We have by no means heard of anyone create to handle pay out sales opportunities. I've a web site that will has a high ranking intended for medical and dental terminology however I don't know associated with however to help earn money the item. I'm convinced that large hostipal wards may have affiliate packages
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    • Profile picture of the author Greg guitar
      Originally Posted by Dexx View Post

      One of my first, actually he was the first, appointments I ever did with offline consulting was with an eye doctor (a friend asked if I could redesign their website and I used it as a way to get a meeting with the doctor)

      Here's what I found out in my hour meeting with him:

      1) He mostly marketed his practice by "traditional" methods like street signs, newsletters, and ads in the paper.

      2) He had been practicing for over 30+ years and was BOOKED SOLID, but was marketing for new patients because he was bringing additional optometrists into the practice and moving to a bigger location down the street.

      3) He was an extremely busy busy man, and eventually I (foolishly) gave up trying to schedule additional meetings with him after a month of having to re-schedule appointments and lack of returned calls (but then 2 weeks later I would get a call from a receptionist saying he's still interested?!)...so ya...eventually I got too pushy trying to schedule a time and I think I drove him away (hey...it was my first attempt at Offline Marketing at the time...I had to learn patience! haha)

      4) When I began talking about how he could replace the $500/mo payment for a monthly newsletter that gets mailed out to his patients, with an email follow-up system that would allow him to BUILD A RELATIONSHIP and EDUCATE patients about eye health and new products...HIS EYES LIT UP!



      Moral of the Story:

      These medical professionals (and most business owners) are BUSY PEOPLE, so instead of INTERRUPTING their business with "another sales call" why not call and mention to the reception that you are a local business owner, and you are trying to HELP YOUR clients find a quality Dentist in town, and would like to learn more about their practice...

      but instead of wasting their time, ask if there's an email address you can send your questions to...

      Then Interview the Dentist about his business (how long he's been in practice etc) and then ASK HIM if he would be willing to take on additional patients if you were to refer new patients to him on a regular basis...

      If he says yes...then refer him 5+ leads as a "trial"...

      But here's the money maker:

      You FOLLOW-UP with an email to see how the leads responded (do they convert?) and how he felt about dealing with them...if the Dr is happy with the business and thanks you for the referrals...

      Let him know that your business is actually one that generates new leads and sales for local professionals (lawyers, etc.) and you'd like to work with his practice...

      Ask if there's a time when HE IS AVAILABLE, to get together so you can learn more about what he does and how you could work together.

      You need to take a more personal approach with (most) business owners and build a relationship of trust and understanding ( at least I do) which will land you results...cold calling and trying to get THEM TO BUY FROM YOU = Just another salesrep.

      Be Unique =)

      PS - I recently got a Dentist referred to me by another business owner that does Home Renovations (and works on the Dentists home)...why do I mention this?

      Perhaps you need to find a way to NETWORK to get in touch with Dentists OUTSIDE of their "work environment."

      Food for thought!

      PSS - Social proof / testimonials always works wonders!
      This is in my opinion a superb post. This is the way to go about creating a true relationship. It reminds me of what Jay Abraham calls the "strategy of preeminence", where you become the only game in town by virtue of acting as the most trusted adviser to your client rather than another salesperson that's just trying to separate the "mark" from his money. It's all about wooing the client; relaxing a bit about the sale, creating the quality relationship instead of "going in for the kill".

      It's like when you have the hots for someone-you don't walk up to them before the first date asking if they would like get down and dirty with you-you pretend you're interested in them first. (just kidding-I think you get the idea though)

      Kudos
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  • Profile picture of the author cityofangels
    You might want to sell your leads to dentists who advertise in the local coupon pack. This shows that they pay for advertising and that they want new patients. Find out how much it costs to advertise in those monthly value coupon packs. Then approach them with your leads. Still offer free leads (at least 10 or so) so they can see that you are bringing them quality leads.

    Also, you may want to approach dental associations.

    I like the poster's idea about approaching dentists with less than stellar reps.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rocketguy
    I am actually looking for someone to do lead generation for me right now. It is crazy that some business don't want any part of it.
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  • Profile picture of the author pw8401
    Dexx is absolutely correct on how to market to dentists. Most dentists know very little about the internet and their own websites. They are flat out busy doing their practice and someone else puts up the website for them. They know very little about the value of internet marketing. What is the newsletter service you are speaking of?
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  • Profile picture of the author TyBrown
    Not sure if this would work but could you team up with a drug rep who already has the ear of the doctor/dentist/etc.?
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  • Profile picture of the author Valiant
    You might want to target start ups rather than the ones who already have had a business going for a while already. Those dentists are probably already earning steady income from their returning clients on yearly checks, etc.
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  • Profile picture of the author Slate Marketing
    I've worked with many different Dentists' on stuff like this and my guess is that your sales pitch needs to be adjusted because when you position it correctly, it's hard for someone to say no.

    That being said, some will still say no, but in my experience, the method you described works really well, even on Dentists, so I would adjust your pitch/angle until it starts converting.

    Good luck. Glad to see you are actually taking action and emailing/calling people...most people don't like doing that so once you perfect your pitch, you'll be golden.
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  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    The original post was December 2009. If he hasn't sorted it out yet, he's in deep doodoo...
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  • Profile picture of the author seobro
    OK, do this one. Got to BNI - Business Networking International and join up. They trade leads and they have dentists and well as doctors and lawyers - basically, all kinds of professional services. Trade the dental leads for those you can sell for money.
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  • Profile picture of the author daftarynimita14
    My website Dental Implants India | Dentist in Mumbai is ranking well at Google.co.in for keyword "Dentist Mumbai". It is getting decent hits from search engine. So ranking is important for getting leads.
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