How to market existing dental office space to new dentists

[rrdr70]

I'm hoping the dental community could point me in the right direction, here is the situation. I own a mixed use commercial plaza, a dentist who occupied approx 2,200 sq ft elected not to renew his lease, so we have a vacant space fully improved for a dental office. The lease was not renewed because he decided to build his own building and create a large group. Most of the large dental groups in town already have an office within 10 miles of our location, they are not interested in adding a satellite office at our location.

My question is, what is the best way to market this space to new dentists?

Not knowing the particulars of the dental business, I imagine there are a few issues to address, are brand new dentists able to attract clients without working for an established dentist, are new dentists able to get equipment financing / leases without documented cash flow / tax returns, do new dentists prefer to start out on their own, ect.

Any information would be very helpful. If this is not the right forum for this question please let me know and I will transfer/remove the question.

Thanks

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[Edentulator]

Some new graduates start or buy their own practices, but most of us choose to associate for another dentist first for a few years to pay off loans, improve our efficiency, and get a feel for how things work in the real world on the business side of things.

At graduation, most dental students are anywhere from $150 000-$400 000 in debt from tuition. To buy or lease a facility, but all the necessary equpiment, and pay staff is almost impossible...Add in the fact that as new grads we're a lot slower and not as productive as more experienced dentists, and this means that starting from scratch right away is financially a very bad idea. On top of this, it takes some time to build a patient base, so even though you're still paying all the overhead costs, there's no money coming in. It's also tough to jump into running a business without ever having worked in a real office before, having to manage all the accounting, staffing, marketing, maintenance, etc.

I think you would be better off advertising to dentists who have been associating for a few years already. You could talk to people in your local dental association, who could put out the word and maybe post an ad in their newsletter.

 

[teeth63a]

1) Shotgun a letter to all dentists and specialists in the area, making sure you mention it's fully plumbed/cabinets/how many operatories/consultation rooms/etc. Fully plumbed is a magic word for dentists. When marketing to dentists with established practices, "satellite office" is a word you want to throw around (ie a second location). "It would be a great satellite office for you on the other side of town."

2) Shotgun a letter to all biz realtors/agents in the area with the same info.

3) Advertise in the local dental association magazines/websites, or even the ADA magazine on a national level.

Hope this helps.

 

[rrdr70]

Thanks for the background information Edentulator, unfortunately, that is what I expected to learn. Teeth63a, great suggestions, we've done #1 and #2 and I will place an add this week with the ADA.

One more question, there is a dentist in the area with an older office that's located approx 7 miles outside of town, its an older building with old equipment in a 30+ year old space. In your opinion, do clients really value the condition of the dental space? Do you think a customer would chose a less experienced dentist, perhaps not as good, with a great office/setup vs an established dentist with a space that is really lacking? In your opinion, does the quality of space really affect the marketability of the practice?

 

[Edentulator]

I think the condition of the space matters a little bit, but it's the dentist his/herself, word-of-mouth reputation and marketing that are the big factors in patient flow. (Assuming we aren't talking about an office that is outright dirty or super shabby looking, just tired and worn.)

We have one dentist in town who advertises EVERYWHERE and even has a daily radio clip. His office gives paraffin hand massages and has a coffee bar and all sorts of frills that he advertises to no end. I think a lot of people see his ads and are curious to try him out. The people I know who have seen him have liked the office space, but what keeps them going back is that they think the dentist is nice.

If there's a dentist down the road who has been practicing for 30 years, he probably has a very solid patient base. Patients who know him well probably won't switch over JUST because there's a newer looking office down the road. Their reasons for switching would more likely be that they aren't that impressed with the dentist, ie, he hasn't done a great job of developing interpersonal relationships with them. Or, if he is rough.

Otherwise, if patients are happy then it will take a lot of marketing and charismatic staff to show that what the new office has is much better than their old office...And you have to be careful there because there are College standards that regulate the type and content of advertising that dentists are allowed to do.

 

[Nightguard]

We also own a strip mall that has one unit occupied by a dentist. At one point it was vacant and we got in a new dentist, gave him half off rent for 8 months to build his practice. Unfortunately, he didn't know much about running a practice so after not even 3 years, he couldn't make his rent anymore and had to sell the practice to another older dentist. The older dentist did much better, still there for the last 10 years. So maybe better to try more experienced dentists. Or if too many dentists in the area, change business for that unit? Easier said than done though. Hard to fill commercial vacancies these days.