According to an old proverb, “Experience is the best teacher,” and when dental marketing expert Jerry Jones began his dental marketing career, he took that advice to heart. Jones, who runs the dental marketing agency Jerry Jones Direct from its headquarters in Salem, Oregon, decided he wanted to make sure his company’s marketing efforts would be designed to meet the needs of real-life dentists. And what better way to understand those needs than to open and manage a dental practice, to see and experience firsthand the tools a practice needs to keep it ahead of the pack?

It’s 1982. You’ve just earned your DDS. Your family has a thriving dental practice that’s welcoming you with open arms. Your life is set. Right? Not if you’re Roger Levin. For Levin, the attainment of a DDS was just the beginning of his education.

Levin did join his family’s practice – and soon learned that a widespread problem for many dentists was learning how to successfully market their services and efficiently manage their practices. As a practicing dentist with an avid interest in business, the young doctor set out to change that and ended up with a new, and highly successful, career.

For more than 30 years, Mary Kay Miller devoted her working hours to promoting and growing a startup orthodontic practice in upstate New York, developing it into a thriving regional practice that surpassed everyone’s expectations – except her own.

In 22 years as the owner of Scott McDonald & Associates, McDonald has seen firsthand which dental marketing techniques work best in a slow economy. His advice: develop an intimate understanding of your patient population, and target them with specific solutions geared to their demographics.

Scott McDonald has spent nearly a quarter century serving the marketing and publicity needs of dental professionals across the country. During that time, he and his associates have gathered a lot knowledge – as well as a few tricks and trusims about what makes a really compelling dental marketing campaign.