Kent Sears - Dental Marketing & Practice Growth Consultant

Welcome

You’re not like every other dentist. So why should your marketing be?

It’s time to break free from the generic, cookie-cutter marketing that every other dentist in your area is using. It’s time for you to stand apart!

The business of dentistry is changing at a faster rate, and in a broader scope than ever before. Change brings growth opportunity! And the opportunities for today’s dentists who understand the importance of top-tier marketing to drive practice growth are simply unlimited.

I work with private practice dentists and privately owned group practices who are serious and excited about growth. Regardless of your practice’s size, if you are an owner and you’re truly committed to growth, then I’m here to help you achieve that growth through more effective marketing.

My mission is to help you grow your practice, achieve greater financial success, and gain peace of mind. So that you can focus on your patients, your practice, and getting home in time for dinner with your loved ones.

Surely, you’d rather be doing that, than worrying about the fine details of your marketing. Trying to determine if you’re focused on the right initiatives, paying too much to service providers who are failing to deliver results, or invested at the right level for the growth you desire.

I serve an exclusive group of clients by designing and executing a winning marketing strategy that ensures you are getting the maximum return on investment and necessary growth levels to achieve your professional goals. And I do that, so that you don’t have to. And that allows you to focus on what really matters in your practice….and in your life!

You’re not like every other dentist. So why should your marketing be?

It’s time to break free from the generic, cookie-cutter marketing that every other dentist in your area is using. It’s time for you to stand apart!

A Different Approach

Kent Sears, MBA – Marketing & Practice Growth Consultant

When I entered this industry, I set out to offer a different type of marketing service. One that clearly stands apart from the traditional marketing agency model, and all the negatives that come along with it. One that provides unique and differentiated value. From that goal, I’ve aligned my business model and my services around five core principles:

Custom Solutions

I realize that every practice is unique. And what it takes to make each practice successful is different. I don’t use generic, cookie-cutter approaches like traditional marketing agencies. The marketing strategies and systems that I put into place, within each practice, are always unique and custom designed for your specific situation.

Results. Not Products.

I am not in the business of selling marketing ‘products’ or ‘packages’ like a traditional marketing agency. I have no financial incentive to persuade you to pay for yet another new website, or to spend thousands of dollars more per month on digital advertising. My only objective is to design and implement the optimal marketing plan that will deliver the growth results we set out to achieve.

Direct Access

You will always work with me. 100% of the time. No exceptions. Unlike traditional marketing agencies, you won’t be passed off to some recent college graduate with no real-world experience as soon as our work begins. I propose, design, execute, and ensure the success of every single engagement I take on. My expertise and my work are what you get….all of the time.

Flexibility

Dental marketing is an industry plagued with long-term contracts and no guarantees of performance. I don’t believe in long-term contracts. Period. I earn the right to work with my clients month after month after month.

Aligned Incentives

Achievement of your growth goals is all that matters to me. And my engagements are structured as such. Traditional marketing agencies profit from selling you more and more products and services (often times outsourced) without any guarantee of results. I only benefit if you benefit. My engagements are truly partnerships. And our incentives are always 100% aligned.

Success Stories

Below are a few examples of the successful results recent clients have had in partnering with me. Please know that every practice, every situation and every engagement is unique. I’ll always be up front and honest with you in telling you what we can expect in terms of results if we partner together.

Dr. Timothy Shen

Dr. Shen and Trinity Family Dentistry is a prime example of why I got into this industry. Before we started working together, Dr. Shen had bounced around from marketing agency to marketing agency.

Dr. James Otten

Dr. Robert Ferrera

Dr. Ami Barakat

Dr. Barakat’s story is similar to many dentists out there who have grown frustrated over time with a lack of results from their marketing companies.

Dr. Jeremy Chin

As the owner of a specialty practice, Dr. Jeremy Chin was facing pressure from seemingly all sides.

Testimonials

Dr. Alan Stern

Ocean Township, NJ

Kent is a master marketer and analyst. He provides insight into dental marketing that we dentists simply have not been made aware of in our training and experience. His perspective is eye-opening.

Dr. Thomas Murphy

New Orleans, LA

Working with Kent has been a great decision for me and it will be for you too! I’ve worked with quite a few famous marketing groups and they do not offer near the level of customization that Kent does. Use him!

Dr. Tony Watkins

Winfield, KS

Collaborating with Kent was a great experience. He used a focused, yet flexible approach that suited my needs. I would recommend his services without hesitation!

Dr. Orrin Mackey

Cottonwood, AZ

Kent presents a clear method to guide you in a marketing plan designed specifically for your practice. It is an invaluable education for the new and experienced practice owner

Let’s Talk

Contact me for a complimentary consultation so we can discuss your opportunities for success, and if there might be a good fit in us partnering together to grow your practice.

Contact Me Here

Contact me for a complimentary consultation so we can discuss your opportunities for success, and if there might be a good fit in us partnering together to grow your practice.

My Why

I’m not originally from the dental industry, and that’s a good thing, because my background in business consulting and marketing strategy allows be to bring a unique perspective and an entirely different approach, with fresh insights, to help dentists grow their business.

I’ve worked around the globe, both in private and public sector, across a multitude of industries, consulting to several successful organizations, and driving marketing strategy directly for leading companies like Microsoft and T-Mobile. But, making huge, multi-billion-dollar companies even bigger isn’t actually all that rewarding. And life’s short. Far too short to not be doing what you love. So, I left the corporate world, joined my wife in her mission to transform the dental industry, and now I help private practice dentists realize their full business potential through more effective marketing, so they will survive and thrive in this increasingly competitive marketplace. And that is something I am truly excited about doing!

In my personal life, my two passions are exploring the world and being with my adorable family.…luckily they travel well! Some of our most memorable moments are right here in these pictures. This is me getting to live my dream life! My professional goal is to support others in living their dream life as well!

Dr. Jeremy Chin and Perfect Smiles Orthodontics in Perth, Australia

As the owner of a specialty practice, Dr. Jeremy Chin was facing pressure from seemingly all sides. Competitive pressures across the orthodontics industry were leading to lower prices, and thus lower margins. Financial pressures across Western Australia were drastically impacting consumer ability and willingness to pay for treatment. And all of this was being further exacerbated by a seismic industry shift in the form of ‘direct-to-consumer’ smiles.

Dr. Chin had tried several different marketing solutions, across varying providers, to alleviate these pressures. However, nearly all of them failed to produce any materially measurable results and his practice growth remained stagnant at best.

However, after just three months of working together, we grew Dr. Chin’s number of new patients from an average of 18 to a new practice record of 35. That’s growth of 94%!

But it wasn’t a function of just spending more money on external advertising to generate a growing number of new leads. Instead we focused on increasing the impact we were having with the number of leads already being generated. And, in the process, we were also able to increase Dr. Chin’s consult to new patient conversion rate from 48% up to 67%!

How did we drive these results? First, we analyzed the current marketing data available to understand where there was hidden opportunity to generate increased organic traffic to Dr. Chin’s website, as well as to ensure this traffic was converting into calls and appointment requests at a higher rate. Second, we developed new digital ads aimed more directly at high-quality leads, and supported them with customized campaign landing pages, to increase click to call conversions. Third, we doubled down hard on ensuring Dr. Chin’s team was addressing these new leads as effectively as possible and getting them scheduled for consultations. And, finally, we put new policies, processes and performance tracking systems in place to increase treatment acceptance and new patient starts.

Dr. Chin’s practice is not only continuing to produce record breaking numbers, but we’re building out a full marketing system that will ensure continued growth, and sustained results, well into the future, even as the orthodontics industry continues to evolve and increase in competitiveness.

Dr. Ami Barakat and Villanova Dental Studio in Ottawa, Ontario

Dr. Barakat’s story is similar to many dentists out there who have grown frustrated over time with a lack of results from their marketing companies. Although managing a highly successful, multi-site practice, Dr. Barakat’s new patient growth had hit a near standstill. Despite his strong commitment to marketing, and his aggressive investment towards growth, new patient volume was only increasing a modest 5% year over year. Far from the levels necessary to support a high-functioning, growth-oriented practice located in a highly competitive market.

Dr. Barakat had hired multiple providers to help drive new patient growth via digital marketing and advertising campaigns. And while these companies claimed success month after month with their reporting showing big numbers in terms of impressions, clicks and calls, there was never material growth in the only metric that really mattered at the end of the day – that, of course, being the number of actual new patients.

When I was brought in to help Villanova Dental Studio grow its new patient volume, it was clear that we needed to take a deep look at the online marketing and advertising campaigns to understand why they were underperforming so greatly. In doing so, we dissected every campaign in full detail to understand what was really coming into the practice in terms of lead generation. Despite claims by the marketing providers that tons of leads were being generated each month, we found that only 1 in every 15 leads was actually becoming a new patient (and the issue was not in the Villanova team’s ability to convert leads to new patients – as they were converting nearly 90% of the quality leads they were receiving!). Clearly, the challenge was that the digital campaigns, despite substantial monthly budgets, were not producing enough quality leads.

However, after closely analyzing the data, we were able to find pockets within those campaigns that were actually yielding positive results. We also looked for new areas of digital advertising growth to invest in by reallocating marketing dollars away from campaigns that were previously not producing. After just a few weeks, the results from these changes were staggering. We increased growth via digital marketing from an average of 33 to 83 new patients per month. That’s an increase of more than 150%!

But the results went far beyond just increasing the sheer volume of new patients to the practice. In the process of identifying underperforming campaigns and reallocating advertising budget, we were also able to decrease Dr. Barakat’s total advertising spend by over 35% as well.

And further, the quality of new patients coming into the practice drastically increased, as new patient production increased by a factor of more than 10x, going from $4,000 to over $40,000!

Now, of course, much of these results were also correlated with efforts we put into foundational marketing as part of the engagement as well. In order for external advertising campaigns to ultimately be successful, there needs to be a solid marketing program and execution plan in place to support. As part of this foundational marketing, we focused on website and search engine optimization, expanding the patient referral program, building out the practice’s online review profile, enhancing the in-house membership plan, growing the office’s social media presence, and implementing virtual consultation technology.

Perhaps the best part of this story though, is that nearly all of this growth took place right in the midst of Villanova Dental Studio re-opening its doors on the heels of the COVID-pandemic outbreak. This was a time when growth was very much needed. And as a result of the efforts we put into building a high-functioning marketing program, Villanova Dental Studio has been able to ensure its schedule remains fully booked out for weeks on end given the surge in new patient growth.

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Dr. James Otten of James Otten Dentistry in Lawrence, Kansas

In an industry where standards of care are being dictated more and more by insurance companies, Dr. James Otten set out to uphold the principles he believes in, and ensure a commitment to the highest levels of care for his patients. Having just brought in a new associate dentist, Dr. Otten was in need of fast growth. Yet, quickly growing a fee-for-service only practice can present some unique challenges.

His team had tried all different kinds of marketing activities – including digital advertising, community events, radio ads, in-house promotions, print ads, professional networking events, and more. Still the growth was inconsistent and non-sustaining.

However, after just three months of working together, we grew Dr. Otten’s number of new patients from 14 to 31 per month. That’s growth of over 120%!

But it wasn’t just about growing for growth’s sake. It was about bringing in the right types of patients. Those who were committed to their oral, and overall, health. Those who were looking for the highest level of quality from, and a trusted relationship with, their dental care provider. And those who would remain life-long patients within the practice, and serve as referrals for other like-minded individuals. In fact, we actually also increased the quality rating of new patients by 22% in the process!

In addition to successfully growing Dr. Otten’s practice, we actually lowered his monthly marketing spend in the process by 38%! Bringing it down from over $2,900 to under $1,800 per month. And it wasn’t just the dollar savings that made a huge impact. We also significantly reduced the amount of time and effort required to bring new patients into the practice. The number of active marketing campaigns was reduced from 18 to 6! And the number of hours directly dedicated to marketing events each month decreased from more than 35 to less than 5! Proving that often times, less activity, if properly focused, can actually yield better results.

How did we drive these results? By completely resetting his marketing strategy and investment. We took the time to analyze and understand what was working well, what needed to be changed, and what wasn’t working at all. We focused on ensuring that the marketing campaigns we were running were successfully bringing in quality leads. And that his team was ready to receive those leads and successfully convert them into new patients.

Dr. Otten’s practice is continuing to grow, and doing so in the right way. Meaning he’s able to bring in the types of patients he wants to work with, and deliver the quality of care that they deserve!

Dr. Robert Ferrera of Ferrera Dental Care in Tampa, Florida

Over the past decade, the level of competition in Dr. Ferrera’s area of Tampa had drastically increased. A rising number of dentists moving into the market had made new patient attraction more and more difficult. And, to make matters worse, corporate dentistry had established a strong and growing position. Financial pressures from decreasing insurance reimbursement rates, and a general softening of demand for dental services, was heavily weighing on the bottom line of Dr. Ferrera’s practice.

Dr. Ferrera had engaged several different marketing providers, over the years, in hopes of turning the situation around. However, these companies were more interested in selling him marketing products, as opposed to real business solutions. As a result, the practice’s profitability continued to stagnant, and actually even decline, year over year.

However, after working together for just a few short months, we have been able to successfully increase Dr. Ferrera’s number of new patients from 18 to 30 per month. That’s growth of over 65%!

But it hasn’t just been a function of re-directing or even adding more marketing costs with a whole new host of products. In fact, we’ve actually lowered Dr. Ferrera’s marketing spend by 76% from $4,127 to just $1,005 per month! Now that’s achieving more with less! And it’s another great example of how most dental marketing companies out there are more focused on selling their pre-packaged products than in actually driving true client success.

Beyond increasing the number of new patients and lowering marketing costs, we’ve also had a major impact on the quality and profitability of new patients coming into the practice. Broken appointments have been reduced by 50%. Initial new patient appointment production is up 11%. New patient retention rates are up to 93% from 74%. And, most impactful of all, treatment acceptance per new patient has increased an incredible 98%! That represents a doubling of new patient value to the practice.

How did we drive these results? By completely resetting Dr. Ferrera’s marketing strategy to focus investment into only those initiatives that would truly drive results. We revamped his online presence to generate an increase in the number of leads contacting his office. And, we also ensured he had a highly trained team and the right internal processes to convert those leads into profitable, long-term patients.

Dr. Ferrera’s practice continues to grow….and grow in the right way! And he is now well positioned for continued success in the highly competitive Tampa market!

Dr. Timothy Shen and Trinity Family Dentistry in La Mesa, California

Dr. Shen and Trinity Family Dentistry is a prime example of why I got into this industry. Before we started working together, Dr. Shen had bounced around from marketing agency to marketing agency. Stuck in long-term contracts. Spending thousands and thousands of dollars per month. But, never getting the results he needed, much less was promised, from those agencies in return.

However, after just three months of working together, we grew Dr. Shen’s number of new patients from 21 to 36 per month. That’s growth of over 70%!

But it wasn’t just about getting a bunch of ‘one and done’ or ‘discount chasing’ new patients through the door. It was about building a high-quality patient base and ensuring sustainable practice growth. It’s about growing the right way. And with new patient retention at 94% and production per new patient increasing by 20%, we’ve done just that!

On top of that, we actually lowered Dr. Shen’s monthly marketing spend in the process by 65%! Bringing it down from over $5,600 to just $2,000 per month.

How did we drive these results? By completely resetting his marketing strategy and investment. We took the time to analyze and understand what was working well, what needed to be changed, and what wasn’t working at all. We then re-directed his marketing investment accordingly – with an eye on lowering his expenses and increasing his results. We focused on ensuring he had a strong online presence and that his practice was effectively converting those new leads into lifelong patients.

Dr. Shen’s practice has continued to grow and his marketing strategy has him positioned for long-term, sustainable success!

“I had been working with various marketing agencies over the past five years, and wished I had found Kent from the start. He has definitely produced the results that we set out to achieve, unlike other marketing agencies that failed time after time. It is truly his personal touch, expertise, and insights that have propelled our practice to the next level. His character, honesty, and dedication are rare among the dental marketing field, and we are glad to have him on our team! I’m positive that he will do the same for your practice.” – Dr. Timothy Shen