Dentistry does Hollywood

What can an award mean for your practice?

There are countless opportunities for career-defining moments in dentistry.

From the first successful placement of an implant to something as simple as a ‘thank you’ card from a loyal patient or a smile from a once fearful child – these noteworthy milestones can make all the difference to an average day.

Dedication does pay off and the significance of these moments should remain a happy memory for many years to come, with each an important benchmark in your career progression.

But who else gets to know of these small successes other than your dental nurse, practice team or partner, perhaps?

A team that triumphs daily in its delivery of dental care deserves recognition and credibility and, whilst your appreciation of their efforts matters, sometimes you need to go that extra mile to demonstrate it.

As part of a practice’s integrated communication and dental marketing strategy, any endorsements you share beyond the four walls of the surgery can add value to your brand, drive team engagement, as well as reassure patients of your highly regarded professional status.

Of course, many of these moments can be shared via the usual digital marketing avenues – across social media platforms, in patient newsletters, on your website and so on. But sometimes it pays to shout a little louder. Choosing to ‘go large’ when celebrating your team and bigging up your brand can pay dividends.

The world of Hollywood, for all its glitz and glamour, is strangely not unlike all the dentistry awards.

The endless years of walk-on roles, run-of-the-mill films and poor choices akin to those early years of training, working as an associate and developing in your chosen specialities – it can feel a painstakingly long journey.

But the Oscars are proof enough that hard graft can culminate in some wonderful celebratory success stories. Of course the difference with dental awards is that you have to self-nominate and be in it to win it!

An appearance at an awards ceremony can prove to be a key moment. Thrust in front of the limelight, it can catapult the career of anyone, or any business, that features on a shortlist – and, for the winners, raise their profile overnight.

At the recent Dental Industry AwardsDigimax Dental won Customer Service Provider of the Year and the years of honing our digital marketing skills and expanding our knowledge seemingly paid off in one defining moment.

The evening was a huge success and testament to the dedicated hard work we make to each and every one of our clients to ensuring their own brand gets seen by the right people in the right places online.

Ensuring excellence in customer care with every encounter is difficult – and creating an awards entry to reflect the hard work invested in our customer journey was doubly so.

Making the right impression with the judges, whilst remaining true to our brand’s key principles, required a skilful balance of honesty and creativity. We had the evidence to demonstrate our investment in customer care but needed the guts to shout about it with pride and flair.

I used this pride I have in my team (and my brand) as a motivator and it helped me to crack that all-important award-winning entry.

Whilst I am delighted my dental web design business won, more importantly I wanted to say a ‘thank you’ to my team for their commitment to its success.

There are myriad reasons why entering awards can make a difference to your practice.

Many dentists have an uneasy relationship with the concept of dental marketing but, left in the hands of teams of people who understand the fine art of the digital world and online communication and optimisation, it can reap benefits for your brand, your patients, team morale as well as practice profits.

Five reasons to enter dental awards

  1. Celebrate your team. Dental awards provide a very visible way of recognising your team’s commitment to your business. Take the team to the ceremony if you are shortlisted. It is a great exercise in team bonding and a token of appreciation in recognition of their expertise and skills that offering on-going support your practice.
  2. Driving employee engagement. Nominating a team member for an award is a great way to demonstrate your appreciation of their skills and commitment. By acknowledging best practice that supports your practice ethos, it can also spur other members to aim high and excel.
  3. Patient engagement. Entering your practice for an award is a great way to cement trust between you and your patients. An award can add authenticity to the practice profile and reassure patients that industry experts recognise your business as a valuable one. It shows that you are committed to delivery safe and effective dentistry and that you value your relationship with them.
  4. Networking opportunities. An awards ceremony is great fun. Even if you don’t win it, it can still be a great opportunity to meet with colleagues old and new, industry influencers, educators and political leaders in an informal setting. And, who knows – attending an awards ceremony may even lead to the next big step of your career ladder?
  5. Brand endorsement. An awards win can boost your brand profile tremendously. For those patients who have already bought into your business, it reiterates your key messages. For those yet to walk through your practice doors, it is an added incentive. Independent peer endorsement of the quality of your dental care can make a huge difference to the success of your business – just be sure to share the good news across all digital platforms.
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