Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Fall 2016 - 50

Practice Management Diary Holiday Marketing: Think Big, Pay Less Dr. Jeffrey Nichelini American Canyon, CA Abstract It's easy to come up with fun and engaging ideas for your patients during the holiday season. It's also a great way to give back to your community. It's the most wonderful time of the year, again! Here are a few things we have done to engage our patients and give back to the community. October  Pumpkin patch in the reception area. This may be overdoing it, but it's a lot of fun. A local farm sells pumpkins in bulk for a dollar each, but you need to pick them yourself. Each October we take a day for a team building exercise and go pick as many pumpkins as we can fit in two minivans, then arrange them in our reception area on a bed of straw. It's an impressive sight when it's done; moms love taking pictures of their kids in the display, and the kids go crazy when they learn that they get to pick a pumpkin to take home.  Pumpkin carving contest. Because all our patients get pumpkins, we go one step further and ask them to bring them back, decorated, to display in the office as part of a contest. It makes for a great social media exercise; it's fun, attention-grabbing, and requires frequent updating on Facebook. The prizes are not extravagant, and we find a reason for every participant to win something. Last year we gave away close to 300 pumpkins, and 25 prizes.  Trick-or-Treat. I love giving away a cliché toothbrush. Although we get some eye rolls from it, reinforcing oral hygiene is important, and this giveaway is definitely more memorable than a piece of candy. For a similar cost, you could hand out glow bracelets to families in the weeks leading up to Halloween. They are a fun way to add an element of safety to the trick-or-treat experience. 50 December  Gingerbread decorating. We do this as part of a larger evening event in our plaza. One of our patient-moms bakes 200 gingerbread cookies, and families stroll in over a couple hours to decorate cookies. It's highly appreciated by the attendees, and families who are not already part of our practice get a chance to know us.  Tree with presents. Of course, we have a lovely decorated tree in our reception area, but I think Christmas trees look incomplete unless they are stuffed with presents underneath. We order inexpensive gifts from online merchants and big box stores that range from $1 to $3 each, and throw in a few nicer gifts that cost around $10. Every present is individually wrapped- this takes one full morning for the staff to complete, and they color coordinate the paper accordingly for gifts appropriate for young kids or big kids, boys or girls. Enough gifts are ordered to ensure that all patients and siblings can choose a present; although they are not extravagant, the fun of opening a present makes the whole process worthwhile for us, and enjoyable for our patients.  Parents' Night Out. This is hosted by our local department of Parks and Recreation, but we sponsor. It's a chaperoned event that gives parents free time to get busy holiday work completed. Usually a movie is shown in the school gym and dinner is provided. The holidays are a fun time of year, and when you get involved with a spirit of generosity, everybody wins!  PCSO Bulletin  Fall 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pacific Coast Society of Orthodontists Bulletin Fall 2016