Murphy's Law: Marketing the Digital Dental Laboratory
Murphy's Law: Marketing the Digital Dental Laboratory
This fall I am keynoting at the Zahn Expo in Santa Clara Calif. The topic is Marketing the Digital Dental Lab. I like it and it is in my wheelhouse. The question is: What is a digital dental lab? A February 2010 LMT survey noted that CAD/CAM equipment (scanning, milling or complete system) ownership was up from 13 percent in 2005 to 53 percent in 2010. What about e-mail, text messaging and strategic alliance partnerships that involve the use of digital technology but the lab does not own? Digital technology has given rise to several new business models (milling, printing and/or scanning). When is a lab digital enough to be considered digital?
It doesn’t matter.
Digital is the medium the information travels in. Not the information.
Many other businesses and industries have already morphed in to the digital age from analog. Long playing records gave way to 8-track tapes which begat cassettes and then compact discs. Now most of us own at least one MP3 player or iPod to manage the digital versions of our music. The music has evolved, but the guitar, drums based and vocals are simple recorded digitally now rather than onto a master tape for later pressing onto vinyl. The medium changes, not the music.
My wife designs dental labs and offices (www.funktionaldesigngroup.com ). She first learned how to draw using onion skin, architectural pencils and instruments. Now everything is done digitally. It is faster, more accurate and increases production. The printers, scanners and software are expensive. The advantage is she can draw your lab in a 3D model version on the computer inexpensively so you can work out the bugs before you ever drive the first nail. Sound familiar?
The musician, my wife and your technicians share two things that remain constant throughout this digital evolution (revolution some might say): intellectual capital and relationships. Those two constructs are important. Our knowledge, skill, care and judgment for designing the restorative interface for the patient and dentist is key clinically. That defines our intellectual capital that oversees the custom manufacture of a dental restorative medical device. Our relationships with client doctors and their teams provide the environment for a trusted advisory role and friend. People will still do business with other people they know, love and trust - even if the medium changes to digital.
The best way to market a digital dental lab is to provide the appropriate quality restorative solutions as a trusted strategic alliance partner to the dentist client and their patients. The medium changes, but not the music or message. As you tech up in the digital world, the message is still the same. Relationships, quality, trust and intellectual capital. The delivery vehicle will change: e-mail, text messages, Web interfaces, lasers, scanning, milling, 3D, CT, digital impressions, rapid prototyping and whatever else comes along.
