The coffee that started it all
Two years ago I started drinking coffee for the first time in my life. I had to push through the first few cups as my palate got used to the new taste before it quickly became a daily habit.
On my daily search for a caffeine hit, I was amazed how often I would overhear groups in cafés talking about their dental experiences. While I did my best to pretend I wasn’t absolutely eavesdropping on everything they were saying, I noticed the conversations typically centred on each person sharing what they liked best about their dentist. There was a fair bit of one-upmanship too.
You reckon your dentist is good?! Mine fit me in on Christmas Eve last thing before closing and nearly missed her flight to see her family in Melbourne. Beat that!
Interesting.
A troubling trend in dentistry
Around the same time, I noticed that dental practices were becoming increasingly extractive (pun intended) of their patients. Morning huddles to determine which patients to hit up for expensive treatment, and highly scripted conversational training to pressure patients to accept large treatment plans, were becoming increasingly common.
This growing trend seemed highly inauthentic – made doubly worse by the fact it was occurring within healthcare.
Flipping the script
At the intersection of these two phenomena – people’s strong desire to share their dental stories with their friends, and dentists becoming less concerned with the interests of their patients and more with their hip pockets – I sensed an opportunity.
- What if we flipped the whole thing on its head?
- What if we did the exact opposite of what everyone else was doing?
- What if we gave our patients a truly
- knock-your-socks-off-my-dentist-is-better-than-yours-and-I’ve-got-the-story-to-prove-it experience next time the conversation turned to dentists?
The spark of an idea
The idea kicked around in my head for a while, but reading Unreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara lit the fuse. We decided to institute something new and different at Fullarton Park Dental – and we called them SPARKS.
Because they should “spark” joy in us when we give them, and “spark” joy in our patients when they receive them.
Real SPARK stories
Here are a few of the SPARKS we created:
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A patient had just passed her Australian citizenship test, so we gave her a gift bag with Aussie treats (Barbecue Shapes, Tim Tams, FruChocs), an Australian flag and a toy kangaroo.
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A patient heading into surgery, facing a month of bed-bound recovery, received a care package of warm socks and comfort food.
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A patient taking French classes got a French cookbook and a chic apron.
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A patient joked about having a glass of champagne when the crown on his front tooth was completed – so we bought him a nice bottle of champagne to celebrate the day he could smile with confidence again.
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Another patient was excited for a trip to Hawaii, so we gifted him a Lonely Planet Guide to Hawaii, a beach towel and high-quality sunscreen.
There were SPARKS that were embroidery kits, Dad-joke books, wallets, chocolates and novels, to name a few. All were packaged beautifully and hand-delivered to their door in the week following their dental appointment.
Our aim: 50 gifts in 50 weeks, with a budget of $50 per SPARK.
And our team loved it.
More than marketing
Encouraging the team to bring me SPARK ideas proved a hit. We asked for nothing in return. Was it marketing? I suppose it was. What I know for certain is that it was a heck of a lot of fun!
We felt good about doing nice things for our patients and surprising and delighting them in unexpected ways.
A return beyond numbers
What was the return on investment? I couldn’t tell you. But I’m pretty sure that next time each SPARK recipient is out getting coffee and the topic of dentists comes up, they’ll have a story that blows the others away.
And that seems worth more than any marketing budget could buy.
