I almost titled this post Strategy As the Antidote to Cynicism, but it carried a tone that didn’t quite match the spirit of what I want to share here…
Have you ever felt like you’re working twice as hard for half the money?
That’s the situation a seasoned dentist I recently met over a Lunch & Learn found himself in.
He’s skilled. He’s deeply trained. And he’s exhausted.
His patients generally appreciate him. But his insurance contracts are paying pennies on the dollar.
The marketing agencies he’s hired have overpromised and underdelivered multiple times.
His phone does ring, but mostly with patients who aren’t looking for the kind of dentistry he’s committed to providing.
If that resonates, you may need to ask yourself the same question he finally asked himself on our call:
“Am I truly ready to market my practice…
or are there deeper issues I need to address first?”
“Ready to market” doesn’t mean “I want more new patients.”
It means your model, your message, and your mission are aligned enough that marketing will help instead of hurt.
Before you throw another dollar at ads or redesigns, you need to know whether marketing will serve you. Or will simply amplify the challenges that already exist inside your practice.?
To help you do that, there are four principles I want you to keep in mind as you read this article:
Reclaim Authority.
Don’t let insurers, agencies or outside voices decide your worth or define your marketing identity.
Stay on Mission.
Chasing shiny objects (Google Ad Campaigns, SEO, and social media WITHOUT a strategy) dilutes your message. Align everything with your purpose.
Respond Wisely.
Cynicism is understandable. But it can’t be your compass. You need to act from clarity, not frustration.
Keep Purpose Front and Centre.
When you know why you do what you do, the right patients feel it.
There’s a practical next step at the end of this article.
But first, let’s unpack why so many providers feel stuck and what’s really preventing them from being ready to market their practices effectively
On our call, this doctor didn’t sugarcoat anything.
He’s been practicing for more than two decades and keeps a meticulous spreadsheet of every new patient. When multiple agencies promised 70 or 80 new patients a month, he waited, watched and saw the numbers hover around 40. His words were simple and honest:
“We’re not there on the kind of new patients we want. Not even close.”
Meanwhile, his reimbursement reality has become untenable.
“Doing crowns for $800 has me working twice as hard making half the money I used to make.”
And yet, clinically, he is far from an average provider.
Ten years ago, after his middle child stopped breathing at night, he dove headfirst into airway training. He took advanced courses in:
- TMJ
- Sleep-disordered breathing
- Palatal Expansion
- Myofunctional therapy
- Facial pain
- Airway diagnostics
He administers home sleep tests, uses CT scans for treatment planning and collaborates with a sleep physician. He’s now one of the most credentialed biologic dentists in his region.
Yet most callers still ask about crowns and insurance reimbursement.
Why?
Because his digital ecosystem (website, messaging, digital footprint) still looks and sounds like an in-network, high-volume general practice.
Patients wonder if “insurance is accepted” before they are guided to learn about how this “airway and biologic dental specialist can improve my family’s health and quality of life”.
They see “crowns, cleanings and fillings” before they see “sleep, airway TMJ and biologic restorative care.”
He’s offering the wrong product to the wrong audience with the wrong message.
The deeper issue isn’t that marketing failed him.
It’s that his model, his message and his mission are out of alignment.
And the consequences show up everywhere:
- His phone calls
- His fees
- His schedule
- His case acceptance
- His team morale
- His personal confidence
This is what happens when a high-skill clinician runs a low-margin business model that was never built for the work they now feel called to do.
If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone.
Here’s the part most marketing agencies never tell you:
Marketing only amplifies what already exists.
If your identity isn’t clear, marketing will broadcast that confusion.
In this case, the dentist’s website, tone and digital footprint all read like a traditional in-network family practice.
But his clinical identity is that of an airway-focused, biologic restorative provider. That’s a premium, niche, relationship-based model.
Those two worlds don’t mix.
Trying to run a sleep, airway, biologic and TMJ treatment through an insurance-driven, general-dentistry identity is like trying to run a luxury boutique inside a discount department store.
He knew it.
He felt it.
He could articulate it.
But he hadn’t yet taken ownership of it.
Instead, he outsourced his story to agencies who:
- didn’t understand his mission,
- didn’t understand airway, sleep or biologic dentistry,
- didn’t know what patients actually need to hear,
- and used tactics instead of strategy.
As a result:
- Clear aligner ads replaced airway messaging.
- SEO reports buried the real problem.
- Video content sat unused.
- Google Ads burned cash without intention.
- An answering service was brought on that damaged patient trust.
He was treated like a generic dentist when he is anything but.
I told him plainly:
There is no short road or straight line from where you are to where you want to get. It takes a plan and the patience to see the plan through to the end.
Marketing can’t fix what’s undefined.
Marketing can’t rescue you from the wrong model.
Marketing can’t replace your story. You have to own it.
And before you spend another dollar, you must fix the foundation.
Here’s the turning point in the conversation:
He wasn’t ready for marketing…
…but he was ready for clarity.
This is the moment many providers face:
- You feel the misalignment.
- You’re exhausted by insurance.
- You’re frustrated with agencies.
- You know you’re more capable than your results show.
- You want to attract the patients who actually need what you trained for.
- You want to lead with purpose, not reimbursement schedules.
But you haven’t yet built the bridge between your identity and your practice operations.
Strategy Work Sets A Solid Foundation For Marketing That Will Build The Kind of Practice You Really Want.
A Strategy Day…
…is a one-day, onsite workshop where you and your core team step away from day-to-day chaos and build the messaging foundation that every mission-driven practice needs before it can successfully market.
It’s not a lecture.
It’s not a sales pitch.
It’s not a “marketing meeting.”
It’s a strategic reset.
Here’s what the day accomplishes:
Morning: Clarifying the Core
We begin by getting aligned on:
- Your philosophy
- Your clinical mission
- Your “why”
- Your ideal patient personas
- The psychological triggers that matter to them
- The story only you can tell
This is where we reconnect your identity to your business.
Afternoon: Translating Identity Into Market Expression
We then build the pillars your practice will stand on:
- Your airway and TMJ narratives
- Your biologic restorative messaging
- Your value propositions
- The language parents and patients respond to
- Hooks and story frameworks
- Referral ecosystem strategy
- Thought-leadership platforms
Finally, we map your implementation plan that will dictate what happens over the next 90 days, 6 months and 12 months.
What You Take Home
Within ten business days you receive a 12–24-page strategic roadmap:
- Refined brand identity
- Messaging tailored to ideal patient demographics
- Website and content recommendations
- Story and media frameworks
- A tactical marketing plan you can start immediately
- A pathway for gradually raising fees
- A method for dropping or restructuring low-fee plans
- A roadmap for cultivating private-pay patients
This is the difference between reacting to your market and intentionally shaping it.
A Strategy Day doesn’t fix everything—but it sets your compass.
It brings your practice into alignment with the mission that got you into this work.
You Might Be Thinking…
“I don’t have time for this.”
You don’t have time not to fix the identity and messaging issues that are killing your margins.
“Why invest in a Strategy Day when I could just buy ads?”
Because misaligned marketing burns more time, more money and more energy than anything else in a dental practice.
A Strategy Day is not an expense—
It’s an investment that prevents years of waste.
Self-Check: Are You Really Ready to Market?
You don’t need a spreadsheet to answer this.
Just read these and notice your gut response.
If most of these feel like you, it’s a signal you need a Strategy Day before you need another campaign.
- You’re working harder but not getting ahead.
Your production is up, but your take-home hasn’t moved or has gone backwards. - Insurance is calling more of the shots than you are.
You find yourself saying, “I can’t keep doing crowns for this fee,” but you still are. - Your training and your website feel like two different practices.
Clinically, you’re airway/biologic/TMJ.
Online, you still look like a basic in-network family practice. - You’ve paid for marketing… and still feel invisible.
You’ve tried agencies, SEO, Google Ads, maybe even video
but the patients who show up aren’t the ones you most want to treat. - You feel a growing gap between what you believe in and what your schedule is full of.
You light up talking about sleep, airway and biologic restorative care,
but most days you’re doing insurance-driven restorative to keep the lights on. - You’re tired of being “the well-kept secret.”
Your colleagues respect your skills.
Your patients love the results.
But your market doesn’t really know who you are or what you stand for.
If you saw yourself in three or more of those, you don’t need another campaign, you may want to consider a Strategy Day.
You have a strategy problem.
You’re not ready to pour more money into ads.You’re ready to step back, reset the foundation, and design a messaging framework that actually reflects who you are and what you’re here to do.
That’s exactly what a Strategy Day is for.
If You’d Like To Know More or Want Some Specific Help…
A Legitimate Lunch & Learn (Not a Veiled Sales Call) to Help You Change How Patients See You and Your Practice.
Spend an Hour with Me and Enjoy Lunch on Us
This session helps you build a bridge between your expertise and the families you want to help most. It’s a complete look at your digital ecosystem and marketing approach. I begin by clarifying your “why” and who you really want to serve. Then we review your digital footprint, highlight opportunities and develop a strategy (think of it as a treatment plan for your digital marketing) that empowers you.
I’ll illustrate my ideas with examples from clients like you whom Mad Rose has helped. There’s no talk of websites, social media, SEO or ads until I understand you, your patients and your goals. You’ll leave with clarity, direction and a specific plan to amplify your thought leadership, elevate your practice brand and reach the families who need you.
DON’T FORGET – Collaboration Cures 2026
After a year off, the AAPMD’s Collaboration Cures meeting is back. Join us at the University of Pittsburgh on May 15–16 to reconnect with Dr. Howie Hindin and a multidisciplinary lineup of airway, sleep and wellness experts. You’ll leave energized and armed with actionable insights. Get details and register at www.AAPMD.org.
ALSO DON’T FORGET – Dr. Hang’s E.C.H.O. Mentorship (2026–2027)
Airway cases are complex, and you don’t have to figure them out alone. Dr. Bill Hang’s E.C.H.O. (Early Childhood Health-centered Orthodontics™) mentorship for 2026–2027 offers small-group guidance, real-case reviews and a supportive community to help you master early intervention. Enrollment opens soon; visit Ortho2Health.com to schedule a complimentary call and see if the program is right for you.