You should be finalizing your goal setting and business planning for 2026. In an effort to help you with that, we are going to write a series of pieces on the financial trends we’re seeing in dentistry. Perhaps it will help you build a healthy plan for the new year. Let’s start with one of the most important metrics: MARKETING SPEND. 

Every practice owner out there should know exactly how much they’re spending on marketing, especially considering it’s one of the most accurate forecasters of annual growth. Buy more patients = grow faster. 

Nationwide, the average private dental practice is spending just 1 to 2% on marketing, while the average DSO is reinvesting 6-8%. That is why corporate dentistry exists. Private equity firms saw a massive opportunity to transform the typical dental business model into a scaleable enterprise by reinvesting more heavily than smaller practices were willing or able. Even in today’s dental market where the biggest issue most practices face is insufficient capacity, 1-2% is likely not enough to generate sustainable growth. And it certainly isn't enough to keep up with DSOs.

Long story short, when you're setting budgets for next year and planning for growth, build your plan around healthy marketing spend. Perhaps it will help you build a healthy plan for the entire year.

Considerations when reinvesting in marketing:

• If you’re going to spend the money to generate more phone calls into your practice, make sure your phones are being answered properly.
• Track the effectiveness of your various marketing channels. Throwing money blindly into different marketing channels isn’t going to generate growth.
• If a new patient calls in and you can’t see them for 2+ months because your schedule is full, marketing isn’t the problem. You need to build yourself more capacity with more doctors, more hygienists, or more space.