Episode 15 – The Success Series | Why Investing in Marketing Early Changed Everything

When Dr. Murphy opened her practice from scratch, she made the bold decision to invest in marketing from day one. Three years later, her practice has exceeded new patient goals every month, giving her the lifestyle and work–life balance she wanted from the start.

In this conversation with Dr. Lee Brown, Dr. Murphy shares:

• Why she didn’t wait to invest in marketing
• How PatientCaptureNow and custom campaigns accelerated her growth
• The difference between cookie-cutter marketing vs. a personalized approach
• The impact on her practice, patients, and family life

Thinking about starting or growing your practice? Hear Dr. Murphy’s story and see why having the right marketing partner makes all the difference.

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It was clear to me that if I wanted to
expedite the timeline to get to a very

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successful practice, we needed to invest
right from the beginning. One of the big

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takeaways from all the coaching and
consulting that I've worked with folks

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in the past has been get get a good
marketing team and don't sit around and

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wait coming from nothing. We've never
not hit our new patient goals like from

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from day one.
Well, hey everybody. I'm so excited to

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be here with Dr. Murphy. Um, this is
really kind of cool for for us to be

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here together, Doc, because I remember
three years ago us sitting together uh

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at a table at an event and you getting
ready to to scratch start your practice,

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right? And and you were having
discussions, you know, how am I going to

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do this? Am I going to be volume? Am I
going to be more boutique and and really

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just lean into that patient experience
and quality care? and like I didn't

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chime in at all, but you knew the answer
and and you knew that you wanted to

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create uh a special place that was that
was different from the average practice.

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Um so before we talk about the the
marketing and everything else, I mean,

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how you feeling three years in?
Yeah, things have been have been great.

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We're really close to that three-year
mark in another couple months. And every

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it seems every decision we were talking
about then has has just um you know been

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been beneficial tenfold. It's it's been
really really good. And you know to see

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the success in in the numbers but also
the the quality of life that comes from

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it, the type of dentistry, the what I
can do for my family with all of it has

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been it's been wonderful.
Well, it's it's no surprise. I have to

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say that just just knowing you and the
fact that you number one invest in your

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clinical skills um and your personal
development. Um but you're also very

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smart in the fact that you knew that you
can't wait for the practice to get busy

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to invest in marketing. You knew kind of
from day one um that was important to do

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if you wanted to build it the right way.
So, you know, why was that so important

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to you? And how did how was your mindset
to to understand that you had to invest

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in this versus thinking of it as, oh, I
have to to spend money on this?

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Yeah. No, you're you're right, Lee. I
was I was thinking um you know, last

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night like if I had to go back and tell
maybe not three years ago, me cuz I

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didn't just graduate from school then,
but earlier me like what what would be

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the like the two most beneficial things
to do? and and you just remind me of a

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third which is invest in yourself
the clinical clinical skills with that

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advancing way beyond dental school. Um,
and the two I was really thinking about

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last night were the like the coaching
consulting side of things and the

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marketing. And one of the big takeaways
from all the coaching and consulting

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that I've worked with folks in the past
has been like get get a good marketing

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team and don't sit around and wait for
it because you can struggle and you can

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do things the the hard way. Um, but I'm
I I wanted to just,

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you know, not not uh create things
myself, but copy what other people were

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were doing really well and have the same
successes as them. So, it was it was

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clear to me that if I wanted to expedite
the timeline to get to a very successful

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practice, we needed to invest right from
the beginning.

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So, well said because as as dentists,
right, we're like, you know, we're like

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little engineers, right? And we think
that if we just do an amazing job, which

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we're dedicated to do, which you just
talked about investing in yourself and

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your skills, that the whole world's
going to just automatically know about

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it. Uh, but we have to show them. We
have to tell them there has to be a

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story. The reality is nobody's just
walking into practices anymore. They're

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going to visit you online. They're going
to look at your your online presence.

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So, the fact that you knew from the
beginning is just another reason you're

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so successful. So, it's awesome to see.
But then the other question is there's

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so many options out there. You and I
both know this from from running a

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practice. You can get the $999
bundle and get the cookie cutter web

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page and just like everything looks the
same post sort of thing and it's it's

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out there. It's better than doing
nothing. But when you want to be at that

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that next level and you want to get
there faster, you know, how did you kind

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of view some of the, you know, the dock
in the box type stuff versus like, hey,

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let's be unique here. Let's be special.
Sure. Yeah. I know I you know when we

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when we first started um of course I
knew of MDA from working with my dad for

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a while previously um had great
experiences with them. So in my mind I

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knew this is a relationship I'm going to
get into for the long haul. Um it's a

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significant investment starting from
scratch.

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I don't know like can I justify it on
day one or is that like a year one year

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two? I didn't I didn't know when. So I
actually started out exclusively with

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somebody else and worked with them for I
think it was like two months, two or

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three months and like you said it was
better than nothing and I was learning

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all the all the other things. My very
first practice plus first scratch

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practice um drinking from a fire hose is
is an understatement. And after those

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couple months it was it was very clear
that they weren't uh you know not not to

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put them down. kind of just that that
wasn't their specialty. They were very

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much so put you in a box and just do the
same thing for everybody. And I was

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looking for more of a a personalized
customized, you know, interaction where

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we could have, you know, calls like
this. We get on the phone on Zoom,

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definitely more than once a quarter, but
now once a quarter moving forward and

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and emailing almost daily in between,
they're they're there and and I didn't

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get that from from somebody else. I've
had other other ideas throughout these

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last few years of, you know, hey, I've,
you know, gone through this large

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surgical course. I want to actually do
this stuff. I want to advertise to

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people that I know how to do it, that
I'm good at doing these things, like you

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said, not just be an engineer behind the
scenes. and they they had have had great

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ideas throughout throughout the this
time together of being creative and

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well, you know, we've done something
similar with somebody else or we've

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never done this before. Give us a few
days, we'll think about it and get back

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to you on how we can we can roll with
your new ideas. So, very very customized

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in their approach to what I want to do
as we continually evolve every every

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month. In these early stages, things
change a lot and they've they've rolled

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with those punches really well.
Boy, I feel like you nailed it with the

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word evolve. Um, they obviously have a
very specific skill set, which we all

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need, but their ability to dial in as we
continue to work together on who you

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are, who your practice is becoming, and
and always asking that questions and

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staying out in front. and I feel like I
had the same experience and have the

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same experience with them. Um, and and
that's what feels different to me. Um,

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is there anything else you can think of,
you know, over these past few years and

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time together that you're like, man,
they did this for me or this came up or

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was their idea um that that you just
don't see maybe from uh the traditional

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dental marketing team? You know, I I
guess I'm I'm fortunate that I don't

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know a ton about the traditional
marketing

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aspect of it. Um I've heard the woes of
it from other friends and colleagues. Um

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I I think that kind of the big things
that that seem to stand out to me is my

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my friends don't necessarily have
different specific quantifiable markers

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of their success. you know, to be able
to say the phone rang this many more

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times and it's this percentage this year
versus last year or this quarter versus

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Q1, Q2, however we're we're looking at
it. And then you scheduled from those

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calls, you know, same thing. This
percent is just this number. It's, you

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know, nice that it's only 5%, but
actually 5% translates to how many more

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calls and how many more dollars from
those calls. Um, so, so to be able to

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really look at at those stats makes
makes me feel like, okay, it isn't just

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a lofty, yeah, we're doing great. Keep
it up. It's working. Well, yeah, but

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like working compared to to what? I
don't care about the other practices. I

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care about my practice and are we doing
better than than we did last year. Um,

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and also the the um the type of patients
that we're able to attract has been

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huge. I I had a a good sense of what
kind of patient I wanted in in the

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practice, who that that avatar was, if
you will. And um they've been able to

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help us more more so organically get
those types of folks to be picking up

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the phone, calling in. they're already
based on marketing, they're already more

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pre-sold on us being the right place, on
the type of dentistry that they think

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they need that like I'm the one that can
do that for them. Um, so it makes

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everything from start to finish that
much easier just by attracting the right

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person. They're they're the right fit
for us and we're the right fit for them.

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So well said. Um, and and trying to
calculate ROI, you know, is a is a

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common question. And it's it's nice to
have markers so you can literally look

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at it and be like, "All right, this was
worth it." Now, as you and I both know,

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there's a thousand things that they do
that I'll never be able to quite put

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that dollar amount on, but you know,
it's it's generating internal referrals

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and and and in cases and things like
that. But it's always nice as business

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owners to be able to say, "This is what
we invested. This is the calls that

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created. these are the people that
scheduled, this is the treatment that

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was scheduled, and you're like, "Oh,
this makes sense, right? Just being

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responsible." So, um,
and and along those same lines, um,

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doctors are always asking, right? How do
you how do you maximize, uh, the

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investment? You know, what do you feel
like has has helped you get the most

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from MDA? I know patient capture now for
us has been amazing as far as more

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immediate patient engagement because
it's busy on the phones, things like

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that. But what do you feel like for you
has been something that's really been a

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great leverage point?
I think like having the regular calls

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with them and doing the stuff that they
tell you to do. Um I mean it's it's not

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rocket science if you just do the work.
They they are really good at laying it

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out. They're really good at prompting me
with, you know, what what are you

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seeing? Like boots on the ground, what's
happening in your practice? And and all

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they have to do is just think and say,
well, I, you know, I don't know. I I

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would like to do some more of this type
of procedure. We're getting more

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interest in this stuff, but I don't
really want to do that or what, whatever

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it is. and just just having a an honest
conversation with them, telling them

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what I'm seeing, what I want to do, and
they're they're great at figuring out

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what what can we do from there to
actually have those things happen. Um,

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you know, patient capture now has been
really really beneficial. Um, I think

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it's it's been important to have a
designated person who runs that that

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aspect of of the front desk team. um
just to keep it keep it consistent. Um I

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think that that came probably as a
suggestion from MDA of just to train

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train everybody but have one person be
the person that owns that that role and

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and they run with it and it's it's
worked for her for sure. But when when

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on when on when on when on when on when
on when on when on when on when on when

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once she's figured out how to do it,
it's it's been it's been really really

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beneficial. they've created a a similar
um well for us with a implant campaign

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um implant survey type of thing and
that's been that I mean that's been

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great because I've really enjoyed the
surgical side of the practice and that

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gives us another funnel specifically for
for those procedures and um just matches

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in really well with everything else that
they're they're doing for us.

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Um that's awesome to hear. You're right.
Having the the one team member, that's

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what it has to come down to. Everybody
can do it, but one person owns it.

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That's very well said. Um and the
implant funnel. Wow. When they came out

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with that, that's just been like, you
know, gasoline on a fire because you're

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you're getting these pre-qualified
patients. Um you know, and it's it's

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just a great system that they have that
way. And uh you know, the the thing we

00:13:00.160 --> 00:13:04.639
think about in traditional dental
marketing, right, is is about new

00:13:03.120 --> 00:13:08.959
patients, right? and and we're always
trying to calculate that ROI and

00:13:07.519 --> 00:13:14.880
everything else and we talked about
that, but you know, we I think there's

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something bigger about what they do, you
know, and and the strategy of of MDA um

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supporting new dentistry like implants
and things like that, but what do you

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feel like has been this I almost want to
say undersold value of MDA, you know,

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like what do you feel like has really
been something that like I didn't expect

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this benefit, but bam, here we are
coming from

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nothing, like zero zero patients. When
we open, I didn't inherit anything.

00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:47.200
We've never not hit our new patient
goals like from from day one. I mean,

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literally like day one, I had a full
schedule of new patients. Um, which is

00:13:49.680 --> 00:13:57.120
awesome. How how many people can can can
do that? And and then, you know, we

00:13:55.200 --> 00:14:02.480
talked about like I didn't start with
them. So that just came from mailers and

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a lot of heavy lifting on the the month
or two before we actually opened up. Um

00:14:04.720 --> 00:14:13.120
so they weren't great quality
full schedule. Um but as that that

00:14:10.320 --> 00:14:18.240
transition switched into them and
watching that organic shift, you know,

00:14:16.240 --> 00:14:23.600
takes time with with digital marketing,
any marketing, but especially digital

00:14:20.399 --> 00:14:29.279
after I mean it was probably only a
couple months or so um to see that the

00:14:27.120 --> 00:14:34.399
PE people were calling in because they
were they were reading things online

00:14:31.680 --> 00:14:38.240
just on on our website whereas before
nobody went to the website. everything's

00:14:36.399 --> 00:14:43.680
funneled people through the website. So
now we can we can put anything to

00:14:41.199 --> 00:14:48.320
advertise me or my team or the the work
we're doing or the um you just our

00:14:46.320 --> 00:14:55.199
different approach to the new patient
aspect to we we really um draw in folks

00:14:52.560 --> 00:15:00.399
with extreme dental anxiety and fears
and and that that kind. And so it seems

00:14:57.360 --> 00:15:04.720
to speak wonders to to those folks to be
able to go from wherever they found us

00:15:02.720 --> 00:15:08.959
on the web to the website, see all that,
see videos, you know, like like this at

00:15:06.560 --> 00:15:12.800
MDA. I didn't know that was a a thing to
have them do videos where they can see

00:15:10.639 --> 00:15:16.959
me, they can hear me talking, see I'm
not just some, you know, face like

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plastered on a billboard somewhere, but
a real person. Um I yeah I I guess I I

00:15:20.399 --> 00:15:27.600
didn't really think about how it all all
of it comes together and and we talk

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about the the different funnels and
flows through marketing whatever all

00:15:29.040 --> 00:15:37.680
those those words but it actually it all
compounds and it all fits together very

00:15:35.519 --> 00:15:41.839
seamlessly. People will come in all the
time and say oh I didn't know this about

00:15:39.680 --> 00:15:45.760
you or you guys are doing that and I how
do you know that? I mean, I guess it's

00:15:44.079 --> 00:15:51.759
out there in some some little aspect,
but they they really they move the right

00:15:48.560 --> 00:15:56.079
people through the right areas um all on
the digital side of it through the

00:15:53.839 --> 00:16:00.560
website and Facebook and and the
specific targeted ads that each person

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gets to have pop up on their phone.
Well, it's just it's it's awesome to to

00:16:02.959 --> 00:16:08.639
hear your perspective, hear your story.
Um, and I'm glad we're putting it out

00:16:06.880 --> 00:16:13.440
there to the world because I know it's
going to inspire other doctors, other

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teams to do the same thing. And it's
just it's really really cool. And and I

00:16:16.240 --> 00:16:22.800
say this as as a friend and then as a as
a peer watching you, like I'm super

00:16:20.480 --> 00:16:26.560
impressed. I'm super proud of you. Like
so cool to see your journey and you're

00:16:24.560 --> 00:16:30.480
so smart to invest in yourself and your
practice the way you do. Um, so thanks

00:16:29.040 --> 00:16:36.240
for for sharing anything. Anything else
you want to add to to inspire people to

00:16:32.959 --> 00:16:40.800
to do the same? Yeah, I I think the
average

00:16:37.920 --> 00:16:46.720
startup is probably told to do all these
different things. I I feel like I didn't

00:16:43.759 --> 00:16:52.160
listen to hardly any of that. And
marketing has been a huge one of those.

00:16:49.600 --> 00:16:57.680
And I think really like just that side
of it, it would have taken us probably 5

00:16:54.800 --> 00:17:01.519
to 10 years to get to where we did
revenue-wise in the first 2 to 3 years.

00:17:00.160 --> 00:17:06.160
You know, it's not just about the money,
but the money lets you have the

00:17:03.600 --> 00:17:11.839
lifestyle you want and
only working. You I work four days a

00:17:09.039 --> 00:17:15.839
week, being home for dinner with the
kids, and taking lots of time off for

00:17:13.760 --> 00:17:20.880
vacation. And it it lets you have all
that. So, I'm I'm really happy that I

00:17:18.959 --> 00:17:26.400
that I did it. I would have done it from
day one if I could rewind

00:17:23.760 --> 00:17:30.240
three years, but you know, month two is
is is still pretty good.

00:17:28.480 --> 00:17:34.960
Pretty awesome. That's pretty awesome.
Awesome stuff, Doc. Thank you so much.

00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:38.880
Keep crushing it. All right, let's let's
uh let's get back together again soon so

00:17:36.640 --> 00:17:43.559
you can tell me more success stories.
Sounds good.

00:17:40.080 --> 00:17:43.559
We'll see you soon.