Sakaduski Marketing Blog

How will your new product be accepted by clinicians?  Will the staff be able to easily adapt to a new technology?  These questions and others can be answered confidentially before the product is out on the market through an innovative program at the University of Connecticut School of Dental Medicine.  The Center for Research and Education in Technology Evaluation (CRETE) offers technology evaluation as well as access to dental school faculty and students as part of their services.  For more information, go to:  CRETE.

As the cost of gasoline rises, so does the cost of shipping exhibits, equipment, literature…and sales reps.  On the other side, dentists will have to pay more to attend and send staff to meetings that are out of their local area.  How will this affect the fall convention season?  Dentists may send fewer staff members or even skip major meetings in favor of attending local and regional shows closer to home.  Companies should make sure they are maximizing the value of the smaller shows while looking for ways to maintain exposure while reducing costs for the major shows.

According to McKinsey & Company, value-driven companies are making strong gains in both market share and shareholder value.  They point to Target and Walmart in the retail sector, Dell in the PC market, and Southwest in the airline industry.  What does this mean for the dental market?  If your company is value-driven, you may be able to make inroads against larger—but higher priced—competitors using low-cost marketing tools such as publicity and targeted promotions.  If you are competing with value-based rivals, you may need to reconsider your marketing approach, improve efficiencies, and maintain strong customer relationships.