Connecting with your customers

Posted on May 6, 2015May 6, 2015 by amsadmin

The adage, "Out of sight, out of mind" is more true today than ever. It is nearly impossible to avoid the barrage of messages, communication and people who are vying for our time and attention. The same is true of your customers and prospective customers. If you are not regularly communicating with your customers you will be forgotten. Even your existing customers are being solicited by competitors and it may not be enough to count on your work to speak for itself. There are a number of ac...

ACDLA to Co-Sponsor LabDay Chicago Workshops

ACLDA Executive Director, John Von Thaden, announced today that the association will once again co-sponsor LMT LabDay Chicago Workshops with their sister organization, The AmericaSmiles Network. The workshops will be held on Friday, February, 26th at the Hyatt Regency Chicago Hotel located at 151 E. Wacker Drive in downtown Chicago. The schedule includes a membership meeting for The AmericaSmiles Network, an Industry Trends presentation on how Top-Down Consolidation is impacting the dental lab industry, and a follow-up training presentation on methods for building your business utilizing marketing management concepts. Each workshop has been registered with the National Board of Certification in Dental Laboratory Technology and participants will receive 1.5 CE credits for attending. Friday, Feb 26, 2016 (Gold Coast in the West Tower, Bronze Level) 10:00 am – 11:30am – AmericaSmiles Annual Membership Meeting 1:00pm – 2:30pm – Building Your Business: A Unique Selling Proposition 4:30pm – 6:00pm – Your Lab 20/20: What Top Down Consolidation Means to Your Lab “We are very excited about once again partnering with The AmericaSmiles Network to deliver these valuable and informative workshops to Dental Lab owners and technicians,” said Von Thaden. Interested attendees of LMT LabDay Chicago can register ahead of time by going to http://www.americasmiles.net/knowledge/labday-events/
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What is your Outlook for 2015?

LMT Magazine began releasing the results of their survey of the Dental Lab Industry last month. There is a lot of really interesting information which matches well with comments made recently by Keith Crittenden, President and CEO of AmericaSmiles Network founder of the American Cosmetic Dental Lab Association. In his seminar at LabDay Chicago he spoke passionately about the challenges facing the industry. He described an industry in flux. In the last 5 years dental restorations manufactured using some CAD/CAM technology has gone from 10% to nearly 70%. Over the last 15 years brands such as Empress and Procera have given way to emax, Lava, and Bruxzir, and now even the Lava and Bruxzir brands have been replaced by the proliferation of generic Zirconia products. In addition, Keith spoke with great expectation about the future. We know that manufacturing has been driving the lab industry via the two-billion dollar consumables market. Overall, the Lab Industry is a four-billion dollar industry that is in flux. Seventy percent of lab owners believe the outlook for their laboratory is Bright or good. What is concerning is that 45% of small and medium sized labs (1-5 employees) believe the outlook is Status Quo or Bleak. Zero large labs see the outlook at bleak and only 5% see the outlook as status quo (or the same as it has been). What is the difference? We believe the difference is that while we work in a 4-billion dollar industry, we are disconnected and unorganized. Competing in this industry continues to be a challenge. Manufacturer’s want a share of this market. Big box labs will continue to strive for market share. Larger labs are buying smaller labs. Non-traditional labs entities like Sirona, 3Shape, Henry Schein, Dentsply and others are seeking to go direct to dentists. The FDA and individual states continue to look at regulation or certification, perhaps even requiring licensing. We believe dentists will always prefer 3rd party verification for fit and shade, and while the industry will continue to change as described above, we believe that more than 50% of all dental restorations will still be fabricated by local dental labs. Keith Crittenden offered five key steps you should take to stay competitive and relevant over the next 5 years: Join a Dental Lab network or association – AmericaSmiles offers labs the ability to partner together with other labs through both The AmericaSmiles Network and ACDLA. Together these organizations provide a powerful one-two punch in training and advise plus cost savings, technology solutions, and marketing support. Fully embrace digital technology and become a trusted advisor/consultant to your dentists concerning CAD/CAM and other digital technology. Secure the ability to offer your dentists digital solutions such as IntraOral Scanners for their practice. The company that supplies this solution to their doctors will secure their on-going business. Secure the ability to design from digital files. ExoCad is an ideal solution for many small and medium sized labs. Realize you will have to offer an economy line of crowns, large complex cases, and custom implant bridges to stay competitive in the market. Focus as much on retaining your existing dentists as you do on gaining new clients. With these steps, every local small and medium size lab can remain relevant far into the future. At ACDLA and The AmericaSmiles Network, we are here to help. Let us know what you think and how we can assist.
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