Who's In Left Field

Thomas K. Hedge D.D.S., F.A.C.E.
Dental Town
December 1999

I have some very good friends in dentistry that tell me that they have never accessed the internet. These are intelligent people that have participated in numerous continuing education courses and have thriving practices. Our conversation usually drifts to why they haven’t gotten around to it yet and what their obstacles are. The reasons given are that they do not have a computer at home, or that they haven’t signed up with a service as yet. When I see them six months later, the same excuses are presented. I guess that maybe the benefits of the internet are like the benefits of fire or the wheel. Until you’ve used them, it’s hard to imagine the potential.

Over 74 million people are connected to the internet in the U.S. That is almost thirty per cent of the population. This number will increase by over fifty per cent per year. Between 1995 and the year 2000, home access to the net will have grown from 10 to 46 percent. This is less than 8 months away.

Computers will continue to get smaller, cheaper and faster. Telecommunications bandwidth, or the speed through which information passes to the end user is getting bigger, cheaper and faster. New technologies such as fiber-optic cable, satellites, and wireless communications are driving competition and lowering costs. At some point, even the most resistant consumer will cave in to the low cost and high benefits.

Today’s youth do not exchange notes or phone numbers. They exchange E mail messages and addresses. My daughter learned to use an adult sized mouse before she knew her ABC's. A survey done in 1996 showed that two thirds of kids use a personal computer, either at home or at school. The "Net" generation, born after 1976, now represents 81.1 million people or 30 percent of the current population. This population grew up digital. The infamous "Baby Boomer" generation represents 77.2 million people or 29 percent of the current population.

The "Net" generation has greater influence over the family’s purchasing decisions. They have greater power because of their command of the new media and subsequent comparative consumer information available on the Net. As they enter the workforce, and their influence becomes even greater, companies will focus sales and marketing efforts toward them. Can you envision a scenario where a family moves to your area. The parents have no references and ask their sixteen-year-old child to research and find a dental practice for the family. The parents know that the internet is a good resource, but are not "search" literate enough to complete the task.

Many newcomers are "getting online". An increasing number of woman have gained internet access. In fact, more women are "online" than men (52% versus 48%). Middle-aged and middle-income people are getting connected. Surprisingly, 40% of internet users have never attended college and 23 % of households have incomes below $30,000 per year.

Trends with internet usage are equally optimistic. E mail use is up from 19% to 35%, individuals seeking online news is up from 5% to 26%, and healthcare information searches are used by 43 % of internet users. Although there are no statistics on searches for dental care, it does not take a far stretch of the imagination to see the potential.

In 1998, there were 16 million on-line shoppers. This number is expected to grow to 61 million in the next three years. This number will approach 94 billion dollars. The entire dental industry is half this amount. Women compromise 42% of the on-line shoppers. In the past eighteen months, this number is up by almost one third. This statistic is very significant when one considers that 86% of all dental appointments are made by women.

Now that we have established the incredible potential of the internet, we need to come up with a plan of action for those of you that have not as experienced the net.

Buy a basic laptop computer at a local computer store or over the phone from Gateway or Dell. If you already had internet access, you could build your own computer to meet your needs at the Gateway or Dell website. It would be built and shipped to your home within a week. You will spend about $1200. Our local Best Buy Sunday flyer had a very capable CTX computer for $1000. The modem should be a 56 speed to get internet access as fast as possible.

Plug your phone line into the modem on the computer. You can then enroll with an internet access provider such as America Online or Microsoft Network by clicking on the appropriate icon on the opening screen of your new computer. Computer manufacturers make this process very easy.

Next, establish an E mail account with your new provider. This is very easy. Just follow the instructions on the screen.

Now, let’s have some fun. Type in www.llbean.com. You will find the entire L.L.Bean catalog online with specials and sale items. Buy yourself a celebratory gift online. It will arrive in a few days.

The next place to go would be to research the dental market on the internet in your community. Go to www.yahoo.com and type in "your city and state" dentistry in the search box. For example I would type "dentistry Cincinnati" and hit enter. You will be presented with a list of sites that meet the search criteria. Do the same thing on www.altavista.com and www.infoseek.com to find other alternatives. Explore the sites that come up to help you decide if and what you might want on your internet site.

My site at www.dentalhealthcenter.com is a good example of a quality site. Just about every company has a website. Just type in www.thecompanyname.com. You will usually find the site without going through the extra steps of a search engine.

These visits have wet your appetite for further exploration on the internet. The sky is the limit. You may enjoy visiting the following sites. Good surfing and welcome to the infield!

NEW ARTICLE IDEAS FOR AN INTERNET SERIES

INVESTING AND TRACKING YOUR INVESTMENTS ON THE INTERNET

Add all of your stocks to your portal to get updated prices. Research online at Yahoo.com or Yahoo.com. Buy stocks online at a discount. Track holdings in brokerage website.

HOW TO USE YOUR NEW INTERNET SITE

Invite new patients, existing patients, specialists and potential patients to visit site. Register with search engines.

WHAT TO PUT ON YOUR INTERNET SITE

Doctor photo, staff photo’s and biography’s. Technologies. Doctor’s C.E.. Before and after photo’s. Technologies. Special services. New Patient forms. Map to office.

THE ECONOMICS OF INTERNET MARKETING

Development cost. Monthly costs. Compare to yellow pages. Return on investment. Non-revenue benefits to existing patients.

E-MAIL USE IN DENTISTRY

Communicate with patients. Answer patient questions. Confirm appointments. Communicate with specialists. Send scanned slides, photos, and X-Rays. Send documents and letters.