When was the last time you took a close look at the promotional products your dental practice gives away?
Not what they cost, how many you have left, or whether your logo looks good on them.
I mean whether anyone actually wants them.
It's easy to reorder the same pens, toothbrushes, and giveaways year after year. They're already in the budget, the supplier has your artwork, and ordering more takes about five minutes.
But if we're spending the money anyway, shouldn't we be a little more particular about what we're handing out?
What one dentist puts on her front desk
Dr. Katie To, of Katie To Center for Wellness Dentistry, recently shared a Facebook post about the custom lip balms she offers her patients.
She showed a display at her front desk, stocked with raspberry, raw honey, and mango lip balms. Alongside it were signs explaining the ingredients and inviting patients to take one.
But what caught my attention wasn't the display or the flavors. It was how she explained her decision to offer them.
“Everything we offer here is chosen with the same care we bring to your treatment.”
— Dr. Katie To, Facebook
Katie didn't just order something with her logo on it. She reviewed the ingredients, chose flavors, created a display, and took the time to explain to patients why the lip balm belonged in her office.
She connected a small giveaway to the standards she sets for her practice.
And her patients can see that attention to detail right there at the front desk.
Your name is on it. What does that say about you?
Think about the promotional products you've received over the years.
The pen that barely writes. The keychain you never use. The tote bag sitting in a closet with a dozen other tote bags.
Now think about the ones you've kept.
Maybe it's a really good pen. A water bottle you use every day. A lip balm you keep in your car because you genuinely like it.
Both types of products carry someone's logo.
But one is something you're happy to use. The other is something you're trying to get rid of.
When you put your practice's name on a product, you're making that product a representative of your business.
You wouldn't want a patient associating your practice with poor-quality dental care. Why would you knowingly put your name on a giveaway you don't particularly like?
I'm not suggesting a lip balm makes or breaks someone's opinion of their dentist. But if you're going to put your name on something, shouldn't it be something you're proud to give away?
Sometimes patients notice more than we expect
Another Farmer's Body customer, Dr. Sarah R.T., shared something with us that made me smile.
After her practice went out of network with Delta Dental, she told us:
“We recently went out of network with Delta Dental — and we’ve actually had patients say they want to stay with us because of the lip balms!”
— Dr. Sarah R.T.
That's quite a thing for patients to mention when insurance coverage is changing.
Of course, patients consider many things when deciding whether to stay with a dentist, especially the quality of care and the relationship they've built with their doctor.
But the fact that they brought up the lip balm at all is interesting.
It had become something they associated with her practice, something they liked enough to mention.
Katie and Sarah offer two different perspectives.
Katie shows how a practice can put intention into what it gives patients. Sarah's experience shows that patients sometimes notice those details more than we'd expect.
Neither story proves that better giveaways increase patient retention. But they do make me think about how much attention we give to the things we send home with patients.
Read more about Dr. Sarah's experience.
Before you reorder, ask your team three questions
Your front desk staff probably has a pretty good idea of how patients respond to your giveaways.
Before placing the same order again, ask:
1. Do patients actually like what we're giving them?
Do they comment on it? Ask for another one? Have a favorite flavor? Or do they accept it without much interest?
2. Would we use it ourselves?
This might be the simplest test. If you wouldn't want to use the product, why are you giving it to patients with your name on it?
3. Is this the best use of our giveaway budget?
Maybe your current products are popular, affordable, and exactly right for your practice.
But if you're spending money on things nobody seems excited about, you might be better off giving away fewer items that people genuinely enjoy.
You don't necessarily need a bigger budget. You might just need to spend it differently.
Make the next order a deliberate choice
As a periodontist and the founder of Farmer's Body, I see custom lip balm from both sides: as someone who makes it and as someone who understands what it's like to run a dental practice.
I like that it's small, practical, and easy to personalize. Practices can choose flavors their patients enjoy, create labels that match their branding, and decide when and how to give them out.
But the lesson from Katie's post isn't that every dental office needs our lip balm.
It's that the products we give our patients deserve some thought.
You spend a lot of time deciding how you want patients to feel when they're in your practice.
It's worth considering what you send home with them, too.
Want to see what custom lip balm could look like for your practice?
Request a free mockup with your practice's logo.
Already comparing suppliers? Read Why Does Custom Lip Balm Cost More? Is It Actually Worth It?
Meggan Wehmeyer, DDS, MS, is a practicing periodontist and founder of Farmer's Body, a Vermont-based maker of custom lip balm.