Hat Tip: NY Times
From 1994 to 2010, the number of Americans 18 and older getting braces or some other teeth-straightening treatment from an orthodontist has jumped 58 percent, to 1.1 million from 680,000 annually, according to the American Association of Orthodontists.
Over the same period, the number of patients under 18 increased at a slower pace of 15 percent. In 2010, adults accounted for 22 percent of patients, up from 17 percent in 1994.
Now orthodontists are introducing what they say is a first — a national advertising campaign pitched primarily to prospective adult patients. New commercials from the association show adults almost exclusively.
They are using an estimated $5 Million dollar budget to execute a campaign targeting adults that need braces and want to straighten their teeth. This campaign consists of mostly TV commercials on TLC, Bravo, and the E channel.
Dr. Michael B. Rogers the president of the American Association of Orthodontists was quoted in the NY Times article saying the following.
“We’re trying to emphasize the adult market and show how good they’re going to look and how much self confidence that’s going to create,” said Dr. Michael B. Rogers, the president of the American Association of Orthodontists. “There are many adults on the fence and we want to show them the benefits of braces.”
“Some will go right into treatment with their children, and there will be a mom along with her two kids in the treatment bay,” Dr. Rogers said.
Dr. Rogers, who has been in practice for 38 years, with offices in Augusta and Thomson, Ga., said adults accounted for about 5 percent of his patients when he began, compared with as many as 25 percent today.
The cost of orthodontic treatment — including conspicuous or inconspicuous braces and clear aligners — ranges from about $5,000 to $6,500 in Dr. Rogers’s practice. The average duration for treatment for all orthodontic patients is 22 months, according to the American Association of Orthodontists.
Among Dr. Rogers’s adult patients, about half are parents who decided to get treatment after bringing in their children for braces, with some even deciding to do so concurrent with their children.
If you are an Orthodontist and want to extend your own campaign locally for your practice give us a call to discuss an online orthodontic marketing campaign. There are more and more new patients searching Google for a local orthodontist then ever before and we can position you on the first page of the search engines in your local area.