About Me

A little about me

I founded the Dental Marketing Guy brand that, in addition to services, provides a place for people of different circles within the dental community to share information, learn tools for business growth and connect with other successful dental professionals. Many have come to refer to me as “DMG” in Dental Town forums and social media. What I do is what I expect my clients to do: build a tribe, offer inspiration, education, and entertainment. I believe that without a sense of comradery, the dental industry is just like any other. It’s the relationships that are built within this community that shape the dental industry.

As a competitive athlete growing up, I excelled in wrestling and martial arts. Early on in my athletic career, I had a couple of serious injuries which sidelined my ability to perform at a world class level. Shortly after winning a silver medal at a jiu jitsu tournament known as the Pan American Games, I sustained a knee injury that made me ineligible for ongoing competition. At that point in my life I shifted my focus from competing to teaching.

I’ve trained with many UFC and boxing world champions, and since, have discovered that those who perform at the highest levels aren’t always the most effective at imparting knowledge to students. Coaches of world class fighters are often far superior at delivering knowledge to everyday people than the athletes who go on to win in the ring! This experience has taught me that the best coaches and the best athletes are sometimes different, but are both essential parts of a winning team.

I started teaching everything from boxing to wrestling techniques to my teammates, and quickly adopted a number of other students. My students thoroughly grasped concepts and went on to successfully execute the techniques they’d learned from me (in competition). They’d often remark that my teaching style allowed them to effectively learn faster than any of their former teachers. 

I discovered something about myself; I’m a good teacher because I enjoy imparting knowledge to those willing to learn.

As much as I enjoyed teaching martial arts, it wasn’t covering tuition. One day, while coaching a boxing session for a local web designer, I took a moment to look around at the lifestyle he had; a huge house with an elaborate kitchen, a shiny black Mercedes--three of them, in fact--housekeepers,

landscapers, etc…

I thought to myself “I wonder if I could design websites?”

While my student’s career success was visible, I realized I couldn’t just jump right into the business and start designing $20,000 websites. I’d have to start small.

So that’s exactly where I started. I began designing $500 websites for anyone that would hire me. I did this for a while to gain experience. I had some rough interactions with clients who demanded a lot. I over-delivered, learned, then ultimately found a problem with the business model. 

I saw that designing cheap websites didn’t do anyone any good in terms of generating new leads or building long term business relationships. That’s when I went to the white board. I made a list of all my clients. I noted all their different industries. I decided that, based on my continued pattern of success with one of my favorite clients in particular - a dentist - I would specialize in that industry. Dentists learn to master clinical skills, but become business owners by necessity. Most never stop their pursuit of knowledge and thus make great students, especially when it comes to learning how to build a more fulfilling practice!