Most clinic owners we speak to have worked with at least one marketing agency before. Many have worked with several. The story is usually the same: plenty of promises, some leads, very few patients, and a monthly invoice that never seemed to pay for itself.
This guide is what we'd want every clinic owner to know before choosing an agency, whether that ends up being us or not.
01Leads or patients: know what you're paying for
Most agencies sell you leads: a name and a phone number from someone who filled in a form. That's where their job ends and yours begins. Someone at your clinic has to call every lead quickly, answer their questions, handle price objections and persuade them to book. Many leads never pick up. Many book and never show.
A lead is not a patient. What actually grows your clinic is a paying patient in your chair, so that's what you should judge an agency on. Cheap leads that never turn into appointments are the most expensive thing you can buy.
02Who calls your leads, and how fast
Speed matters more than almost anything else. Someone who enquires about a treatment is most interested in the first few minutes. Call them the next day and they've often forgotten, moved on or booked elsewhere.
The second question is who makes the call. A busy receptionist between patients is not the same as a trained setter whose only job is to turn enquiries into appointments, all day long. At ITH, our own team calls every enquiry within minutes. For dental clinics, those calls are made by dental graduates who understand the treatments. For aesthetic clinics, by team members with strong sales experience who know how to represent a high-end clinic.
03Deposits are the difference between a booking and a no-show
A free booking costs the patient nothing to skip. A prepaid one does. When a patient pays a deposit over the phone, they've made a commitment before they ever reach your diary, and show rates go up dramatically.
That's why every patient we book has already paid a deposit. One of our clients, Hayley, put it simply: “I haven't had any no-shows.”
04Ads that sell your clinic, not just a discount
The quickest way to get cheap leads is a big discount. The problem is the patients it attracts: price shoppers who leave for the next offer, and who make your clinic look like every other clinic down the road.
The better approach is to find what makes your clinic different (your expertise, your results, your experience) and build educational video ads around it, so patients choose you for more than the price. We combine those with high-intent lead forms that filter out people who aren't serious, so the enquiries that come through are already closer to booking.
05Specialists beat generalists
An agency that runs ads for restaurants, plumbers and estate agents doesn't know the difference between HIFU and Endolaser, which treatments sell best through ads, or what price point patients will accept. You end up paying them to learn on your budget.
We only work with medical and aesthetic clinics: aesthetic, dental, hair restoration and med spa clinics across the US, UK and Ireland. We've worked with over 250 clinics and booked over 15,000 patients, so we know which treatments, prices and offers work before we spend a penny of yours.
06Honest expectations
Be wary of any agency promising a full diary in week one. Good campaigns need time to test ads and angles. In our experience, the first two to three weeks are usually the slowest, the first month focuses on breaking even, and results really build in months two and three.
That's why we judge performance over 90 days rather than week to week. An agency that tells you this upfront is one you can trust when the numbers come in.
07Proof you can check yourself
Every agency says they get great results. The ones that do can show you. Look for video testimonials from real clinic owners, independent reviews, and, most importantly, the chance to speak to a current client directly, without the agency in the room.
You can watch 21 of our clients on video and read their reviews on Trustpilot. And if you'd like to speak to one of them yourself, just ask and we'll put you in touch.
08Clear numbers, every week
You should always know exactly what your ad spend is producing: how many enquiries, how many bookings, how many patients showed up, and what they spent. If an agency is vague about numbers, there's usually a reason.
09ITH vs a typical marketing agency
| Typical agency | ITH Media | |
|---|---|---|
| What you get | Leads: names and phone numbers | Booked, prepaid appointments in your diary |
| Who calls the leads | Your own team, when they have time | Our trained setters, within minutes |
| Dental enquiries | General staff | Dental graduates |
| Deposits | Rarely taken | Taken over the phone on every booking |
| Ads | Discount-led offers | Educational video ads built around what makes your clinic different |
| Focus | Many industries | Medical and aesthetic clinics only |
| Expectations | Fast results promised | Honest 90-day view |
| Proof | Logos and claims | 21 video testimonials, Trustpilot reviews, and current clients you can speak to |
| Other services | Ads only | SEO, website and content creation available too |
10The checklist: questions to ask any agency
Take these into every agency call, including ours.
- Do you sell leads, or booked appointments?
- Who calls my leads, and how quickly?
- Do you take deposits when you book?
- Can I see ads you've made for clinics like mine?
- How many clinics in my field have you worked with?
- What should I expect in months one, two and three?
- Can I speak to some of your current clients?
- What will I see in my reports each week?
- How long is the contract, and what happens if it isn't working?
See what this could look like for your clinic.
Run your numbers through our profit calculator, or book a call and we'll go through it together.