What should happen in the first 90 days with a new marketing agency for a dental practice?
In the first 90 days, a good dental marketing agency should secure access and sign a BAA, audit your tracking, fix your Google Business Profile and website basics, launch a small number of measured campaigns, and settle into a fixed reporting rhythm. By day 90 you should be able to see new-patient calls and bookings by channel. If you cannot, onboarding has not finished.
- Days 1–30 are setup: access, a signed Business Associate Agreement, a tracking audit and a written baseline of where new patients come from today.
- Days 31–60 are quick wins and first campaigns: Google Business Profile fixes, service-page gaps, call handling and one or two paid campaigns with clear goals.
- Days 61–90 are about proof: booked new patients by channel, a first optimization round and a plan for the next quarter.
- The practice has homework too: logins, an owner of the front desk follow-up, and a weekly 30-minute check-in.
- Every practice welcome — retainers from $499/mo, Goals-Driven engagements, Performance-Linked Payout Models available.
- Dallas, Texas LLC
- US client team · Central Time (CST)
- 25+ US healthcare clients
- BAA signed with every client
- HIPAA compliance training across client and delivery teams
- Contracts and invoices in USD
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“They were able to get all my ideas and work with me over a period of three to four months and create this amazing website. It's super customized, very modern, and it incorporates all the elements that I had wanted — the patient portal, nice pictures, a very interactive website, patient reviews. I would highly recommend their company to anyone who wants to make an excellent website.”
What does a good 90-day onboarding with a dental marketing agency look like?
A good onboarding moves through three phases: setup in the first month, quick wins and first campaigns in the second, and measured proof in the third. Each phase ends with something you can check, such as a signed BAA, a working call-tracking setup or a report showing booked new patients by source.
The risk with a new agency is not that nothing happens. It is that a lot happens and none of it can be measured. Ads go live before tracking works. Posts appear on social media while the Google profile still lists old hours. Three months later, the practice owner has invoices and activity reports but no answer to the only question that matters: how many new patients came from this work?
A disciplined agency avoids that by doing things in order. It secures access and signs the paperwork. It measures the starting point. It fixes what leaks. Only then does it spend your ad budget at scale. The timeline below is the standard we hold ourselves to on dental marketing engagements in the US, and it is a fair yardstick for any agency you hire.
Three questions to ask at the kickoff call
- What will be finished, and checkable, at day 30, day 60 and day 90?
- Who on your team owns our account day to day, and what time zone do they work in?
- What will the first report show, and on what day of the week will it arrive?
If the agency cannot answer these on the first call, ask for a written onboarding plan before any work starts. The terms that back this plan up, such as notice periods, data ownership and access on exit, belong in the contract. Our dental marketing agency contract checklist covers what to put in writing before you sign.
What should the agency do week by week in days 1–90?
Weeks one to four cover access, the BAA, tracking and a baseline. Weeks five to eight cover Google Business Profile, website and call-handling fixes plus the first campaigns. Weeks nine to thirteen cover optimization, a quarterly review and the next plan. Use the table as a checklist during your weekly calls.
| Weeks | What the agency does | What you should see |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Kickoff call; collects logins; signs a Business Associate Agreement; confirms goals by service line (for example implants, clear aligners, emergency visits, family dentistry) | Signed BAA; shared access list; named account owner |
| Week 2 | Tracking audit: analytics, conversion events, call tracking, form routing, any pixels on booking or intake pages | Written audit with a list of fixes, including anything that may send patient data to ad platforms |
| Weeks 3–4 | Baseline report: where new patients come from now, by channel; Google Business Profile and website review; competitor view of your local map results | A one-page baseline you agree on, so later results can be compared fairly |
| Weeks 5–6 | Quick wins: Google Business Profile categories, services, hours, photos and review routine; missing service pages; click-to-call and booking buttons | A dated change log of every fix |
| Weeks 7–8 | First campaigns, usually Google Ads on one or two high-value services, built on the fixed tracking; front-desk call review | Campaigns live with stated goals and budgets you approved |
| Weeks 9–10 | First optimization round: search terms, landing pages, call outcomes, cost per booked new patient | Notes on what was changed and why |
| Weeks 11–12 | Content and local SEO plan for the next quarter; review-request routine running weekly | A draft plan for the next 90 days |
| Week 13 | Quarterly review meeting against the baseline | Booked new patients by channel, spend, and agreed next goals |
Timelines slip for ordinary reasons. Logins arrive late, a website host takes a week to respond, or the owner is away. A week or two of slippage is normal. What is not normal is skipping the tracking audit and baseline to launch ads sooner. That trade always costs more later, because you lose the ability to tell what worked.
What should be done in the first 30 days?
The first 30 days should produce four things: full access in your name, a signed BAA, a written tracking audit and an agreed baseline. Very little of this is visible to patients. All of it decides whether you can judge the agency fairly at day 90.
Access and ownership
Every account should be owned by the practice, with the agency added as a user. That includes Google Business Profile, Google Ads, analytics, Meta business assets, your website hosting and your domain. If an agency asks to create accounts in its own name, ask why. You want to keep your data, history and reviews if you ever part ways. Our checklist for switching dental marketing agencies shows how painful it is when ownership was not settled on day one.
The Business Associate Agreement
If the agency will handle protected health information, such as call recordings, form submissions with patient details or appointment data, HIPAA expects a Business Associate Agreement before that access begins. Sign it in week one. We sign a BAA with every US client as standard. Confirm the wording with your own counsel.
The tracking audit
The agency should list every tag, pixel and script on your site and say what each one collects. Pay special attention to appointment request forms and online booking flows. The HHS OCR guidance on online tracking technologies treats tracking on patient portals and other authenticated pages as covered by HIPAA. A federal court in June 2024 vacated part of that guidance for unauthenticated public pages, but pixels on booking and intake flows remain a real risk. A HIPAA-safe setup usually means server-side or consented tracking, with vendors who will sign a BAA. For the fuller picture, read our HIPAA guide to dental practice advertising.
The baseline
Before any change, write down the current state: monthly new-patient calls, form fills, online bookings, Google profile views and actions, and how new patients answer "how did you hear about us?". Imperfect numbers are fine. The point is that you and the agency agree on them in writing.
What quick wins and campaigns should come in days 31–90?
Days 31–60 should fix what leaks and launch one or two focused campaigns. Days 61–90 should optimize those campaigns against booked new patients, not clicks, and end with a quarterly review against the baseline. Expect steady, explainable progress here, not a sudden jump in volume.
Quick wins that usually come first
- Google Business Profile: correct primary and secondary categories, a full services list, accurate hours including holidays, current photos, and a weekly review-request routine. Our dental Google Business Profile guide lists each field.
- Service pages: one page per high-value service, with insurance and financing information, clear next steps and a booking button.
- Phones: call recordings reviewed for missed and unconverted calls, a callback rule, and after-hours handling.
- Reviews: a consented request process with no incentives tied to positive ratings. The FTC rule on fake reviews and testimonials, in effect since October 2024, bans fake reviews and incentives conditioned on a particular sentiment.
The first campaigns
Most dental practices get the clearest early signal from Google Ads on one or two services with strong intent, such as emergency dentistry or implant consultations. Each campaign should have a written goal, an approved budget and a landing page that matches the ad. Social campaigns can follow, but they need careful targeting under platform health policies and a clear consent path for any follow-up texts.
Optimization, days 61–90
By now the agency should be reading call outcomes, not just call counts. It should cut search terms that bring non-patients, test landing-page changes, and report cost per booked new patient. The day-90 meeting compares results with the baseline and sets goals for the next quarter.
What we found when we studied 2,318 US dental practices on Google
Patients praise the care and the people. Where they push back is the treatment-plan conversation: upselling is the one review theme where complaints dominate.
2,318 US dental practices across 20 metros · review themes, pace and replies from a 120-practice subsample · every headline figure re-derived from raw data.
What does the dental practice need to provide during onboarding?
The practice needs to provide logins, a decision-maker who answers within two business days, a front-desk lead who owns follow-up, honest data on new patients and production by service, and approval of budgets and claims. Most onboarding delays come from the practice side, so plan the time before you sign.
- Access: owner-level logins or user invitations for every account listed above, plus your website host and domain registrar.
- A single decision-maker: usually the owner dentist or office manager, with authority to approve ad copy and budgets.
- A front-desk owner: someone who reviews missed calls, follows up on forms and records how each new patient found you.
- Business priorities: which services you want more of, which insurance plans you accept, chair capacity, and any services you want to grow slowly.
- Compliance inputs: your state dental board's advertising rules, any specialty or credential wording you are allowed to use, and approval of before-and-after or testimonial content.
- Time: a weekly 30-minute call in the first 90 days, then a lighter rhythm.
Agree the reporting rhythm early. On our Goals-Driven engagements, monthly goals are agreed with the client and tracked live on Ichelon Agency OS, with a report every Monday. Whatever system your agency uses, ask that the report shows booked new patients and spend, and that it arrives on the same day each week. Our guide to dental marketing KPIs for practice owners lists the measures worth tracking.
What are the red flags in a dental agency's first 90 days?
The clearest red flags are no BAA before patient data is shared, ads launched before tracking is fixed, accounts created in the agency's name, reports that show clicks but never booked patients, and no written baseline. Any one of these is worth raising at once. Two or more suggest the onboarding is not working.
| Red flag | Why it matters | What to ask for |
|---|---|---|
| No BAA, or "we don't need one" | Call recordings and form data may include protected health information | A signed BAA before access to patient data; check with counsel |
| Ads live in week one | Spend without working tracking cannot be judged | The tracking audit and baseline first |
| Accounts in the agency's name | You may lose history, data or reviews on exit | Practice-owned accounts with the agency as a user |
| Reports show impressions and clicks only | Activity is not new patients | Booked new patients and cost per booked patient by channel |
| Pixels on booking or intake forms | Possible disclosure of patient information to ad platforms | A HIPAA-safe tracking setup and a list of every tag |
| Review gating or incentives for good ratings | Conflicts with FTC rules on reviews | A neutral, consented review request to every patient |
| No named account owner | Requests get lost between people | One owner, with a backup, and response times in writing |
Raise red flags in writing and give the agency a short window to fix them. A good partner will welcome the clarity. If you are still choosing an agency, or want a second opinion on an onboarding that has stalled, book a call with the US team. We work Central Time from Dallas, retainers start from $499/month and are custom-scoped, and we will tell you plainly what we would do first.
Related pages from the US team
Dental marketing agency USA
How Ichelon Consulting US runs dental marketing engagements.
Dental agency contract checklist
Terms to settle before you sign, from data ownership to notice periods.
Dental agency RFP template
A copy-ready request for proposal to compare agencies fairly.
Dental marketing audit checklist
Check your Google profile, website, tracking and follow-up yourself.
Every practice welcome — Goals-Driven engagements from $499/mo
We benchmark your last 90 days, agree monthly goals with you, and track them live on Ichelon Agency OS with a report every Monday. Performance-Linked Payout Models are available. Our US leadership is based in Dallas, and strategy calls run in US business hours.
Common questions
How long does it take to onboard a dental marketing agency?
Setup usually takes about 30 days: access, a signed Business Associate Agreement, a tracking audit and an agreed baseline. Quick wins and first campaigns follow in days 31–60. By day 90 you should see booked new patients by channel and a plan for the next quarter.
Should a dental marketing agency sign a BAA?
If the agency will see protected health information, such as call recordings, form submissions with patient details or appointment data, HIPAA expects a Business Associate Agreement before that access begins. Sign it in the first week of onboarding, and have your counsel review the wording.
What should a dental practice see after 90 days with a new agency?
A fixed tracking setup, an improved Google Business Profile, live campaigns on one or two priority services, and a report comparing booked new patients and spend by channel against the starting baseline. Long-term SEO results may still be building, but measurement should be complete.
Should ads start in the first week with a new dental marketing agency?
Usually not. Ads launched before the tracking audit and baseline cannot be judged, because you will not know which calls and bookings they produced. Most practices are better served by fixing tracking and the Google profile first, then launching focused campaigns in the second month.
What should a dental practice provide to a new marketing agency?
Logins or user invites for every marketing account, one decision-maker who replies within two business days, a front-desk lead who owns follow-up, priorities by service line, accepted insurance plans, your state board's advertising rules, and time for a weekly 30-minute check-in during the first 90 days.
A note on this guide: it explains marketing practice, not legal advice. Rules on privacy, advertising and insurance change and vary by state, so confirm anything compliance-related with your own counsel.
Want a 90-day plan for your practice?
A 30-minute call with the US team. We will look at your tracking, Google profile and follow-up, and outline what the first 90 days should deliver.
We cover every stage, from first search to repeat visit
- 0Foundations
- 1Demand gen
- 2Capture
- 3Lead quality
- 4Lead mgmt
- 5Scheduling
- 6Show-up
- 7Conversion
- 8Retention
We work across all nine stages, from foundations to past patients, and fix the stage that leaks first. Our own software runs the work, and every stage is reported against a monthly target on Ichelon Agency OS.
See all nine stages and the tool behind each one →