October is here, and whether you’re a football fan, spooky decoration enthusiast or simply ready for sweater weather, it’s an exciting transition month full of opportunities to have some seasonal fun while encouraging patients to schedule appointments. From Halloween festivities to Breast Cancer Awareness initiatives, there are plenty of ways to get creative and engage your patients and staff this month. Here’s a roundup of ideas your dental office can try!

Halloween-Themed Fun

• Run a candy trade-in program: Encourage patients to trade in their extra Halloween candy for a small gift, toothbrush or discounted service. It’s a fun way to promote healthy teeth while helping parents manage all that candy!
• Spooky smile photo contest: Invite patients, especially kids, to pose for a photo showing off their smile after their cleanings. Print these out and display them on a board or wall for a silly way to celebrate clean teeth and add a festive touch to the office.
• Costume day at the office: Have staff dress up in fun costumes and encourage patients to do the same. You can even reward patients who join in on the fun and have costumes that really stand out!

Fall and Seasonal

• Pumpkin-themed raffle: Patients who come in for appointments in the month of October get entered into a drawing for a gift basket filled with fall goodies or dental care products. Pumpkin spice candles or cozy blankets are a fall staple.
• A fall health special: Discounted cleanings or check-ups for patients who book in October. Offer bundled services at a discounted rate to promote preventive care before the winter holidays!
• Share your best teeth carving social media challenge: Ask patients and followers to share photos of their carved pumpkins, specifically if they carve faces with mouths/teeth, and tag the practice. Choose one winner or several! Not only can you gain some online engagement, but you can also share all the photos to your own page and spark even more interaction from the local community.

Breast Cancer Awareness Tie-Ins

• Wear pink: Send out communications (like emails, text messages or social media posts) encouraging patients to wear pink during their visit in October. Adding some pink ribbons around the office will tie it together even more. And don’t forget to get staff in on the support! Pink or ribbon themed gloves, masks, scrubs, shoelaces, bracelets or pins are great ways for staff to show support and change up their daily looks!
• Pink partnerships: Partner with local organizations to promote awareness and preventive care for breast cancer, highlight fundraising events or even run a limited time special where a portion of proceeds from the month of October go towards research and initiatives.

The bottom line: With a little creativity, October can be one of the most engaging months of the year for your dental office. Whether you go all in on Halloween, support a great cause or just embrace a cozy autumn charm in your space, a festive office shows patients your personality and spices up their visit!