Agilio’s Andy Sloan explains why, once enquiry handling has been optimised, strategic digital marketing has become the next driver of sustainable practice growth
Demand for private dentistry is creating significant opportunities for practices across the UK. Private dental services now account for around 69% of the UK dentistry market, worth an estimated £8.4 billion.¹ Research also suggests that one in five people in Great Britain accessed private dentistry in 2024, while many NHS patients would consider paying privately to access treatment more quickly.¹
Why more enquiries are not always better
As more patients explore private care, success depends on attracting the right patients. For years, marketing success was measured largely by volume: more traffic was expected to generate more enquiries, more appointments and, ultimately, more revenue.
The reality is that every enquiry consumes valuable time. Some come from patients seeking treatments you do not provide, while others are focused solely on price or are simply not the right fit for your practice.
Consider two enquiries received on the same morning. One comes from a patient looking for the cheapest available appointment, with little interest in ongoing care. The other is from someone actively researching orthodontic treatment, who has explored your website, read your reviews and understands the value of your expertise. Both count as enquiries but one is likely to become the kind of patient your practice wants to build its future around.
That is why many successful practices are beginning to ask a new question. Rather than focusing solely on how many enquiries they receive, they are considering whether they are attracting the right enquiries in the first place.
The growth challenge has moved upstream
Today’s prospective patients rarely choose the first practice they find. Instead, they compare providers, read reviews, explore websites, browse social media and increasingly use AI-powered search to answer questions before deciding who to trust.²
That shift has fundamentally changed the role of marketing. It is no longer simply about raising awareness or generating website traffic. Increasingly, it determines whether a practice is visible, credible and relevant at the precise moment prospective patients are deciding who to trust.
By the time they submit an enquiry, patients have often formed strong opinions about which practice feels right for them. In fact, Agilio’s analysis of more than 1.8 million patient enquiries found that only 3% of prospective patients are ready to book immediately. The remaining 97% need trust, time and consistent follow-up before committing to treatment.³
Many practices have already invested heavily in improving enquiry handling, response times and lead conversion. Those improvements remain essential, but once they are in place, the next opportunity for growth lies much earlier in the patient journey. Strategic digital marketing increasingly determines which prospective patients find your practice in the first place, influencing not only enquiry volume but also patient intent and long-term practice growth.
Recognising that sustainable growth begins with attracting the right enquiries, Agilio expanded its practice growth portfolio with The Fresh, extending its support beyond enquiry management to patient acquisition.
The Fresh combines specialist dental marketing expertise with a deep understanding of how modern practices attract new patients, helping practices attract higher-quality enquiries from prospective patients with genuine intent.
From visibility to value
Reaching prospective patients consistently requires more than occasional advertising or a redesigned website. As patients increasingly research treatment options online before deciding which practice to contact, visibility at those key moments has become a significant competitive advantage.
By bringing together search engine optimisation (SEO), pay-per-click (PPC) and paid social campaigns, The Fresh helps practices build that visibility among prospective patients who are actively comparing providers and deciding where to seek care.
Success is therefore becoming less about attracting the greatest number of website visitors and more about attracting potential patients with genuine intent. That approach delivers measurable commercial benefits. Practices working with The Fresh typically achieve a 40–60% uplift in new patient acquisition, while the average value of each new patient increases from around £600 to between £700 and £900 through better-qualified enquiries.⁴
Where growth begins
For years, practices have focused on improving what happens after an enquiry is received. Increasingly, however, the greatest opportunity for growth lies before that enquiry is ever made.
With demand for private dentistry continuing to grow, the opportunity is clear. Practices that position themselves to attract prospective patients already looking for the care they provide will be best placed to capitalise on that demand.
By strengthening visibility among prospective patients at key moments in their decision-making journey, The Fresh helps practices attract better-quality enquiries that, when combined with effective enquiry handling, create stronger foundations for long-term growth.
The right patients rarely find the right practice by chance. They find practices that have made it easy to be found.
Book a discovery call with The Fresh to discover how specialist dental marketing can help your practice attract more of the patients you want to treat and support sustainable long-term growth. Simply visit: https://agiliosoftware.com/dental/igrow
About the Author
Andy Sloan, Managing Director – Dental, Agilio.
Andy was appointed MD of Agilio Dental in December 2022, bringing over 15 years of senior leadership experience across the dental industry both on the supply side as well as within corporate groups. Before Agilio, Andy was Business Development Director for Portman Dental Care, overseeing over 100 practice acquisitions, and Director of Business Solutions at Henry Schein where he held responsibility for Practice Brokerage, Financial Services and Business Solutions across 11 European markets.
References
- Competition and Markets Authority. CMA launches review of private dentistry. GOV.UK. Published 5 March 2026. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-launches-review-of-private-dentistry. Accessed 3 August 2026
- Goodwin D. Google AI Overviews CTR shows early signs of recovery: Study. Search Engine Land. Published 24 April 2026. Available at: https://searchengineland.com/google-ai-overviews-ctr-recovery-study-475566. Accessed 3 August 2026
- Agilio. iGrow. Analysis of more than 1.8 million patient enquiries. Available at: https://agiliosoftware.com/dental/igrow/. Accessed 3 August 2026
- Agilio. Measurable Impact: How iGrow Transforms Dental Practice Performance. Available at: https://agiliosoftware.com/measurable-impact-how-igrow-transforms-dental-practice-performance/. Accessed 3 August 2026
