Chris Pistorius (00:01.198)
Hey everybody, welcome to today’s episode. I’m thrilled to introduce our guest, Dr. Sable Staller, an orthodontist practicing in New York who’s revolutionizing how we think about dental education and patient care altogether. Dr. Staller brings a unique combination of clinical excellence and digital innovation to the field of orthodontics. It’s really cool what she’s doing on social media and I really want to get into that a little bit more, but.
Just a little history after earning her bachelor of science in biology from the University of Buffalo. no, Buffalo. I didn’t read that. Don’t tell me. Don’t tell me you’re a Bills fan though, right?
Sable (00:34.604)
So cold. I’m not, I’m an Eagles fan, weirdly.
Chris Pistorius (00:39.534)
Gosh, it’s worse anyway. It’s going to be a quick one folks. No, just kidding. Doctor Staller went on to graduate with top academic standing from Indiana University School of Dentistry, where she also completed her specialized orthodontic residency with board level training. But what I think really sets Doctor Staller apart is how she’s bridging the gap between the dental chair and the digital world.
Sable (00:43.604)
You
Chris Pistorius (01:02.964)
As you guys, if you listen to my episode, you know I’m always kind of harping on this, but she’s gone out and done it. I think she’s going to be a great example of what maybe give you guys some ideas of what you can do and how you can get started. So Doctor Staller, welcome to the show. I appreciate your time.
Sable (01:19.154)
Yeah, thanks for having me and thanks for all the kind words. I appreciate it.
Chris Pistorius (01:22.816)
Of course, of course yes. So if nobody here is watching or listening has heard of Doctor Staller, go look her up on social media and that she’s kind of got the blueprint for how to use. I believe anyway, social media, the digital world to, you know, really help her not only as a business but just kind of as a brand as a person. So Doctor Staller, maybe you could start off by, you know, we’ve got. We’ve got clients here at Kickstart that are a little camera shy. There are little social media shy. And sometimes it’s like pulling teeth. Yes, I said it. Getting them to do social media of any kind. Maybe you could just tell us your experience, how you got started and, you know, just what it’s done for you so far.
Sable (02:03.176)
Yeah, absolutely. So I mean, I really got started. So I was in orthodontic residency from 2019 to 2021. And so that was like the heart of the pandemic, right? And so when I was at home, while we weren’t able to learn to go to school or work, I was seeing, you know, the Bentis blow up and all these other doctors on social media. And I’m like, wait, I can be posting too. Like I’m learning this stuff right now. I can teach people and…
I also in the back of my head, know, I’m originally from Indiana. I wanted to move to New York City or to a big city. And I know how expensive that is and I know how hard that is to do. So I think that was always a driving factor for me where I was like, this is going to be like my digital footprint that I can take with me wherever I go. And why not start it when I’m in residency? Who knows what’s going to come of it? Like no one had any idea what TikTok would become.
But I knew it could help me in some way because, you know, with dentistry, there’s corporate dentistry, there’s so many different routes you can take, but what you can always take with you is like your own personal social media. And so I think that I just like recognize that right away and it really like inspired me to just start posting at that time and then to just keep posting from there. That’s how I ended up here today.
Chris Pistorius (03:26.274)
Wow, that’s awesome. So I think the takeaway there folks is kind of an aha moment for me is you’re absolutely right. If you’re an associate, if you’re working for another practice, this is, even if you don’t have your own practice, this is a brand you’re creating for your own identity so that if you do go out and buy a practice or start one from scratch, guess what? You’ve already got some of these marketing assets in place and it can give you a really quick start. So I think that’s amazing that you would think of that and, you know, be able to leverage that type of an asset. How much time do you think it takes you on a weekly basis, monthly basis to really fully engage in this stuff and really make it worth your while?
Sable (03:57.894)
Yeah. Yeah. Well, I think now I pretty much have it down to a science. I mean, I’m always looking for different ways to grow because social media is always changing. It was so different when I started than now. But, you know, I feel like I spend like at least 30 minutes a day, if not more, probably more than that, but at least 30 minutes, like every day I’m in the office at least. I’ll either film right before I leave for the office or right before my lunch or right before lunch is over.
Chris Pistorius (04:11.278)
Yeah.
Sable (04:37.154)
Adding in little bits of time here and there where you can just take content while you’re in your scrubs or while you’re in your white coat at the office, all of that really does add up over time. Just kind of working out if you can just do a little bit every day. It really adds up. So I probably spend seven to 10 hours a week, I would say, on social media. Today is my off day, so I’ve spent doing this podcast, catching up on all my social media emails, doing other content that maybe I can’t do on days that I’m in the office, so stuff like that. So I would say seven to 10 hours a week is probably where it comes out, depending on how busy I am at the office.
Chris Pistorius (05:07.566)
Nice.
Chris Pistorius (05:19.714)
Well, my kids do that like every day, so that’s really not. That’s really not that much. Well, that’s cool, but I think it’s, you know, I think you’re right. You know, once you get into a routine and you kind of, you know, what you’re going to shoot and you know how you’re going to shoot it, and, you know, you get better at things after you do them longer and you become more efficient. So it doesn’t always have to be like you’re learning it for the first time and trying to figure out how to do all this stuff. So, you know, so maybe it’s not, you know, an overwhelming task for a lot of people.
Sable (05:21.946)
Yeah.
…
Chris Pistorius (06:03.918)
Yeah, I mean, I just, I can’t express enough how much, important social media is. I feel like, like even I keep track of all the patients I get from social media, just so I can see for myself, for the office and everything. And like in January alone, had over 15 people from TikTok come to my office. And like, that’s a crazy number.
Chris Pistorius (06:26.637)
Are you kidding me?
Are you running paid ads with that at all or is that all organic? My goodness. That’s insane. Wow.
Sable (06:32.784)
No, it was all organic. Yeah, I didn’t run one ad in January for my… Yeah, so and I make sure too, because I want to make sure I’m like, you know, because sometimes it is from a Google ad or other things. But those were all specifically like from my personal TikTok. And like, I think that that is like crazy. And I don’t think people believe it when they hear it. And like when I talked to a lot of people in marketing or, you know, people that…
Chris Pistorius (06:46.435)
Yeah.
Sable (07:01.976)
Have been in dental marketing for a long time. Like it is really hard to track things with TikTok especially the reach you’re getting and if patients are actually coming from it. But like if you just believe in it and post in it, people really do come and they really do see your videos. And I mean, it has grown. So I started up my office in April and our practice has like tripled what it was doing. And it’s…
Most of it is from social media and just getting the office out there, showing people what the office looks like. That is a big one because think about it, anytime you go to the doctor, everyone’s a little nervous, like, I’ve never been here. What’s it like? Who’s gonna help me when I get there? And so being able to show people that online, I think it really does.
Chris Pistorius (07:35.756)
Yeah.
