Dental direct mail in El Cajon:
a new patient plan for dentists

Fletcher Hills (92020)

On the west side next to La Mesa and Grossmont College, Fletcher Hills has single-family homes from the decades after the war on curving streets that climb into the hills. Many owners bought in the 1960s, 70s and 80s and are now retired, while younger families are buying the homes they sell.

• What to offer: implants, dentures and crowns with a free consultation, and whether you accept Medicare Advantage dental plans. A second card for the younger families on the same streets.
• Timing: September for the implant card, before the holidays and the year-end benefits rush.
• How to mail: EDDM®. Most routes are owner-occupied houses, so whole routes reach the people you want for the lowest postage.

Granite Hills (92021)

East of downtown, Granite Hills rises toward the open hills on the city's edge. Much of it is unincorporated county land with El Cajon addresses, with single-family homes from the 1950s through the 80s on larger lots. Long-time owners and families with children both live here.

• What to offer: a practice for every age: checkups and sealants for children, cleanings and whitening for parents, and implants for grandparents.
• How to mail: EDDM® on the single-family routes. Lots are larger, so each route has fewer homes and a mailing goes a little farther from your office.

Rancho San Diego (92019)

South of the city, Rancho San Diego is unincorporated, though most of it shares El Cajon addresses. Built from the 1970s on around Cuyamaca College and the shopping centers along Jamacha Road, it has single-family tracts, many with an HOA, plus condos and townhomes. Many households are families with children at home.

• What to offer: one practice for the whole family, children's checkups and sealants, and aligners or whitening for the parents. Evening and Saturday hours matter to working parents.
• Timing: back-to-school checkups in July and August, and "use your benefits before they reset" in October and November.
• How to mail: EDDM® on the family tracts closest to your office.

The El Cajon side of Mount Helix (92020)

The unincorporated slopes of Mount Helix have custom homes on large hillside lots and winding roads, with views over the valley. Incomes here tend to be higher, and residents are more interested in cosmetic work and implants than in a cleaning special.

• What to offer: whitening, veneers, aligners and implants, with a free consultation. Before and after photos of your own patients, used with permission, sell these services best.
• How to mail: a list filtered by household income. Homes are spread out and routes cross into other neighborhoods, so a list keeps the mailing tight.

Downtown and central El Cajon (92020)

Around Main Street, The Magnolia and the civic center, the oldest parts of the city mix small houses from the 1940s and 50s with apartment buildings and duplexes. It is a neighborhood of working families and renters, where cost and accepted insurance decide which dentist they call.

• What to offer: a clear new patient price, children seen, and the plans you accept, including Medi-Cal Dental if you take it. Saturday hours help.
• Language: many households in El Cajon speak a language other than English at home. If your team speaks Spanish or another language, saying so on the card, or printing a bilingual version, is worth it.
• How to mail: EDDM® to the routes closest to your office. Renters need a dentist too, so whole routes work here for a dental card.

Bostonia and north El Cajon (92021)

North of Broadway toward Gillespie Field and the Santee line, Bostonia mixes single-family streets from the 1950s to the 70s with apartments and several mobile home parks, some of them for residents 55 and older. Families and retirees live side by side, many of them careful with cost.

• What to offer: dentures, repairs and implants for older residents, with Medicare Advantage dental plans and Medi-Cal Dental if you accept them, and gentle care for anxious patients.
• How to mail: EDDM® on the routes around your office, including the mobile home parks, which usually sit on their own routes.

New movers in El Cajon: a monthly mailing

Moving is one of the main reasons people change dentists. In El Cajon that happens every month, in the apartments of the valley, in homes passing from long-time owners to young families, and in the tracts of Rancho San Diego. The table above shows about how many households move to a new home in each ZIP Code in an average month.

1. Choose the area: the new movers within a few miles of your office, usually El Cajon plus the nearest parts of La Mesa, Santee, Lakeside or Spring Valley.
2. Mail every month: each card reaches people within their first weeks in a new home, while they are still choosing.
3. Make it a welcome: "Welcome to El Cajon" with your new patient offer, the insurance you take and how to book.

See how many new movers are on file around your office in our mailing list planner, or ask us for a monthly price. We print and mail them for you every month.

EDDM® or a mailing list in El Cajon?

It depends on how many of the homes on a route could become your patients:

• EDDM® for the neighborhoods around your office. Almost every household needs a dentist, renters included, so for a general or family practice most homes nearby are possible patients. EDDM® reaches them all at the lowest cost per card, in the valley and in the hills.
• A mailing list for a narrower service. Cosmetic work fits Mount Helix, implants fit the long-time residents of Fletcher Hills and Granite Hills. A list filtered by age, income or children reaches them without paying for every home in between.
• New movers every month, on top of either one.

A year of dental mailings in El Cajon

You don't need every mailing. Most El Cajon practices start with the monthly new movers card and one neighborhood mailing, then add the others once they see which brings in patients. Our dental direct mail guide has more offer ideas for each one.

What every El Cajon dental postcard should include

• The dentist or practice name, so it is clear who is offering the service. Dental advertising in California must not be false or misleading.
• "Specialist" only for real specialists. An orthodontist or oral surgeon can say so. A general dentist who offers implants or aligners should describe the service without suggesting a specialty.
• Offers spelled out: what a new patient special includes, who it is for (new patients only, patients without insurance) and when it ends.
• No waived co-pays or deductibles as an offer. That can break dental plan contracts and insurance rules.
• The plans you accept, including Medi-Cal Dental if you take it. For many families it is the first thing they check.
• Where you are in El Cajon, with a landmark people know, your hours and whether you see children, evenings or Saturdays.

These are general points, not legal advice. Your dental association or a healthcare attorney can confirm the exact wording of your offer, and we adjust any design to match.

Get a quote for your El Cajon mailing

Tell us which neighborhoods and services you want to focus on. We'll reply with a price for printing and mailing, and the routes or list we recommend.