What the Smartest NYC Subway Ad Teaches About Dental Marketing

If you’ve ever been on the New York City subway, you already know the experience.

Crowded.

Loud.

And usually… it smells terrible.

But right now, one part of the subway system is different. Instead of the usual “city tunnel” smell, commuters walk through vanilla and fresh pine.

This isn’t an accident. It’s a Bath & Body Works campaign inside the 42nd Street shuttle area.

They didn’t just buy more poster space. They pumped their holiday fragrance into the tunnel so people literally walk through the scent.

For a few seconds, the whole tunnel feels different.

People might not stop to read the ad copy. They might not consciously process the logo.

But their brain remembers how it felt to be in that space.

That’s the brand in the air.

And that’s exactly where most dental marketing misses the mark.

Why This Subway Ad Works (And What It Has To Do With Your Dental Practice)

Most traditional advertising tries to be louder: More visuals. More text. More offers.

Bath & Body Works did something smarter. They changed the experience of being in that environment.

They took a space people already move through every day and made it:

• Less unpleasant
• More memorable
• Emotionally linked to their product

They didn’t just show a product. They let commuters feel the brand.

That is the same mindset great dental practice marketing needs.

Your ideal dental patients will probably never walk through that scented subway tunnel. But they are walking through your digital and physical world right now.

Your Patient’s Journey Is Your Real Dental Marketing

For most people, the first step in their patient journey is not your front desk.

It’s your website and your online presence:

• How it felt when your homepage loaded
• How clearly your dental services were explained
• How easy it was to book a dental appointment or contact your office
• How your confirmation and follow-up messages sounded

This is all part of your dental marketing strategy, whether you call it that or not.

Patients don’t sit down and analyze your fonts and brand colors.

But they will remember:

• “That dentist’s website made me feel calm, not overwhelmed.”
• “It was really easy to schedule my child’s appointment.”
• “Their messages sounded human, not like a robot.”

Bath & Body Works didn’t just show a brand in the subway. They made people feel it in motion.

Your goal as a dentist, orthodontist, or healthcare practice is the same: Design a patient journey that feels clear, easy, and human.

The First Impression: Your Dental Website Homepage

From a dental marketing perspective, your homepage is your “tunnel.”

It’s the moment your brand either creates trust… or confusion.

When a nervous new patient lands on your dentist website, ask:

• Do they know within a few seconds who you are, who you help, and what to do next?
• Or do they feel lost, overwhelmed, and unsure where to click?

A simple change can dramatically improve that first impression:

Add a short, honest welcome video

Not a stiff, overproduced commercial.

A short video on your homepage that:

• Shows your clinic environment
• Introduces your dental team as real people
• Briefly explains what happens at the first visit
• Speaks directly to the concerns of your ideal patient (for example: parents of kids 4–8, adults anxious about treatment, busy professionals)

You’re doing what Bath & Body Works did in the subway tunnel:

You’re letting new patients feel what it’s like to enter your dental practice before they commit.

This matters even more for Millennial and Gen Z parents, who are:

• Making decisions on their phones
• Used to video content
• Highly sensitive to how something “feels” online before they trust it

Your dental website is not just a digital brochure.

It’s an emotional environment.

The Invisible Details That Make or Break Trust

Effective dental marketing isn’t only about driving more traffic. It’s about what happens once that traffic arrives.

Tiny touchpoints send strong signals:

• Is your phone number easy to find?
• Is your “Request Appointment” form short and simple?
• Does your online booking process feel smooth or frustrating?
• Do your confirmation and reminder messages sound like a human or like a system?

Compare these two examples:

“Your appointment is confirmed. Reply STOP to unsubscribe.”

Vs

“Hi Sara, we’re excited to see Emma tomorrow at 3 PM. Here’s where to park and what to expect in the first 10 minutes.”

Same technology. Very different patient experience.

In a competitive local market like Northern Virginia dental practices, these details separate “just another dentist” from “this office really gets it.”

A Simple Filter For Your Dental Marketing: Clear, Easy, Human

You don’t need a scent machine or a full remodel to improve your marketing.

Start by looking at your patient journey through this filter:

1. Clear

• Can a new visitor understand your main services (family dentistry, orthodontics, implants, Invisalign, etc.) and what to do next in under 10 seconds?

2. Easy

• Can someone book or contact your practice quickly, from a phone, without friction?

3. Human

• Does your content sound like a real dentist and team in Northern Virginia, or like generic stock copy any clinic could use?

If the answer is “no” on any of these, you’ve found an opportunity to improve your dental marketing funnel without spending more on ads.

Bath & Body Works turned a smelly New York tunnel into a small moment of comfort and surprise.

You can turn your digital touchpoints into the same: moments where patients feel:

• “This is clear.”
• “This is easy.”
• “These people seem human and approachable.”

That’s the kind of marketing people remember.

(You can drop a short “about us” or internal link block here, e.g. “At The Herd Marketing, we help dentists and healthcare practices in Northern Virginia use AI and smart content to design patient journeys that feel clear, easy, and human.”)