The Shopping Zone

communication new patients Aug 16, 2019

Come with us, if you will, on a journey across the universe. A journey to a place where dentist-patient relationships don’t matter, and where best practices are out the window. Buckle up, because we’re about to enter… The Shopping Zone.

Consider, for a moment, The Shopper. He needs a crown. He’s not looking for the best crown. He’s looking for the cheapest crown. He’s on a race to the bottom.

Now, meet Betty. She’s worked in the dental office for 25 years, and frankly is counting the days until she can ditch the place. Here’s how she handles The Shopper:

“Dentist’s office.”

“Hey, how much are your crowns?”
“$795. We ship them overseas.”

“Okay, thanks.”

And the patient was never heard from again.

Let’s go to the other side of the universe and meet Nancy. Nancy loves her job, and is curious about patients. Let’s see how she handles The Shopper:

“Thank you for calling...

5 Steps To Increase Dental Patient Referrals To Your Dental Practice You Can Do Right Now

new patients Aug 02, 2019

Dental patient referrals represent an important way to grow your practice, but a lot of dentists struggle to achieve them on a consistent basis. By following just a few steps, you can increase your referrals and grow your practice, leading to a more vibrant and profitable business.

Below Are Five Steps To Increase Dental Patient Referrals To Your Practice:

Be on time: When you are not on time, it communicates to your patient that you don’t care. No matter what words are coming out of your mouth, your ability to be on time is essential when developing a relationship with a patient. When you are on time, you show respect to your patient and establish trust more quickly.
Say please and thank you: Establish a culture of gratitude not only with your patients, but also with your team. Great companies and billion-dollar brands prioritize the idea of saying please and thank you so that their customers know they are valued and appreciated. Get your entire...

The Secret To Success In Dentistry

motivation Jul 22, 2019

What’s Your Secret?

Are you fascinated by successful people? It’s inspiring and interesting to see people who are successful in dentistry, successful in finance and successful in health. Interacting with successful people often makes you wonder what you can do to achieve similar levels of success both at your practice and in your personal life.

Here’s what you are going to find. When talking to anyone who has ever been successful at anything, they’ll be dying to answer you if you ask them: “What’s your secret?” It’s never 22 different things. Rather, anyone who is truly successful will go: “I do three things—here they are.”

Systems For Success

I was on a flight not too long ago. After boarding, a young family with three little girls came down the aisle. As a father of three not-so-little girls myself, I have a special place in my heart for young families with little girls.

They came down the aisle looking...

3 Steps To Add More New Patients To Your Dental Practice

new patients Jul 02, 2019

Did you know that only one third of all new dental patients calling a dental office today will actually schedule an appointment? What if you improved that figure to one-half or three-quarters and add more new patients to your dental practice?

Even that small change would have a dramatic effect on your practice—and it’s not out of reach. With just three simple steps, you can increase the rate of new patients you bring on board each month:

Here Are The 3 Steps To Add More New Dental Patients To Your Practice:

Collect the data: The first step is to collect the relevant data so that you can analyze it and make a plan. Have one of your team members collect the data and present it to you on a weekly basis. You need to track how many calls you get in a week, how many calls each week are actually answered, how many calls are returned and how many calls are converted into new dental patients. These insights will inform your plan.
Analyze the data points: Once you have...

Starbucks, And All Its Combinations

practice systems Jul 01, 2019

Do you know how many different possible combinations there are to Starbucks drinks? If you look on Starbucks’ website, you’ll learn that there are 87,000 possible permutations.

Now, Starbucks may not be the world’s best coffee, but it’s pretty good. And it’s pretty consistent. If you look at the side of a Starbucks cup, each one of them has six squares on the label. Howard Schultz says Starbucks’ entire business plan is on the side of that cup. Each one of those squares is a differentiating component of how the coffee is made.

An employee scribbles on the side of the cup and passes it along to the person who’s making the drink. They don’t make eye contact, they don’t look at each other and they don’t even talk. Using the systems on the side of the cup, they’re able to accurately and efficiently communicate which one of the 87,000 possible combinations they’re serving.

In downtown Kansas City, they have one of...

Creating An In-House Dental Membership Plan

practice financials/metrics practice systems Apr 15, 2019

There are a number of ways in which dental practices can benefit from establishing their own in-house dental membership programs. As opposed to operating within an insurance network, practices that manage their own in-house programs are able to dictate the policies and discounts that they offer to patients. In-house memberships allow you to provide the best discounts to your patients, while maintaining the freedom and flexibility of a fee-for-service business model.

In-house memberships are also a predictable source of revenue for your dental practice. The memberships operate on a monthly subscription basis, which means that you’re generating income off of patients even during months in which you’re not rendering services to them. If you offer a $35 monthly subscription with 300 subscribers, you’re earning $10,500 each month in revenue. Creating a membership program at your practice can help you establish a more consistent cash flow.

This consistent revenue flow...

SCHEDULE HOLES? ALWAYS FALLING BEHIND? “WHY” THIS FIX WORKS.

practice systems Apr 09, 2019

The dentist didn’t mince his words…

“We can’t write worth a *#%!”

The doctor was lamenting that no one in his practice was actually capable of “authoring” the detailed systems they were lacking.

The truth is, great writing skills aren’t what set strong practices apart from those that struggle with systems. The key is working as a team to identify the “why” behind your challenges.

In the video above, we’ve detailed methods we use with new clients to help them identify and list their strengths and weaknesses. In no time, they’re shoring up the systems that are in need of review, revision, or even creation.

If you are constantly falling behind, is it because patients regularly show up late? Is the doctor is constantly behind? Are you not blocking enough units for your most-performed procedures (if that’s the case, we have a detailed, free time study kit for you)!

Whatever the problems with your...

Setting Goals For The Success Of Your Practice

leadership motivation Apr 08, 2019

Goals are essential in every area of our lives As a dentist, goals help align your priorities, plan for the future and ensure you are on the right path to achieve clear objectives in the near and distant future.

Unfortunately, many dentists struggle with goal setting—and their practices suffer as a result. The good news is that there are a few questions you can consider to help improve your goal setting and get your practice on the right track.

What Are Your Goals?

Asking what your goals are might seem like a fairly obvious question, but a lot of practices fail to critically evaluate where they are and where they want to go. You might have a few ideas of accomplishments you would like to pursue, but without clearly defined goals, you are unlikely to have the direction you need to get there. Ask yourself where you want to be in the next quarter, the next year or the next five years, and begin building a list of some goals you would like to achieve in those various periods...

Selling Your Practice? Ensure Smooth Transitions With These Tips

practice systems Apr 01, 2019

If you’re thinking about selling your practice (or even foresee it happening in the distant future), one of the first things you’ll want to do is create a transition plan. This plan is crucial for the smooth execution of a business deal, ensuring that both you and your buyer get through the process without wasting time and money.

One of the biggest mistakes I see dental practice owners make when they try to sell is failing to have a transition strategy in place. No matter where you are in your journey, you should at least put thought into this type of plan so that you’re prepared when transition day finally comes.

What Makes A Solid Transition Plan?

There are two main parts to a seller’s transition plan. First, are you really ready to sell? Second, if you are ready, have you walked through all the details of the transaction with the buyer to ensure you are on the same page?

A lot of issues can arise because you didn’t discuss them on the front...

7 Reasons Why Your Patients Cancel Appointments

cancellations Mar 25, 2019

One of the few things dentists dislike more than spaces in teeth are spaces in their schedules.

In dentistry, cancellations can be extremely problematic. While it is common for dentists to experience occasional cancellations from patients, there are some practices in which cancellations have become the norm.

If you are experiencing more cancellations than you think is healthy, you must find ways to curb the problem. Not only do cancellations impede your profit, but they also cost your practice money. When you are working, you want to be as productive as possible so that you can care for your patients, ensure the health of your practice and make the most of your downtime outside the office.

To help you prevent these issues, consider a few of the reasons why your patients are cancelling in the first place:

You lack a good system: You teach people how to treat you, and if you are not demonstrating to your patients the value of your time and the importance keeping...

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Below Are Five Steps To Increase Dental Patient Referrals To Your Practice:

What’s Your Secret?

Systems For Success

Here Are The 3 Steps To Add More New Dental Patients To Your Practice:

What Are Your Goals?

What Makes A Solid Transition Plan?

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