Follow
I just finished delivering a keynote speech to the Academy of Dental CPA’s last week in Kauai.
They asked me to talk about Dental Business Mastery.
Seemed a bit daunting at first thought and this topic may feel a bit stressful to you as well because I know if you are a dentist, most likely, you thought about providing dental services to patients and NOT becoming a Master at the Business of Dentistry!
After thinking about the topic it all seemed quite fun because I started to think about what made me a master at other things I actually enjoy in life. See last weeks blog if you are interested in what I WAS a mater at! Kind of surprised me and I know you have a similar memory to mine. (check back to last weeks blog.)
During the economic decline we had a lot of dentists calling to have me look at the hemorrhage in their schedule.
Oh yes! They were bleeding out patients! I mean at least four holes in the hygiene schedule each day! Many of the dentists who contacted us were down at least $200,000! (BTW: We have many clients who this year, will break 2 million dollars in production without working harder. Yes, you can be one of them. Just call our office to ask how you can do the same. We are taking new clients.)
So how can you prevent this decline from ever happening?
How can you get out of an economic decline you may be experiencing.
First of all, I want to tell you that #1: People buy what they want — no matter what the economy says!
So, I need to ask you: “What can you say and do so that your patients WANT what you offer?”
And my next question is “Do you know what your patients really want?”
You do know that if you never ask “Mr XYZ, how would you like your teeth to look….?” then you will never know what your patient really values about their dental health and how they want their teeth to look.
If you never ask then the answer is “no”.
What answers of HOPE does our team of consultants offer our clients at Dental Practice Solutions?
- We suggest that you in some way and I mean even if in a VERY small way, let your patients know “You Matter!”
This could be something as small as sitting your patient in the chair without a bib for just 90 seconds and asking specific questions about them. This is not a dental question but something to just re-connect or get to know them better.
- Another suggestion is that once a year you have a quick questionnaire to ask your patients how they would like their teeth to look. This is something simple they complete upon check-in and the hygienist reviews with the patient. Short, sweet, yet to the point.
BTW: All Masters have a coach so I do recommend that you get connected with an expert.
These are just a few suggestions and if you want more please DOWNLOAD our VALUES AND BENEFITS eBOOK with elegant communication styles and scripts to make your own and plan to ask us how we can help you be at your next level of success.
ABOUT DEBBIE
In 2000, Debbie founded Dental Practice Solutions, a dental practice management business focused on creating profitable dental hygiene departments, as well as improving the total bottom line of the dental practice. She has been named as one of Dentistry Today’s Top Consultants for 10 years in row!
Debbie is a former clinical assistant professor from the University of Southern California where she taught the senior dental hygiene students skills to treat periodontal patients. She also co-taught the practice management course at USC from 200o-2002. (Until the school start PBL – Problem Based Learning) Debbie also wrote the accreditation for a new dental hygiene program in Portland, Oregon and is a former dental hygiene program director.
Debbie has a team of experts to guide teams throughout the world to provide quality, patient centered practices that sustain profits for the life of their dental practice.