I’d like to bring our conversation about specialty growth and expansion of procedures and services in your practice to a conclusion today by talking to you about the reality of new patients.
Yes, I have this conversation literally every day because it is what most Doctors say they want and are in need of the most.
Sometimes (and I emphasize some), it is completely true.
The people who are most in need of new patients are those who aren’t keeping the new patients they are getting, aren’t cultivating long term relationships and therefore not getting much dentistry out of each individual patient’s mouth.
Here’s where we can all agree: the way to make more money in your practice is to do more dentistry – plain and simple.
There is no law that says the more patients you see the more money you make because you don’t get paid for people passing through your office; you earn money by providing more value by utilizing your expertise.
This requires more than just volume.
Certainly, you need a steady and consistent new patient flow. And for our specialists, they want to continue to leverage that number because they do not have other sources of opportunity like other general based practices do.
If we stay focused on this reality: more dentistry equals more money; then you will want to pay close attention to these key principles. I call these the principles for comprehensive care and profitable dentistry.
1st – You must develop relationships with patients so that they are coming to you because of who you are, not just because of what you do
This means there has to be strategy with a real system in place to cultivate and nurture relationships from the first phone call, referral, visit and all the way through the completion of treatment and into hygiene (if that is your objective).
Relationship matters because anything but that and you become a commodity where patients will default to other means of making decisions.
If you do not keep new patients in your practice and turn them into a regular patient or even move them through a few more steps then you are really missing out on the big opportunities here.
New Patients can and will accept full mouth treatment on the first go around if you have a system engineered to make it possible – however – the majority of people will require time to incubate and to experience your integrity and consistency in order to become ready to accept the vision you have for their mouths and themselves.
Many practices miss the boat on this because they are so desperate trying to turn a few thousand dollars (or a few hundred) out of every single patient that they do not do what is necessary to keep the patient engaged past this first transaction. Therefore, they leave a lot of money on the table or I should say in their patients mouths.
2nd – Expanding entry points into your practice through the niches we have been discussing … and this can be any specialty at all – and it doesn’t even mean you have to do them, I have general dentists who market implants but refer them out but they capture the patient and they got the patient interested for what they wanted but kept them in the practice for the overall vision and goal.
I can promise you that one of the ways to increase your income without the need for a lot more patients is by expanding your services and procedures.
However, don’t be fooled by all the gimmicks and pushes for new this-and-that, equipment of all sizes and procedures that you get excited but do not know how to properly integrate into your practice.
You must first and always decide what is my desired outcome and objective for what I’m doing and considering right now.
Most doctors (not you I’m certain), do not think through things clearly and identify how something is going to impact their actual profit, their schedule flow, their business structure and life autonomy.
Everything does have an impact for positive or negative, for better or worse.
3rd and finally, I believe this is so critical, you must commit to a culture of engagement with your patients that is both educational and interactive so they feel something as they are going through their experience in your practice.
Yes, I mean feel something emotionally. I’d even use other words here (if you can comprehend how visiting a dentist’s office can be spiritually or moving).
Well, it doesn’t have to be your thing, but I promise you when a patient becomes emotionally engaged with your team and your office they won’t bring up insurance, they won’t second guess you, they won’t price shop you, they will be moved and compelled to say yes.
I have great news… I’m going to be unveiling an advanced training about this very topic – engagement and interactivity within your patient experience and how to educate to compel instead of having to sell to convince. The result will be ending up with so much more dentistry per patient and ability to really help them achieve optimal healthy.
Remember this: it has to be about more than just teeth, it has to be about more than just dentistry.
Relationship creates Retention.
Procedures expand Opportunity.
Education drives Acceptance.
Grow each of these and you will have incredible success within your practice without needing to rely on some giant, hard-to-sustain new patient number that is typically comprised of unqualified patients for your practice.
Or, go right ahead and get as many new patients as you want – just make sure you have these principles in place first. Otherwise you are just wasting time and opportunity as you burn through people that won’t be giving you a second chance.
