Today, June 1st, is an important day for many of you. For others, it was the first of May as their official “restart.” It’s been two full months (one sixth of your year) that you’ve been on the sidelines and now you’re back!
Whether this is DAY NUMBER ONE or MONTH NUMBER TWO doesn’t matter; the point of my message remains pertinent.
This was true ten years ago, three months ago, and last week. It will be true next week, next year, and ten more years after that…
Remember why patients come to your practice.
I have long said that, in the mind of a patient, they can get “what you do” anywhere. In the minds of even the best patients, they don’t understand the uniqueness behind the dentistry. They simply can’t tell the difference.
You can, I can, your peers can, but they can’t, at least most of them. Depending on what you’ve actually done in their mouths, the what is NOT the reason they keep showing up or the reason they showed up in the first place.
If you’ve done it right, it is the WHO. It is you and your team. It is the RELATIONSHIP.
Even for our Specialists out there seeing basically all “new patients” each and every day, they aren’t referred for the what because once again there are alternatives – they are referred because of the WHO.
You can never forget this.
To forget it is to diminish your greatest asset, to minimize your most extraordinary differentiation factor, and to do a disservice to your patients.
Anything other than the things that make you different – make you the same.
So, accentuate your greatest strengths: the people inside your practice and the relationship you have with your patients. That is why emotional connection on the phone matters because we set the tone from the very first moment that you are different.
Remember that every day is important just like every patient matters and every visit counts. This is especially important today and in the near term. We really must pay attention to what Patients visit your office for.
They are not here for… gossip, news, safety protocols, virus lectures, to waste their time, to sit in their car, to have empathy for all the changes, and to have patience for the precautions you are dealing with.
None of these things matter in the patients’ minds. Of course, some might bring them up but remember this is what you do as a profession. They have their own jobs with stressors, life objectives, challenges, and priorities. They have a long list of “get it done” while they are managing going back to work, teaching their kids, and getting reacquainted with their live outside their house.
When they walk into your practice, they are there for four key reasons:
1. Human connection… back to relationships
2. Positivity and an enriching environment
3. To get and stay healthy (have an amazing smile, eliminate pain, etc.)
4. To accomplish something, to make progress, to get something done, and to be guided on what that should be
Of course, that is broad, as I intended it to be because you can fit a lot into those four. Once again, my point is simple: remember why they are there (ask them if you need to), and help them through all of these things.
Do not get caught up or fixated on the timing of your visit or your guidelines or your questions or whatever else. Instead, stay focused on the patient and on your core four principles and objectives.
While you are behind a mask or shield or glass (or whatever you’ve got separating you from the raw genuine human engagement that matters so much), remember you have to double down on really connecting, making them feel comfortable, giving them your positive energy, and recommit to making this the best visit they have ever had with you at your practice.
The bottom line is: make the most of it, make the most of their time with you, make the most of their relationship with you, and make the most their goals for themselves.
I know you have to worry about PPE (and PPP and other P acronyms), but don’t forget there is only one P that truly matters…
PEOPLE
You thought I was going to say Patients but they aren’t the only ones involved here now are they – it’s about you too. The patients come for you and for those four goals that every visit must accomplish.
I’m sure it feels great to be back with patients. Just remember why they are there and who they come for. Make the most of this amazing comeback opportunity by ensuring every visit count and every patient matters.
