Let’s talk about one of the most fundamental, game-changing strategies for building a thriving, profitable, and fulfilling dental practice: The A-Patient Trifecta: Attract, Create, and Multiply.
Most dentists are stuck in a cycle of chasing new patients, hoping for better ones, and complaining about the ones they have. But here’s the truth: You don’t find great patients—you develop them.
If you want a practice that runs smoothly, generates difference-making profit, and gives you the Four Freedoms (Time Freedom, Insurance Freedom, Financial Freedom, and Turnover Freedom), you must intentionally build a base of A-Patients—those who value your expertise, accept comprehensive treatment, refer others like them, and stick with you for the long haul.
This isn’t just about marketing; it’s about transforming how you attract, create, and multiply the right patients for your practice. Let’s break it down.
1. Attraction: The Message You Send is the Patient You Get
The first step to having an A-Patient practice is sending the right message into the world. If your marketing screams “cheap,” “discount,” or “insurance-driven,” don’t be surprised when your schedule is filled with bargain hunters, high-cancellation rates, and low-case acceptance.
I call this Stranger Danger Marketing—bringing in random people who don’t value you and forcing your team to do all the heavy lifting to convert them into quality patients. Instead, you must attract patients who already align with your philosophy—patients who value comprehensive treatment and optimal health.
Your message is like a boomerang: whatever you send out comes back to you. If you market on price and convenience, you’ll attract transactional, insurance-dependent patients. But if you market on expertise, life-changing dentistry, and trust, you’ll attract patients who seek the quality care and are willing to invest in it.
2. Creation: The Experience Makes the Patient
Once you’ve attracted potential A-Patients, your job isn’t done. Now, the Creation phase begins.
From the first phone call to the first visit, every single touchpoint in your practice must be engineered to pre-frame the patient for success. If you let them walk in with an insurance mindset and transactional expectations, they will behave accordingly.
Instead, you need to educate, elevate, and empower them from the start:
- Your front desk isn’t just answering calls; they are positioning you as the expert and setting expectations.
- Your practice environment should reinforce your brand—professional, confident, and inviting.
- Your intake process should filter out the wrong fit and strengthen commitment from the right fit.
- Your comprehensive exam and case presentation should showcase health, function, and beauty, not just fix immediate problems.
A-Patient Creation happens before they ever sit in your chair. This is where you separate yourself from the “fix-it” dentists and move into life-changing dentistry—the kind that commands respect, trust, and high case acceptance.
3. Multiplication: The Secret to Practice Growth Without New Marketing
Now for the goldmine—multiplication. Once you’ve attracted and created A-Patients, it’s time to multiply them into more A-Patients.
Multiplication happens in three ways:
(1) Follow-Up is the #1 Multiplier
Most dentists leave thousands on the table because they don’t follow up enough.
- Every marketing effort should have a follow-up system to convert the leads who didn’t commit immediately.
- Every case presentation should have a follow-up plan for patients who say they need to “think about it.”
- Every unfinished treatment plan should have a reactivation process to bring them back in.
Think of follow-up as a profit multiplier—most patients don’t say yes the first time, but with consistent, value-driven follow-up, they will.
(2) Transformation = Multiplication
Patients refer when they’ve had a life-changing transformation. But too many practices expect referrals without giving patients a story worth sharing.
Instead of just asking for referrals, focus on creating amazing patient experiences that naturally lead to:
- More reviews
- More testimonials
- More organic referrals
The key? Focus on their outcome, not just their treatment. People don’t talk about the crown you placed—they talk about how you restored their confidence, helped them chew without pain, or gave them a reason to smile again.
(3) Referral Multiplication (The Right Way)
If your referral strategy consists of casually asking, “Know anyone who needs a dentist?” you’re doing it wrong.
Instead, engineer referrals into your patient experience:
- Invite spouses and family members to join the first visit.
- Incentivize high-value referrals (not with gimmicky gift cards, but with VIP treatment and recognition).
- Educate your patients on exactly who you want to help—the best patients know other great patients.
The Development of Profitable Patients
Too many practices chase volume instead of value. They fill their schedule with as many people as possible, hoping a few turn into quality patients. That’s backwards.
Instead, build a practice around the top 20% of patients who generate 80% of your revenue. Focus on:
- Quality Over Quantity – Make the goal to attract fewer, better patients who respect your expertise and invest in their health – you don’t need as many patients as possible.
- Value Over Volume – Spend more time with the right patients to cultivate higher value cases instead of rushing through a high volume of appointments.
- Profit Over Production – Focus on the most profitable procedures rather than simply fixating on raw production numbers.
If you want a lifestyle practice that pays you what you deserve while giving you freedom, the answer isn’t more patients. It’s more of the right patients.
If you’re tired of the endless grind of low-value, insurance-driven dentistry, it’s time to change the game.
- Audit your marketing—Are you attracting the right people, or just more bodies in the chair?
- Refine your patient experience—Does every interaction move patients toward higher trust and bigger cases?
- Engineer your multipliers—Are you leveraging follow-up, transformation, and referrals to create exponential growth?
When you shift from chasing patients to developing the right ones, your practice transforms. You’ll work less, make more, and finally build the practice that serves your life—not the other way around.
If you want even more in-depth strategies on building a practice designed for A Patients, then grab your free copy of a brand-new book from my friend Jackie Cullen…
FREE BOOK… Elite Dentistry: A Guide to Attracting Premium Patients
This book is packed with actionable insights to help you position your practice as a trusted and premium option in your area. From strategies to enhance your brand visibility to techniques that attract high-value patients, it’s your step-by-step guide to elevating your practice.
