As you might expect, consumers are only getting more skeptical.\u00a0 Of everything, every interaction, with everyone.\u00a0 You can focus on many causes.\u00a0 Social Media being one, regular (if you can call it that) Media being another, the internet in general another and too many other reasons to list.<\/p>\n
This is our reality.\u00a0 And we haven\u2019t even begun talking about dentistry yet.\u00a0 Just the nature of consumers\u2019 mind and their lack of belief and trust over anything and anyone who is providing a service no matter how valuable.\u00a0 They are taught to be skeptical and to believe that they are going to be disappointed, taken advantage of and let down in some way.<\/p>\n
We have zero control over what people say and now anyone can make up anything they want and harm you, even if it is not true.<\/p>\n
We do have control over what people believe about you though and that\u2019s why building trust matters.\u00a0 Because there is no belief without trust.\u00a0 No trust without belief.\u00a0 These things work together hand in hand and I gave you seven key ways to build both of them last week right here.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s talk specifically about the up hill battle you face every day with your patients.<\/p>\n
Aside from the fact that most patients would prefer to NOT need, let alone go to, the Dentist and they certainly don\u2019t want to allocate part of their money, income, savings to dentistry either.\u00a0 So, we begin with the deck stacked against us.<\/p>\n
Now, more than ever before, you are susceptible to online reviews, social media posts, corporations, insurance and usually the combination of all of these things all at once.<\/p>\n
Add on top of that the blanket of stereotypes that dentists receive because NOT ALL DENTISTS are created equal or CARE enough to practice with complete integrity.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, many patients don\u2019t first find the right practice and have all kinds of bad experiences; whether that\u2019s a problem in their mouths left to get worse by a bashful or unknowledgeable dentist, poor work that\u2019s been done that has failed, or worse yet work that was unnecessary to begin with.<\/p>\n
These are all things that patients have gone through before they get to you.\u00a0 You know because you deal with this dynamic every day and often fix the leftover problems.<\/p>\n
Now, I\u2019m not here to bad mouth ANY Dentist, but I also know though that I don\u2019t have any of \u2018those\u2019 Dentists reading this right now.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the point: you must approach your patients from their perspective and experience \u2013 NOT yours.<\/p>\n
You will never achieve the greatest number of loyal patients that are committed to comprehensive treatment plans unless you commit to achieving the trust factor first.<\/p>\n
And you can\u2019t create trust if you don\u2019t first understand where patients are coming from and what they expect from you, even if they can\u2019t articulate it themselves.<\/p>\n
Trust matters because it\u2019s essential in order for a patient to open their minds to really believing you have their best interest at heart and that you are not just scamming them into treatment that they don\u2019t understand.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the thing about all of this\u2026<\/p>\n
On top of societal problems,<\/p>\n
On top of industry stereotypes,<\/p>\n
On top of past experiences\u2026<\/p>\n
You also have patients who are knowingly incompetent about dentistry and therefore automatically skeptical about any and all of it.\u00a0 At least until they have reason to believe otherwise and to trust you.<\/p>\n
If you have not fully built trust with your patients and you were to proceed with telling them about problems and then asking them for money then you never really give the patients a chance to say yes because the little voice in their heads are saying \u201cwait, stop, hold on, think about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
And you will immediately think they just don\u2019t want it, but the reality is they just aren\u2019t ready to fully trust you that it\u2019s what they \u2018need\u2019 \u2018want\u2019 and \u2018deserve\u2019 \u2013 the three things that must past through patients\u2019 minds before they are ready to believe and agree, own and commit, pay and proceed.<\/p>\n
Now, please don\u2019t take this next part personal, at least not yet.\u00a0 Patients NOT trusting you BEFORE they engage and experience you is NOT your fault; patients NOT trusting you AFTER their engagement and experience with you IS your fault.\u00a0 And that\u2019s what we are going to fix.<\/p>\n
Grow case acceptance by creating more trust.<\/p>\n
Grow profitable dentistry by creating more trust.<\/p>\n
Grow retention and new patients by creating more trust.<\/p>\n
In order to grow any and all parts of your practice, create leverage for yourself and your team, and to achieve more with less \u2013 you must make every patient more valuable and the only way to do that is to increase the trust factor of your patients from start to finish and everything in between.<\/p>\n