It Was Just a Licence Renewal – But It Left a Lasting Impression
Not long ago, I found myself needing to update my driver’s licence. Now, if you’ve ever had to deal with VicRoads here in Melbourne, you probably remember the old drill: take a number, then join the sea of people waiting… and waiting… sometimes for hours. It wasn’t something anyone looked forward to. So, I was […]
Stacking the right experiences: A tale of two massages
Recently, I found myself in need of a remedial massage for a persistent stiff neck. What followed were two vastly different experiences, each leaving a lasting impression – one I’d rather forget and one that left me glowing with satisfaction. These contrasting moments drove home a crucial lesson for dental practices: how we “stack” experiences […]
Transforming medical history forms into a top-level patient experience
In many dental practices, collecting a patient’s medical history often involves simply handing them a form to fill out on their own. While this is a standard approach, it can lead to incomplete and inaccurate information. Barriers to accurate form completion The traditional approach of handing over a form can easily result in incomplete or […]
Why Dentists Avoid Sharing Their Fees Online—and Why It Might Be a Mistake
As a dental practice management consultant, I’ve often encountered resistance among dentists when it comes to sharing their fees on their website or other platforms. The reasons behind this hesitation are understandable. Dentists fear that listing prices might: However, while these concerns are valid, avoiding transparency on pricing can be detrimental to your practice. In […]
How a Simple SMS Change Can Reduce Late Cancellations
One of the perennial challenges of dental practices is managing patient late cancellations. Last-minute cancellations can disrupt the schedules, reduce efficiency and impact the practice’s production. However, by leveraging psychological principles such as Robert Cialdini’s principle of consistency, dental practices can encourage greater patient commitment and reduce late cancellations. Understanding the Principle of Consistency Robert […]
“I truly want to help you.” The Impact of Genuine Patient Interactions in Dental Practice
Over my years of interacting and assisting dental patients, I’ve come to realise that one of the most powerful tools in a dental team members’ arsenal is not just their technical skill, but their attitude towards patient interactions. Picture this scenario: you walk into a dental practice for a routine check-up. The receptionist greets you […]
An Innovative Solution to Address Late Patient Cancellations
In recent times, dental practices, much like many other service-based industries, have encountered a surge in the occurrence of late patient cancellations. The impact of the COVID-19 situation has exacerbated this issue, presenting significant challenges for dental professionals across Australia. Late cancellations not only disrupt the daily schedule but also result in lost revenue and […]
Pampering Patients: The Rise of Dental Comfort Menus
Dental practices are always looking for new ways to distinguish themselves from other practices and prioritising patient comfort is a promising avenue. Increasingly, I’ve observed dental practices offering their patients a Comfort Menu, a curated selection of amenities aimed at providing relaxation and comfort. These offerings often include: By prominently displaying a thoughtfully designed Comfort […]
Are You Actively Pursuing Your Patients?
During a recent podcast interview, Will Guidara, renowned author of the national bestseller “Unreasonable Hospitality,” shared valuable insights on maintaining strong relationships, both in personal and business contexts. Will stressed the importance of continually pursuing one’s spouse or partner to keep the bond strong in your intimate relationships, a sentiment that also with dental practices […]
Adding bells and whistles to deliver outstanding patient experiences
I often speak to my consulting clients about the power of putting ‘bells and whistles’ on a situation. For example, when greeting a patient into the practice, it is perfectly appropriate, professional and acceptable for the receptionist to wait for the patient to approach the front desk, then acknowledge the person, smile and say in […]
Stop trying to book your patients in!
…It is my suggestion that in these situations, dentists are seeking success in the wrong result. They are attributing success to the patient booking an appointment for their advised treatment.
I suggest this is wrong…
You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
Like people, every dental practice is unique. They deliver a range of the same services to the community, but the manner in which it is delivered is what sets practices apart.
The manner in which practices deal with unhelpful patient behaviours is one such area where different approaches abound such as:
turning up to scheduled appointments late,
failing to attend at all, and
not paying invoices on time.
I have witnessed a wide range of responses to these kinds of scenarios by practices.
At one end, there is the haphazard approach…(click below to continue reading)
Control Your Controllables
Turia Pitt is an Australian survivor. She is the ultra-marathon runner who was horribly burned by an out-of-control grass fire during a ‘Racing The Planet’ event. Turia endured months of operations and rehabilitation during her recovery and has been left with substantial scarring over her body. In an interview with Turia, she was asked how […]
10 Reasons Millennials Aren’t Answering Your Phone Calls…an article by Kenneth Burke
While performing some research for one of my clients, I found the following article by Kenneth Burke. I thought the content was worthy of sharing because the telephone habits of our dental patients are changing. The proliferation of mobile phones and the behaviours of our different generations have seen the response rate to our telephone […]
The Effective Use of Your But
Using the word ‘but’ in your communication is normally warned against. You see, a ‘but’ negates or cancels out everything that is said before it. For example, “You look great today, but…” “You delivered a good performance, but…” “I had a wonderful evening with you, but…” I can see how the word ‘but’ can affect […]
“Yeah, but what does it COST?” (part 2)
Earlier this week, in part 1 of this topic, I explored how your team deals with the issue of the price of dentistry daily. I ended part 1 with this crucial concept: the price of any service your practice provides is relevant up to the point of payment. After your patients have paid for their […]
“Yeah, but what does it COST?”
Your team deals with the issue of the price of dentistry daily. You develop systems to manage this aspect of treating patients, such as payment plans, issue verbal and written quotations, and structure a portion of your discussions with patients around the topic. It is understandable. All consumers weigh up the benefits and drawbacks of […]
This is THE BOMB!
If you have attended any of my webinars or online coaching programs, you will be aware that it is crucial to select the right mode of communication for the task at hand. The recipient engagement rate for telephone calls, SMS’s, emails and direct mail are all different. And, the level of engagement you require differs […]
“My dentist is more expensive than most, and I don’t care!”
Alan Weiss is an American consultant, author and speaker. I subscribe to his blog and a recent post was written after he attended a dentist for a dental implant. Alan’s experience of his dental practice’s poor customer service and subsequent inadequate response by staff resulted in him continuing his dental care elsewhere. Here is the […]
Do you have your armour on?
If you are a resident of Melbourne, or have recently visited the southern state of Victoria, you will know that it is COLD! I have just arrived back from my regular hour-long walk with numb hands and face from the icy winds that have been our outdoors for some weeks now. As I was braving […]
A dental practice mantra for EVERYONE!
To be the best leader, you need: · to establish a COMPELLING vision; · to be supportive and act as a mentor; · to help find the answers to the important questions; and · to inspire and motivate team members. To be the best practitioner, receptionist or assistant, you need: · to be efficient, productive and have a caring and positive attitude; […]
TUESDAY’S GOLD. A week of GOLD to help you work BETTER, FASTER and EASIER! Front
Front is an email management app. When you are the only one managing emails that come through to your practice, you can create your own folders and systems of follow up and track messages. However, if there are two or more people managing the emails of one or several accounts, it can be challenging to […]
The Magic for Your Practice of Having a Team of Servants
Poor attitudes in dental practices are not uncommon. Despite implementing systems and processes that support a customer-centric style of service, practices can still experience poor team-member behaviour. Common examples of apathetic, negative behaviour that I see in our consulting work, or that are reported to me, are: unhelpful response to patient requests or queries sitting […]
What’s in a name?
Many dental practices have adopted the method of SMS messaging to confirm their patients’ appointments. But how many of you include your patient’s first name in that message? I am currently reading The Small Big by Steve J. Martin, Noah J. Goldtsein and Robert B. Cialdini. The focus of this book is the small changes […]
Mary has a dilemma.
I was speaking with a dental team member – we’ll call her Mary – who posed an interesting dilemma. “During a social dinner, a friend complained of a dental problem she was experiencing. For the first time, I didn’t feel comfortable in recommending the practice where I work.” Mary had worked at this practice for […]
Are your happy and satisfied patients giving you great reviews to increase referrals to your practice?
Traditionally, word-of-mouth referral was the strongest source of new patients for dental practices. For many practices, this is still the case. Despite the multitude of ways that practices have available to them to promote their services to their local community, word-of-mouth is the most effective. A Goethe University study discovered that customers who have been […]
Tips on how to get a temp nurse every time you need one.
There are several situations in a dental practice that are bone-chilling; missing lab work, running way too late for a demanding patient…and getting the early morning phone call from an unwell nurse needing a sick-day. The plan to accommodate the changes to the coming day is usually born through panic and desperation. You start shooting off […]
Is It Time To Thank Your Loyal Patients?
Dental Practices spend a lot of energy, time and money rolling out strategies to attract new patients. However, if it weren’t for the existing patients consistently returning for their oral care needs, your practice would not survive. Recognising the loyalty of your long-term patients will have a powerful impact. Everyone likes to know that their […]
To refund or not refund, that is the question!
“Patient Y needed a crown placed after a previous trauma to tooth 21 had resulted in root canal therapy being performed. It was explained and documented that the existing dark halo would be evident. Patient Y, a 20 year old, gave consent to cementation of the crown and was happy with the result. Her mother […]
Turn Your Post-Op Calls Into A Practice Builder!
I wrote in a previous blog of the danger of choosing efficiency over function, where you issue your patient recalls in a way that generates bookings, rather than just choosing the speediest way to reach your patients. Read more here. Another area where dental practices compromise function for efficiency is TLC post-op telephone calls to […]
Use this special technique to guarantee your patient’s next appointment
What do you focus on when your patient is in the dental chair? I consider it likely that most dental providers will focus on the same things: providing the best possible treatment the creation of a friendly and professional environment efficient and thorough processes to retain control over the day However, there is another key […]
A confused mind always says “No!”
It is common in dental circles to hear the following gripes about patients who do not schedule for advised treatment: “She said it’s too expensive, but look at the high-end car she drives.” “That patient said they can’t afford to have an implant, but then they told me about their overseas trip they just […]
Beware The Four Growth Stoppers!
Dental practices are, or at least should be, on a constant search for new patients. There is a natural attrition that needs to be compensated for. Patients move out of the area, prefer the service of another dental practice and, sadly, pass away. But beware! There are four key times you may lose the valuable […]
3 Tips to Encourage Recalls
Recalls are the life blood of your dental practice. Implementing an effective recalling system takes thought, research and tracking results to ensure it is the right system for your patient base. Something that many advise, is to forward book patients for their recalls. Here are three tips to encourage your patients to plan ahead. 1. […]
“How did you find out about us?”
“How did you find out about us?” is one of the most important questions to ask. The long-term success of your dental practice depends upon its sustainability. And you will only be sustainable if you attract a steady stream of new patients. There are numerous methods used to attract new patients: advertising, local area […]
How to improve with one simple phone-call
If you want to build a dental practice where patients are beating a path to your door, then there is one person who can help you: your new patient. Successful practices realise that the new patient experience cannot happen ‘by accident’. It needs to be a planned process. From the conversation with the receptionist when […]
The 3 Main Obstacles for Patients who have ‘Incomplete Treatment’
Following up patients on our ‘Incomplete Treatment’ lists is hard work. You are trying to convince someone why it is important to take action, and unless you are a master negotiator who thrives on the thrill of combating objections, it is an uncomfortable role for many staff. I want to start with stating that by […]
The Danger of Choosing Efficiency Over Function
Technology is a marvellous thing. Clinically it has transformed how dentistry is performed, and provides an amazing range of treatment options for patients. So too there have been great changes in how the tasks of reception are executed. The introduction of computers and dental software has meant that practices now have the ability for detailed […]
The biggest reason that your patients will stay loyal to your practice is…
The biggest reason for your patients to remain loyal to you is trust. Patients have trust in your abilities as a health provider and that you place their health interests above your own business interests. Indeed the very foundation of a successful patient-doctor relationship is trust. During my 10 years of business ownership, I saw trust as […]
The #1 Way to Ensure Patient Happiness
Everyone wants happy patients…including the patient! Practices implement many and varied routines to aid in the happy patient, such as fresh coffee, aromatherapy and strong customer service. And I encourage all of it. But THE MOST effective way to make your patient happy is to set their expectations! We all assess our experiences in accordance to […]
The Quickest Way to Build Rapport with Your Patients
Developing great relationships with your dental patients is one of the most effective ways to promote both patient loyalty and patient referrals. So, what can you do to establish these strong connections quickly? American psychologist and expert on human behaviour, Robert Cialdini, says to make a positive and lasting first impression you need to rapidly […]
A Plan When Dealing with Angry Patients
Upset or angry patients can really throw you off your game. You find yourself feeling intimidated and reacting to them rather than being in control and using effective communication. Because upset patients rarely give you advance notice that they are about to become confrontational, you need to plan now, and have it in your back […]