So many dental practices just do not get it.
They tell me they are too busy.
They tell me they are booked out six and eight weeks in advance.
And they tell me they have closed their books to new patients.
The simple truth is this:
THEY ARE WASTING HUGE OPPORTUNITIES.
Putting it simply, they may be busy, but they are falling short on being efficiently productive.
What I often find is that their appointment books are filled with non-productive appointments and scheduling that are clogging their treatment rooms in the same way that cholesterol and plaque clog vital blood vessels to the heart and to the brain.
And in the case of blood vessels, unless there is a major SHIFT IN THEIR THINKING, the artery will end up closing and then we end up with a stroke, paralysis, or death.
Undiagnosed cardiovascular disease can manifest itself suddenly with dire consequences.
And undiagnosed appointment schedule disease will manifest itself in A LACK OF FINANCIAL FREEDOM, a delayed retirement or worse still a retirement of boredom without benefits.
All because the dentist believed they were “too busy.”
When a dentist in Queensland contacted me seven years ago, I unblocked her appointment book from a production level of less than $60,000.00 per month so that twenty months later she was able to achieve production levels of $150,000.00 per month.
A change in thinking took her practice from a turnover of less than $700,000.00 per year to a turnover of in excess of $1.8M per year, in a time frame of less than two years.
All done by looking at her appointment schedule with an extra pair of eyes… AND IMPLEMENTING AN ACTION PLAN.
Another dentist in New Orleans USA who worked with me took her practice from USD$1.02M to USD$1.2M in a twelve-month period, where she sacked over 1800 patients who were unappreciative of her work and her practice. She went from seeing over sixty patients per day who didn’t value what she did for them to seeing around twenty patients per day who really appreciated her care and her service.
All done by looking at her appointment schedule with an extra pair of eyes… AND IMPLEMENTING AN ACTION PLAN.
It’s really sad…
What is really sad is when I hear a phone call to a dental practice that goes like this:
Caller:
“I need to make an appointment to have all of my teeth crowned. I’m a patient there. I’m just sick of my teeth and I want them all fixed.”
Receptionist:
“We don’t have any appointments available for you to see us for 3-4 weeks.”
Here’s what should have happened:
Caller:
“I need to make an appointment to have all of my teeth crowned. I’m a patient there. I’m just sick of my teeth and I want them all fixed.”
Receptionist:
“I have an appointment available this afternoon at 2pm or tomorrow morning at 10:30am. Which time suits you best?”
In the actual call above, there was no solution offered to the caller, and no care or concern was shown.
There was no urgency to create a relationship with the caller [or RECREATE the relationship], or to exceed the caller’s expectations.
The caller would have felt flat and underwhelmed by the way they were treated.
I’d have been very surprised if that patient ever bothered to call that practice again.
The receptionist should have said this [of course after finding out the caller’s name]:
“John, let’s do this. Let’s organise a time for you to come in so Dr Smith can see exactly what’s going on and let you know your best options. I have a time available this afternoon at 2pm or tomorrow morning at 10:30am. Which time suits you best?”
When a caller to your practice is made to feel welcomed, and understood, and appreciated, when they feel care and concern, and their phone call creates a sense of urgency in the practice, then and only then will the practice truly grow to its full potential.
The sad part is that most dental schools don’t teach appointment schedule management for success.
Most dental schools don’t teach Appointment Schedule Management 101.
As a result, most dental appointment books look like a messy old wardrobe or closet…. when there is truly so much potential being wasted.
The day you restructure your appointment schedule for production is the day that you unlock the financial freedom for your future and your family’s future that your dental practice can truly provide.
*****
Online Workshop: Dr David Moffet and Jayne Bandy:
“How To Easily Run, Maintain And Grow The Ultimate Dental Practice In 2021”
If you’re sick and tired of drilling all day long, and not having anything close to what you deserve, to show for it… or if you’ve ever wondered, “What can successful dentists POSSIBLY know, that I don’t?”… then register for this unique online ZOOM workshop Saturday November 21, 2020
Click here for more details.
*****
Need your phones monitored?
Are you concerned about the number of calls that are not being answered as best they can be?
You need Call Tracking Excellence.
For the cost of a less than one cleaning per week, you could have your phones being answered much much better….
Convert more calls into appointments…Click the link: http://www.calltrackingexcellence.com
Call Jayne on 1300 378 044 or email Jayne@theDPE.com for more details.
*****
Have you read my book , How To Build The Dental Practice of Your Dreams [Without Killing Yourself!] In Less Than Sixty Days.
You can order your copy here: Click Link To Order
*****
The Ultimate Patient Experience is a simple to build complete Customer Service system in itself that I developed that allowed me to create an extraordinary dental office in an ordinary Sydney suburb. If you’d like to know more, ask me about my free special report.
Email me at david@theupe.com
Leave a Reply