There are many new ways to consider when trying to attract new patients to your Dental Practice

Consider who are your ‘Practice Ambassadors?

Going back as far as 1967, Professor Johan Arndt from the Colombia Graduate School of Business identified ‘word of mouth’ as “one of the most important, if not the most important source of information for the consumer.”

No doubt about it...

As time marches on, ‘word of mouth’ only becomes more influential with patient referrals.

With so much information available on the internet – some good, some not so good, access has resulted in some ‘official’ marketing messages, being regarded as less credible.

As a result...

Some of these, albeit professional marketing companies can be deemed less influential than ever.

Add this to complaints and patient expectations being at an all-time high within the profession, and we see trust being questioned more than ever. 

As a direct effect......

With the myriad of “profit formulae” available to the modern dentist, what’s often forgotten are the answers to four simple, but critical questions.

These MUST be communicated to your patients.

 And done correctly, will make your life so much easier as well.

QUESTION #1: “What does it do?”

What’s the big transformation offered by your product/service?

The answer is not just what your patients want to know, it’s what they ultimately use to determine whether they should even care about what you have to say.

The result your product/service produces is the single most critical piece of information you need to communicate.

And you need to do it with flair.

Don’t only communicate the core promise and benefits; paint a picture for them of what life will be like once they act on your offer.

QUESTION #2: “How does it work?”

Your patients don’t only want to know what your product will do for them.

They...

Work Smarter, Not Harder in General Dentistry …  in 7 Steps

Check out these common characteristics that appear in successful people.

Remember – these are ideas are simple, but often not easy to implement.

Pay attention to these 7 areas of your business and/or life to stay on track and on top.

• Start your day early
• Focus your mental energy, don’t multi-task.
• Be fearless when it comes to the great unknown.
• Business really does mean business.
• Set aside time to “work” on your business.
• Delegate responsibility where possible.
• Make a concerted effort to streamline your time.

At The Dentists Academy we focus on 2 things for dentists … 

• Personal growth
• Business development

And all in terms of risk and opportunity in general dental practice.

In terms of personal growth and professional development.

If you want to significantly hike your income, Click here now.

To working smarter not...

As dentists, you and I are in the business of “gap analysis”.

Think about it.

Do you ever feel like a "problem detective"?

Your job, somewhat like a police inspector searching for suspects, is to find problems for which your product or service is the ideal solution.

Think of your product or service as a key.

You make calls looking for locks that your key will open.

In general business, a salesperson might refer to the following 3 stages:

• Prospecting phase
• Presenting phase
• Closing phase

Let’s consider these 3 phases with a locked door example.

In the Prospecting phase, you insert the key and find that it fits.

In the Presenting phase, you twist the key and open the lock.

In the Closing phase, you turn the handle and push the door open.

Use Questions As Tools…

Like a verbal detective, the tools of our profession as dentists are questions.

You use them to get appointments, uncover problems, and discover gaps between where a patient is now and where...

I’ll keep today’s message short and to the point. 

If you want to be a successful:

• Dentist
• Spouse
• Parent
• Entrepreneur
• Businessman/woman

The key is to be... 

P R E S E N T.

You are present when you LISTEN not only to the words but the meaning behind those words. 

Look around, and you’ll see the opposite of people being present with each other all the time.

Their eyes are glued to their devices, surfing the web, checking their social media accounts and email.

While life happens around them. 

I’d urge you to consider this:

In a treatment plan discussion with a patient, dentists can often be thinking about how they are going to respond instead of focusing on trying to understand what their patient wants. 

Not being present is one of the biggest reasons for the lack of success in all aspects of life.

And battling distraction is a constant fight, but it is a fight worth waging. 

Have a great week.

To Your Ongoing...

I sat there in disbelief.

Although I’m not sure why because I’ve seen this scenario many times before in the past year.

Sickened is a good word for how I felt.

Embarrassed and humiliated… again…

My beloved Manchester United, were 2-0 down at half time against Newcastle United.

In the midst of a total meltdown.

But… we would end up winning 3-2.

There is much to learn, even if you don’t much care about football.

• First, is the old saying,“It doesn’t matter how you start, it’s how you finish.” Manchester Utd looked down and out at half time… but turned it around in the end.
• You can start strong, but you need to finish strong to win. The beginning of a career in dentistry is usually the most exciting part, right? But what makes the difference between success and failure, is what you do when you “get into the weeds.”
• How you handle adversity is what makes the difference.Adversity is something we are...

The stress felt by potential complaints and litigation has never been higher within our profession. 

Sometimes, though, I feel the increased levels of stress can be caused through a genuine lack of understanding of some dento-legal matters.

Consider a case with unintended consequences of a surgical procedure.

A complication can be defined as a foreseeable, unintended outcome of a procedure about which a patient should be warned in advance as part of the process of informed consent.

Bleeding and infections would be examples of such outcomes which may not be preventable, in spite of a reasonable standard of care.

A case in negligence arises if the outcome was unanticipated and resulted from a standard of care which fell below that which would be reasonably expected in the circumstances.

Post-operative pain is not uncommon after a root canal therapy, about which a patient should be warned in advance.

Separation of files is an unintended complication which unfortunately can occur...

I woke up earlier than usual today, and I was excited about getting to work.

There is so much great stuff going on.

Including...

The long-awaited launch of our book which is edging ever closer. 

Content-wise, we’re done.

Just off to design and then print. 

I’ll be sending you more info about that soon.

But today I want to talk to you about something that at first glance might seem unusual coming from me, and it’s this:

At the moment, Dad and I have been putting so much time into creating “The P.A.C.E Method” program.

It contains an arsenal of dental, business, dento-legal, sales, persuasion techniques, and the like.

There is no doubt in my mind...

If you get your hands on a copy of this book, your standard of dentistry will improve immediately.

And there’s no question...

This system will take your ‘sales’ game to a new level of effectiveness and put a lot money in your pocket.

For clarity, ‘sales’ is the same as...

Being A Confident Dentist in Uncertain Situations

As dentists, we are often looked towards for leadership roles within the dental practice.

And how you lead your team will have a significant impact on success.

But…

What makes a good leader as a dentist?

Of course, there is no single simple answer to this question…

Allow me to share what I feel as some of the most influential characteristics are.

Being confident and practicing the right habits.

Key to this is liking and respecting yourself.

The more you respect what you do, the more confidence you gain.

The more you believe in yourself and the impact you make, the higher levels of effectiveness you will achieve.

Dentistry is, at times, becoming much more risk-averse.

Perhaps that is no surprise with complaints and litigation ever on the rise.

If you engage in a treatment where the outcome is by no means certain, there is, of course, an associated risk.

You and I know, we can’t fix every tooth.

Complications can...

5 Key Steps to Become Successful Sooner

I’m sure you’ll agree, in this day and age, so many people want things fast. 

Instant gratification is being discussed more than ever.

From weight loss to internet speed. 

It seems to be carrying across into our profession as well – whether that be seeing more patients, or carrying out more treatments – in less and less time.

Earning more money, being more successful – ASAP. 

Yet more and more dentists are simply working harder, not smarter.

In truth, I don’t believe there’s a single specific “secret” or “hack” that will guarantee overnight success. 

But…

There are certain processes and measures that can be taken to drive your success, as quickly as possible.

Here are my thoughts…

1. Concrete Goal Setting

Personal and professional goals are different for everyone.

Similarly, success is defined differently at times too.

Specific clarity on...