Certain words elicit very predictable and powerful emotional responses. There are three words in particular that you'll want to have your team members use during EVERY new patient phone call. Why? 'Cause that person on the phone is NOT a "New Patient." Not yet. They are "prospective" new patients until your team member SELLS them on YOU.

Call any dental practice in your town. Pretend to be a new patient. 99% of them will do little more than take information (name, phone, insurance etc.). Whether or not the call results in a new patient appointment... whether or not a scheduled new visit results in the patient actually SHOWING UP in the office is routinely left to chance. It's like a game of roulette. The wheel is spinning. Whether the ball lands on "New Patient Schedules" is far more in your control than many dentists realize. Use these three words correctly and see your new patient flow MEASURABLY INCREASE... simply by converting more "PROSPECTS" on the phone into "NEW PATIENTS" in your chair...

Bill has been with you as a patient just a little over a year. He originally found your practice by your web site. Had some minor perio issues which you've resolved through scaling and root planing visits. He has faithfully followed the three month recall intervals you recommended.

He's an upper level executive with a local Fortune 500 computer software company. Super sharp guy. Really nice guy. The kind you wish you had many many more of in your practice. Last week, at Bill's request, you presented a cosmetic makeover treatment plan including fee and financial options. Bill said he'd like to give it a week to think about it and rescheduled for a second consultation today. After some small talk Bill says...

"Doc, I've got to level with you. I like you and your team and I'm sure you'll do a great job with my veneers. But I'm a business man first, and this is going to be a significant investment. If you could find a way to give me a break off the fee you quoted me last week, I'd seriously consider having you do the work..."

This strategy is proven time and again to boost post-recession dental practice profits... It could increase YOUR net income 25% to 40% (exactly how much depends upon a number of factors specific to your practice). Fact is there are only a handful of practices for whom this strategy will have no significant effect. But you MUST take into account that things have changed since 2008.

When was the last time you raised your fees? If you're like most practitioners, in all likelihood it's been TOO long. Back in 2008 the bottom fell out and many dentists lost an enormous chunk of their incomes. But whether you're doing great today or still trying to recover financially, the recession-specific fee increase strategies I'm about to reveal could EASILY be responsible for putting your next child through college...

What do a bakery and your hygiene schedule have in common that could easily turn a weak falling apart middle of the day hygiene schedule into a highly profitable cash generating machine?

Is your practice suffering from either one of these profit-sucking problems? Your hygiene schedule is solid at the beginning of the day. Things looked great at 8:00am. But it's all downhill from there! Two or three call just minutes before their appointments (that may make them feel better but it for sure doesn't help you one iota!) Others don't even have the decency to call. They simply NO-SHOW. Worse than the first option above, you're no longer able to keep the middle of the day full even at the opening bell. Right from the start, you know in advance you're about to lose your shirt in hygiene more days than you'd care to count.

The medical and dental scientific communities along with their industry stakeholders and the public media at large have been justifiably intrigued for many years by the proposed connections that exist between oral inflammation and the general health of the body. Specific to this interest is the alleged associations between periodontal disease and atherosclerotic vascular disease.

AAOSH is concerned that the headlines, public statements and media reports arising from the American Heart Association's release of its Scientific Statement concerning the proposed connections between vascular disease and periodontal disease, misstate the actual findings and statements contained within the study itself.

Sure we call them "New Patients." Mrs. Jones walks through your door at 11:00 am for her "New Patient Appointment." But the truth in today's economic environment is that Mrs. Jones really is NOT YET a "New Patient." If you and your team change your mindset and realize that she is STILL just a "PROSPECT" I'm certain you'll find a much higher percentage of those new folks walking through your door who'll actually STAY with you long-term... becoming "New Patients."

Create a "guest mentality." From the moment a patient walks though your door, until the time he/she leaves your office, pretend he/she is a guest in your home. Standardize your "new patient experience." The routine should be consistent, day to day, staff member to staff member -- for each and every patient. Here's your first step...

Who says you can't add a significant number of cosmetic cases during a recession?

A lot of folks. But they are all wrong. Sure, it's more difficult to gain acceptance of cosmetic cases during tough economic times. That's not rocket science. However to make the assumption that you can't get a significant number of new patients to accept smile transforming life-changing cosmetic dentistry is to fall into the trap of creating your own negative self-fulfilling prophecy. If you think you can't, you won't.

Add this 60 Second Step to Your New Patient Exam. Increase at Least 100,000 in Cosmetic Cases

I just received an email from one of my Gems Insiders' Circle coaching members. Christian and his partner have a great practice in North Carolina. It's greatness isn't an accident. It's by design. They are constantly working on ways to make it better. More enjoyable for patients and team alike. More profitable. We've never done this in our practice. Let's incorporate that and see how we can make it work for us. Or, in the case of this email, we already do this but are looking for ways to make it even better. "Tom, What "Gems" do you have to help us take our morning huddle from good to great?!"

I don't believe that there is or can be just a single "right" forumula for a morning huddle. Huddles will vary from office to office depending upon the specific needs and goals of each practice. Take a look at the following pieces of the moring huddle puzzle. This is by no means a complete list, as I've just mentioned, everyone's "complete" list will vary. My hope is that you might find even one "Gem" in this list that when added to your meeting adds value to your day and ultimately to your practice profits...

Yesterday on a coaching call with a new Gems Insiders' Circle member I unearthed a significant barrier to new patient entry in his practice. He was completely unaware how one simple decision he'd made was having severe unintended consequences on his new patient flow. Fact is he's hardly alone.

A policy intended to attract "the right" kind of new patients to your practice often has just the opposite effect. It acts as a new patient repulsion system effectively decreasing the number of leads on the phone who convert to new patients in your chair. You can easily fix this in just 60 seconds and enjoy measurably higher new patient flow and correspondingly higher profits starting Monday morning.

Jim is a new patient. You've just completed his exam and recommended a simple first phase treatment plan. Perio phase I and a few small fillings. He seems like a nice enough guy, and has indicated that he understands the need for and wants to move forward with the care you've recommended. There's only one catch...

Your treatment coordinator goes over the number of visits as well as an estimate of his out of pocket costs (copay). But just before you leave the treatment room, he turns to you and asks, "Doc, can you just accept whatever my insurance pays as payment in full?"

Dr. Alex White realized that he'd made a critical misjudgment regarding the New Patient Phone Call. By correcting the error, Alex "captured" 121 additional New Patients in just 9 months. 99% of Dental Practices are making the SAME MISTAKE. Fix it and substantially increase your new patient flow starting in less than 9 days. Alex explains in the video...

Of course we'd never limit ourselves to a single interview question during the staff hiring process. However there is one question, the answer to which is so important, that if we were only able to ask one, this would be it.

Although an open-ended question, there are really only two answers to it. The answer we are hoping for by no means insures you have your next superstar team member sitting in front of you, but the other answer virtually guarantees you are speaking to the WRONG PERSON.

How cool would it be if managed care insurance plan executives were to send you a memo this afternoon informing you that they have reviewed the quality of your dentistry. The executive board at the insurance company has come to the realization that their meager low reimbursement schedule simply does not reflect the high quality of the services and treatment you consistently deliver. Consequently effective immediately they are increasing the fees which they'll be paying you per attached schedule. A quick look at the schedule they sent reveals a fee schedule that although not exactly matching your fees, comes a whole lost closer to reasonable profitable coverage.

Just so you don't think I've been out in the sun a bit too long without my hat, the above is not entirely a fantasy. Although it was by no means initiated by the insurance companies, I have had the pleasure of getting several "mismanaged care" plan fee schedules increased to fees more closely resembling business reality... and you may be able to do the same...

In a recent post regarding increasing patient acceptance of "expensive" dentistry I spoke about using Dr. Robert Cialdini's "Contrast Principle" in order to lessen the shock of fees higher than patients might have anticipated. Near the end of that post, I pointed out a verbal skill my team used to consistently achieve a significant percentage of fully prepaid case fees.

With that information you have the verbal skill needed, but there's still the issue how to motivate your team to consistently offer the prepayment courtesy to every patient when appropriate. How can we be sure that this option is not only being offered, but that NO OTHER OPTIONS are mentioned until or unless the patient says they're not able to prepay the entire case fee...

There's nothing more powerful to help a prospective patient get off the fence and into your office than the inspiring motivational words of another happy raving fan patient. Existing patient testimonials can also play a vital role in assisting patients to proceed with recommended care.

Wouldn't it be amazing if you and your team had a crystal ball which could tell you the absolutely best moment in time to ask an existing patient if she could help you by giving a testimonial? Best news is that there's no need for the crystal ball. I will share with you how to determine exactly when (and how) to ask so you hear "absolutely" 99% of the time.

From my daughter, Shayna...

Hi, I'm a student at the Claremont Colleges and I'm involved in the Criminal Justice Network on my campus. We are currently working on a project called Get on the Bus, which funds and organizes an annual event that reunites kids with their incarcerated parents on Mother's and Father's Day.

The project is run by the Center for Restorative Justice Works, a nonprofit in Los Angeles; our job is to fundraise and organize one bus that will take kids from the Claremont area to the women's prison in Chino to see their moms on May 5th...

The new patient sitting in your chair wants a brand new beautiful smile. She called your practice 'cause she liked what she read about you on your web site. Plus she read a number of very positive reviews by some of your happy raving fan patients. She had never spoken to any other dentists about veneers (you can substitute any restorative service here you like). By the way... when I say "expensive" dentistry. I believe what we offer is of extraordinary value. But the word "expensive" is more often than not on your patients' minds.

As a lay person she really has no basis for even guesstimating what her "smile makeover" might cost. All she knows is that dentistry is "expensive." She's hoping she'll be able to afford to put on a brand new smile. Nearly every patient sitting in your chair for this type of consultation has a number in the back of their minds. They've got a dollar amount they're figuring (perhaps hoping) it's going to cost. In most cases, and especially those who have not shopped around prior to seeing you, patients have NO CLUE what your care will actually cost... and... they inevitably guess too low!

Whether your plan is to do porcelain veneers, Lumineers, direct resin bonding or any other technique to transform your patient's smile, understanding and deploying this persuasion skill nearly guarantees acceptance of a case at LEAST $2,000.00 greater than you'll achieve absent this tactic. Is it Fair and Ethical to Use Psychological Triggers to Persuade Patients to Accept Recommended Care?

In any line of work or profession there are going to be some folks whose primary motivations don't have their customers, clients or patients' best interest at heart. The vast majority of our men and women in blue are there to protect and serve us. Sure, there may be one bad apple here or there. Just as that shouldn't stop us from passing out guns to police, health professionals shouldn't hesitate to learn persuasion skills.

Way back when Diagnodent was in its FDA trials, Kavo sent me one to test. I was not part of the official trials. But as a speaker and full time clinician, they shipped me one to check out. Unfortunately the only instructions in the box were writen in German... and nobody in my office spoke German. How tough could it be anyway? I already understood the concept (or so I thought). All you do is point the little laser tip into a deep pit, fissure or groove and voila. You get a reading. The higher the reading the larger the area of decay, right? What's Wrong with this Picture?

With absolutely no guidance and an assumption (above) that was only partially accurate, I dove head first into my first tooth. The Diagnodent made all sorts of noise and the digital readout concurred... "38." I'd struck hidden decay! With air abrasion I proceeded to minimally invasively open up the groove until EUREKA. Caries! I continued air abrasion 'til the caries was visually gone. What I did next was about the dumbest thing I'd ever done as a dentist...

Yes, I realize this "too good to be true" title makes this "Gem" sound as if it's the next magic diet pill. But there's one major difference. The next diet pill doesn't work OR has side effects that could kill you in the process. This "Gem" WORKS. It's the brainchild of a close friend of mine. His name is Alan.

One day a few years back Alan and I were chatting on the phone. He asked me if I thought it possible that a dentist could take 26 weeks off each year and still earn the same (or more) income. Of course I knew he had something up his sleeve yet I was still seriously in doubt there was any way to craft such a dream life. But there is such a way and it comes with one additional side benefit...

New and Existing Patients Will LOVE Your New Schedule!

Take 3 minutes and read this warning regarding "Appropriate Diagnosis and Treatment" of periodontal disease..."91% of Americans have Periodontal Disease" J Am Dent Assoc, Vol 138, No Suppl_1, 26S-33. So Why Don't All Dental Practices Diagnose and Treat FAR More Cases of Periodontal Disease?

Based upon malpractice statistics you are more likely to get into HOT WATER by not diagnosing than by diagnosing and treating periodontal disease. Why aren't all docs doing more phase I perio? My Gems Insiders' Circle Coaching members tell me it's a lack of confidence in having the appropriate verbal skills. Develop the ability to convince patients with periodontal disease... that they indeed do have a problem in need of immediate attention... regardless of the fact that in its early and middle stages periodontal disease has no symptoms.

EXACTLY What Do You Say to CONVINCE Perio Patients of the Immediate and Urgent Need for Care?

Most folks have no concept of the enormous number of dentists are seriously concerned for their futures. Some 15 years ago, I walked more than a mile in those shoes. I'm painfully aware of the overwhelming feeling of desparation a dentist can experience when the bills keep on coming and there always seems to be "too much month left at the end of the money."

During my own deepest darkest financial hour there was no recession. Not global not national. Not even local. Fact is I created my own personal recession. Middle of a divorce. Office manager was embezzling me. Overhead was rising and my productivity and collections had flatlined. Got to the point where I was counseled to file bankruptcy. Fast forward a decade... the last five or six years I practiced I was wildy more profitable than the first 17... even though I was working way less and having a ton more fun. Are you a 50 or 60 something year old dentist desperately seeking your path to a more financially secure happier future?

Your FREE Shortcut to Wealth. N0-Strings-Attached...

Don't for a moment be disappointed that your team hasn't been a steady reliable source of new patient referrals for your practice. As I mentioned in the last blog post, that's more the norm than a surprise. You Can Easily and Affordably stimulate an INSTANT and Significant Increase in New Patient Referrals from Your Team. In my last post I promised I'd "spill all the beans" and lay out every detail you'll need to know in order to effectively deploy this "Top Secret" Strategy ("Gem!") tomorrow...

How Many New Patients Did Your Team Members Refer Last Month?

In a perfect world each of your team members would refer a couple new patients each and every month, guaranteeing you'd start out with a certain number of new patients month in and month out. But the world isn't perfect and even the very best team members fail to refer new patients to your practice most months of the year.

In the real world your team members are every bit as busy as your patients are, taking care of themselves and their families. As busy as your patients 99% of whom on average are not referring to you each month. Ouch. Your patients and your staff love you and your practice... so why is your referral rate so abysmally low?

Know WHY New Patients Fail. Fix it and Enjoy FAR Higher New Patient Flow

We've already covered a number of reasons new patients routinely fail and how to effectively counteract them. Now it's time to tackle the number one reason so many new patients simply blow you off without so much as a call... New Patients, by Definition, Have NO PRE-EXISTING RELATIONSHIP

Sure it's a generalization to say that the most likely no-show or last minute cancel is going to be your new patient. But it's true. Yes, you'll likely have some number of existing patients who fail to show up as well. But the highest number remains the new patients in almost every practice.

As I mentioned in Part V (prior blog), you're pages on a web site, voices on the phone... but not "real people" to whom she feels she owes some level of respect. What if there were a simple low-energy zero-cost way to make yourself very real and human in your new patients' hearts and minds?

Forget About the Logistics for a Moment and Concentrate on the BENEFIT. Instant SLASH in No-Shows = INSTANT CASH and PROFIT Increase! You already know that new patients are among the most likely folks to screw up your schedule and rob you of your time by FAILING the APPOINTMENT. Why Do New Patients No-Show at a Higher Rate than Others?

It all comes down to one word. Relationship. Your existing patients by definition already have established some level of relationship with you. Even if they've only been to your practice for a few visits, they're well on their way to building rapport, trust, respect. Relationship. On the other hand the new patient has never met you. So how Can You Dramatically Reduce New Patient 1st Visit No-Shows?

The reverse psychology behind this part of dealing with patients who repeatedly fail appointments will surprise you. Fact is it's going to surprise your patient as well. In a very positive and effective way. Exactly 10 minutes into any appointment where the patient is missing... call them. Whether you reach them live, or get their voice mail, simply say...

Before you determine how best to handle repeat offenders (people ripping you off by disrespecting your schedule), you've got to have a system for identifying and tracking exactly who they are. We covered that in the last E-Gem, and broke them into two categories: "FAILED APPOINTMENT, NO-SHOW (FA)." and "FA 24 or FAILED APPOINTMENT, LESS than 24 HOURS NOTICE" (this one, the "FA24" is for patients calling you last minute)

Protocol for Dealing With Repeat Offenders: First we've got to decide just how many times we're going to take this type of ABUSE of our PROFIT, before we take any action. Then, based upon the protocol, the action to take is to make them "Same Day Only" (more on this shortly)...

In the last blog post, we did the math showing the loss from No Shows and Last Minute Cancels for a one doctor one hygienists practice. $101,250 NET PROFIT LOSS per year. The very first step towards SOLVING this black hole in your profit pocket is to IDENTIFY and TRACK those who are responsible for your loss. It's critical that your entire team is on the same page... you can cut this problem in half, and increase your net profit by at least $50,000.00.

Exactly WHO Sucks Your Profits Dry by Disrespecting Your Schedule? After studying this for several years in my practices, I came to the "obvious conclusion" (of which you are already aware)...

Most dentists are getting slammed with a much higher rate of no-shows and cancellations since the recession started. Given that many have experienced a drop in new patient flow and case acceptance, the losses incurred due to patients' ABUSE of YOUR TIME are especially painful.


Once You QUANTIFY How Much You Are Currently LOSING
Solving this Siege Upon Your Profits Becomes an Obvious Priority

The average one doctor one hygienist practice is losing well over $100,000.00 each and every year due to no-shows and last minute cancels. You'll never be able to totally eliminate the problem, but slashing it in half is easy as long as you understand why it occurs, who is doing it, and how to systematically prevent them from a repeat performance...

Purchasing mailing lists can be very expensive. Depending upon how many local residents you'd like to target with your mailing, you can spend hundreds, or even well over a thousand dollars just to get access to the list. Beyond the COST of the Lists, there's the Question of Quality

Although I'm using a source in whom I have the highest faith and trust, inevitably the majority of lists we purchase have a significant amount of DEADWOOD in them. Bad addresses, changed address, unknown addressee etc.. We always take all the returned mail and update our database, but even then, there's always many that come back with no further/forwarding information. But now (courtesy of the USPS) there's an EFFECTIVE SOLUTION...

"Do You Accept My (Preferred Provider) Insurance Plan?" What Can You Ethically Say to the Prospective New Patient On Phone When She Asks this Question? Apparently a highly polarizing topic... but it doesn't have to be that way! I suppose it would be ethical to just say NO, and leave it at that. Yes, ethical,but not very smart, or profitable. Some offices get several calls like this every week. Others get a few calls like this every day. A prospective new patient calls and asks if you are on the list for XYZ plan... If you are not a participating provider and you "just say no," you've clearly lost any chance at bringing in the prospective new patient.

As I covered in the last blog post, if you say "Yes" just to get them in the door, then try to "deal with it" upon their arrival, well, it's a recipe for disaster. It's dishonest. A really bad way to start off your new patient relationship. This approach can frequently lead to some terribly bad feelings by patients who feel they've been duped. Lied to in order to get them in the door.

There is One Question Your Team MUST Know to Ask Which Gives You a Fair Shot at Converting Some Percentage of these Folks from PROSPECT to NEW PATIENT...

One of my members during a coaching call last week told me something sick. Someone suggested that his staff LIE to potential new patients during the initial phone call just to get them in the door. The Sad Part is they Took His Advice (Until it Blew Up in their Faces)

Just what did they ask the business staff to say during the new patient phone call in order to "just get them in the door?" If a patient is on a managed care plan that requires them to see an in-network doc in order to get any reimbursement at all, they were told to say "YES we do take your insurance."
You can just imagine the response of some of their new patients who were told doc was an in-network provider only to find out upon arrival at the office that, well, er, uh, not exactly... Most were, at the very least, frustrated by the "simple miscommunication." But one in particular was outraged...

A truly effective and highly profitable new patient advertisement is like a "Perfect Storm." It doesn't come along every day. Everything must come together at just the right time, in the right place, and in a certain way. It's very difficult to predict when this will happen. But when it does, you'll know it based upon results.

Eliminate this One Mistake and You're One Step Closer

Take this test and see if you can pick up on this results-killing deadly common error. Read the two paragraphs below. Which one is an immediate turn-off to the reader, and why is the other one magnetically attractive to your prospective new patient?

Most dentists want to increase new patient flow. Why not. It's a critical part of continuing to grow your practice and your profits. Because so many dentists have pointed to new patient flow as their number one or number two key practice issue, I'm going to devote a significant number of posts to strategies and tactics crafted to help you attract and schedule more new patients.

If you are serious about ramping it up with significant and sustainable increased new patient flow, think of yourself as the conductor of a major metropolitan philharmonic orchestra. Each of your 100 musicians plays an integral part in creating your "Symphony of New Patient Flow." Sure it's a bit corny, but here's the point. Adding a few new patients now and then is easy. Creating a sustainable increase which will be with you month in and month out is far more complicated. BUT...

Even the most loyal dedicated staff members are NEGATIVELY AFFECTED by the absence of a consistent, ongoing working Team Bonus System. When a down economy reams out the guts of your practice revenues most bonus systems automatically fade into nothing more than distant memories. This SIMPLE FIX Accounts for DROPS in Practice Revenues

In the last blog post I promised to share my simple formula for an all-important "Manual Adjustment" of your Team Bonus System...