Dedicated to helping doctors and their team have an office that is not only highly productive and fun but one that allows them to consistently exceed patient expectations.
Do you ever feel like you just “can’t” do it? Perhaps there are times when you feel like my daughter, Savannah did here in this video while trying to learn to hula hoop (while wearing high heels)…
Savannah in her frustration said “I can’t do it” – We all have at one time felt this way or maybe we’re feeling that way now.
But, was that really true, was she doomed to never master the hula hoop? Not at all, she just couldn’t hula hoop “yet”.
Yet is an optimistic word that means “in the future”, for example, the best is yet to come.
Approach each day in your practice with the growth mindset that, the best is yet to come. So maybe your patient feels like they can’t accept your treatment plan yet, or you’re struggling with reaching your production, collection, and scheduling goals, or like many offices right now you’re struggling to find and retain employees, this doesn’t mean that you will never reach your goals or your patient will never accept the treatment, or that you’ll never find excellent employees, it just means, more time and or effort are required.
This was true for Savannah – She can hula hoop!
Your patient hasn’t said yes, yet. You haven’t reached your goals, yet. You don’t have your dream team, yet. However, the best is yet to come.
Add yet to your mindset and your challenges become an opportunity to learn, grow and improve. Remember, with dedication and hard work, success follows. You CAN Do It!
Do you know what else will help you learn, grow and improve? My complimentary monthly dental coaching, practice management, and marketing ideas. Take a second and sign up today. If you prefer, send me (bhaydensulting@gmail.com) your email address and I will send you an invitation to subscribe. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
Doctors, I may not be the best person to teach you how to hula hoop but I do know how to successfully help dental teams work together to create and implement wonderful systems to grow and improve their dental practice – if you’ve wondered what it might be like to work with me and what coaching is all about… please feel free to reach out to me to schedule a complimentary, no-obligation coaching call at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
If you enjoy the dental leadership, management, and marketing tips and ideas that I share each month – I would love and truly appreciate it (seriously, it would make my day!) for you to please leave a review/recommendation for me here on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK
Here you will find my Top Ten FREE Dental Practice Improvement Tips for 2021. They’re not just free to read, they’re free to implement. How awesome is that?! Ideas that when implemented, WILL help you increase production, attract more new patients, build relationships within the community, have more fun as a team, as well as exceed your established patients’ expectations.
Betty’s Top Ten FREE Dental Practice Improvement Tips for 2021
#1 – Mission, Vision, Core Values – Knowing why you show up every morning will help to create a culture of happiness and excellence.
Mission – A clear definition of the purpose and focus of the practice today.
Vision – It is about what you want your practice to be in the future. It is the outcome/result of your mission.
Core Values – Core Values represent the beliefs and principles that define your practice, your team, and the patient experience you aim for in your dental practice.
Involve the entire team in your vision, mission, and goals for the practice. Involving your team will help to keep everyone on the same page, working together for the greater good of the practice. Encourage and empower your team to not only come up with new ideas and solutions to problems but to implement these ideas and solutions.
#2 – Lead by Example– “Treat your employees how you would like them to treat your best patient!“
If you want to see a positive change in your practice, you must consistently lead by example… be the change. It starts at the top. You set the tone for the day, make certain that it’s a happy & productive one. This includes any employee in a management position – if you have employees complaining about your office manager, take it seriously. A toxic office manager will destroy your practice over time, at the very least, cause a staff turnover nightmare. In fact, any employee that is toxic to your vision, to your team, and/or your patients…needs to go. It’s not easy to make the decision to terminate someone’s employment, yet absolutely necessary if you want to improve your practice. It’s been said that “what you allow you encourage.” Once you make the decision to no longer tolerate or allow the poor behavior and attitudes in your practice, you’ll breathe a huge sigh of relief.
#3 – Communication – “The art of communication is the language of leadership.”
Job Expectations & Job Responsibilities – What are the performance expectations for your team? Does each employee clearly understand their role in the practice? Have every team member write down a detailed list of all their job responsibilities. This is VERY helpful in determining more effective ways of doing things as well as finding out what is NOT being done.
Hello, Good Morning! – Make it a point to greet your fellow team members every morning. Let people know that you see them and acknowledge them with a hello.
Thank you – Express your appreciation. Saying thank you improves your office, your health, and the patient’s experience.
Commendation – Commend your employees when you catch them doing something “right”. Commendation boosts morale. Applaud & reward the behavior and actions that you want to see more of. Simply thanking your team at the end of the day goes a long way in making them feel appreciated. Little surprise treats and gifts every now and then are also much appreciated.
#4 – Know your Numbers – “If you don’t know where you’ve come from, you don’t know where you’re going.” – Maya Angelou
Knowing your practice numbers and doing something with what you know about those numbers is key to growing and improving your practice. Numbers tell a story. Numbers tell you if your practice is healthy or unhealthy.
Get a baseline of where you’re at in order to make a goal for where you want to go. For example,
Overhead – Evaluate your true costs of doing business. What does it cost you per hour to keep the practice running?
Supplies – What is your supply budget vs what you are actually spending?
Payroll – What is your payroll percentage? Are you hygienists producing 3.3 times their salary?
Collections – Are you collecting what you produce and how long is it taking to collect your money?
Adjustments/Write-Offs – Are you closely monitoring your adjustments and write-offs?
Production – What are your hourly, daily, monthly, and yearly restorative and hygiene production goals?
New Patients – How many new patients do you want per month? What are you doing to welcome more new patients each month?
Attrition – How many patients are you losing each month and why?
Treatment Acceptance Vs Diagnosis – How many of your patients are saying yes to your best care? How are you keeping track of your unscheduled treatment plans?
If your numbers reveal unhealthiness be quick to act and get help to restore your practice to health and happiness.
Friends, do you know how many of your active patients have a future appointment and how many do not? Do you know how many new patients you are welcoming into the practice AND how many patients you’re losing each month? To help you get that data quickly, like within minutes – if your PMS is either Dentrix, Eaglesoft, or Open Dental you can request a complimentary, no-obligation practice data snapshot here: Game-Changing Awareness from Dental Intelligence – Within minutes we’ll identify your practice’s strengths and uncover hidden opportunities. I am happy to assist you with this at no charge and with absolutely no obligation to do anything further with me.
#5 – Declutter – “Clutter in your physical surroundings will clutter your mind and spirit.”
Clutter represents indecision. Decide to get rid of the clutter! That includes any sticky notes attached to computer monitors, coats/sweaters hanging on the backs of chairs, and fast-food drink containers sitting out on the counters. Along with unnecessary things sitting on treatment room counters. What about your sterilization area? Does it look clean and sterile? Or cluttered and unclean?
Make a cleaning schedule – including the who, what & when. When will the parking lot, restrooms & reception room be checked & cleaned? This should be done several times throughout the day. Do not wait for the “cleaning person” to take care of those areas. If the flooring needs to be vacuumed… vacuum it. If the glass on the windows/doors have fingerprints…clean them. If the restroom toilet and sink are dirty… clean them. Make a promise as a team that if you see it (and you know you do) clean it.
#6 – Stay on Time– “Time has a wonderful way of showing us what really matters.”
If you’re often running behind schedule, investigate as to the reason(s) why. If you know the why… change whatever it is causing you to stray from the schedule. Running behind schedule sends a message to your patients and your team that you don’t respect their time. Respect your team by sticking to the scheduled work hours. Be sure that they are not habitually working through their lunch or having to work late. They need breaks to refresh and refuel. Give them that. They have a life outside of work and making them work past their scheduled end time is a real drag. I understand that sometimes unexpected events may occur so they might be asked to work late or into a lunch hour but this should be a rare occasion, not a daily or even occurrence.
Arriving at the office with plenty of time before the first scheduled patient, expecting your patients to arrive on time, never wait on hygiene exams, calculate the actual amount of time it takes to do procedures, control the schedules, these things will help you stay on time.
#7 – Show you Care – “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care” – Theodore Roosevelt
Post-Op Calls – Doctors and Hygienists, call your patients at the end of the day to see how well they are doing. (Tip: Call all patients that received an extraction, perio treatment, difficult procedure, were fearful or new to the office.)
Pre-Op Calls – Doctors and Hygienists start building your relationship with a new patient before they step foot in the practice. Call and give a warm welcome, let them know you are looking forward to meeting them at their appointment. It’s unexpected, takes only a few minutes, and will really make your new patient feel special.
Say My Name – Everyone likes to hear his or her name. Greet your patient’s by name. Use their name during treatment. Thank them by name for coming in or calling.
Memorable Goodbyes– Make a great last impression with a friendly goodbye…be sure to use the patient’s name. Give them something good to talk about.
Thank you’s – Send handwritten thank you cards to your new patients and to your new patient referral sources.
#8 – Reappointments & Reactivation – “Do what matters, now.”
Reappointment – The best way to keep your patients active is to be sure to reappoint them for their next hygiene visit when they are there at the office. Also, help more of your patients say yes to your treatment recommendations and have them reserve their appointment at the time of treatment presentation.
Reactivation – Stay in touch with your unscheduled and/or inactive patients.
#9 – Online Presence – “You never get a second chance to make a great first impression.”
How are you presenting your dental practice, your services, your care, yourself, and your team online? Are you attracting potential new patients or turning them away? Consider briefly these four important areas…
Website – Your website should reflect the culture and personality of the practice and the team. The content should be fresh and relevant. The photos should be attractive and current. Think about this, when people visit your website are you welcoming them with warm and helpful messaging or inadvertently turning them away with poor messaging and unattractive pages?
Social Media – Social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, Blogs, Online Community News Pages, YouTube, and more help to build your dental practice. Even if you’re not a fan of social media, please remember that most likely many of your patients and potential patients are using these platforms regularly.
Google My Business – Are you consistently posting fresh content to your Google business page? If not, you should. It’s free, easy to do and people visiting your listing like to see fresh content.
Reviews & Recommendations – Ask your patients to please review your office on Google and recommend you on Facebook. Don’t simply rely on third party companies to do this for you. It’s so simple (& free) to invite your patients to do this for you.
#10 – Training – “There is no way the quality of your patient care and experiences will exceed the quality of the people who provide it.”
Don’t hold back in this area! Investin your team. Thoroughly train any new employees on your practice goals, systems, software, telephone skills, dental procedures, protocols, etc. However, training isn’t just for your new employees, everyone in the office needs regular training.
Is there a chance you might have some new dental equipment or training manuals just sitting on the shelf, collecting dust? It’s most likely because your team didn’t understand or appreciate the why and the how. Knowing why and how this new idea, technique, equipment, or procedure works, benefits the patient, the team, and the office is critical to enthused implementation.
Doctors, if you would like to grow and improve your dental practice and have wondered what it might be like to work with me and what coaching is all about… please feel free to reach out to me to schedule a complimentary, no-obligation coaching call at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com.
Wishing you all a healthy and happy start to 2021!
Have you signed up to receive my complimentary dental marketing and practice management ideas that are sent right to your email inbox each month? If not, take a second and sign up. Or send me your email address (bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com) and I will send you an invite to follow. This way, you won’t miss a single idea!
Do you enjoy the dental leadership, management, and marketing tips and ideas that I share each month? I would love and truly appreciate (seriously, it would make my day!) for you to please leave a review/recommendation for me here on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK
One of the most asked questions that I receive is ideas for hosting a dental open house event. So if you have an open house planned for your dental office or are considering hosting an open house event, here are some ideas to help make your open house a huge success!
Consider adding a theme to your event.
Event Theme Ideas:
Luau
Winter Wonderland
Back-to-School
Hearts – We “Heart” our Community or We “Heart” our Patients
Decades (ex: 50’s)
Spring – Flowers (Thank you for helping our office grow)
Celebration of Health
Fall
Women’s Night Out
Office Anniversary Celebration
Spa/Pampering
Shopping (w/local vendors)
Carnival
Cocktail Party (Wine & Appetizers)
Superhero
Target Audience:
Determine in advance who is your target audience.
Professionals/Specialists
Community (Local Businesses/Non-Patients)
Current Patients
Cross Marketing Opportunity:
Team up with local businesses!
Hair Salons, Specialty offices, Restaurants, Etc.
Display a thank you board/sign listing the local businesses involved in the open house.
Have an area that they can display their business information
Have them donate a prize to be raffled off or used in a drawing.
Ask them to advertise your event at their place of business.
Word of caution, make sure that if you choose to team up with any other local businesses that it doesn’t distract the guests away from your office.
Advertising your Event:
Invitations
Local Newspaper (Invite them to the event!)
TV News (Invite them to the event!)
Radio (Invite them to the event!)
Social Media Sites (set up a Facebook Event)
Website
Current Patients (Ask them to bring a friend for a prize!)
Newsletter
Email
Online Local News Sites
Local Chambers
Local Businesses (Library, City Hall, Day Cares, Salons, Restaurants, Schools, EVERYWHERE)
Employees (Make sure the entire team is on board w/the event and talking about it)
Welcome letter/flyer (Include in it: Info about the office, services offered, a special call to action offer & a thank you for coming in)
Items imprinted with your office information, such as:
Toothbrush Bags
Lip Balm (www.lipbalmexpress.com)
Tote Bags
Pens
Coffee Mugs
Water Bottles
Flower Seed Packets
Magnets
Keyrings
Xylitol Products
Umbrellas
My favorite company to use for imprinted giveaway items is: Bizarre Marketing – www.promostuff4u.com
Activities:
Face Painting
Photo Booth with photo props
Balloon Twisting
Bounce House
Craft Table
Games
DJ/Karaoke/Live Music
Dental Health Presentations
Drawing/Raffle for Prizes:
Having a drawing(s) allows you to collect the names and contact information of the guests. Be sure to collect Name, Address, Email & Phone #.
Prize Ideas:
Electric Toothbrush
Teeth Whitening
$/% Off of a Dental Service
Gift Cards
Television/Tablet
Bicycle
Waterpark, Sporting Event, Concert, or Theatre Tickets/Passes
Gift Baskets
Team up with local businesses for contributions/donations of Prizes. Be sure to remind them that their name will be included in your advertising for the open house.
Offer an incentive (such as; gift card) to the first so many people who RSVP to your event.
Office Appearance:
The office must be clean and clutter free!! (Inside & Out!)
Restrooms – make sure they are checked during the open house for cleanliness and that they are well stocked)
Decorate the Office
Music Playing (recorded or live)
Have stations/displays set up throughout the office to encourage a tour of the entire office.
Monitors set up in reception room and treatment suites playing videos of services offered. Before and After Photo Slideshow.
Display “About Our Office & Services” Brochures
Team Members:
Well dressed and groomed
Name Tags
Friendly & Outgoing
Specific assignments (designated greeter, tour guide, speaker for dental presentations, etc.)
Food/Drink Ideas:
Bottled water with an office label
Punch/lemonade/Tea/Coffee/Wine/Beer
BBQ Foods
Appetizers
Wine/Cheese
Desserts
Ice Cream Truck (great for outdoor events)
You may be able to get a local business to donate cookies, cake pops, cupcakes, sandwich trays, fruit and vegetable platters, etc.
Day of the Event:
Smiling faces
Name tags for your guests
Give tours (Depending on the size of the event you could set up tours as a scavenger hunt)
Be ready to schedule dental appointments
Greet everyone
Take lots of pictures
Record a video of the event. Consider doing a Facebook live during the event.
After the Event:
Send Thank you’s to all of your guests and any businesses that participated in the event.
Send a follow-up article & pictures to the local paper.
Call prize winners to come into the office and collect their gift – be sure to take their picture(s).
To-do lists are your friend! Include a timeline & who is responsible for what & when.
Your goal should be to make your guests feel welcome, special, and appreciated. No one wants to show up to an event where they are not welcomed or confident they’re even in the right place.
Make it a Fabulous Open House Event my friends!
If you enjoy the complimentary ideas that I share each month, I would love and truly appreciate for you to please leave me a review/recommendation on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK
Don’t miss out on any of the ideas that I share each month! Are you receiving my complimentary Practice Management and Marketing Ideas in your email each month? If not, please start following us today. If you prefer, send me your email address (to bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com) and I will send you an invitation to follow my blog.
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month, what do you have planned to help educate families in your community about the need for better dental health?
Field trips to local schools? School field trips to the office? Participating in the National Give Kids A Smile Day?
Be sure to see Pediatric Dental Marketing Ideas for many ideas on how to Consistently Exceed Parent & Patient Expectations and Consistently Be Great! Visit here: Pediatric Dental Marketing Ideas
If you’re looking for Dental Health Month activities, crafts, printables, etc. please see my Pinterest board: Children’s Dental Health Month Ideas
This article will focus on Give Kids a Smile Day which is held annually on the first Friday in February. However, I will first share a few ideas for Children’s Dental Health not related to Give Kids A Smile Day.
In-Office –
Dental Education Via Social Media – Take advantage of your office social media platforms and website to share a variety of fun and educational posts and videos related to children’s dental health. (ie: good foods bad foods, sealants, proper brushing, ortho, how much sugar is in your drink, how to floss, fluoride, etc.)
Field Trips – Invite local schools and daycares in for a free field trip to the dentist. Serve a Healthy snack such as grapes, apple slices, string cheese, and small bottled water. Present Education stations/demonstrations -visit the ADA website and Pinterest for great ideas for presentations. Toothbrush bags for the students and teachers/parents. Show a short Video while the kids eat their snack.
Outside the office –
What: On-site Short Dental Education Presentations/Demonstrations and Toothbrush gift bags for the kids and teachers/parents.
Where: Schools, Daycares, Libraries, Mom groups, etc.
Give Kids a Smile Day –
Here are some ideas and tips to help you host a successful Give Kids A Smile day in your office.
The ADA website has an excellent Give Kids A Smile Toolbox http://www.ada.org/1584.aspx It’s loaded with information such as Planning, Promotion, Forms, etc.
I wanted to share some additional ideas with you that have really helped to make this day a huge success and gain great patients long after the day is over.
Employee Participation – While you can’t mandate that your team volunteer to work this event, you can invite them to volunteer to work this very special day that will help many underserved children in the community. If you require your team to be there, you must pay them. GKAS day can be a very busy day for the office, I recommend ordering lunch in so team members can relax during their break.
Services/Procedures – Decide which free services you will be offering to the children on this day.
Advertising/Marketing your Event – Here are just a few ways to do this:
Social Media Pages ~ Make good use of all your social media platforms to share information about GKAS day.
TV News ~ Fax & Email a press release.
Fliers ~ Create fliers for in-office use and to give out to those in your community.
Even if your schedule is filling up, continue to advertise! Think of it as spreading seeds all over the community, getting your name in front of many people. You never know when those seeds will grow!!
Key things to remember/do before, during and after the event:
Show lots of Enthusiasm:
Be enthusiastic about this great event and how wonderful your office is!
Printed Materials:
In addition to the event information/details. Be sure to include: Doctors (office) Name, Address, Phone number, email, social media pages, and website.
Telephones:
Thank them for calling, ask how they heard about the event (TRACK EVERY Callers Referral Source)
So your schedule is full for that day, what do you do when the phone continues to ring with people wanting to schedule an appointment for their child(ren)?
Take down their name, phone number, chief concern, and let them know you will call if there are any changes in the schedule for that day. (Believe or not people sometimes cancel/no-show on this day!)
Just because you may not be able to see them on that day, offer them a different day for a complimentary consultation. Give them hope, give them a chance, they’ve probably been turned away from other offices.
Donations:
See if you can get donations from local businesses for the event.
Be sure to include any business that contributed to the event in your advertising & thank yous after the event!
Day of Event:
Every child receives a goodie bag that includes an imprinted toothbrush.
Take pictures!!! (The ADA website has a release form)
Enter all charges into the computer and write off as GKAS-Charity (Record total donation dollars – the production)
Sadly, there will be some treatment that you won’t be able to do that day – give them a treatment plan and if they cannot afford treatment in your office you should refer them to a dental school or Medicaid office. Have a list ready for them.
It may be the first visit to the dentist for some kids so they may be scared you really have to work at keeping them comfy & make it fun.
You might be surprised to see how many families end up becoming patients.
After the Event:
Send a thank you to the children after the event.
Send a thank you to any business that contributed to the event.
Submit a press release talking about the success of the event, pictures, and tips for parents to keep their child’s smile healthy.
Make your Give Kids a Smile Day a huge success!
It’s a really fun day – exhausting yes, and maybe a little heartbreaking but it feels good to volunteer your time and donate your services to help so many children in the community.
If you have any questions about hosting your Give Kids A Smile Event or would like help planning/advertising (press release & talking points)/marketing this special day, please contact me at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com
Don’t miss out on any of the ideas that I share each month! Are you receiving my complimentary Practice Management and Marketing Ideas in your inbox each month? If not, please start following us today. If you prefer, send me your email address and I will send you an invitation to follow my blog.
Feel free to tell your dental friends all about us so they can start benefiting from these complimentary dental ideas too. If you liked these ideas, I would love and truly appreciate you to please leave a review/recommendation for me on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK.