May 18, 2021 by bettyhayden

Dental Office Management and Leadership Ideas for June 2021

Hello Friends,

Did you catch my dental marketing ideas for June? If not, here is the link June 2021 Marketing Ideas

Now that you have your marketing plans set for June…

Are you looking to boost team morale? Is your dental schedule looking weak?

You’ll find several tips and ideas to help support your vision and mission right here.

Dental Practice Management and Leadership Ideas and Reminders for June

“Leadership is an action, not a position.” – Donald McGannon

Here are 8 Important Actios of Leadership (source: inc.com)

1. Learn to lead by example.

2. Be goal-oriented.

3. Take responsibility.

4. Share the glory.

5. Know how to develop a team.

6. Become a master of communication.

7. Be courageous and assertive.

8. Be confident.

Remember, “you can borrow knowledge, but not action.” – James Clear

Recess At Work Day: 17th

Get outside for a few minutes with your team for some fresh air. If you can’t all get outside, open the windows and turn up the radio. How about a sweet treat to enjoy during “recess”? (ex: ice cream, frozen drink, etc.)

Doctors, if you’re struggling to reach your practice goals or you would just like to improve and refine your current office systems – feel free to contact me for a complimentary, no-obligation 30-minute telephone consultation at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com to see if a coaching relationship is right for you.

Hygiene Continuing Care/Recare Reminders:

Postcard & Social Media Site Scripting Idea: Summertime is a great time of year and it can also be a busy time of year. We encourage you to remember to take the time to squeeze in your regular dental visit before the summer months fly by. Regular dental visits are so important to your overall health.

Incomplete Treatment Reports:

Many insurance companies renewed their maximum on June 1st. Pull a report of any patients due in hygiene or with incomplete treatment that have a June renewal date. Make calls and send letter/text/email that their maximum renewed and encourage them to schedule an appointment.

Some questions to consider:

Of your active patients (seen in the last 18 months) how many have a next appointment scheduled and how many do not?
How many patients left the practice this year?
What can you do together as a team to retain more patients by consistently exceeding their expectations?
What can you do together as a team to help more patients say yes to your very best care? Remember, When your patients are healthy – the practice is healthy.

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.

Do you know what your office numbers look like? How many of your active patients are unscheduled? How many patients you’re gaining and losing each month? You need to know where you’re at currently to know how to best care for your patients and what your potential for growth is. 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.

It always brightens my day to hear from you! If you appreciated these complimentary ideas I would love for you to please take a minute to leave me a review/recommendation here on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK. Thank you!!

Hope you enjoy these ideas and are able to use some of them to help make the month of June a fantastic one for you and your team.

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.

Yours for Greater Success,
~Betty

P.S. Please stop by and say hello to me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest

May 12, 2021 by bettyhayden

June 2021 Dentist Office Marketing Tips and Ideas

Hello Friends –

The month of June will close out your second quarter for the year; why not end it as your best quarter ever? At the very least, make it your best June ever.

Doctors, if you’re struggling to reach your practice goals – feel free to contact me for a complimentary, no-obligation 30-minute telephone consultation at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com to see if a coaching relationship is right for you.

Here are some tips and ideas to help with your marketing plans.

Dental Marketing Tips and Ideas

June is Oral Health Month and Smile Month

A great month to encourage the community to share more smiles.

Theme: Cruise on in for Better Dental Health

Focus: Preventive Care (Cleanings, Sealants, and Fluoride for Adults and Children)

Goal: Raise awareness for the importance of preventive dental care (getting patients back on track with regular dental visits), take better care of your current patients, increase production, and bring in new patients.

Give-Away/Gift Idea: Drawing to win a Car Care Kit (Bucket filled with car care supplies.) Or team up with a local car wash or oil change shop for gift certificate donations. Have a drawing that your patients can enter a free car wash and/or oil change.

Example of Scripting:

Sealants: “A Tooth Without A Sealant is like a Car Without A Seat Belt” Dental Sealants Protect Your Teeth Against Decay and Cavities.

Gift Certificates – Remember to offer gift certificates for purchase.

Community Engagement & Involvement Ideas ~

June is Perennial Gardening Month – Host a Summer Perennial Plant Exchange at your office. What a fantastic way to meet your neighbors! (It would be awesome to turn this into a “Beautify & Clean-Up” Local Businesses in the Community Event.)

Summer Reading Programs – Check with your local library to see if they are hosting any summer reading program incentives and offer to donate a prize(s). You can also design and print some fun bookmarks that include your office information.

Fun Community Gift Give-Away Idea – June 6^th is Drive-In Movie Day – Put together a drive-in movie gift basket. (Fill it with candy, salty snacks, flashlight, bug spray, blanket, etc.) Have people comment on your Facebook page with the first movie they saw at the drive-in or what their favorite movie is to be entered for a chance to win the gift basket.

~ Educational Opportunites ~

National Migraine and Headache Awareness Month & National Headache Awareness Week: June 6^th – 12^th / If it’s not your patient in the chair that suffers from migraines or headaches, it’s someone that they know. Great opportunity to share with them information about how you can help bring them or a friend some relief.

Men’s Health Week: 14^th – 20^th/ Compared to women, men are less likely to visit a dentist, oftentimes, only seeing a dentist when a problem arises. Share dental health tips for men on your website, and social media sites.

~ Social Media Post Ideas to Improve Engagement During the month of June ~

Great Outdoors Month – Print up a list of local parks, trails, camping sites, public pools/splash pads, kids outdoor activity ideas, etc. for your patients to take home and share with friends, family, co-workers & neighbors. Be sure to include your office contact information. All month-long share this information on your social media pages.

National Candy Month

Say Something Nice Day: 1st

Donut Day: 4^th

Iced Tea Day: 10th

Corn on the Cob Day: 11^th

First Day of Summer: 20^th

International Body Piercing Day: 28^th (share dangers of oral piercings)

Remember to have FUN!!

Hope you enjoy these ideas and are able to use some of them to help make the month of June a fantastic one for you, your team, and your patients.

Yours for Greater Success,
~Betty

P.S. Please stop by and say hello to me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest

February 17, 2021 by bettyhayden

Top Ten Tips for How to Effectively Answer the Dental Office Telephone

Hello Friends,

The phone is ringing, the calls are coming in, but appointments aren’t being made. In fact, it is quite possible potential new patients are unintentionally being turned away.

“You never get a second chance to make a great first impression.”

What kind of impression is your dental office team creating for you? Do you really know how effective they are in answering the office telephone? Are you tracking how many calls come in and how many of those callers schedule an appointment? Does it really matter? Absolutely!

All your marketing efforts lead people to the phone first. Don’t waste your money by losing the potential patient or aggravating current patients due to poor telephone skills and habits. Your entire team (clinical & admin) should be trained on how to properly answer the phone and effectively care for the caller.

Answering the phone is a privilege and a great opportunity!

Here are 10 helpful telephone tips & ideas:

Always Smile before you pick up the phone.
Answer the phone within the first couple of rings.
Answer the phone with a thank you for calling, identify the office and give your name. (ex: Thank you for calling Dr. Smiles, this is Betty. I can help you.)
Do NOT let the caller go to voice mail (or a busy signal!) during business hours (including and especially lunch hours). People hate leaving messages. Oftentimes, they’ll hang up and call the next office on their list.
Never, ever answer the phone with “hold please” or “can you hold?”! Take a quick second, find out who they are and what they need. People hate to be put on hold. If you are habitually needing to put callers on hold, you need more people answering the phones.
For the few times when you do need to put a caller on hold – please, consider having a great message on hold service. Here’s why: Should I Use A Message On Hold Service?
Get the caller’s name early on and use it often. BEFORE you answer their initial question, you should know who you are talking with. (ie: “Great question, I can help you that. Again, my name is Betty may I ask your name?”)
Find out how they heard about your office (document the referral source in the software!).
“What type of insurance do you have?” shouldn’t be the first thing you ask. In fact, let the caller bring that part up. Your goal is to build a relationship with the caller, to get to know them and their expectations.
Offer an appointment. Sounds obvious right? You might be surprised to know how many offices miss this important step. Seriously, this one is so simple and yet it is shocking how many offices totally miss this opportunity. Remember, the goal should be to end the call with an appointment scheduled.

Set aside some time to meet as a team – everyone in the office should be trained on how to not only answer the phones but should know how to effectively handle the calls. At the very least, professionally & courteously direct the caller to someone who can help.

Practice, Practice, Practice how to effectively handle different types of calls and questions until you feel comfortable. (Yes, I am talking about role-play – I know we hate role-play it’s uncomfortable (and embarrassing) to do but it’s necessary to be truly successful. Work through the discomfort. It’s worth it!)

As a team, create your Telephone Principles (scripting guidelines)which are your goals & expectations for each call.

Know how to respond to the following callers (not just answer their question but with the goal of welcoming them into the practice by scheduling a new patient appointment):

Shopper Callers – Great opportunity! Typically, the shopper caller has a need and is ready to “buy”, that’s why they are “shopping”. Don’t blow it by refusing to quote fees over the phone or by failing to invite them to come in for a complimentary consultation.
Insurance Questions – Have a great response for: “Do you take XYZ ins?
Wrong Numbers – offer an appointment anyway.
Sales Calls – Be kind, they’re just doing their job. Maybe they need an appointment. Plus, you don’t know who they know. It’s simple – always be kind.
Organizations or local businesses requesting donations – Empower your team to fulfill their request. At the very least, offer them an appointment.

The telephone ringing should never be viewed as an interruption to your already too busy day. Certainly, handling the phones is a big responsibility but it’s an even bigger privilege. Don’t miss out on any opportunities to set your office apart from the others by always exceeding the caller’s expectations.

If you have questions about how to successfully handle telephone calls or need help training your team, don’t wait, ask for help. I’m ready to help you. Email:bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com

If you find the complimentary ideas that I share each month to be helpful for your practice, I would love and truly appreciate for you to please leave a review here on GOOGLE and/or FACEBOOK –Thank you!!

Be sure to take a second and subscribe to receive in your email inbox each month, my FREE (no spam ever!) dental marketing, leadership, and practice management tips & ideas. Or if you prefer to email me at bhaydenconsulting@gmail.com your email address and I will send you an invitation to follow.

Yours for Greater Success,

~Betty – Dental Coach

P.S. Please stop by and say hello to me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Pinterest

November 20, 2020 by bettyhayden

Dental Office Leadership, Management, and Marketing Tips and Ideas for December 2020

Hello My Friends,

What does December typically look like for your dental practice? Schedules jammed with patients trying to use their remaining dental insurance benefits before they expire? Patients breaking their appointments same-day because they’re too stressed out, or financially strapped to think about going to the dentist? Now, we can add patients breaking their appointment because they’re afraid to leave their homes and have been told that is unsafe to visit the dentist. Or maybe your office needing to close due to a shut-down or COVID exposure.

Regardless of what December usually looks like in your office – we can expect December 2020 to look different (unusual) than years past because if there is one thing we’ve learned this year it is that things in life can change quickly and often.

Many have become adaptability experts while looking forward to this year coming to an end. However, even with all the uncertainty and need to be adaptable, we can still plan to make the last month of the final quarter for this crazy year a HAPPY one. We need it!

Here are a few dental leadership, marketing, and management tips and ideas to help you do just that.

Practice Management Tips & Ideas

Incomplete Treatment:

Do you have any patients with incomplete treatment or ones that are due/past due in hygiene with remaining insurance benefits that will expire at the end of this year? Do what you can to help them see the need and value in scheduling an appointment this month. Some offices invite their patients to take advantage of “today only” special offers that they share via their social media sites, emails, and telephone calls.

Do you know how many of your patients have unscheduled treatment plans and money remaining on their insurance for this year?

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.

Be alert to any patients that are coming in with the doctor or hygienist and have incomplete treatment or are due in hygiene. If the schedule allows, encourage them to take care of both at the same time. This means carefully reviewing all charts in advance of the appointment.

December is a great time for Special offers on Teeth Whitening, Electric Toothbrushes, and Invisalign.

Remind your patients that electric toothbrushes, teeth whitening, and dental treatment make excellent gifts!

Consider having a drawing for a gift basket or gift cards to local businesses that your patients can enter to win when they come in for their dental appointment before December 23rd.

Cosmetic Dentistry Opportunity:

Many of your patients will be attending/participating in end of year parties/events during the month of December. Now is a great time to help them see how they can easily get their smile ready for the camera (even if it is the Zoom camera) with teeth whitening and other cosmetic treatment/procedures.

Leadership Tips & Ideas

“If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy and inspires your hopes.” —Andrew Carnegie

December is National Write a Business Plan Month – What does your business plan look like for 2021? Meet as a team to discuss marketing ideas, production, & collection goals, new patient goals, continuing education needs/wants, and office maintenance/repairs/remodel needs. Put your plans down on paper! Be sure to include a plan of action: The Who, What, Where, When & How’s!

Note: If you struggle with implementing your leadership, practice management & marketing goals – a dental coaching relationship may be the solution! Contact: Betty @bhaydenconsulting.gmail.com.

Marketing Tips & Ideas

Cookie Cutter Week: 1-7 – Purchase a variety of cookie cutters to individually package and seal with an office label that says: “Our Patients Are a CUT Above the Rest!” See more patient gift ideas here: Patient Appreciation Gift Ideas

betty hayden consulting dental office tips and ideas winter

National Hand Washing Awareness Week: 6-12 – Purchase small bottles of hand-sanitizer with your office information on the label. Give away to your patients during this week or throughout the month.

Community Involvement: Donations – Open your office as a Drop-Off Location for donations of non-perishable food items or winter gear for families/individuals in need.

Oftentimes, local print & TV news will pick up these types of stories. (Especially around the holidays.)

Educational Opportunity: National 12-hour Fresh Breath Day: 12th –Create a few short videos for your social media platforms about the possible causes of bad breath as well as some tips and remedies to keep their breath smelling fresh.

Social Media Post Ideas to Improve Engagement during the month of December

National Pear Month

Gluten-free Baking Week: 13-19

National Sock Day: 4

Toilet Paper Appreciation Day: 8

National Chocolate-covered Anything Day: 16

Winter (Winter Solstice): 21

Bacon Day: 30

Look On The Bright Side Day: 31

It may be that despite your best efforts the schedule will still fall apart. Don’t stress over it, instead use that available time to do some training, team building, office cleaning/organizing, or to catch your breath, and smile!

Did you enjoy these tips and ideas? I would love and truly appreciate for you to please take a minute to leave a review/recommendation for me 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 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.

Yours for Greater Success,
~Betty

P.S. Please stop by and say hello to me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Pinterest