5 Things to Do on Monday to Grow Your Practice
- Same day starts – It amazes me that more people do not diagnose and treatment plan on the spot for the 85% or more of cases that are straight forward, are current with their dentist and have good hygiene. People come to you to get braces. People are busy. People have other things to do. If the case is in your DX comfort zone then put braces on TODAY! Patients will see this as a benefit I guarantee you! What’s that? You don’t have time? Of course you do! You don’t need an extra assistant or an extra chair to get it done – just get it done! If you are worried about time then bond during lunch or after 5 PM. However, if you want to know how fast your team can do a bonding, start one on Friday at 4:45 and my bet is they will set a new world record. Our office hours are from 8 am until the last person who wants to give me 6000 dollars leaves. In this day and age, shouldn’t yours be the same?
- Extended financing – If you are still asking for 25% down and payment in full before completion of treatment then you are probably missing out on a ton of new patient starts from people who will pay you faithfully but who cannot afford old school terms. Why? Because some old school consultant tells you it’s a bad idea to let the “wrong kind of patients” into your practice? Because it will cause headaches? Because you don’t like getting well compensated for making people smile? Make braces affordable! What do you have to lose? You aren’t giving people a 6000 dollar loan – you are betting a couple hundred bucks (the cost of brackets and wires for that case) with really good odds of getting your full case fee. Plus you have chairs that sit empty and staff that sit idle. Your time is not valuable! Your time costs you big bucks if you aren’t starting patients!
- Ask fors on the NP phone call – When someone calls your office asking for a new patient appointment, do you or your folks ask them “is there anyone else in the family who wants to be seen by Dr. Smith? The American Association of Orthodontists recommends an orthodontic screening for all children age 7 and older and our doctor loves to see kids young to check on them.” If not, why not? It costs you nothing and can be a huge boost to your new patient flow.
- Ask fors in the NP exam – When mom brings little Johnny in for a new patient visit – do you ask mom if she is going to get braces with Johnny? Why not? Obviously mom values straight teeth and the work you do! What are you afraid of? When you ask mom if she wants braces too, there is a very predictable response in most cases: “well, I need to get little Johnny’s braces done first.” This used to stymie us… until we implemented #2! Make it affordable. What do you have to lose?
- Same day debonds – The only thing better than putting braces on is taking them off. When our goals are accomplished or when mom and the patient are satisfied and start asking for the braces to come off, get the braces off as soon as possible! Why? Well, something could happen between the time the teeth look good and when you schedule the debond if not. Plus, same day debonds are a delight for patients and they tend to share their delight on Facebook and Instagram and Snapchat, leading to more new patients!