How To Grow Your Dental Practice

1. Provide an offer that tops your competition.

Keeping an eye out for new ways to surpass your competition is always a strategic move. There are many dental practices out there already, so you should find a way to stand out among the rest. A good way to do this is to keep an eye out for your competitor’s promotions and current prices; if a competing dental practice is advertising a new patient package for $50, don’t offer the same special for $75.

One idea is to choose to develop a specialty. As an example you could become the dental practice who specialises in dental implants. This can often result in a large referral base from other medical professionals.

2. Create a referral and loyalty program.

A major source of new patients is from the personal referrals of current patients. However, current patients might not even know that your practice is still growing. So how will your current patients know that you are looking for additional patients?

By instituting some type of referral rewards program, you are able to offer an incentive to motivate patients to recommend you to their friends and family. If you provide a discount price on a service to patients who refer a friend, you encourage current patients to keep your practice in mind. A good way to advertise this is to print referral cards and hand them out in your office or send them with your practice mailings.

3. Focus on improving the patient’s overall experience.

Customer service is an integral part of any growing business. It is important to show your patients that you care about their visit and that they are given the best possible care. Your team members should be greeting patients with a warm smile and welcoming attitude.

Communication is another key element to this; checking up on a patient after performing an intrusive procedure lets them know that you care about their recovery.

This follow up can be as simple as an SMS or phone call follow up just to check-in. Consider having the administration staff use any available downtime in order to do this.

4. Make sure that your schedule is in order.

An organised schedule is a fundamental part of ensuring that your practice runs smoothly and is kept on track. Having a designated scheduling coordinator trained to schedule based on daily production goals while also making sure your team isn’t overwhelmed is very helpful. Make sure you communicate with your schedule coordinator about different procedure times, so they know when to book longer or shorter appointments.

5. Make sure your team is set up for success.

This starts all the way at the initial hiring process. Hiring can be stressful, but don’t say yes to the first person you come across with a stunning resume. You want to hire people with a good work ethic that will make a great team and form a welcoming atmosphere within your practice.

After hiring a new team member, you should focus on providing helpful guidance. Clearly communicating with them about what their job entails and how they can succeed goes a long way.

Contact our team today for more advice on how to grow your dental practice.