You oft been told there’s untold fortunes sitting in the records on your dental office shelf. You’ve been urged by countless authors and “guru experts” to put somebody on that project. Get your team pulling records one at a time and making (painful) calls. Call Mrs. Smith, she hasn’t started that huge bridge. Call Mr. Jones, he’s got that big veneer case we diagnosed over a year ago. How ’bout Mr. White? When he was here last, didn’t we discover a quadrant of porcelain inlays needing to be done?
The people who’d tell you there’s enormous wealth just sitting in those records, waiting to be called and brought back in, clearly don’t understand human psychology or the sales process. Without deadlines, nothing happens. No sense of urgency? Nothing happens. If it’s not clear that the “needed” treatment is immediate and urgent, you’ve sold nothing.
Creating a sense of urgency
People buy solely based upon emotion. It doesn’t matter if your patient’s an engineer, a rocket scientist ,or an obsessive-compulsive neurotic anal retentive (like me). We all buy based on emotion first!
Have you ever wondered how long the emotion (reason to buy) lasts after patients walk out your front door? Simple answer. It evaporates somewhere between your front door and the car door. When you convince patients to move forward with care you feel is in their best interest, you must get them scheduled and committed before they leave.
Doctor's attitude
Just how much do I think one brief article (gem) might be able to change your life? It depends on how seriously you take the following statement by Dan Kennedy: “The attitude of the seller is far more important than the attitude of the buyer in determining the likelihood of the sale.”
Two thought processes I urge my coaching members to follow are:
❶ Offer your best to each and every patient without bias or exception. This one concept has been the basis for multi-hundred-thousand dollar changes in many a dental practice. Realize it or not, like it or not, 99.9 percent of dentists compromise care before they even get the first recommendations out of their mouths.
If you don’t believe me, take a look at the last 20 recall patients you’ve seen ... look in their mouths next time they’re with you, then see what you recommended for care. Next, send them to a new dentist, the one (after you) you feel offers the best clinical dentistry in your area and see what care he or she recommends!
We compromise patients’ care if we don’t think they can afford it. We compromise if we think they might become upset with our recommendation. Bottom line is, we are conflict-averse. If we feel that it’s going to stress our day, we often pull back. We don’t recommend the very best long-term, ultimate best-option dentistry to each and every patient without exception.
❷ I don’t need the money. If patients perceive that you have nothing other than their best interest at heart, you will enjoy case-acceptance levels beyond anything you’ve ever experienced. Referrals will increase, production and collections will increase ... and your life will change forever.
When I became debt-free, then went on to stash away enough to last the rest of my life, my relationship with my patients went through an incredibly positive evolution. When your patients perceive that you simply don’t need their money, they are far more likely to accept your recommendations. The trick for most of us is to put ourselves in that frame of mine even before it’s true.
Wealth beyond your dreams
Although it’s a myth that there’s wealth in the records sitting on your shelves, hopefully it’s clearer now that there is an abundance of wealth just waiting for you now. You can discover limitless opportunity today in the day-to-day patients you see in your practice. Create a sense of urgency for every treatment recommendation and exude the “it’s-simply-not-about-the-money attitude.” You will enjoy the ultimate in professional and financial success.
Dr. Tom Orent, the “Gems Guy,” is a founding member and past president of the New England Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. His “1000 Gems Seminars™” span five countries and 48 states. He is the author of five books and hundreds of articles on practice management, TMJ, and “Extreme Customer Service.” To receive a free half-year subscription to Dr. Orent’s “Independent Dentist Newsletter” (normally $297 per year), mention Dental Economics® and send a request with doctor’s name, address, e-mail, and a major credit card number and expiration date (to pay for the one--time $5.95 shipping and handling charge) to [email protected] or fax to (508) 861-1550.
