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Optimizing Phone Conversations to Book More Patients

revupmanager Filed Under: Operations September 18, 2023

Optimizing Phone Conversations to Book More Patients

In the competitive world of dentistry, it’s crucial for your team to be skilled in effective phone communication. How your team talks on the phone can greatly impact your dental practice’s success.

In our recent webinar, we discussed essential steps to improve your phone conversations, specifically tailored for the dental field.

Step 1 - Start with a Warm Welcome

When it comes to answering phone calls at a dental practice, it’s essential to recognize the significance of the initial impression you make. The way you greet patients can significantly impact their perception of your practice. Therefore, follow these key principles to ensure a warm and effective phone interaction.

Begin by extending a warm welcome that conveys friendliness and professionalism. This can be achieved by offering a pleasant greeting, such as “good morning” or “good afternoon,” immediately followed by stating the name of your dental practice, thereby confirming to the patient that they have indeed reached the right destination.

Furthermore, it’s equally crucial to introduce yourself by sharing your name, which adds a personal touch to the conversation. This introduction not only humanizes the interaction but also allows the patient to address you by name, making the conversation more engaging and personable.

Initiating the conversation, instead of leaving it entirely up to the caller, is another important aspect to consider. By doing so, you ease any potential discomfort the patient might feel and create a more welcoming atmosphere for them to express their needs or concerns.

Additionally, remember the power of maintaining a friendly and warm tone throughout the conversation. Smiling while speaking, even if the patient can’t see it, can convey a sense of warmth and professionalism. This simple action can help build trust and rapport with the patient.

Lastly, avoid using gimmicky or condescending phrases in your greeting, as these can come across as insincere or even off-putting. Stick to clear and effective openings, such as “this is ABC Dental,” which provide all the necessary information without any unnecessary embellishments.

Step 2 - Shift the Power

Shifting the power during phone conversations is a vital aspect of ensuring effective communication, especially in the context of a dental practice. It involves taking control of the conversation without overwhelming the patient. When you leave the patient to ask all the questions, it can make them feel like they’re carrying the weight of the conversation, which is far from an ideal scenario.

Consider a typical situation where a patient inquires about a dental service, like dental implants. They might ask something like “Do you guys do dental implants?” In some instances, the receptionist may respond with a curt “Yes, we do,” leaving the patient to figure out what to say next. This approach often leads to misunderstandings. It’s important to realize that when someone asks about the cost, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re just price shopping. More often, it’s because they don’t know how else to initiate the conversation.

Now, let’s delve into the psychology behind these interactions. If a receptionist responds with a simple “Yes, we do” and leaves it at that, the caller might perceive it as dismissive or uninterested. This is one of the primary reasons dental practices believe that potential patients are merely price shopping, not genuinely interested in their services.

In reality, patients seek answers to various questions, but the cost inquiry is a common starting point because it feels safe and straightforward. However, what follows next is crucial. If the receptionist immediately assumes that the patient is not serious or feels irritated, it can negatively impact the conversation. The receptionist’s tone may change, and they might hurry through the interaction, leaving the patient unsatisfied and less likely to choose their practice.

Alternatively, some receptionists might insist on an in-person consultation before providing any cost information. While this approach is intended to ensure a thorough evaluation, it can come across as a barrier to potential patients. The patient might interpret it as an unwillingness to provide straightforward answers or an attempt to delay the process.

So, how can the power dynamic in these conversations be shifted to create a more positive experience? It’s surprisingly simple yet highly effective. Instead of instantly diving into cost details, the receptionist can acknowledge the cost question and gently say, “Can I ask you some questions so I can better assist you?” This simple phrase signals to the patient that their inquiry is taken seriously, and it shifts the responsibility of guiding the conversation onto the receptionist’s shoulders.

By asking a few relevant questions, the receptionist can better understand the patient’s specific needs and concerns. For example, if a patient inquires about dental implants, the receptionist can ask about their dental history, the reason for their interest in implants, and whether they’re already a patient at the practice. These questions not only provide valuable information but also show the patient that the receptionist is genuinely interested in helping them.

Step 3 - Use Effective Discovery Questions

The concept of “Discovery questions” in phone conversations involves asking specific questions to understand the patient’s situation and needs better. These questions go beyond basic information and help receptionists tailor their responses effectively. While some common questions like patient status and contact information are important, “Discovery questions” aim to uncover unique details about the patient.

Examples of effective “Discovery questions” include asking about the patient’s recent dental history, whether they are experiencing pain, if they have specific treatment preferences, and how long they’ve been considering treatment options. Additionally, inquiring if the patient has contacted other dental practices and what those practices told them can provide valuable insights.

Furthermore, questions like, “Do you need this for something special?” can help receptionists connect with the patient on a personal level and understand the urgency or motivation behind their inquiry.

“Discovery questions” in dental phone conversations are designed to gather essential information about the patient’s situation and motivations, enabling receptionists to provide more personalized and effective assistance. These questions enhance the overall patient experience and improve the chances of converting inquiries into appointments.

Step 4 - Build Rapport

Building rapport with patients over the phone is essential to create a positive connection and make them feel valued and cared for. When patients feel comfortable, they are more likely to trust your dental practice and follow through with appointments. Here are some tips on how to build rapport effectively during phone conversations:

  • Show empathy: Patients often call with dental issues, pain, or anxiety. Express sympathy and understanding for their situation. A simple “I’m sorry to hear that” or “I understand how you feel” can go a long way in showing empathy.
  • Acknowledge anxiety: Dental anxiety is common, so let patients know it’s perfectly normal to feel nervous. Reassure them that your team is experienced in handling anxious patients and that their comfort is a priority.
  • Personalize the conversation: Ask open-ended questions about their situation or interests. For example, inquire about their family, kids, or any special events like weddings. Showing genuine interest in their lives helps create a more personal connection.
  • Be patient-friendly: If a patient has to reschedule due to a family emergency or similar situations, be understanding and accommodating. Offer alternatives and make the process as smooth as possible.
  • Laugh and engage: If patients crack jokes or use humor to cope with their anxiety, don’t ignore it. Laughing and acknowledging their humor can help ease tension and make the conversation more pleasant.
  • Compliment and congratulate: Celebrate special occasions or milestones mentioned by the patient, such as weddings or anniversaries. Offer genuine compliments and congratulations to make them feel valued.

Overall, building rapport is about making patients feel heard, understood, and respected. It fosters trust and enhances the patient experience, increasing the likelihood of successful conversions and long-term patient relationships.

Step 5 - Promote the Practice

Promoting your dental practice during phone conversations is an effective way to attract and retain patients. Here are some strategies to incorporate into your conversations to highlight the positive aspects of your practice:

  • Mention Amenities: Bring attention to any special amenities your practice offers. For instance, mention that you have Wi-Fi in the waiting room, a toy box for kids, or free parking. These amenities can make the patient’s visit more comfortable and appealing.
  • Highlight Expertise: If you have experienced dentists or specialists on your team, emphasize their expertise and years of experience. For example, you can say, “Our dentist, Dr. XYZ, has over 20 years of experience, so you’re in capable hands.” This reassures patients about the quality of care they can expect.
  • Comfort and Care: Reiterate your commitment to patient comfort and care. Mention that your hygienists are known for being gentle and ensuring patients’ comfort. While all dental professionals prioritize patient comfort, stating it explicitly reassures patients.
  • Family-Friendly: If your practice is family-friendly, let patients know. For example, mention that you have a dentist who is excellent with children and even has a toy box. Parents will appreciate this information, making them more likely to choose your practice for their family’s dental needs.
  • Flexible Hours: If you offer extended hours or weekend appointments to accommodate busy schedules, communicate this to patients. Saying, “We know people are busy, so we stay open late on Thursdays. Does that work for you?” can be very appealing.
  • Pre-Appointment Information: Before ending the call, provide essential pre-appointment information. Confirm the appointment date and time, mention that a confirmation email and text will be sent (with a link to a new patient information form if applicable), and provide your practice’s address. Highlight any unique landmarks that make your location easy to find.
  • Duration of Appointment: Provide an estimate of how long the appointment is expected to take. This gives patients a clear idea of what to expect and helps them plan their schedules accordingly.

By incorporating these elements into your conversations, you not only promote your practice effectively but also create a positive and reassuring experience for patients. Patients are more likely to choose and stick with a practice that goes the extra mile to make them feel comfortable and valued.

Conclusion

Remember that people typically call a dental practice because they are in pain, anxious, or in need of dental care, not for fun. Being empathetic, professional, and promoting the benefits of your practice can make a significant difference in the patient’s decision to choose your practice for their dental needs.

Accountability System for Dental Staff

revupmanager Filed Under: Operations November 20, 2022

Accountability System for Dental Staff

The success of your dental practice, and your success as a dentist, is at the mercy of your staff. If you’ve got a great team that delivers amazing customer service, you will be able to build a very successful and profitable dental practice.

However, if you’ve got a team that is average, or below average, you’re going to be under a tremendous amount of financial and emotional stress as you have to constantly run around putting out fires in your business.

In this article, we talk about why you need to implement a strong accountability system to monitor and improve the performance of your team.

The Importance of Accountability

When we first began working with dentists, we would build them a great website, do their SEO, rank them high on Google, and create a great presence on social media– but we were surprised to find that in a lot of cases, none of this made a big improvement in their new patient count.

Sure, the numbers did go up and those clients did generate a return on investment– but nowhere near the amount that we expected to see. When we doubled or tripled the number of new patient calls, we expected to see double or triple the amount of new patients booked… but this wasn’t happening.

We were really curious to understand what was going on. So, we started to listen to every single call coming in, and… let’s just say that what we found was shocking.

Across nearly every dentist we worked with, customer service and the new patient experience were lacking. We found hundreds of instances of staff being rude or dismissive to patients, not taking the time to engage with them or answer their questions, and often talking to patients with a demeanor that said “I don’t really care”

Let’s take a look at some examples.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Teeth-Whitening.mp3

In this call the patient was looking for in-office whitening. The dentist had just implemented the Zoom whitening system a few months ago and wanted to promote it. Have a listen to how the receptionist handled the inquiry. Would you have been impressed if you were the patient?

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Take-Advil.mp3

In this call an existing patient had a procedure done recently and developed an infection. She called the office to book an emergency visit. Listen to what the receptionist said to the patient or her attitude. Would you be surprised to find out she decided to go to a different practice? The dentist didn’t even know about it.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Third-Voicemail.mp3

This patient left 3 voicemails to try to book an appointment for her father but nobody ever called her back. Despite the staff claiming that they were calling back patients right away, this recording showed otherwise. When we reached out to the patient we realized she had decided to go to a different practice. No surprise there.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Ignored-Patient.mp3

In this example, a new patient called the office to book an appointment. The receptionist answered but got distracted by a colleague and ignored the patient. You would think this may have been a technical issue where perhaps she couldn’t hear the patient but we found multiple examples like this one where this particular receptionist just didn’t listen to patients like this one.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Not-paying-attention.mp3
https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/No-Greeting-.mp3

You’d be surprised how many times we hear dental practices answer the phone with “hello?” leading the patient to think maybe they called the wrong number. It’s hard to recover from a poor first impression.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/No-Effort.mp3

In this example, a patient had called for an appointment but the receptionist said the dentist was done for the day. She never bothered to ask for his name, what the issue was, or put in any kind of effort to try to help him.

From the tens of thousands of dental calls we listen to each month, what we often find is that, at best, customer service is lacking. Dentists believe it’s their marketing that is holding them back but in 90% of cases we find that dentists have enough new calls coming in they could easily double the patient flow without doing anything different, or spending more, when it comes to marketing.

What Dentists Had to Say

Take a look at what our clients had to say when we started to share our findings with them. We’ve removed the names to keep things confidential and not identify any particular practice, but this is pretty much the reaction every one of the dentists had.

Here’s one of our clients that operates a large cosmetic practice in Toronto that focuses on dental implants. He had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars over the last 10 years on marketing his practice and on training his staff and was under the impression that they were delivering world-class customer service. Here’s what he had to say when we shared with him a dozen call recordings showing him the experience new patients were getting when speaking with his staff.

Hi Nick. I’m absolutely appalled by this. I can’t believe this is my staff! I have so many questions…

Here’s another quote from a large established office. Again, this dentist had spent thousands of dollars on marketing, consultants, and training. We shared with them a handful of examples of how new patient inquiries are being handled by their staff.

OMG! This is absolutely not the way I want my business handled. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I will address it ASAP.

We got this reaction from virtually every dentist we worked with. One office manager said:

Hi guys,

Wow, that call was very difficult to listen to. That was probably the worst customer service call I’ve heard on her part in the 2 years she’s worked here.

Notice that she writes, “…the worst customer service call I’ve heard…” But nobody was recording or listening to any of the calls coming in before we came along– so how many times did it happen in the past two years? This is like catching someone stealing and thinking “well they only did this once, so I’ll forgive them” but the truth is this is just the first time you caught it, not the first time it’s happened.

So, What’s Going On?

In many cases, the problem is that receptionists don’t really know what to say and they give patients the wrong information.

In one example, we had a patient call one of our clients to book a consultation for Invisalign. A new receptionist who had only been working there for 4 months told the patient: “Ohh… I don’t think we do Invisalign” 

The patient was confused because he was looking at an Invisalign page on the client’s website. He thought maybe he called the wrong practice so he asks the receptionist if she knows anyone in the area that does it. The receptionist proceeded to give the patient directions to one of our client’s competitors down the street.

https://revupdental.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/Invisalign.mp3

Now, this may sound like we’re bashing dental receptionists, but the truth is we were really shocked to discover this. We were just trying to figure out why new patients weren’t booking and we never expected to find what we found.

Implementing Accountability

So how can you tell if this is happening in your practice? And, if it is, how do you fix it? Well, it turns out the reason this happens is that nearly all dental offices lack a strong system of accountability. This is what we started to implement into each dental practice. We did a few things:

  • We tracked, recorded, and listened to every single call coming in. Our team found out how many calls were coming in each month, how many were new patients or existing patients, and how those patients found the practice (Google, Facebook, Referrals, Flyers, etc). We also tracked which receptionist they spoke with and whether they were booked for an appointment. If they weren’t, why not?
  • We looked at how each staff member was performing. We found many instances where if a new patient spoke with Receptionist A, there was a 60% chance to get an appointment, but if that person spoke to Receptionist B, only 25% of calls turned into appointments. 
  • We tracked each new appointment request that came in from the website and followed up with the staff to see what happened. As we started to do this, it became clear that a lot of patients who requested appointments weren’t even being contacted And if they were, it was often days later after they had already decided to call and book with a different practice because nobody had reached out to them. Once we started to hold the staff accountable for those appointments and follow up with them, we found that patient booking rates more than doubled.

Take a look at an email one of our dentists sent us:

The truth is, we didn’t actually do anything different on Google. All we did was implement a system of accountability and followed up with the staff about each patient and… things improved. 

So if you’re not happy with the number of new patients you’re getting, ask yourself: “What am I measuring?”

You may be measuring how many new patients come in but are you also measuring things like:

  • How many people contact you to inquire about different dental services?
  • How are those people finding you?
  • Who is speaking with these patients?
  • What is your staff saying to these patients? 
  • What is the result of that conversation? Do they book an appointment?
  • When a patient requests an appointment from your website, how quickly does the staff contact the patient back? Is it a few hours later or a few days later? 
  • When your staff can’t reach a patient, do they try to follow up multiple times or do they just give up after the first attempt? 

If you don’t have answers to these questions then it’s likely that you’re missing a strong system of accountability in your office, and this is critical to building a successful and profitable dental practice.

The Importance of a Transition Statement

revupmanager Filed Under: Operations May 10, 2022

The Importance of a Transition Statement

If you own a dental office and you want your staff to book more new patient appointments, then they must master the use of a transition statement.

A transition statement is a powerful tool that will allow your staff to take control of the conversation, build trust with prospective patients, and ultimately secure them as new patients.

But what exactly is a transition statement, and how do we use it? Keep reading to find out!

What is a Transition Statement?

A transition statement is a single sentence that can change the entire course of a call. This one simple sentence allows receptionists to take control of the conversation so that the call goes smoothly and is much more engaging.

Without the use of a transition statement, a call will often end up being led by the patient and the conversation doesn’t go where it needs to, resulting in the patient ending the call without booking an appointment.

How Not to Book an Appointment

Often, when a new prospective patient calls your office, the conversation might go something like this:

Patient: “Hi, do you guys do dental implants?”

Receptionist: “Yes we do.”

Patient: “Ok… how much do you guys charge for implants?”

At which point, most dental receptionists will assume that the patient is a price shopper calling around to find the cheapest dentist in their area. They’re not alone. We used to think this too– until we learned better from our friends at All-Star Dental Academy.

According to All-Star, when a patient calls asking for the price, they’re not asking because they’re comparing costs to other practices, but because they simply don’t know what else to ask!

In other words, they don’t know how to begin the conversation. But neither do the dental receptionists. We have listened to thousands of dental calls and when a patient asks about the price, as in the above exchange, most receptionists respond with something like this:

“Oh well… I’m not sure…it really depends… everyone is different… you’d have to come in for a consultation”. 

Not only do responses like this fail to lead the conversation anywhere, but they also risk making patients feel like you are not being upfront with them. They might suspect that you just want to get them in the door, and they won’t book as a result.

This might lead us to believe that the best course of action is to be upfront about the cost… but this doesn’t work either.

Let’s say the receptionist answers with a firm amount, like:

“At our office, dental implants start at $3,000 per tooth.”

At this point, the patient’s question has been answered, leaving them with no choice but to say something like:

“Oh… okay… thanks,” and hang up.

When this happens, not only are we left without the patient’s name or their phone number for a follow-up, we don’t know anything about their issues, whether they were missing one tooth or multiple teeth, whether they were calling for themselves or someone else– we don’t know anything at all and the conversation ultimately went nowhere.

How Transition Statements Work

A transition statement allows us to take control of the conversation and steer prospective patients toward booking an appointment. The following is a great example of a standard transition statement:

“I’d be happy to help you with that today. Would you mind if I ask you a few questions so I can better assist you?”

A sentence like this can make all the difference in how well a call goes. Let’s take a look at how the previous exchange might play out with the use of a transition statement:

Patient: “Hi, do you guys do dental implants?”

Receptionist: “Absolutely. We’ve got a very talented dentist in our office who has done hundreds of implants, he’s an artist when it comes to that type of thing. Are you looking for some information on implants?”

Patient: “Uh… yeah. How much do you guys charge for implants?”

Receptionist: “I’d be happy to help you with that today. Would you mind if I ask you a few questions so I can better assist you?”

Patient: “Sure, okay”

Receptionist: “Great! Well, my name is Andrea, who do I have the pleasure of speaking with today, and would you mind giving me your phone number in case we get disconnected?”

This one simple sentence has shifted the power away from the patient and into the hands of the receptionist, allowing them to assume the role of the expert. The transition statement signals to the patient that the receptionist has done this before and that there is a process in place for the service they are looking for.

Because the receptionist now has the power on this call, they can ask investigative questions that will build trust and rapport with the patient. The following are a few examples of good investigative questions:

  • “How did you find out about us?”
  • “Are you looking for implants for yourself or someone else?”
  • “Are you missing one tooth or multiple teeth?”
  • “Is it top or bottom? Left or right?”
  • “Is it causing you any pain? Are you having any trouble eating?”

You can see how these questions can lead to a much more engaging and meaningful conversation with a patient. Even if they do call a dozen other offices, it’s going to work in your favor because you will have been the only office to make a great impression.

A transition statement creates trust and people buy from people they trust. Make sure your staff knows how to use it, and that they use it on every call because it’s going to make a huge difference in the quality of conversations they are having with patients, and ultimately in the number of appointments you book.

Conclusion

While marketing can get the phone to ring with new patients, it’s important to remember that how well your staff does on the phone plays a big role in how many patients actually come through your door.

You could get ten new patients calling this week, but if your staff are not well trained and have no idea what to say to patients to maximize their chance of booking, then those ten new patient leads may only result in two to three new appointments. Meanwhile, there could be another dental practice in your area that is spending just as much on marketing while also securing ten new patient leads. However, if their staff is well trained in how to talk to new patients, those ten new patient leads could result in 7-8 new appointments for that practice.

What dentists should know about employment laws – Interview with Christopher Achkar

revupmanager Filed Under: Interviews, Operations May 9, 2022

What dentists should know about employment laws – Interview with Christopher Achkar

We interviewed Christopher Achkar from Achkar Law to discuss what dentists need to know regarding employment laws and contracts and what they can do to make sure they protect themselves and their practice, questions and answers below:

Can I record my employees without telling them?

Chris: Generally, yes. But you should let your employees know in advance for both quality control and safety reasons. There are also privacy concerns; employees expect some measure of privacy in the workplace. 

If an employee expresses discomfort with being recorded, it’s important to get to the root of the issue. Why are they uncomfortable with being recorded? Is there an issue with their performance that they don’t want you to see? Discuss this with them, but don’t record them in secret.

Should I document conversations with my employees?

Chris: Always. If and when litigation does happen, written documentation is some of the most solid proof lawyers look for. It’s not that advantageous to get other employees to testify against the employee in question, because they tend to side with the employer out of fear of losing their job. 

Documented evidence is important, whether the employee has signed the documents or not. Put the date, when, why, and what you’re going to measure next time– these are performance improvement plans to get yourself out of lack of performance or toxicity. You should document every time you have an employee review or a meeting. 

Some documentation happens unintentionally over texts, social media, and messaging apps. This sort of documentation is a double-edged sword. It could prove that you’re being reasonable and trying your best to work with someone. But, if the employee is looking for you to say something wrong, they can also take these words out of context and use them against you. 

What should dentists document regarding their staff?

Chris: My advice changes depending on who I’m speaking with. From an employer perspective, I don’t encourage using WhatsApp or any other form of written communication. I prefer communication to take place in person, and for notes to be taken. There are multiple reasons for this. One of the best reasons it’s easier to interpret words and intentions in person. But they must be put down in a document. Try to get the employee’s signature on the document, whether or not it includes a performance improvement plan. If they refuse to sign the document, you can write down that they refused to sign it, but that it took place on a certain date. As long as there is something we can point to that indicates the date and explains what happened, it can save you a lot of money if it goes to litigation.

It’s good practice to have the documents so that even the employees know that you are holding down the fort in an administrative sense. 

What are the dangers for dentists who don’t have employee contracts?

Chris: One common misconception dentists have is that they can fire someone within the first three months without cause. That’s not true unless there’s a contract that allows for a probation period, and states that an employee can be terminated within that period without being given anything. A probation period is a creature of the contract. If people look up the Employment Standards Act, they’ll find that there is no probation period. There is, instead, a period within which an employer can terminate someone and not pay them anything. But that is only if a contract limits entitlements to the Employment Standards Act. 

Otherwise, if you terminate an employee without a contract, it’s fair game for the employee to claim that they’re entitled to a lot of money. 

What are the most important elements of an employment contract? 

Chris: Downloading a contract without reviewing it with a lawyer is like buying a car that looks good on the outside without bothering to see if it even has an engine! 

One of the most important terms in an employment agreement is the termination clause. You may think that you’ve put everything you want in an employment agreement and that you’ve done a terrific job, but without an enforceable termination clause, the length of time someone works for you becomes a factor in deciding their entitlements. 

A termination clause limits how much you have to pay an employee upon termination. Without a termination clause, an employee will cost you more money the longer they stay. And I don’t mean only upon termination, but also constructive dismissal obligations.

If an employment agreement does not include a termination clause that minimizes entitlements upon termination to the Employment Standards Act, employers don’t automatically have to pay the Employment Standards Act. So one misconception people have is that “I hired someone and I’ve worked with them for two years and I’m going to fire them now and pay them for two weeks because that’s what the Employment Standards Act says.”

But if they don’t have an enforceable contract, that person’s entitlements are far more than the two weeks. If they go to the Ministry of Labor, the entitlements are two weeks because the Ministry of Labor only enforces it to the point that the employment standards allow for it, not more than that. So, employees generally go to lawyers because they can get money exceeding employment standards.

In short, termination clauses are a catch-all. So whether an employee makes false allegations, or an employer decides to terminate someone, having an enforceable termination clause minimizes the amount of money that needs to be paid. 

So, let’s say an employee alleges something that’s not true. Fine, let’s now look into the termination clause. Well, guess what? The termination clause says the employer only has to pay the employee X amount. So the false allegations make no difference. The termination clause allows the employer to limit entitlements to the Employment Standards Act and not exceed that rate.

Do dentists need contracts for part-time employees? 

Chris: No one should be allowed at any employer’s facilities to start working without having first signed an employment contract. 

If an employee starts working one day, then signs the agreement the next day, the agreement is unenforceable. So there must be an agreement given to every single employee before they start working, whether they’re part-time employees or contractors. Without a contract, someone could go to a lawyer or the Ministry of Labor and allege something like, “I worked overtime hours and wasn’t paid for them.”

Even if the employer classifies the employee as a contractor and they paid an invoice that clearly states the hours worked, the employer still has to justify any overtime hours that the employee claims to have worked.

So, whether the employer paid an invoice or not makes no difference without an enforceable contract. The degree of control that you have with your employee or a contract is worth putting in writing before anyone starts working to prevent these kinds of problems.

How do I get existing dental staff to sign a contract?

Chris: To motivate employees to sign a contract, you can always introduce the new contract with the caveat that you have to give them an added benefit along with the new agreement. This benefit will be given if and when they sign the new agreement. You don’t want employees to start working again until the agreement is signed. 

It would be a mistake to tell them: “Look, this week I will pay you under the new rate. Just sign the agreement and give it to me at the end of the week.” Then suddenly, you’re paying them a higher rate under the old contract, and there’s no motivation for them to sign the new agreement. There’s no consideration to make the new agreement enforceable even when signed because that employee got that benefit before they even signed it.

The motivation doesn’t necessarily have to be a raise. It could be a $100 signing bonus. It could be a $50 signing bonus. It could be an added day of vacation for the whole year. It doesn’t need to be monetarily huge. It could be one to five extra cents an hour. It could be in the form of prolonged monetary payment in a change of rate. 

How do I remove problem employees before buying a practice? 

Chris: Before buying a practice, determine whether or not you plan to keep the employees.

If you don’t want to keep the employees, then you want the seller of the practice to terminate and pay entitlements to those employees before you buy the practice. There’s always a risk when taking on new employees, but you want to try and limit how many things can go wrong.

If you want to keep the employees, I advise the purchasers to have the current owner introduce the new contracts before selling the practice. These new contracts should limit entitlements to the minimum so that if the purchaser wants to terminate people, they only have to pay the minimum entitlements under the Employment Standards. 

You can’t terminate people by simply handing over the minimum entitlement and saying “Goodbye.” The dentist must have a signed release before they give the employee money. This ensures that the employee doesn’t go to the Ministry of Labor or a lawyer and say: “Sure, they gave me some money. But I didn’t sign anything that stops me from speaking with anyone or filing a lawsuit.” Simply giving them money does not guarantee that they’ll go away.

Do you need to revise a contract if an employee gets a raise or a promotion?

Chris: A standard yearly raise does not require a new employment agreement. But a promotion would– as that means you’re moving someone into a new position or shifting their roles. You’ll want to outline the new pay properly to show that their new duties correlate with the new pay rate. You’ll also want to include termination clauses in the new agreement that limit entitlements. 

Unfortunately, the law changes on termination clauses a lot. But we do know what the Supreme Court has said, and it’s going to be pretty tough to say no to certain things in a termination clause.

All that said, the risk is always there. So make sure that, once a year, you spend a couple of hundred dollars to make sure that the contract is updated. You don’t want to rock the boat every few months by introducing a new employment agreement. But periodically reviewing contracts helps to determine when to introduce a new agreement along with with a promotion to limit liabilities. 

So no, an agreement is not necessary with every raise. But, if you make a significant change to an employee’s duties, or the pay increase is more than 5%, then you may want to draw up another agreement. Always gauge if you’re only giving a raise to someone as part of their regular salary and bonus, or if you’re shifting the role. If you are, it’s a good time to introduce the new duties in writing.

What should dentists consider before promoting an employee?

Chris: Often, employers think that because they have a previous agreement with an employee that was drafted by a lawyer, they can just change the number and add some language and it will reflect the new role. But this new agreement will not be enforceable if the employer doesn’t introduce it properly within a given timeframe of the salary change.

Now, a lot of the time these new agreements will have a probation clause. These probation clauses allow a period in which an employee can adjust to the new role, receive a little training, and see if they’re a right fit for the position.

Unfortunately, sometimes employees don’t try hard to succeed in a new role. If they get a nice promotion, they may think: “Now that I have more authority, I don’t have to be such a nice person.” 

If the employee fails in the new role, the employer has to bring them back to the old role under the old agreement, a new agreement, or an agreement that is a blend of both. And sometimes, performance improvement plans are introduced to monitor and help the employee succeed in that new role.

What are some considerations I should make when bringing back employees laid off during covid?

Chris: It’s a tricky time for recalling employees. Some businesses may not be at capacity or only need an employee part-time. Sometimes, an employer may have to choose who to recall. Maybe you want to recall everyone and apply a 10% wage reduction, or maybe you need to lay someone off, or terminate one person and bring back the remainder of the staff.

Say you have a staff of four and only bring back three people. What if one out of those three people decides that their kids need to go to school and they can’t work anymore? How do you recall that fourth employee at that point? There are a lot of moving parts here.

The first thing I’d suggest is to keep an open line of communication with your employees. The more transparent you are with your plans, the more confidence employees will have in your ability to bring them back, even if you bypass some timelines that you were not supposed to pass. Employees are more forgiving when they feel that their employer is working with them to bring them back.

In theory,  if you only bring back some employees, any one of the employees you didn’t recall can allege that they have been constructively dismissed. So, ideally, you either want to bring everyone back at the same time or not bring them at all.

Right now, some people are happy to come back to work, while others are scared. So, be mindful of health and safety issues in your practice. I know that dentists are more careful than most in terms of health and safety. But they need to outline to their employees the measures they’re taking to keep everyone healthy and safe. 

If an employee says, “I don’t feel safe to return,” ask yourself, “Why does this person feel unsafe?” If the employee does not have a legitimate claim as to why they feel unsafe, then an employer is within their rights to potentially allege that this employee has abandoned their job. 

If an employee is unresponsive, make sure that they haven’t simply missed your calls or emails. You don’t want someone to lose their job simply because of one call they didn’t answer. So, proceed carefully. 

On the other hand, because people are happy to go back to work, they’re often happy to sign a new agreement. So now is a great time to clean up those problematic people. If they’re neglecting work without reason, this is the perfect time to let them go. And then one would have to figure out how to structure an offer and negotiations in a way that keeps their bottom line low in that regard.

Why do so many great dental practices fail?

Chris: It doesn’t matter if an employer is large or small. If one or two of the receptionists answer calls in a practice of only three or four people– that’s a big percentage of calls that each receptionist handles. It only takes one of the people answering the phones to do a bad job and end up losing a significant number of patients.

The law doesn’t separate the mom-and-pop shops and big telecom companies. An employer is an employer. So, unfortunately, it only takes one bad employee out of two or even one to trigger issues that can snowball out of control.

So what got you here is the entrepreneurial spirit that you started with, but that alone won’t get you to the next level. To get there, you need to make sure that your practice is standing on proper foundations. If your employees are holding you back, you have to address that before you can get to that next stage.

Grow your Dental Practice with Data

revupmanager Filed Under: Marketing, Operations May 9, 2022

Grow your Dental Practice with Data

At Revup Dental, we meet a lot of dentists eager to try anything to increase patient flow: new websites, SEO, Google AdWords, social media… the list goes on. However, the funny thing is that most of the results we get for our dentists have nothing to do with marketing.

More often than not, we can increase patient flow by simply finding and fixing internal issues in the office. 

How do we do that? In this article, we talk about what data we track for our clients, how we use that data, and how we improve results for dentists without spending a single penny more on marketing.

The Scorecard

To drive more new patients to your practice, it’s necessary to understand how your office is communicating with patients. To this end, our team at RevUp Dental has created a system called the Scorecard. This streamlined and organized approach gives us the full picture of what’s going on with patient communication in the practice day-to-day. 

By using the data from this scorecard, we can increase patient flow by 20%, 30%, or even 40% in a single year– all without spending any more money on marketing. In fact, we’re often able to help our dentists spend even LESS money!

The following is a screenshot of an actual Scorecard report we conducted with a past client:

Notice that we’ve blacked out all personal information in accordance with HIPPA. We want to show you a real example, not some made-up demo data like many other marketing companies use.

Google Reviews

Google reviews are the most trusted reviews on the internet. Most people looking for a new dentist are just going to Google “dentist” in their area and go to whoever has the most and best reviews. Wouldn’t you? That’s why we always start our Scorecard report by tracking how many Google reviews a practice has. 

In the past, we would explain the importance of Google reviews to our dentists and their staff, and they would agree with us… but then nothing would change. It seemed like they were making no effort to increase their reviews. We kept hearing the same excuse from the staff at the practices– that they were asking for reviews, but patients just weren’t bothering to write them. 

It wasn’t until we started looking at this practice’s system that we understood what was happening. The staff hadn’t logged into the system in months! They weren’t sending review requests at all. It’s understandable. A dental practice is a fast-paced environment and seemingly non-essential tasks often fall through the cracks. 

Our solution was to create a system of accountability by keeping track of how many review requests were actually being sent out each month. Things improved. And now this dentist is the highest ranking dentist in their area, has won numerous awards like Readers Choice award, and Three Best Rated award, and has seen a big uptick in new patients.

The Cost to Acquire a New Patient

We’re frankly shocked at how many dentists we meet who have no clue what their marketing to acquire new patients actually costs. Too many dentists throw money at all sorts of marketing activities– SEO, social media, flyers, promotions, etc. But when we ask them “what is the ROI on this?” “How many patients is this bringing in?” “How much money is this making you?” they have no idea.

The best data they have to show is usually a report their marketing company sent them on how many “clicks” they got to their website, or how many Facebook likes they have. These metrics have about as much value as Monopoly money. 

If you’re spending money on marketing, it’s important to know how many new patients your marketing strategies are bringing in. You also need to validate that these patients are coming in as a direct result of the marketing, not because they were referred by someone or they walked by your practice and saw your sign. 

The problem is that many dentists don’t operate based on data, they operate based on “feelings”. If they notice a few new patients coming, they “feel” that their marketing is working. But in reality, they have no idea how those patients found the practice or even if they had come as a direct result of the marketing. If they have a bad week and there are some holes in the schedule, they “feel” like things aren’t working and that they need to try something different. This management by feeling is why a lot of dentists never achieve more than “average” results.

In our system, we track how much money the dentist gives us for marketing. This includes a website, SEO, AdWords management, content, photos– the whole shebang. In the case pictured above, we only spent a little over $30 on Google AdWords because we simply didn’t need to. 

The practice’s SEO and Google Reviews were so strong that they didn’t have to put more money into marketing. As a result, we were able to generate 39 new patient leads! 

Over the phone or through a Request an Appointment form, these 39 patients told us that they had found the practice on Google by doing a search for a dentist in the area. That means these 39 new patient leads came in as a direct result of the marketing investment. So, in the end, we spent an average of $39.03 to get a new patient who found us on Google to call the practice.

Of these 39 patients, the staff secured 22 patients with BOOKED appointments.

When we look at the total this dentist invested into both RevUp Dental and Google AdWords, we see that, on average, we were able to acquire new patients. 

On average, we’ve found that most dentists in North America are spending around $400-500 to acquire one new patient. When we began working with this practice, it was costing them around $200 to $300 per new patient.

Booking Rate

Our Booking Rate section provides a detailed breakdown of what happens with different types of calls and communications.

In this case, the practice was able to funnel 56% of new patient leads into appointments– which is great, considering that when we first started with them, the average was around 25-35% each month.

Before hiring us, the practice was booking 1 appointment on average for every 3-4 new patient calls. Now, out of 2 calls, they secure 1 appointment on average. Once you start tracking the right data, the numbers improve.

Out of 40 existing patients who reached out for an appointment, 31 were successfully booked.  We had 30 patients call to cancel their appointment and 10 were successfully rebooked. This number is usually higher but we are in a pandemic right now.

Out of 208 total phone calls, 20 went to voicemail and 38 calls were not answered. 

Of all of the appointment calls coming in this month, both new and existing patients, the staff were able to secure 76% into appointments. And of all the people filling out appointment request forms on the website, only 40% were booked.

Nobody contacted the business through the general form on the contact page to ask a question this month, and out of 229 total patient communications, both through email and phone in December, we found 20 where there was an opportunity to book an appointment but it was left in limbo. 

Limbo occurs when a patient says something like, “I’m not sure if I can do Wednesday, let me check my schedule and call you back,” but they forget to call back, and the staff never bothers to follow up.

We highlight this so that we can work can encourage the staff to be more proactive about reaching back to patients to secure the appointment.

Comparing Data Trends

This information becomes very powerful when we look at average trends for other dental practices across North America. 

In this case, the 40% conversion rate on the Request an Appointment forms immediately caught our attention.

Based on data from dozens of other clients, the conversion rate on these forms is around 75-90%. A patient would have to answer about 20-30 questions to request that appointment. So, if someone is spending 5 minutes filling out that form, they are pretty serious about coming in. 

We investigated this discrepancy and found it was taking the staff 3-5 days to get back to these requests. By that point, many patients had grown tired of waiting and had booked appointments at other practices. We brought this to the attention of the staff and they started to respond to the requests right away. The conversion rate quickly doubled as a result.

Tracking Communication

We look at what people are actually calling about and what dental services are popular in the area. We look at when calls are coming in, to make sure there is enough staff to handle the volume. But the true bread and butter of our system is listening to make sense of every single communication coming in.

We look at: 

  • Who calls
  • When they call
  • What their name is
  • What they’re looking for
  • If they’re a new patient or an existing patient
  • Which staff member spoke to them
  • What was said on the call and what the end results were 
  • Were we able to secure that appointment or not? And if not.. what went wrong and how can we improve moving forward?  

It’s a monumental amount of work but it is critical to help us find the bottlenecks in the practice.

Here’s a situation where we had a patient complaint. This patient called on December 8 at 3:59 pm. She was frustrated that she had not been informed that they were other options for sedation either than nitrous. She mentioned the receptionist she spoke with was rude on the phone and hung up on her.

The office manager in this case did a great job of listening to the patient and building rapport. She calmly explained all of the different sedation options the practice offered and sold the sizzle of the practice by explaining the amazing dentist they had at the office. In the end, she managed to secure an appointment with the patient.

The Difference Data Makes

A lot happens from day to day in a dental office. No matter how amazing your team is, they cannot possibly catch every little problem on their own. This is where RevUp Dental can help to make sure your practice continues to operate at a high level of customer service. 

We go through every communication to analyze how calls are handled, and where the problems are. Then, we work with the team to fix them. Sometimes this includes a bit of coaching in customer service or how to deal with common objections that come up in a call. Most improvements are made by simply catching issues before they get lost in the shuffle.

We hope you found this article helpful! If you need help managing your dental marketing, feel free to get in touch with RevUp Dental at revupdental.com today!

Making Your Practice Run Like Clockwork – Interview with John & Keli Tointigh

revupmanager Filed Under: Interviews, Operations May 4, 2022

Making Your Practice Run Like Clockwork – Interview with John & Keli Tointigh

In order to drive more patients, dentists often seek external improvements to what are very often internal issues. While a new website, some SEO, or Google AdWords can help more people find the practice, often the reason a practice isn’t seeing more patients is a myriad of small operational issues in the practice day-to-day.

We interview John & Keli Tointigh, owners of 406 Resources, and discuss how dentists can improve their practice to run like clockwork.

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