Low Cost ways to Increase New Patients Numbers

Rhonda R. Savage, DDS

Every dental practice can increase new patient numbers by connecting and staying connected with their patients.

How? You’ll need key staff, a systematic approach, a budget, a personable doctor(s) and consistency.

The method: Put your patients and the relationship ahead of your product (the dentistry). Deliver quality care in a warm environment, going above and beyond what the patient expected.

How many new patients do you need? It depends on your demographics, your type of practice and your practice philosophy. For a general practitioner, you need 10-20 new patients a month just to maintain your patient base. If you need to grow your practice, you’ll need, minimally, 25-40 new patients/month/doctor. A specialist or a general dentist that provides comprehensive care will have a higher need for new patients.

Internal Marketing:

Value the relationship: The number one determining factor is warmth. Maintaining a good relationship will set you apart and patients in your practice. A relationship means you need to “give them a little piece of you” at every appointment. As you talk with them, be sure to tell them something small that is about you personally. To the patient, the relationship is more important than your product, “the dentistry”.

When your patient receives great service in a warm, caring environment, you then have the ability to ask for a referral. Say: “If I can help you in any way, just let me know! And if you happen to know any friends or associates that could use my services, I’ll treat them just as I’ve treated you. This is how I do business.”

Here are some marketing ideas to implement in your practice. These ideas will help you develop “The Warmth Factor”:

1. Have a nicely decorated cork board in the reception area and the team puts up personal pictures. Pictures may be of travel, family, hobbies, pets, staff events or sports participation. This gives the patient something to break the ice and start things off on a comfortable personal level.

2. Deliver quality care in a warm environment: Warmth and connecting is very important throughout the practice and especially at the chair. I understand how hard it is to be the boss, deliver the dentistry and manage a business. Stresses can add up, coming out in frustration with your employee. You will anti-market the practice, however, if you let your frustrations boil over at the chair or come out with negative body language.

3. Listening skills: Good listening skills make your patient feel special. Great eye contact, smiling and taking the time your patient needs will increase your case acceptance and referrals from patients. Toast Masters International is a resource for becoming a better case presenter, increase your listening skills and learn to answer questions under pressure.

4. Be an on-time doctor: Patients today are more impatient than ever before!

If your patients are waiting on a regular basis, you’re actually anti-marketing your practice. If you do keep them waiting, give them a small token of appreciation for their time: A $5.00 Starbucks card, a gasoline card, movie tickets or ice cream coupons are some ideas.

Do not routinely move patients appointments to fit your own schedule.

5. Stay in touch (newsletters, recall/reactivation, calling recare patients and sending cards/gifts.)

Have a graduated system of staying in touch. Develop a budget and don’t be cheap! 80% of your referred patients will come from 20% of your patient base.  Paying $60 for a gift when a patient spends thousands is nothing!

6. Send thank you cards, get well cards, birthday cards, Happy New Year cards, 4th of July and Thanksgiving cards. Use Plaxo.com to send cards by e-mail inexpensively.  It’s a great opportunity to routinely collect email addresses from patients and increase your ability to contact them.

In today’s world, you cannot be 1000 times better than your competition, but you can be better in 1000 small ways. How is your practice different than the competitions.

Getting new patients is always a good thing, but what about maintaining the current patients within your practice?

To learn more be sure to register and attend our upcoming webinar “Total Recall“  which will be:

Tuesday, January 10th, 2012 @ 1:00PM(Eastern)/12:00PM(Central)/11:00AM(Mountain)/10:00AM(Pacific)

CLICK HERE