By mark
•
04 Mar, 2019
Have you heard the old adage, “KISS”? I periodically remind myself to “Keep It Simple, Stupid” when I start making things too hard on myself. “No, I won’t just tighten the screws on that wobbly dining room chair, it will be much easier to build a new one from scratch!” But did you know that there is a similar dental-specific acronym? Try, “ITDS”. Maybe that doesn’t roll off the tongue as easily as KISS, but the principle that it stands for is pretty sound. ITDS, as explained to me by the owner of a 26-office dental company, stands for “It’s The Dentist, Stupid”. You see, marketing works. Prospective new patients WILL call when you run a dedicated advertising campaign. And having a friendly and attentive staff are imperative. Patients WILL sing your praises when your office is run like a well-oiled machine. But those are things that every office does. All of your (smart) competitors have a marketing plan and amazing staff. Ultimately, the success of an office boils down to if the doctor has fully committed to their practice, staff, and patients. The most successful offices I have seen have doctors who fully give themselves to their patients. They offer some combination of early, late, and weekend hours and personally call their patients at the end of the day to ensure they are doing well after larger procedures. I have seen these successful dentists personally write Thank You notes to patients who refer friends and, recently, interacting with patients and local groups through Facebook. These personal touches can be implemented over time, but will certainly produce positive results and take your practice to the next level once you have committed to them. How will you stand out from the crowd?