At the MidWinter Meeting Linda and I had the opportunity to reconnect with the original creators of PracticeWorks. They have teamed with the people who originally brought you the Caesy patient education system. They are now known as Lighthouse and have a patient contact system called PLZ that will basically run your recall system for you. It also has a direct mail marketing system that is so much less costly than anything else I have heard. It is a really well thought out program and a better value than Demand Force or what Sesame or Televox will do for you. Since Lighthouse’s inception in 2003, they have helped hundreds of PracticeWorks users use the program the way they intended it to be used. A particular specialty is “going chartless” – they have it down to a science. They are really not promoting the PracticeWorks consulting they do but if you have PracticeWorks you get support for the software by using the PLZ system. I have always liked PracticeWorks because of how the program was thought through and how aligned it has been to the systems we traditionally recommend. This program is no different, I am impressed. Continue reading “Lighthouse PLZ”
Blog
Treatment Acceptance
What are you and your team focusing on to help patients understand the need for the treatment you are recommending and want to move forward with it?
Consider discussing at your next team meeting:
Your treatment planning – is it communicated clearly from the back to the front. How could it be improved?
Are you prepared for your consults – do you know your patients hot buttons, do you frame your explanation of treatment using their motivators or concerns? Do you understand their personal style, how it differs from yours, and how you need to adapt? Are you clear with your patients about the risks of waiting and what that will mean in terms of time and money? Patients want to understand what to do – most want to do something conservative and not life changing. I have heard it said that patients want “it” to look good, feel natural, and last a long time. Especially in these times they want value for their money.
Is your hygiene team supporting restorative treatment – do they focus on dentistry (what the patient is paying for when they come into the office, not just social chit chat), do they set the patient up well? Do you come in earlier in the appointment for the hygiene exam? Does the patient have to wait? Are you and your hygienist “in sync” about what the patients’ restorative and periodontal needs are?
What are doing to set yourself apart from other area dentists and to make it worthwhile to come to your practice? Think about how you might market the Oral Cancer detecting equipment, a Laser, a CEREC, or other similar system to your patients. These all provide a benefit that a patient might want and they give the patient a story to talk about with their friends and colleagues.
Keep focused on what is positive and on the basics in your practice!
Photo of Holly and Marsha at MidWinter Mtg
We really liked these teal and pink loupes that we found in Chicago, but our Mosaic conscience told us it was not the right time to purchase!
Leadership Quote
Leadership can’t be claimed like luggage at the airport.
Leadership can’t be inherited,
even though you may inherit a leadership position.
There are no manufacturing plants that fabricate leadership.
And leadership can’t be given as a gift.
Leadership must be earned
by mastering a defined set of skills
and
by working with others to achieve common goals.
Earning Employee Trust Article
Earning Employee Trust It’s no secret that being trusted by team members is critical to any leader’s success. And that fact leads to an all important question: How can you earn your people’s trust … what can you do protect and maintain that most important leadership characteristic? The answer: By exhibiting the following four behaviors …
1. Keep your promises. You don’t have to promise things just to make employees feel good. They’re more interested in being able to depend on what you promise than in feeling good. Just keep the promises you do make and your team will trust what you say.
2. Speak out for what you think is important. Employees can’t read your mind. They don’t know how you feel. If they have to guess about what’s important to you, they may guess wrong. Save them the trouble. Tell them how you feel and why. They’ll respect you so much more.
3. Err on the side of fairness. Be fair to everyone. Employees really do know that things are not always clearly right or wrong. Sometimes you have to make difficult decisions that affect many people. Sometimes those decisions include having to dismiss team members. All your team can really ask for is that you be fair at all times – regardless of the type of decision you have to make.
4. Do what you say you are going to do. Just let your “yes” be yes and your “no” mean no. When you tell people you are going to do something, they should be able to “consider it done.”
SuddenValues.com
This is a marketing company that you may want to check out. They create a reward program from the email addresses you collect. Something you can easily do but the hook is that they do this with many businesses and they send out a weekly email to everyone listing the offers merchants have for that week. Good cross promotional opportunity. Especially in an area where they are heavily established this might be a good way to get your name in front of other merchants and other potential patients. From what I can tell from the website they seem to have started in Michigan – Glenn or Jeff might be something to check out.
If anyone investigates this let us know what you find out! Thanks Jody
Financial/Insurance Thoughts
Some Thoughts To Consider: Continue reading “Financial/Insurance Thoughts”
Send A Photo of your Team
Please send Jody a Photo of you with your team. I will post them!
Marden Dental Pics
Internal Marketing
What have you started with your team to keep your name in front of your patients and other referral sources?
Linda and I had a wonderful time at Dr. Nick’s annual Chocolate Party for his referring specialists. What a beautiful event and a nice way to celebrate with those that refer to his practice.
Let us know what you are doing! Have a great day! Jody
