Suddenly Seeking New Patients

by Steven Matza, President, The Business Booster

In the next several issues, I’ll be discussing the approaches and techniques that practitioners across the country have implemented to increase the efficiency and profitability of their practices. These ideas and systems have worked in 92% of the offices to which they were introduced, so we have considerable evidence that they will work. A major cause of that high success rate has been the willingness of the doctors to commit to three concepts:

• Could they overcome the tendency to do business the way they always had?
• Would they communicate to their staffs that they have discovered better and more profitable ways to accomplish their business, and then to share a portion of those new profits with the staff members who make the changes happen?
• Would they perennially measure the performance of the staff after the changes were implemented?

Where these commitments were made and kept, significant improvements were seen: increased case acceptance, more elective procedures delivered; 15% to 20% of all prophy patients purchasing whitening treatments and a measurable increase of New Patient Introductions.

In most businesses - and certainly in Dentistry - a regular flow of high quality new customers is essential to maintaining the current economic health and building the future strength of the enterprise. In dentistry there is a visible attrition of both patients and potential treatments. Not only do patients die, relocate or stop seeking care - usually because of health care benefit changes - but the longer patients are regularly seen, the less likely they will require clinical care beyond the semi-annual check-up and cleaning.

Many practitioners invest incredible sums for magazine and news ads, direct mailings, TV and radio spots and Web sites. All of these media, well managed and targeted, may produce excellent results. But usually, the same results can be achieved and exceeded by knowing how to generate them internally.

The key is a system for asking your existing patients for an “introduction” instead of merely a “referral.” The key target are new residents living or working in your drawing area. From time to time you may entice the patient of another practice to join yours, but patients tend to be uncomfortable in a new office and thus unlikely to want to establish a new relationship.

Fortunately, we are a very mobile society so we’re often getting new citizens in our neighborhoods. An interesting statistic derived from that mobility is that when dental patients relocate more than fifty miles, it takes on average twenty-two months before their first visit to a new dentist.

If you can identify them and invite them to your practice, there is a great chance that you will have new patients. The process works like this.

First, develop a “Patient Visit Checklist” that contains every specific item you wish to engage your patients about during every visit to your office. In other words, re-work your protocols, and then create a means to insure that they’re being carried out. One of your checklist items will be   “New Patient Introductions.”

During every office visit, instead of asking “If you hear of anyone looking for a dentist…….”, ask each patient, “Is there anyone new to your company [or church, or neighborhood, or school or extra-curricular locales that your kids attend, or civic groups]   that has moved to this area in the past year or two?”

Your patient will usually inquire why you’re asking. Show him a laminated letter on your letterhead — a copy of which is in every operatory and at the front desk — that you intend to send to every new resident that your patients know. The letter starts off with your patients name, and an appositive describing the relationship to the addressee. For example:

“Dear Ms. Brown, Emily Jones, your colleague at Boston Industries, has been a patient of ours for several years……”

The letter goes on to remind the addressee to seek dental care and not wait the 22 month average. And of course, if the addressee hasn’t yet selected a dentist, you might just have an appointment time available.   Provide a few special qualities about your practice and the name of the staff member who can arrange the visit to get acquainted.

The key, of course is asking every patient at every visit to think of someone new to the area whom they know. If a patient comes in today for a recall visit and is back next week for some clinical care, he/she should be asked during both appointments for an introduction. Any member of your staff, hygienist, assistant, or front-desk personnel can request the introduction, and sign off on the Patient Visit Checklist.

Soon, the patients will understand the protocol and that a part of their role as a patient in your practice is to be on the lookout for new arrivals and to introduce them to the dental team. Our statistical indicators show that for every ten introduction letters you send, 3.4 respondents will become a part of your practice. Some will be married and/or parents, so you will likely realize 4.9 new patients from those same ten letters.

Since a new patient spends approximately $800 during his/her first year in our client practices, the initial return on investment of $5 worth of stationery and postage is $4,000.

Now here’s the important part. Your patient who furnishes the introduction must be SHOWN that he/she has provided a valuable service to you. A personal gift of great value should be sent. For instance, if the introducer is a female who works in an office, send her a special floral arrangement. Don’t bother with a small little two or three flower job or –heaven forbid a plant. Send a JUNGLE. Make it difficult for her to find a workspace on her desk after the arrangement is delivered. You want her colleagues to be stopping by her desk all day, fussing over the beautiful arrangement and making her feel special. Some of them will inquire who the benefactor is, and that’s advertising that might just result in another introduction.  The important thing is that the gift be big enough so that the recipient sees it as both a reward and as motivation to do it again.

Give tickets to professional and major college sports events, concert or symphony tickets, and admissions to quality stage performances. Dinner gifts of $75 and up per couple are appropriate. DO NOT even consider movie passes. And for gosh sake, don’t give ANY dental products or services or coupons.   Just find out what your introducers enjoy doing or having.  These people have done you a friendly and valuable favor. Behave as a friend, not their dentist.

Try this approach to developing new patients internally. You and your team might get so good at it that eventually you won’t again need any external marketing help.

For more information on The Business Booster, contact Steven Matza at 214 -337-6748.