South Shore Dentistry Dr, Mehul Patel

Presented By Kamala Rudolph RN, MCOS VIPS Program

“Building A Strong Foundation Through Internal

Marketing And Systems”

How Do The Elite Dental Offices Do It?

Give patients a warm introduction and cordial addressing

Reinforcing patient satisfaction and building loyal relationship

When the current patient can feel valued and appreciated, the team has set the stage for a strong referral program which is key to a thriving oral surgery practice.

The Elite Dental Offices-

Internal marketing is an ongoing activity shared by the entire team The oral surgery team who has internal marketing knowledge can be the most powerful tool in successfully promoting our practice. Internal marketing requires a friendly professional motivated team of doctors and supportive staff.

Internal Marketing

All team members must have the

desire to learn and excel

Dr. Patel furnishes the

highest quality care available

We utilize the newest technology and techniques

Referred patients made to feel special will express their positive experience to the general dentist whom referred them A strong referral network of satisfied general dentist is more likely to recommend our office to other general dentists. General dental office managers and team members are more likely to refer patients to a team that is friendly, engaging and well known by the office. A powerful internal marketing program will function like a well-oiled machine

What Can Internal Marketing Can Do For Us

How To Address New Or Returning Patient?

Taking the call and cordially addressing

Identifying new or Returning patient.

Referring to doctors.

Welcome the patients Completing paperwork And consents Make the patients comfortable

When The Patient Arrives…

The Silent Indicators •A good office appearance is always very important. •A cluttered operatory, an unorganized sterilization area, or a dirty tray that’s visible can reverse the patient's perception created by a well-trained staff.

Discussion And Role Play Time

Following the handoff of the patient from the front office to the assistant, the assistant will greet the patient and introduce themselves, shake the patients hand and then they will walk the patient to the operatory.

Small talk is important and critical Release the patient’s mind . Make him comfortable

From The Front Office To The Assistant….

Once the patient is comfortably seated in the treatment chair

there are a few things to keep in mind…

Clinical Involvements

Then briefly interviews the patient and acknowledge their reason to be here

Also find out who is the referring doctor and determination of their motivation

The assistant should always introduce the doctor when he enters the treatment room.

Clinical Involvements

Always explain to the patient about any necessary x-rays that may be required and ask their permission to obtain them.

Clinical Involvements

When doctor is not available immediately- Asking general leading questions- marketing the doctor and his skill set.

Clinical Involvements

All Employees Should Be Aware Of The Doctor's Credentials And Ability.

Complement the existing dental work if possible and co-diagnosing any possible concerns.

The treatment rooms are often chilly. Always ask the patient if they are cold and offer them a warm blanket.

Clinical Involvements

Try not to leave the patient alone for a long period of time.

Many patients experience increased anxiety when left alone for an extended amount of time.

Clinical Involvements

Interviewing Patients To Meet Their Expectations

Interviewing Patients

Try to determine patient’s expectation Begin your interview with a social question

It will help relax the patient and build rapport

Patient should never feels cut off or spoken over at any time

Ask open ended questions

Do not ask questions that require only a yes or no answer

Begin your interview with a social question After that lead into dentally related questions Always pause after you’ve asked the question to allow the patient time to answer the question thoroughly.

Interviewing Patients

"I understand that your back tooth has

been giving you a lot of problems, is

that correct?"

Addressing patient’s objection The art of obtaining this information is perfected through great listening skills and rapport building.

Always make patients feel comfortable

They also need assurance that there is no judgment and we can help them.

Interviewing Patients

Interviewing Patients

After the interview, briefly summarize the conversation.

This allows correction of any misunderstandings and demonstrates the willingness to truly understand the patient's individual needs.

Non-verbal Communication

Nonverbal communication is proven to be more powerful than verbal communication. Communication researchers estimate that 50% to 90% of information received by the patient is exchanged during a face-to-face contact and is through nonverbal channels.

Non-verbal Communication

Non-verbal Communication

Facial Expressions

Non-verbal Communication

Body Positioning

Use Of Space

Non-verbal Communication

Personal Appearance

Tone of Voices

Non-verbal Communication

Patients find nonverbal messages to be more believable than the spoken word.

Nonverbal communication is very powerful

because it can express emotions and attitudes. The way you speak, present yourself

professionally, move and dress speaks volumes about your attitude towards the oral surgery office and yourself.

Non-verbal Communication

Listening Skills

Effective listening promotes understanding and patient commitment to the practice.

Effective listening effectively demonstrates the patient's concerns

Your good listening skills can actually be used to encourage the patient to play a more active role in co-diagnosis and obtaining their treatment.

Also, be aware that good listening skills are not over when you are done listening.

Listening Skills

Carefully read the following steps of good listening and commit

them to memory. These steps are used as guidelines to allow the patient to recognize that you

have listened effectively

Listening Skills

Paraphrasing is communicating in your own words what the patient has said to you. Usually began with something

similar to this "so what you are concerned about is…" or "so what you're saying is…" and "i understand that” or "your question is…".

Listening Skills

Paraphrase

Listening Skills

Paraphrase

Paraphrasing increases the patient's confidence that you truly understand their situation and helps to build trust between the office and the patient.

Following the patient interview and diagnosis the team member will briefly summarize the conversation. This also confirms understanding and agreement between both parties.

Listening Skills

Summarizing

The patient that feels talked down to or criticized will immediately shut down.

Listening Skills

Be Careful With Criticism

Through effective communication, a team member can ask clarifying questions in an empathetic voice that will encourage the patient to disclose their actual perception or concern.

This disclosure not only confirms that the team member is successfully building trust with the patient, but identifies possible objections or concerns that need to be addressed to put the patient at ease.

Listening Skills

Be Sure To Ask Questions

Some Of These Statements Below Are Examples Of Voicing

Concerns Or Objections:

Listening Skills

"I need a lot of gas" "I am a

terrible patient"

"Is Dr. Max a good Dr.?"

"I'm not sure that I should do this treatment

at my age, what for?"

"My old dentist says I need this treatment but I

really don't think so so"

"Why won't my dentist do this procedure in his office?"

"I'm not going to spend

thousands of dollars in my

mouth"

"I only want what my

insurance will pay for"

"I have a low pain

tolerance"

"Is this going to hurt?"

These questions are easily determined to be undisclosed objections. Many of these patients are actually expressing anxiety or fear. Other patients need to understand the value added with completion of their treatment. Some patients just want to hear from a second party that does not have a vested interest if treatment is necessary.

Listening Skills

Eye Contact

Eye contact is critical to projecting a concerned and confident image. Use strong eye contact to communicate confidence and credibility. Make eye contact at the beginning and at the end of your statements

Eye contact

During the lasts 30 seconds of the

conversation make strong eye contact Don't overdo it. Holding the persons glance for too long can be very uncomfortable. Pause and look away when necessary.

Eye contact

Strive for a relaxed but erect posture: a relaxed posture urges the patient to be relaxed and more open and honest with you. Always stand with your shoulders even and your chin level.

Keep your upper body open.

Closed arms (like you were chilly) and other closed body positions can imply to some patients defensiveness.

Good Body Language

Equality in body position promotes equality in communication.

However, if you feel you

need to "hold your own" with the patient do not stay seated if they are standing

Always Stay On An Equal Level:

Shoveling papers aimlessly, looking at your nails, drumming your fingers, smoothing or twisting your hair, ringing your hands or tapping your pencil gives the patient the perception that you are impatient or bored.

Don't fidget

Always approach the patient slowly.

Try to sit down first and then ask

the patient to have a seat. These two techniques provide the patient with the impression that you are not in a rush

Communicate Concern Through Time

Touch the patient in a positive social manner prior to treatment.

A handshake or light touch on the

shoulder can counteract a potential negative experience with touching the patient during treatment

Communicate Concern Through Appropriate Touch

The dental health-care providers have to work in this intimate space which can create great anxiety for the patient.

When you are in the patient's view, move slowly. Moving slowly indicates that you are not rushed and eases patient anxiety

Occasionally drop your eye contact

Temporarily move away from the patient. This gives the patient "breathing room" and then you will move back in.

Always ask before touching the patient's personal belongings.

Personal Space

Vocal Effectiveness

Voice inflections when you speak have a huge impact in building the patient's trust, interest, and motivation.

Recording patient interactions such as the new patient interview, case presentations or diagnosis explanations should be used for training and team member practice models when practicing voice effectiveness.

Team members should practice and listen to the future recordings for improvement.

So far, the tools that have been presented to you have been developed to support the vision and prepare you to initiate honest and ethical internal marketing strategies.

Many dentists do not realize that investing in

developing a professional well-trained team can be the best investment they have made in their practice.

The truth is, when the patient does not have the perception of a friendly and unrushed professional interaction on the initial call they do not schedule and appear to be one of the type casted bad potential patients.

Patients tend to assess the quality of their dental treatment by the quality of their experience and personal contact with the dentist and the team

members.

Every team member should view every patient conversation as an opportunity to convince them that they have picked or been referred to the dentist.

Each team member plays an important role in developing great public relations and reputation. The public image of any business is dependent not only on the business owner but on the team members as well.

Attitude, communication, and your ability to represent the office in a good light should be taken into consideration in any performance review.

An employee that is nice but inapt in professional presentation and behaviors is not an employee that can genuinely promote or support a successful oral surgery office. Each doctor should determine which employees he would prefer to represent him in the public eye and stay committed to this process when staff changes occur.

Why Should Team Members Be Held Responsible For Internal Marketing?

The dentist is not able to tell the patient that they are the best healthcare provider that they will ever know. Team members and patients tend to build rapport and trust more quickly than the doctor and patient. Patients often value the opinion of the dental assistant or another team member at a very high level. They can easily identify objections that were not obvious to the dentist and overcome these objections.

The power of the entire team being dedicated and committed to internal marketing can supersede almost any costly marketing campaign. When the team creates a more successful, profitable, and enjoyable practice, the office may have more resources available to create a great working environment and programs that are beneficial to the team.

Review Morning Report Discuss any knowledge of special events, awards, or accomplishments the patient may have achieved.

Quote of the day

Providing Messages Of Quality Care

A positive, motivated staff relays positive and motivating messages to

patients.

Providing Messages Of Quality Care

Employees that believe in the product the doctor provides should easily and enthusiastically be able to promote the doctor and endorse his credentials and skill set to the patient with genuine honesty.

Through every interaction with patients, team

members can build positive relationships by listening well, supporting the doctor, and giving concise explanations of dental treatments and chatting about a variety of appropriate topics.

Providing Messages Of Quality Care

Handling "Telephone Shoppers"

When patients call and inquire about fees, many dentists prefer that the receptionist explains to them that before quoting the fee the doctor needs to do an examination and determine what treatment is required. The receptionist will quote the patient a range of fees. Quoting the patient a range of fees gives them the perception that every procedure has a fee range and is negotiable.

"Why don't I set you up with an appointment to come right in so the doctor can tell you exactly what you need and I can explain any charges to you. If you decide not to proceed with treatment in our office, there will be no charge to you." “I can provide you with a quick consultation with us at no charge and you can get all the information you need.” “How soon can you come in?” “Dr. Max always wants his patients to get the best information we can provide so he prefer that you come in for a quick, no obligation, consultation and he can provide you with the accurate information you deserve.”

It is suggested that the savvy receptionist very cheerfully suggest something like this:

Patients will tolerate being put on hold better if the team member identifies who the patient is and asks the patient their permission to place them on hold in a friendly non-assuming manner.

If it is unavoidable to put a new patient on hold, a well trained team member will ask the patient if they would prefer to be called back as quickly as possible or would they prefer to be placed on a brief hold along with a sincere apology for the delay.

Putting Patients On Hold