Naren Arulrajah

	One of the best ways to attract and retain patients is to help them afford your services.

Dental sub-specialties, clinical skills, experience and high quality of work are excellent selling points for your dental practice. However, in today’s volatile economy, patient decisions are increasingly driven by dollars and cents. One of the best ways to attract and retain patients is to help them afford your services.

Most dentists cringe at the thought of insurance. It is synonymous with claim rejections, stacks of paperwork, and seemingly endless delays. Refusing insurance is an easy way to eliminate hassles, but it also eliminates many potential patients.

Do you know the number one criteria that 

 of dentists? It is no longer services provided. The top priority for today’s dental patient is finding a dentist who accepts his or her insurance plan. About 

 of people who forgo dental care do so because they were unable to find a provider within their insurance network.

Does that mean you should accept every insurance possible? Not necessarily. From a patient’s perspective, the more options you offer, the better. However, some insurance providers are more practice-friendly than others.

For each company, consider the number of customers they have in your area. Compare this with the volume of extra paperwork or other problems involved. A plan that brings in very few patients, yet increases your workload, may not be worth the trouble.

In-house patient membership programs are increasingly popular. They can help your practice reach the 43% of the population lacking dental insurance. Additionally, discount programs increase patient loyalty and re-care rates.

·      Do your research. The legal requirements for membership discount programs vary by state.

·      Decide what benefits to include. Most commonly, these plans include free preventive care, as well as a nominal discount on major procedures and cosmetic treatments. Some plans also include free annual teeth whitening.

·      Set the discount level. Ideally, your member pricing should have a higher profit margin than PPO contracts, yet provide a significant benefit to patients. Most in-house plans offer a discount of 10-15%.

·      Choose the membership fee. Although you might want to set an enticingly low price, take into consideration the cost of complimentary services. For example, if your plan includes two recall appointments and x-rays, the only compensation for these services will be the patient’s annual fee.

·      Educate your team. Make sure your office staff and clinicians are aware of the program, and know the details. This is important because they should be able to present your discount plan to patients who express concerns about cost.

Although insurance is important, it rarely covers elective procedures, and many patients find the copayment prohibitive. Additionally, a significant portion of the population is uninsured. In fact, cost is the number one reason given by people who do not plan on seeing a dentist in the next year, according to the 

. That is why insurance and financing comprise the recipe for attracting patients in economically challenging times.

The most common solution is working with third-party financing services, such as CareCredit. Setup can be relatively simple, and provide qualifying patients with an affordable payment plan. The problem with these systems is that you have no control over the criteria for approval. Some dentists have achieved success with in-house financing. However, these programs can put a strain on your budget.

Helping patients afford treatment is an excellent selling point for your practice. However, it won’t get the phones ringing if no one knows. The final, and possibly most important step for this strategy to succeed is marketing.

·      Add a page on your website explaining financial options, highlighting your dedication to making dental care affordable.

·      If you offer a membership-based program, include an online sign up form. Also provide literature and sign-up forms in your office.

·      Mention financial options in your newsletter. Encourage readers to call your office for additional information.

·      When a new program or option is added, announce it to your subscribers and on social media.

·      Make sure that your practice listings and descriptions on various websites and social networks are updated to include financial options.

Naren Arulrajah is President and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, a complete internet marketing company that focuses on SEO, social media, marketing education, and the online reputations of dentists.  With a team of 180+ full time marketers,

helps dentists who know where they want to go, get there by dominating their market and growing their business significantly year after year.  If you have questions about marketing your practice online, call 855-598-3320 to speak one-on-one with Naren.

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	Yelp, Facebook, and Google are just a few of the nearly endless options for patients to share their experiences.

It has long been said that word of mouth is the best advertisement. That hasn’t changed in the digital age. In fact, personal testimonials are more influential than ever, because today’s dental patients have many more options to spread the word. Yelp, Facebook, and Google are just a few of the nearly endless options for patients to share their experiences.

Just how influential are online reviews? Consider these enlightening statistics:

 people consider online reviews just as trustworthy as a personal recommendation

 of adults between the ages of 18 and 34 consider online reviews more reliable than recommendations from family and friends

will choose a local business if they see good reviews

of consumers form an opinion about a business after reading fewer than 6 reviews

 of people are willing to consider a business with an average rating below 3 stars

An unhappy patient is more likely to leave a review or post on social media than a happy one is. To increase your overall rating, you need more happy patients to take action. The easiest way to get reviews is simply to ask.

Decide which review site or sites you prefer, and create easy-to-follow instructions for your patients. This can be included in pre-printed handouts that you distribute in your office, or send by email. You can also discuss reviews during a post-treatment follow up call, or in your regular newsletter. In addition to garnering more feedback, this will help direct patients to your review site of choice.

You’ve received a bad review. Now what? First off, don’t panic. It won’t necessarily harm your reputation. In fact, many people suspect falsified or censored reviews when they see a company that has only 5-star ratings. However, if the first thing someone sees is a complaint, or you have a high number of them, your reputation will suffer. What should you do?

		Before you respond — read it very carefully, a couple of times. Make note of all problems listed, and the person’s overall attitude. If you are unsure of the validity of the complaint, investigate before proceeding. Beware of false complaints, posted by competitors, disgruntled employees, or others who have never visited your practice.

		If it is false — take appropriate steps to report it. Depending on the website, you may have various options to mark it as spam, or notify an administrator. Unfortunately, it can be very hard to prove that a review is false, so it might not be removed, but you should try.

		If it is (at least partially) true — respond promptly, but beware of HIPAA. Even when responding to a complain, you cannot divulge any information, including acknowledging that the person is a patient. However, you can let the reader know that your practice is responsive by replying with general information about your standard of care. You can also invite the complainant to contact your office. Follow up by contacting the patient directly by telephone so that you can discuss the issues.

A negative review can adorn your profile for weeks or months before you even notice it. Similarly, you might not know if you are getting any reviews at all. It is important to develop a strategy, and make use of various software and tools available.

Begin by registering and completing your professional profile on all applicable review websites and social platforms. Look for options to receive alerts for new reviews, mentions, or messages. Social media management software can automate much of this, by aggregating tags, posts, mentions, and other engagement on sites like Facebook and Twitter.

You can also use reputation management software or services to help track review-specific platforms.

On a final note, don’t forget the golden rule of reputation building. Keep a strong focus on customer service, and give your patients a reason to leave 5-star reviews.

Naren Arulrajah is President and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, a complete internet marketing company that focuses on SEO, social media, marketing education, and the online reputations of dentists. With a team of 140+ full time marketers,

helps dentists who know where they want to go, get there by dominating their market and growing their business significantly year after year. If you have questions about marketing your practice online, call 855-598-3320 to speak one-on-one with Naren.

Keep a strong focus on customer service, and give your patients a reason to leave 5-star reviews.

Make Sure People Say the Right Thing About Your Practice

Educating your patients on the options you offer is mutually beneficial.

Every patient you see in your dental practice presents an opportunity. What if you could turn that appointment into a series of appointments, or turn a minor procedure into a major one? Upselling is a great strategy for boosting your bottom line, but it is one that most dentists probably avoid.

After all, dentistry is a medical field. Selling patients treatments that they do not need may seem unethical, but there are exceptions. Have you ever seen a patient who needed teeth whitening for medical reasons? No. It is an elective service, and you sell it to patients because they want it. The art of effective, ethical upselling has nothing to do with misrepresenting a patient’s needs. It has everything to do with presenting the services the patient wants.

Try these five winning strategies to benefit your profits.

You may offer services that your patients want, but they won’t know unless you inform them. Effective upselling starts with offering the right service to the right patient at the right time. Take time to talk and get to know them, ask leading questions, and — most importantly — listen. Learn about their concerns, preferences, lifestyles, and habits.

The Instagram-obsessed patient may want to upgrade from teeth whitening to porcelain veneers. The health-food fanatic might be more receptive to implants if you offer zirconia. The on-the-go, busy patient could benefit from one-day crowns.

Many patients come to you with a problem and ask for the least expensive solution. Just fill the gap, make the toothache go away, fix the cavity. In their minds, all solutions are equal, so there is no reason to pay more. Some dentists simply answer the question, tell the patient what is least expensive, and proceed with treatment. They might attempt to offer alternatives, but the person’s mind is already set.

Instead of offering a simple answer, help patients understand that it is not a simple question. Explain the full range of treatment options, not in technical dental language, but in terms the patient can relate to. Describe the pros and cons of each treatment, presenting cost as just one factor. Make sure the patient understands the value, not just the price tag, of each treatment offered.

In today’s world of specialists and boutique practices, patients no longer assume that one dentist can treat everything. In fact, chances are there are some procedures you don’t offer. However, patients will never know what you do offer unless you tell them. Just imagine your patients saying, “I have a good general dentist, but I need someone who can do veneers,” or “My dentist is great, but now that the baby is teething, I need to find a pediatric dentist.”

Use your website, social media accounts, email list, and paid advertisements to showcase your full range of services. If you offer uncommon treatments such as holistic ozone therapy or apnea night guards, promote them. If you have experience treating diabetic patients, talk about it. If you add Invisalign to your practice, make an announcement.

Don’t just tell a skeptical patient that your tooth-colored fillings really do look natural. Show the person an “after” photo and challenge him or her to find the filling. Then reveal the “before” picture showing the exact location of a cavity. Similarly, instead of simply announcing that you see decay on a molar, use your intra-oral camera and let the patent see what you are seeing.

The same principle applies to your newsletter, website, and other marketing materials. Include photos, diagrams, infographics, and videos. People are visual learners, and images are always more powerful than words.

The common theme among these and other effective upselling strategies is patient education. If you use high-pressure tactics, the person will feel like you are selling a used car rather than medical care. At the other extreme, if you don’t bother to explain the benefits of a procedure, the person will think it’s not worth the price.

A good rule of thumb to follow is to never try to sell a treatment. Instead, help the patient understand it enough that the treatment sells itself.

Naren Arulrajah is President and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, a complete internet marketing company that focuses on SEO, social media, marketing education, and the online reputations of dentists.  With a team of 140+ full time marketers,

As a doctor, it may feel unnatural to look at your patients as sales opportunities. But marketing is necessary, and if you're not updating your patients on the services you offer, you could be keeping them from the smile they desire. Continue below for some strategies on upselling your services. 

Master the Art of Upselling

Effective team training can increase your conversion rate, improve patient satisfaction and save time.

You are likely well aware of the value of your own training and that of other dentists in your office. You attend lectures, participate in workshops and complete continuing education courses to stay on top of the latest trends in dentistry — and it makes a difference to your patients. However, you might not give much thought to training for your team.

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People are not likely to research the credentials of an office receptionist or hygienist before they choose a dental practice. How important can team training be? The answer is more than you may realize. Here’s why:

Most new patient relationships begin with a phone call or email to your practice. The person will communicate with your office staff, probably many times, before he or she ever meets you. Knowledgeable, professional, efficient and helpful office personnel will convert leads into patients. The opposite is also true. Delays in returning messages, inefficiency, rudeness, or an unprofessional attitude can ensure that a person’s first call is also his or her last.

Improve your patient satisfaction rating.

 Have you ever seen a patient who complains throughout the visit no matter how well it is going, or one who receives top quality treatment and then gives you a horrible review online? Why does this happen? In many cases, the patient did have a bad experience, but not in the dental chair. Although the dentist is usually the target of complaints, people who are unhappy before the appointment begins are much more likely to complain. For example, one 

found that patients who complain about long wait times are more likely to say the doctor was rude or that the diagnosis was incorrect. According to another 

, the most common patient complaints are about the front desk staff.

 Two factors limit the role of hygienists, dental assistants and other supportive clinicians in your practice. First is the law, which specifies restrictions on procedures performed according to a person’s licensure. However, chances are the scope of your team’s duties is much more limited than the law requires. That is because they are also limited by their skillset. Additional training for these team members can reduce the amount of time that you spend on preparation and other mundane aspects of treatment.

The more knowledgeable your staff is, the better they will be able to perform their duties. However, training does not have to be limited to a person’s regular position. Cross-training employees can add flexibility to your scheduling, which improves employee morale and helps avoid problems when someone is unexpectedly unavailable. It also challenges staff members to grow and makes them feel more valuable, which improves engagement. 

, employee engagement can increase productivity and profitability, as well as improve the standard of care that patients receive.

Team training may be as extensive as lengthy courses, or it may be as simple as a few seminars or educational videos. Still, the cost may seem high, especially if your practice has a large staff. However, you may be surprised to learn that the cost of replacing an underperforming employee can be

 The United States Department of Labor estimates that a “bad hire” costs about 30 percent of that person’s salary, while Career Builder reports an average cost of about $50,000.

If you are hesitant to train your team, you could be missing one of the best opportunities to increase your profits, keep patients happy, and make your office run smoother. When it comes to your dental staff, the more they know, the more they can help your practice grow.

 helps dentists who know where they want to go, get there by dominating their market and growing their business significantly year after year.  If you have questions about marketing your practice online, call 855-598-3320 to speak one-on-one with Naren.

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Outperforming your competition boils down to several factors, but according to our marketing expert, your staff is one of the most crucial. From receptionists to hygienists, the quality of the people who keep your practice running is as important as the quality of your equipment and professional training. Continue below to find out how to build an exceptional employee base. 

Why Team Training is One of the Best Investments

Try these five winning strategies below to give back and get something back in return.

 to charitable causes. Although the desire to give back is one motivating factor, business donations are solely an act of generosity. In fact, charitable activities and donations can be a highly effective marketing technique. Philanthropy and volunteerism can improve your professional reputation, help acquire new patients and increase goodwill towards your practice.

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1. Extend your marketing reach with charitable giving

Charitable organizations understand there is high competition for donation dollars, and they reward their biggest supporters with promotion. Depending on the organization and the size of your contribution, you may receive advertisement on their website, social media, press announcements or during conferences or events. Some organizations have a very large membership, and most have a large support base, creating a significant audience for your marketing message.

2. Build your brand with long term support

Sponsoring a charitable fundraiser, or becoming a regular contributor to a certain cause, requires more investment and commitment than a one-time donation. It also has the potential for greater rewards. Your business name becomes associated with the charity, which increases brand awareness and goodwill.

 are willing to pay more for goods and services from a business that is doing good, be it environmentally or socially. This is especially important in dentistry because prospective patients are looking for more than just education and professional expertise. They want someone they can trust and who genuinely cares about others.

3. Make your practice a pillar of the community with volunteerism 

Do you want to establish long-term patient relationships and encourage return visits? Show that you are invested in the community and that you care about your neighbors. Volunteerism and personal involvement also gives you the opportunity to meet people, gain new leads and make sure your name is well known in the community. Encourage your staff to volunteer as well to magnify the impact.

4. Smart giving starts with choosing the right cause

There is a virtually endless list of potential ways to give back, including great community programs, charities with noble missions and important causes. How do you choose which ones your practice should support? The first consideration is choosing something that aligns with your practice mission and that appeals to your target market.

Ask yourself which causes matter to your patients. Children’s charities or school programs are a good choice for family practices. Patients of holistic dentists tend to be health conscious and environmentally conscious. High-end practices seeking patients may want to consider supporting art galleries, upscale fundraisers and other causes that attract members with higher income levels.

Philanthropy will not turn into a marketing success unless people know about it. If you are making a sizable contribution, find out what you will get in return. Ask for details like where your practice logo will be displayed, how many members and mailing list subscribers the organization has, what their social and advertising reach is and how much recognition your practice will receive.

Finally, do not forget to incorporate your charitable activities in your own marketing. Consider adding a “giving back” page to your website, issuing press releases, including it in your newsletter and even in-office signage. Let existing and prospective patients know you support this great cause. When an organization thanks your practice on social media, be sure to share the posts to your own page.

It can feel wonderful to do something for the greater good 

 and even more so when it is also for the good of your dental practice.

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As if the sheer joy of giving to others is not enough, it turns out philanthropic contributions can benefit you and your practice in myriad ways. Monetary donations, as well as volunteering, extend marketing reach and make any business a pillar of the community. Consider getting you and your employees involved in a charitable cause to give your practice, patients and personal gratification a boost. 

Giving Back Can Benefit Practices Financially

Providing in-house services can benefit your patients and your practice, but it is important to know when to hire outside help

Whether you are fresh out of dental school or transitioning an existing practice to a more modern business model, you will have an overwhelming number of decisions and issues to face. From choosing clinical equipment to hiring office staff, many of these critical choices have a common theme. You must decide between in-house and outsourcing.

Will you hire a bookkeeper or use a service? Will you buy a CAD/ CAM machine for crowns, or work with a laboratory? These and similar choices add to the complexity of running a dental practice, but they also provide an opportunity that previous generations did not have. Think of these things as building blocks, from which you can create your customized dental practice. 

Any diagnostic, treatment or lab work performed in your office has several benefits:

·You have greater control over quality and accuracy. Every time you trust a lab or a specialist to complete certain steps of treatment, you are trusting them with your reputation.

·In-house treatment can be more efficient for you and more convenient for your patients. It eliminates many delays and scheduling difficulties by streamlining the process in one location, under your direction.

·Build your reputation as an expert. When you offer services beyond standard procedures, patients take it as a sign of advanced expertise. You can also acquire new patients and build your professional network by accepting referrals from other dentists.

·Do more of what you love. We all have our most and least favorite tasks. Ask yourself which aspects of dentistry you enjoy the most and what type of cases you want to increase. Decide where you want to grow, and add appropriate in-house services to build up that part of your practice.

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Of course, you can’t do it all yourself, especially if you are just starting out. That is OK — outsourcing can have just as many benefits.

·Improve efficiency and reduce wasted time. Are there certain types of cases that you do not want or procedures that take up too much of your time? Look for external services, or you may want to consider referring these patients to an associate.

·Create a strong professional network. Work with other dentists who have different specialties or practice focuses than yours. Referrals between trusted associates can be mutually beneficial.

·Expand your services at minimal cost. Sometimes outsourcing is about increasing, rather than decreasing, an aspect of your practice. If you want to expand, but do not yet have the funding or training, then external services and professionals can open up new possibilities. For example, you can cater to patients with dental fear by working with an anesthesia service to expand your sedation options, or you can promise complex full mouth reconstruction by referring patients to a specialized oral surgeon for certain procedures.

·Remove sources of unnecessary stress, particularly in your front office. Accounting, marketing, insurance and billing are the greatest sources of frustration for many dentists. These tasks may be delegated to office personnel, who may lack specific training or experience. Problems in the front office can result in poor customer service and costly mistakes. Equally problematic, monitoring and supervising can take your time and attention away from patients. Outside companies can often provide better service, eliminate stress and allow your office staff to focus on customer care.

Try to make important business decisions within the context of your long-term goals and vision. Look beyond the short-term profitability, and ask yourself what you want to be known for, how you want your practice to grow and what you want to streamline.

A dental practice is an ever-evolving entity that develops its own public reputation and in-office culture. At times, it might feel as if it is careening out of control. However, its evolution is primarily shaped by the cumulative result of many choices that you make. With careful planning, you can take the wheel and drive your practice towards success while steering yourself away from stress.

Naren Arulrajah is President and CEO of Ekwa Marketing, a complete Internet marketing company which focuses on SEO, social media, marketing education and the online reputations of dentists. With a team of 140+ full time marketers,

 helps dentists who know where they want to go, get there by dominating their market and growing their business significantly year after year. If you have questions about marketing your practice online, call 855-598-3320 to speak one-on-one with Naren.

Whether you are fresh out of dental school or transitioning an existing practice to a more modern business model, you will have an overwhelming number of decisions and issues to face. From choosing clinical equipment to hiring office staff, many of these critical choices have one thing in common: You must decide between in-house and outsourcing. 
