YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!
First let me start by saying that I do not make or sell dental websites. Why am I saying this upfront, because I am about to sound like a dental website sales person.
If your practice does not have a website, then you are INVISIBLE to the majority of people who are looking for you.
The days of the Yellow Pages is long over – I am not saying not to be in your local book but rather it is only 1/10th as valuable to you as your practice website (and I am being kind to the local directory guide).
Everyone has computers, iPads, tablets and phones connected to the internet today and people believe that anything they want to find information about should be available to them within seconds online.
Not only should your practice have a website – it should have a quality website. If I was to look for a dentist and find a cheesy or sloppy website, I would move on to the next website option immediately. I would also leave any dental website that had outdated information, multiple typographical errors or non-functional links.
Your website is the face of your dental office and you should spend some time and thought on how you want the world to see you. I would hire a professional website developer who has done dental offices in the past and understands the key areas your patients will want to explore on your website.
Smart offices make sure that their phone number, office hours and location are easy to find.
We will talk about elements of a great local area dental office website in other articles. Also – making sure your website is one of the first ones that people see when they look for a dentist in their area is just as important as having a great website. Having a great website that no one ever sees is no good either. We will talk about how local area website SEO (search engine optimization) in future articles.
Bottom line –the #1 area you should be putting energy into to increase new patient business is your website!
Dr. Corey Gold
President – Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Convenient Hours for You or Your Patients
There has always been a tough decision for dentists to make (especially non-group offices), should they be open at hours that are convenient for their patients or hours that are convenient for their lifestyle. Patients like early morning hours, after work hours and weekends. These are also the same hours that dentist and staff like to have away from the office for their own family’s needs.
The choice to offer non-traditional office hours affects not only the dentist but the entire staff. A large number of staff members are working women with children which makes office hour decisions even more complicated.
For new offices, starting with non-traditional hours is not complicated as the staff that they hire understands the hours being offered. Switching from traditional operating hours to expanded hours is often difficult for an established practice because it upsets the life of the staff. This often means losing staff members and replacing them with new personnel.
Younger and more aggressive dental offices tend to have expanded hours as a means of attracting new patients. This means that offices that operate under the Monday – Thursday 9-5 model put the traditional dentist at a competitive disadvantage.
There are few decisions more crucial to your practice’s success than when you are available to your patients. People shop for offices with patient friendly hours. On the flip side, having a work schedule that allows you time with your family is also important. You will have to decide how to walk this balance beam.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
The choice to offer non-traditional office hours affects not only the dentist but the entire staff. A large number of staff members are working women with children which makes office hour decisions even more complicated.
For new offices, starting with non-traditional hours is not complicated as the staff that they hire understands the hours being offered. Switching from traditional operating hours to expanded hours is often difficult for an established practice because it upsets the life of the staff. This often means losing staff members and replacing them with new personnel.
Younger and more aggressive dental offices tend to have expanded hours as a means of attracting new patients. This means that offices that operate under the Monday – Thursday 9-5 model put the traditional dentist at a competitive disadvantage.
There are few decisions more crucial to your practice’s success than when you are available to your patients. People shop for offices with patient friendly hours. On the flip side, having a work schedule that allows you time with your family is also important. You will have to decide how to walk this balance beam.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
What do vacations really cost?
Everyone loves vacations but what is the true cost of your vacation?
Well, first their is the cost of your actual vacation - the travel, hotel, food, etc. but then there is the hidden cost that is actually a LOT more expensive. You have to factor in the cost of your office for your week(s) off. You have a ton of overhead during your time off and no revenue coming in to offset your costs.
This means that every day you are closed has to be supported with revenue generated during your time on. The more weeks off, the more money you must generate during e weeks in to cover your down time.
Staff members rarely understand the true cost of your closing the office and giving them a paid vacation. They take it for granted that paid vacations are just part of the perks of working.
I find it helps to let your staff understand the true cost of their weeks off. Having a staff meeting to help them understand that the rent needs to be paid, insurances, salaries, utilities, phones, loan payments, borrowing costs, etc. They should understand that their free time is not free.
Bringing the staff into the overhead discussion often makes them appreciate the vacation time you give them. It often gives them incentive to find ways to increase revenue so that they can justify more vacation time.
A profitable business can afford to do MORE for their staff members - higher pay, more vacations, better benefits, new equipment, etc. Bring your staff into the conversation.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Well, first their is the cost of your actual vacation - the travel, hotel, food, etc. but then there is the hidden cost that is actually a LOT more expensive. You have to factor in the cost of your office for your week(s) off. You have a ton of overhead during your time off and no revenue coming in to offset your costs.
This means that every day you are closed has to be supported with revenue generated during your time on. The more weeks off, the more money you must generate during e weeks in to cover your down time.
Staff members rarely understand the true cost of your closing the office and giving them a paid vacation. They take it for granted that paid vacations are just part of the perks of working.
I find it helps to let your staff understand the true cost of their weeks off. Having a staff meeting to help them understand that the rent needs to be paid, insurances, salaries, utilities, phones, loan payments, borrowing costs, etc. They should understand that their free time is not free.
Bringing the staff into the overhead discussion often makes them appreciate the vacation time you give them. It often gives them incentive to find ways to increase revenue so that they can justify more vacation time.
A profitable business can afford to do MORE for their staff members - higher pay, more vacations, better benefits, new equipment, etc. Bring your staff into the conversation.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Your schedule vs. patients schedules
Every dentist has to make many decisions in how best to operate their business. One of the first and most important decisions is what days and hours to be open.
The hard question to answer is should I be open at the hours that my patients have most availability (early mornings, evenings, weekends) or should I be open during hours that best fit my preferred hours.
A lot of patients will go to your website and see your available hours. They often won't even call your office if the hours listed don't match their schedule. Offices with limited schedules are missing out on a lot of business they don't even realize.
With everyone online today, many patients will surf the net for dental offices in their areas that's best fit their needs - days open, hours open, insurances accepted, servos offered. Your office is not their only option. You are in competition for patient business with a lot of other quality dentist who may be making their offices more accessible to potential patients.
Consider your patient's needs when setting your days and hours of operation. What seem to be small decisions are really huge decisions!
Dr. Corey Gold President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
The hard question to answer is should I be open at the hours that my patients have most availability (early mornings, evenings, weekends) or should I be open during hours that best fit my preferred hours.
A lot of patients will go to your website and see your available hours. They often won't even call your office if the hours listed don't match their schedule. Offices with limited schedules are missing out on a lot of business they don't even realize.
With everyone online today, many patients will surf the net for dental offices in their areas that's best fit their needs - days open, hours open, insurances accepted, servos offered. Your office is not their only option. You are in competition for patient business with a lot of other quality dentist who may be making their offices more accessible to potential patients.
Consider your patient's needs when setting your days and hours of operation. What seem to be small decisions are really huge decisions!
Dr. Corey Gold President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Sit in your dental chair and look up
When waste last time you sat in one of your dental chairs and looked up?
Do you know what your patients are seeing when they sit in your chair? Are they seeing dirty looking lights? A they seeing discolored ceiling tiles? Are they looking at a blank wall or crooked cabinet?
I was recently in a dental chair and spent an hour looking at a light fixture that looked dirty. The fixture was not dirty - the light was just streaky from the disinfectant sprayed on it and then quickly wiped down. From my angle it looked filthy. I knew better - your patients won't.
If your cabinets are old and need repair - get them fixed, painted, etc. it the ceiling tiles don't match or are dirty - get them replaced. These are quick and inexpensive fixes that will really pay dividends.
Think if you went into a restaurant and the table appeared dirty, the ceiling looked rain damaged and the tables wobbled - you would never go back. People are nervous about going to the dental office already, don't give them a reason to question your office.
Do yourself a favor, sit in all your dental chairs, recline the unit and look at what you see. Fix everything that your patients might perceive to be dirty, tacky, broken or problematic. These fixes are not expensive and will give your patients more confidence in your office.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Do you know what your patients are seeing when they sit in your chair? Are they seeing dirty looking lights? A they seeing discolored ceiling tiles? Are they looking at a blank wall or crooked cabinet?
I was recently in a dental chair and spent an hour looking at a light fixture that looked dirty. The fixture was not dirty - the light was just streaky from the disinfectant sprayed on it and then quickly wiped down. From my angle it looked filthy. I knew better - your patients won't.
If your cabinets are old and need repair - get them fixed, painted, etc. it the ceiling tiles don't match or are dirty - get them replaced. These are quick and inexpensive fixes that will really pay dividends.
Think if you went into a restaurant and the table appeared dirty, the ceiling looked rain damaged and the tables wobbled - you would never go back. People are nervous about going to the dental office already, don't give them a reason to question your office.
Do yourself a favor, sit in all your dental chairs, recline the unit and look at what you see. Fix everything that your patients might perceive to be dirty, tacky, broken or problematic. These fixes are not expensive and will give your patients more confidence in your office.
Dr. Corey Gold
President - Advanced Continuing Education Systems
www.aces4ce.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)