Tag: dental coaching

No More Deer in the Headlights:  Speaking Confidently About Fees Chairside

Most dental team training programs have a glaring omission: clinical team members are often not trained to answer patients’ questions regarding fees.  Administrative team members at the front deal with these questions every day, and many are quite adept at explaining value for the dollar with regard to proposed treatment.  However, when patients turn to an assistant or a hygienist chairside and express concern about dental fees, the clinical staff are often unprepared.

It is common for back-office team members to be uncomfortable with these types of questions.  They may respond by saying, “You have to speak to someone up front about that,” which is a true statement except that it is often conveyed in a halting tone that betrays a lack of confidence.  The effect that financial questions have on assistants and hygienists is similar to Superman being exposed to kryptonite.  Over the years, the super-human caped crusader was unstoppable—until he was exposed to material from Krypton, his home planet.  Back-office team members should not lose their superpowers when a patient asks why a procedure seems so expensive.

Here are three very good answers when patients ask about fees chairside.  My comments are in italics.

  1.  Our fees reflect the quality of care provided uniquely to you. Dr. Smile uses only the best materials and technology.  This statement brims with confidence and reinforces value for the dollar. 
  2. It’s a great investment in your health.  You deserve it.  Patients need to hear again from their trusted assistant or hygienist that the proposed treatment is in their best interest.
  3. Patients tell us all the time that they wish they had decided sooner to have the treatment.  Let’s go to the front and you can speak to Julie about different financial options.  This transition is seamless and can be used with any of these answers.

Clinical team members are not expected to make financial arrangements or discuss fees in depth with patients.  However, their verbal responses to patients’ questions about fees and body language are very important.  The deer-in-the-headlights look is an expression of anxiety.    When all dental team members are properly trained to handle the money question and respond succinctly with rock-solid confidence, patients feel more comfortable moving forward with recommended treatment.  Practices owe it to the team and the patients to provide such training.

No Cost Dental Team Motivation

No Cost Dental Team Motivation is the topic of Episode 2 of The Personal Report, which is now available on YouTube. To see the video, click here:

Here’s the transcript of Episode 2 on motivation.

We have a great topic for you today: No Cost Team Motivation. So, how do we keep the team motivated?

Well, let me just tell you a little story. Some years ago, I was involved in a focus group. Do you ever watch “Law and Order”? They watch through the glass and they’ve got somebody in the box and the people who are being interrogated can’t see you through the one-way mirror.

Well, a focus group works that way and we interviewed people who are in the dental profession, hygienists and assistants, and so forth, and asked them what motivated them. We actually divided them into two groups. We preselected them, through a survey, happy people and unhappy people. And it didn’t matter whether we interviewed the happy people or the unhappy people: when they made a list with the focus group facilitator about what motivated them, money was not number one. Oh, it was on the list, and it’s important, but it wasn’t number one.

You know what number one was? Praise, recognition, somebody cares, somebody noticed. So, the no cost way is to praise, but let’s be more specific about that, and when you give praise, always make it specific. Don’t just say, “Oh, you know, you’re wonderful,” or “Oh, I’m so happy you’re here.” That’s good, you need to say that, but make it more specific. “Yesterday, when the patient was starting to get upset, you handled it so well.” The other day the entire schedule was going to fall apart, but you got on the phone and we had a good schedule. The schedule is full–wow, what a great job!”

So you want to be very specific in your praise. We always say, praise in public, criticize in private. Now, you can praise in private, but if you happen to say it publicly, if you praise in public, if other people hear the praise, believe me, the person who’s hearing the praise, they’re not going to mind that other people know that somebody is getting praise and that they’re the one who’s being praised, because they did a good job for something specific.

Any criticism, though, has to be in private. No matter how mild the criticism, you want to really make that private, but that praise, specific praise, and public praise, are very, very important. And the next thing I will tell you is, don’t couch the praise; never use the word “but” when you’re praising.

Here’s what you don’t want to do: you don’t want to say, “You know yesterday, you stayed late, nobody asked you stay late, You took your initiative and you just did it without anybody asking and you got all the work done, but you know, if you were more organized, you wouldn’t have to stay late.” You’ve just taken it all away. First you were on a roll, you were saying all these good things, and then you added “but,” and here comes some criticism in underneath.

Praise is praise. “You did a great job.” Period. And let people know that. Now, if at another time, you need to talk to somebody on the side and say, “work on your organizational skills,” that’s a different story, but praise has to be specific and it has to be unqualified; we don’t want to say the word “but.”

Let me leave you with this thought: when I talk about praise, I can just hear all the staff out there saying, “yeah, I’ve got to get the doctor to watch this video. See, see, you should say nice things about us.” Okay, fair point, but I think that everybody on the team needs to praise other people on the team–when it’s deserved, of course. When somebody does something praise worthy, don’t be shy, tell them. And, by the way, sometimes even the doctor does something praise worthy and you can say something nice about him or her also.

I hope you’re enjoying the Personal Report. You know, I do have my Free Report; we’re getting a lot of good feedback. If you want a copy of the Free Report, “The Three Mistakes Every Dental Practice Must Avoid,” then just go to thepersonalreport@yahoo.com. Just send a quick email to thepersonalreport@yahoo.com and we’ll send you the Free Report.

You’re always, of course, welcome to contact me through my website, which is davidschwab.com. Thanks so much for watching The Personal Report.

You May Need a Coach If. . .

Great athletes need coaches.  Great dentists need coaches, too.  Take advantage of the free consultation offer below.

You may need a dental coach if:

  1. You are facing major decisions about the future of your practice. You are wondering if you should buy, sell, expand, cut back, or bring in another dentist.  Ask yourself:  Do I need a trusted confident, outside of my business and family—someone who can lead me to the right choices?
  2. You feel that your team needs more training. Ask yourself:  Could targeted training for specific individuals improve their performance and help the bottom line?
  3. You are not sure if all team members “get it.” Ask yourself: Have I clearly and consistently communicated my expectations to my team?
  4. You feel that your practice has reached a plateau. Ask yourself:  Am I feeling burned out?  Or, do I have a lot of energy but just need direction?
  5. You think that case acceptance should be higher. Ask yourself:  Am I using the best verbal skills and teaching my team to follow my lead?  Do I have an effective follow-up protocol in place to prevent patients from “falling through the cracks”?
  6. You are feeling unsure about your management style. Ask yourself: As an employer, am I too harsh, too lenient, or just right? 
  7. You are worried about overhead but you need more help at busy times. Ask yourself: Am I adequately staffed to provide outstanding customer service?  Am I utilizing the full talents of everyone on the payroll?

If you answered yes to one or more of these questions—or if you have other issues that you would like to discuss in confidence with a highly experienced dental coach, please contact me.

Coaching services are conducted by phone consultations, in-person visits to the office, or both.

Free consultation.  Contact me to schedule a free 30-minute telephone coaching session (limited time offer) so I can start helping you immediately.  I promise to listen carefully and provide cogent, confidential advice.

Click for contact info.

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