Katherine Eitel

My business travels once took me to Frisco, Texas where I stayed in a beautiful, brand-new Embassy Suites hotel. Upon entering my room, I was warmly greeted by a card placed upon my bed printed with the following message:

In ancient times, there was a prayer for "The Stranger Within Our Gates." Here is ours for you, our guest:

Because this hotel is a human institution to serve people, and not solely a money-making organization, we hope that you will be granted peace and rest while you are under our roof.

May this room and hotel be your "second" home. May those you love be near you in thoughts and dreams. Even though we may not get to know you personally, we hope that you will be comfortable and happy as if you were in your own house.

May the business that brought you our way prosper. May every call you make and every message you receive add to your joy. When you leave, may your journey be safe.

We are all travelers. From birth to death, we travel between eternities. May these days be pleasant for you, profitable for society, helpful for those you meet, and a joy to those who know and love you best.

I stood for a moment after reading it, contemplating the words and the sentiment. The energy created by these words and the subsequent thoughts they inspired in me was unexpected and a brief but welcome respite at the end of a long day of travel. I was moved by the spirit and intimacy of this message and re-read it several times over my five day stay at the hotel.

I was reminded of how sometimes such small communications can create such high emotional impact and shape, reshape or support client loyalty and feelings of connection. This is what all of our clients want at the core: connection and understanding. When we successfully appeal to the common values we share with clients, they feel connected to and understood by us.

This week, explore the ways you are communicating to clients your shared values and get creative with different methods of demonstrating that connection to them in your materials, your verbal skills, and your service skills. Look for unique ways - similar to this hotel - to gently surprise and delight your clients in ways your competition won't.

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Misty Clark

When dental practices take on the investment of savvy, effective marketing, rarely does the vision go beyond the goal of getting more new patients. The problem with this is if you are not prepared for the influx of new patients your marketing will bring, you risk those patients walking from the front door straight through the back door because your internal systems failed to reflect the external marketing you were sending out to the community.

So, how do you successfully bring these new patients into your practice and retain them in your patient family? Here are a few steps to start working on NOW to prepare for the wave of business your marketing efforts will bring.

Have an effective New Patient Experience in place.  

The New Patient Experience is multifold. It involves several systems in your practice: excellent telephone technique, gathering of necessary data, scheduling the new patient appointment, sending out a beautiful and accurate new patient packet, executing a good new patient appointment, and a successful case presentation. This may take hours of time, practice and preparation on the part of you and your team members. But, remember, all of this work will protect the investment you have made in your marketing. Otherwise, you risk losing your investment the moment you answer the telephone.

Get your schedule in order.

Make sure you have a schedule that is organized and ready to take on new patients in an expedient manner. If you are offering a special on whitening, for example, make sure you have places blocked off in your schedule to hold those appointments. If a prospective patient calls in and you can't see them for three months, chances are it doesn't matter what you're offering, they will look elsewhere for someone that can see them in a more convenient fashion.

Put an efficient follow-up system in place.

In the introductory calls, make sure you gather the prospective new patient's contact information. This way you can follow- up on a regular basis through marketing and you can also place these people on a call list when you have cancellations.

Above all, make sure your business systems are streamlined and your customer service skills are sharp so that you make a great first impression. All the marketing dollars in the world won't get you that final goal of a patient saying yes to treatment. The YES comes when the care and the service match the image.

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