The Dental Marketer

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Are you wearied by the low reimbursements from Dental PPOs and considering if there's a different, better way to improve your practice's profitability? Then you need to tune into this compelling episode of The Dental Marketer, as I interview Dr. Ben Burkitt, who's been in your shoes and emerged victorious. After implementing a revolutionary change in his own dental practice, Dr. Burkitt demystifies the process of dropping dental PPOs and its potential ripple effects to the bottom-line profitability of your dental practice. Learn how you can switch from being insurance driven to being patient-centric and multiplying your revenue in the process.

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Why dropping Dental PPOs may benefit your dental practice
• How to perform effective analysis of profitability for different procedures
• The significance of the 20 code collection score in this analysis
• How dropping low-paying insurance plans won't necessarily lead to a loss of your existing patients
• Evidence-based tips to attract patients from better paying insurance plans

And not just that, Dr. Burkitt takes us through his own experiences - the reservations, the risks, and how he managed it all while driving remarkable growth in his practice's revenue. Queue this podcast episode up today and dive into a data-driven approach to revamp your dental practice!

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Guest: Dr. Benjamin BurkittPractice Name: We Care Dental CareCheck out Ben's Media:

Website: https://www.raisingdentalincome.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/benjamin.fowlerburkitt

Email: [email protected]

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Other Mentions and Links:

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Dr. Burkitt's Other Podcast Episodes:

• MMM [INSURANCE] HOW TO STRATEGICALLY START DROPPING INSURANCES WHILE MAINTAINING A HIGH PRODUCTION
  

• MMM [INSURANCE] BEHIND THE SCENES OF DROPPING PPOS AND DOUBLING YOUR PRACTICE'S PROFITABILITY
  

• WHAT IS HYBRID SCHEDULING AND WHY IT IS KEY TO MAXIMIZING PRODUCTION
  

• HOW TO DROP PPO INSURANCES (SO YOU CAN GET PAID FAIRLY FOR YOUR SERVICES)
  

• 226: DR. BENJAMIN BURKITT | DIGGING OUT OF THE "CORONA CRATER"

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Software/Services:

• Google Ads
• Meta Ads
• Google My Business

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Insurance Companies: 

• Cigna
• Humana
• UnitedHealthcare
• Connection Dental
• Unitas Dental
• Delta Dental

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Books/Publications:

• The Dropping Dental PPOs Playbook: A Guide to Going Out of Network Without Going Out Of Your Mind
• The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement

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Establishments/Brands:

• Toyota
• International Brotherhood of Teamsters
• UPS
• CVS

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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Ever feel like your top talent is just slipping away from your practice? On today's solo episode, I'm introducing a game-changing tactic designed to stop that revolving door: the "Stay Interview". Forget about exit interviews - this is about understanding what keeps your team members engaged, satisfied, and eager to stick around. I share and dissect five incisive questions recommended by renowned CEO coach, Eric Partaker, that bring the mindsets of your staff into sharp focus and help you create a thriving and retention-friendly environment in your office.

6 powerful questions for your "Stay Interview":

1. What do you enjoy most about your role?
2. What challenges could I help you with?
3. What would you love to learn to help you grow?
4. How fulfilled are you on a scale of 1-10 in your role?
5. What would you change about our company goals?
6. What's one thing I could do to be a better leader?
   

There's no need to wait for a farewell handshake to gain clarity into how you can meet your employees’ needs better. Hit "play" now to learn how to keep your dental practice buzzing with satisfied, dedicated professionals!

You can check out Eric Partaker's media here:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eric-partaker-5560b92/

Original LinkedIn Post

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Mentions and Links:

People/Public Figures:

• Adam Grant

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: All right. So one piece of advice, for this Monday morning episode is something I found. so I follow someone on LinkedIn, Eric Partaker, really great guy. He's a great person on coaching people on how to be a CEO. And I'm going to share my screen now.

So if you're watching, or if you're listening to this on podcast, you can continue to listen, right. But at the same time, I want to show you Just so you can see it. So This is a little bit might be controversial might not be but exit interviews my opinion Same I've kind of read from this guy is exit interviews are reactive and they're too late And here's why you should use something called stay interviews Adam Grant Advocates the use of stay interviews Adam Grant is famous author and he's written a lot a lot of books but he advocates To use stay S T A Y interviews over exit interviews to retain your best people. It's an essential tool for every leader to make the most of your top talent. Now there's six powerful questions for you, to use during the stay interview, right? That means, your employees still. You assume that they still love their job. You haven't really seen that they've given you signs of quitting or anything like that.

You know, you just, they're just great people. They're a great employee and you want to keep them happy. You want to keep your best people. So here's the six questions and then I'm going to dive a little bit deeper on each question. Number one, what do you enjoy most about your role? Two, what challenges could I help you with?

Three, what would you love to learn to help you grow for? How fulfilled are you on a scale of one to 10 in your role? Five, what would you change about our company goals? And then six, what's one thing I could do to be a better leader. Now, uh, I'm going to keep the questions on here in case you want to write them down, but I'm going to go a little bit deeper into them.

So if we go back to one, right the first question is, what do you most enjoy about your role? And this is a really, really easy place to start, especially if you are doing the stay interview, right? Just ask them, And then celebrate their successes and focus on their strengths, right?

Everything they've done, focus on their strengths and then create more opportunities for them to do more of what they enjoy. So if they're like, I really love talking to the patients when they come in and saying hi and offering them coffee and also create more opportunities for them. So that's number one.

Number two, what challenges or frustrations could I help you with Recognize that, you know, it's not always smooth sailing. That's what this question recognizes, right? Like, Hey, I know it's not easy breezy all the time. We have rough times. So utilize this question, identify barriers or obstacles. And then find ways to lighten or remove them.

So they're like, you know what? I love it. But then it's just, I hate the fact that like, whenever we, I, the new patient comes in, all these things, the phones are ringing off the hook and I can't even greet them and you don't have to go to the phones and stuff like that. See how you can work together, right.

to remove that or lighten that load. Number three, what would you love to learn that would help you grow? This is super important question. Keep an open mind for whatever comes next, whatever they're going to tell you next. For example, a desire may be to, they want to be a dentist. They're a hygienist.

They're like, you know what I desire is always be has been to be a practice owner, or it's been to be a, an associate, or, you know, I would love to go back to dental school. Keep an open mind. Or maybe they want to take a course, right? They want to get into something specific. keep it up in mind and support skill development on one offer group basis, right?

Don't just bypass it or just ignore it. Support it. If you can. Four, how fulfilled are you on a scale of one to 10 in your role? That's the question you're going to ask. Now immediately follow up with what's one change that you would increase your score by just. Half of a point. So the first question, remember number four, Hey, so how fulfilled are you on a scale of one to 10 in your role?

And if they tell you nine, if they tell you eight, seven, six, then say like what's one change that would increase your score by just half of a point. And then let, hear them, hear them out. I keep asking, what else? Adding additional half points, right? Okay. What, what, what? Oh, one thing that would help is, um, you know, if we got to know the team more and, uh, you took us out once a month to eat dinner, right?

And be like, okay, wow. Okay. And what else? You know, we do that. And then if you're 5, but we'll make it to a nine. And then kind of keep asking what else, right? Take special note of anything not previously mentioned. Number five, if you could change our company goals, what would you start doing or stop doing?

Okay. This is an incredibly powerful question because people often have strong views on where to focus and where to let go. So even if you don't agree. The person will feel valued and heard. you definitely want to slip in this question. If you could change our company's goals, what would you start doing or what would you stop doing and be open to it?

Listen to them. And number six. What's one thing I could do to be a better leader for you? And then what's the next thing right here? It's a simple, straightforward, but equally powerful question. Because if you want to know how you're doing as a leader, you need to ask those that you lead. So these questions will help you during the stay interview.

And it most importantly. Will help those, team members in your team who you just absolutely love. It'll teach you to keep your best people, right? This is data you're collecting. You're going to start utilizing and implementing in your practice to make sure your culture, team environment, the positivity, the optimism, all that stuff is shining all the time.

And they're performing their best. They're seeing this as from a job to a career, to a place that they absolutely love. Exit interviews on the other side, they're reactive, right? They're incomplete and it's way too late, but stay interviews. They're proactive and empowering. They uncover needs, concerns, and aspirations.

They address potential issues before they blow up, huge. And they boost morale. Unlocking greater potential. Ask yourself, which type of leader do you want to be? Which type of culture do you want to create? How important is it to retain your best people? That's the most important question. You have those people on your team right now.

How important is it to retain your best people? You can call these like performance reviews, or you can just call them stay interviews, right? When there's no performance to review or anything, they're doing fantastic. They're doing great. They're at the top of their level. You will stay interview, work, stay interviews into your leadership toolkit, conduct them regularly.

Listen to their responses. Most importantly, act, act on the feedback. You will improve retention and create a positive culture and both your people and company will thank you. So those are my thoughts on stay interviews over exit interviews. Let me know your thoughts. Do you agree disagree? Let me know if this has helped the questions will be in the show notes below as well And as always thank you so much for tuning in If you want to know about this episode or further episodes, you can definitely join the facebook group the dental marketer society And at the same time, um, i'm also going to put these questions in the facebook group as well So you can check them on the show notes below or you can join facebook group as well Thank you so much for tuning in and i'll talk to you in the next episode

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Ever wondered how to navigate life’s big challenges while single-handedly running a dental practice? In this episode of The Dental Marketer, Dr. Melissa Torres details her journey from contemplation to execution and her eventual success in the realm of dentistry. Despite the weight of decisions, self-doubts, and life's unexpected turns, Melissa persisted, primarily banking on personal introspection and journaling for clarity and direction. She exposes her innovative approach of assembling a team with less experience but a profound willingness to learn, crediting social media as a primary platform for recruitment.
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What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How personal introspection and journaling can help gain clarity and purpose while facing significant decisions.
• Insights on how to effectively manage consultants and contractors for the success of your business.
• Melissa's unique approach to recruitment and why she chose to train newcomers instead of hiring experienced professionals.
• Strategies for coping with unforeseen setbacks and staff changes before and after launching your practice.
• Melissa's experiences and recommendations about different companies she associated with while setting up her dental practice.
• A personal story of managing a profound personal loss while still handling the daily operations of a thriving business.
• Harnessing the power of social media not just for brand visibility, but also as an recruitment tool.

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Listen as Melissa shares her riveting journey of ups and downs in the dental industry and her association with companies like Darkhorse Tech that helped play a pivotal role in actualizing her vision!

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Guest: Dr. Melissa TorresPractice Name: Miel Dental AestheticsCheck out Melissa's Media:

Website: https://mieldentalaesthetics.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drmelissatorres

Email: [email protected]

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Other Mentions and Links:

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Get a head start on 2024 with the Ground Marketing Course and receive $419 off your purchase with the code "practicelaunchpad"! You can sign up here: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/the-ground-marketing-course-open-enrollment/

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Companies/Software/Services: 

• Open Dental
• Ideal Practices
• Identify Designs
• Darkhorse Tech
• Cisco
• Casper
• Transcendental, LLC (marketing company)
• Google Ads
• Indeed

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People/Communities: 

• Dr. Ashley Dawson - Dawson Modern Dentistry
• Dr. Taher Dhoon
• Dr. Christopher Green

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Books/Publications:

• The Practice Launchpad: Insights From The Experts: Unraveling The Complexities Of Practice Ownership

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Establishments/Brands:

• Howard University
• Target
• Starbucks

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Products:

• StairMaster

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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Curious about the secret to increased productivity? Hint: It's not multitasking! In this week's Monday Morning Episode, I'm picking the brain of Dr. Alan Mead, diving deep into why multitasking isn't necessarily the powerful tool it's made out to be. Dr. Mead deconstructs the myth of multitasking and shares why focus could be your most underutilized asset. We'll learn how to identify these moments in our own lives and redefine our work habits in a world brimming with distractions.

‍What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The real truth behind multitasking, and why it might not be as productive as you think
• The importance and power of focused single-tasking
• Self-reflection on the golden era when multitasking was revered
• The difference between truly multitasking and simply rapid task-switching
• How to identify moments that require our undivided attention
• Insights into the struggles of maintaining focus in a digital landscape

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Step right up, heed Alan's advice, and propel your week towards productivity and concentration. Let's debunk the myth of multitasking together!

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You can reach out to Dr. Alan Mead here:

Website: https://meadfamilydental.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/alanmead

Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/very_dental_podcast/

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Mentions and Links:

Tools/Software:

• Quickbooks
• Black and White IOS Setting

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Episodes, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey, Alan. So talk to us. What's one piece of advice you can give us this Monday morning?

Alan: So when I got your invite, I wanted to make sure that I, I came up with something maybe a little different than what I've said before. so podcasters and people who listen to podcasts. are the only real people I think that, that can actually do multitasking in real life.

So, my, my, uh, my advice is to, to stop trying to multitask. And I'll tell you, multitasking is actually a myth. I, it's not talked about as much now as it used to be, but I remember probably 10 years ago, man, it was all about, multitasking. You have to be doing, you know, 10 things at once all the time to be productive and all that stuff.

But what's really interesting is when you think about what multitasking is, it's like one person that's able to do or think about or whatever, multiple things at the same time. computers are really good at this, right? Like that's why we invented computers. They can run different processes all at the same time.

And the more processing power, the more things you can do humans, because we only have so much focus really are not good at this. what we're really doing is we're just switching our focus really quickly. And what happens in my experience is that it's just tasks switching rather than doing multiple tasks.

And it seems like for tasks that, okay, you can do this. A little bit when you are, when one of the tasks is something that's already automatic, for instance, why can you listen to a podcast and totally concentrate on it when you're driving to work? Because you've driven to work a million times and you know, you've been driving for how many years and it's just kind of automatic.

And so you can actually concentrate on the thing. But if you try something like I, I, this is my classic thing. I'll get on the phone with a friend and then I'll sit down at my desk and I'll try and answer emails while I'm having a conversation. I can't do it. what I ended up having to do is say, you know what?

I'm distracted as heck. I got to call you back because I got to get this thing done. I can't do it at the same time. And if you think you can, you're probably doing both of them really poorly. I mean, that's the, you know, so, so the only real multitasking I think is if you're able to listen to something while you're like driving or doing exercise or yard work or something like that.

And thus as podcasters, we kind of love that because We can actually kind of participate in, in the only real multitasking, but like for tasks that require real focus, I don't think it's possible. I don't know. You might push back on, I just don't think that there's such a thing that you can really do well.

So the trick is to, understand that as human beings, we only have so much focus at one point and kind of protect that focus as best you can. What do you think about that? You think that's a good tip or do you think that's garbage? No, I think it's

Michael: good. I, I, I. 100 percent agree. I think we just are really good at managing distractions

Alan: Or not good at it as the case may be. Yeah. There you go.

Michael: Not good at it because a distraction comes up. We're like, Oh, we got to do that. Oh, another thing comes up. I think we've transformed the word priority to like priorities and there's no such thing as that. It's just like, you got to put that one thing in the forefront and do it.

Yep. But then we're like, we're gonna multitask at the same time and then that's when you are just distracted at the time. So then how did you help yourself with that? Like, uh, or how did you come to that conclusion?

Alan: You know, I've heard about it. When you asked me to come up with something, I realized that I do that quite a bit with the phone thing.

Like, I think, okay, I'm just on the phone. Okay. So, like, I love talking. If I'm going to talk to a friend on the phone, I like to be driving and I have a commute. I got to drive. 40 minutes, one way to work. So I have a lot of time to either listen or talk on the phone or whatever, because that the other things, the automatic thing, but then sometimes I'll get home or I'll get to work and have something I'm going to try and do and still be on the phone.

I can't do it. I can't do it. And, and, and I realized that that both things I'm trying to do, I do more poorly. and so I've come to realize that that focus is just for me, it's not even a really hard thing for me to come to grips with. I think I really am just not any good at the thing, but what I have to realize, I have to understand that I'm trying to do two things at once.

That's the thing. So lately I've really understood. So what, what is my focus need to be on at this moment? And I mean, mind you. As a dentist, that's not hard for me to, you know, the focus is on the patient, the procedure, what's next, that sort of thing. That's, but, but a lot of times it's like, as you know, uh, producing content, podcasts and stuff, you're sitting at a desk

I have, the entire internet in front of me if I want it. so it's really hard sometimes to focus on what you need to get done versus what's, what's available on the screen, you know, so you have to really, and I'm not great at that all the time, but it is funny when I, particularly when I'm editing podcasts, um, I get into a flow state a little bit.

I I'm able to, to, once I get into it. I usually am into it enough where the other stuff kind of goes away and I'll like look up 30 minutes later. I'm like, wow, I got a bunch done. And I didn't amazingly didn't look at my, you know, my email or something like that. So it's just understanding how focus actually works, I think is, is the big tip for me. to

Michael: you, when you talk about your state of flow and you're productive, like the most time that you're productive, do you realize like Oh, I'm most productive when I'm this time of the day or this time of moment or

Alan: it's

funny. I,

not really because I am not great about saying I'm setting aside this time to do this.

I should be. I really should be having done this for as long as I have. I really should be, but I don't a lot of times, a lot of times I still put myself on a deadline where I'm, I'm, I'm right up to it. I kind of know in the back of my mind, once. Once I dive into it, once I actually commit to doing it and, you know, literally open up the software and start going, I'll fall into it.

I know that I will. so I'm not, there isn't a particular time of day, although I'm not worth much in the evening at all to tell you the truth. So if I'm doing anything, I do it in the morning. I went to a three day, three clinical days. with the idea that I was going to use my Mondays is sort of doing the admin and podcast stuff. that's worked out somewhat as you know, a lot of times when you open yourself up to interviewing at X time, you know, especially when it's during the day, which is when I'd like to do it rather than, you know, after I put my kids to bed or whatever, lot of times people can't, can't do it then. So you still have to be kind of flexible with that.

But yeah, I mean, I, if there's a particular time of day, it's probably morning, but, but the reality is it's. It doesn't always work out that way.

Michael: Gotcha. So then switching over to this, when it comes to your life now to like clinical work and you managing the practice and everything like that. Yeah. How does that translate to that? Uh,

Alan: it all kind of, it's funny because, um, I think people, particularly people who love clinical dentistry or who, who kind of focus on clinical dentistry, the admin stuff is so easy to procrastinate on. But what I've always, okay, this is the classic thing. What I've noticed is once I procrastinate to this day, I'm I'll go for a while where I'll have all my stuff done early in the month and I get it off and I feel great about that.

And then there'll be a month where I just didn't jump on it. And so it gets bigger in my head, the big, the admin stuff that I have to do. And it's so, and honestly, it's, it's causing me pain for longer because I'm putting it off. Cause you know, once you get into it, you just start going with, if you can put your focus on this stuff, knowing you have to get, and sometimes it's fine.

If you break up in pieces, if you know, you don't have time to do all of it at once, if you can break it up in pieces and put your focus on that and get it done, I have to say the, there's a, the sense of accomplishment of getting it done earlier, rather, rather than letting it torture you over the month or whatever is. Really great. But I, it's, I'm, I'm a slow learner and a fast forgetter because I, like, I, I sometimes forget how great it feels to have the stuff, the monthly stuff, let's say done early in the month rather than holding on to the last second. but like I said, once you understand your focus is your focus, uh, I, I think that, works better that way.

Like you can kind of fall into it and get the job done and keep the fricking browser windows closed when you're doing that. Just do what you got to do, you know?

Michael: Yeah, and I think that's the tough part, like, especially if you're like, okay, I know I focus really well if I wake up early, don't have my phone with me, have the, but, man, I'm not gonna lie to you, like, maybe 8 times out of 10 I'll do it, you know what I mean, and then, like, the 10th time.

Well, yeah, so,

Alan: because the story is, you're, you're, uh, All this admin stuff that you do a lot of times is already in a browser. So it's like, you're already kind of like, wow, I got to use a browser. So it's, it's a, and so you get kind of sucked into stuff, you know, like let's say I'm, I'm working on financial stuff and QuickBooks online and then I'll have a bank, I'll be in the bank website.

And then in, in the stories, like it, all it takes is one button to click and you're, you're doom scrolling somewhere else. It doesn't, you know, in, I'd love to say I'm super, uh, super disciplined about it, I'm not, and actually. Sometimes you want to give your brain a break when you've been, particularly with numbers, if you're, uh, give yourself a break, but it's, you got to make sure you reel yourself back in.

You can't give yourself too much time because time gets away from you when you're doing that stuff. Yeah.

Michael: Do you find yourself like What is the biggest time suck for you where you're like, my gosh, like I, I just spent like as you're waiting something to render or like you're waiting for yours or anything.

You're just like on your phone. What do you feel like that is

Alan: Instagram is deadly because it's all visual. It's all pictures and videos. I can lose myself. And I mean, anywhere between, you know, Mountain bikes, cooking and cat videos. And, you know, Instagram is just literally it's, it's invented to try and take time away from what you should be doing.

And, and honestly, I, most people use their phone. I'm Instagram on a browser is pretty great. Like it's even bigger. so most people use their phone. Of course, it's much easier to post stuff on your phone, but you can, you can consume it pretty well on a browser. So that's, I have to, I have to put that stuff away.

All right. Or I get sucked into it.

Michael: If you do it on a browser, I think that would be. Because on the phone, I feel like you can take it. You know? They even need that. You take it anywhere. Yeah. Yeah. Uhhuh, they have a, a thing now where it's like another app, but you make your whole phone black and white and great.

Alan: Right, right. Yeah. I, I've done it. I've, I have the app. Guess what? You can also turn that off. , . I mean, I paid for the app. I paid for it, and it was helpful. It was helpful, but I also, like you got, you gotta be committed to keeping the app like that. It's, it's not a forever thing. Like, and, and I'm not quite willing enough.

This has been a journey over some years. What I tell myself is like, there's not enough good, there's more bad than good with, with that because of the time suck and all that stuff. I still haven't quite been brave enough to, to get rid of it completely. Cause I, cause I really do like it. I enjoy it. And I, and I interact with a lot of my friends on those apps too, so.

Yeah.

Michael: Interesting. Why'd you turn it back on?

Alan: Oh God, because, because here's the thing I was using, like, let's say Instagram. I was using Instagram. Anyhow, I would just do the workaround, what, what happens is it lets you do it, but you have to search for it. So it's not like it doesn't, you can make it so you can't open it, but if you can still open it, you're just doing the workaround.

Well, after a while, you're just like, okay, the workarounds pain. So you just go away from it. But like, if you're, if you're in a good spot, It's probably good to have it. And I have to say, I am not drawn to my phone as much as I am a browser. I'm, I'm much more likely to be on a computer. If you can see my office right now, I literally have a, my screen is, is literally, it's the width of three giant computer screens.

It's like, so I'm a browser guy, big time. That's in. So the reality is, you know, I make my phone do all that stuff. I'm still going to jump on a browser anyhow. So, yeah, yeah,

Michael: yeah, that's good, man. That's good. Well, so moral of the story is. Distractions, right? Or

Alan: multitasking, multitasking distractions and understanding you only have so much focus.

Yeah.

Michael: Okay. And then that multitasking is basically a myth.

Alan: Yeah, it is a myth. It absolutely isn't. Actually, you can look into, there's a fair amount of actual peer reviewed research that proves it as much too. But all you have to do is try and answer your email while you're talking to someone that you actually want to talk to.

You realize it's a myth. You can't do it. It doesn't work. Yeah.

Michael: So when we see like on a resume, I'm great at multitasking.

Alan: Yeah. No, you're not. You're, you're, you might be good at switching back and forth really fast, but you're not good at multitasking unless you're a computer. Yeah.

Michael: No. Awesome. Alan, I appreciate your time.

Thank you so much for being with us. If anyone has further questions or concerns, or they just want to reach out to you, where can they find you?

Alan: Oh, probably. I mean, I'm on Facebook and Instagram is very dental podcast or myself. that's your best bet. Actually, actually, after I told you to not use Instagram, find me on Instagram at the very dental podcast.

That's, that's your easiest way, probably.

Michael: So guys, that's all going to be in the show notes below and Alan, thank you so much for being with me on this

Alan: Monday morning. You bet. That was great. Thank you.

‍

‍

Are you ready to soar into a new year armed with wisdom from the experts and fellow doctors? Each guest from this year shares their unique take on various topics that encompass what it takes to run a successful dental practice. From honing your focus to understanding patient experience, it's a treasure trove of advice that you won't want to miss!

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Why maintaining laser-like focus can enhance productivity and lead to success
• How negotiating contracts can make or break your dental practice
• Techniques to adapt to changes in the dentistry world
• The role kindness plays in a thriving dental practice
• Essential financial planning strategies specifically for dental practices
• HR tips for crafting a clear, effective handbook
• The strong connection between professional boundaries and a successful dental practice
• Why patient experience is critical and how it can be the key to success in dentistry

‍

So gear up to gather the pearls of wisdom shared by our guests in the last episode of 2023. You've heard snippets of their advice throughout this year, and it's time to tie it all together as we bid farewell to the year and charge ahead into a promising future.

Hit that play button and let's dive into a successful new year!

‍

Guests: Dr. Avi Patel, Dr. Eric Appelsies, Dr. Kristine Grazioso, Dr. Michael Sonick, Dr. Noel Liu, Dr. Sana Yusuf, Dr. Sundar Jagadeesan, Dr. Syed Shahabuddin, Dr. Zhanna Konovalenko, and Lisa Simone RichardsCheck Out Their Media:

Dr. Avi Patel:

Website: https://www.clearaligneradvisor.co/

Past Episodes:

438: DR. AVI PATEL | CLEAR ALIGNER ADVISOR

Dr. Eric Appelsies:

Website: https://www.joinordo.com/

Past Episodes:

459: DR. ERIC APPELSIES | POWERFUL INVENTORY MANAGEMENT: FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCES FROM CLINICAL WORK TO CEO

Dr. Kristine Grazioso:

Website: https://drgrazioso.com/

Past Episodes:

465: DR. KRISTINE GRAZIOSO | SOUTH SHORE CHILDREN'S DENTISTRY – THE DENTAL MARKETER PODCAST

Dr. Michael Sonick:

Website: https://www.michaelsonick.com/

Past Episodes:

474: THE WOW EXPERIENCE: HOW CAN YOU EXCEED PATIENT EXPECTATIONS IN YOUR PRACTICE? | DR. MICHAEL SONICK

Dr. Noel Liu:

Website: https://securedentalgroup.com/

Past Episodes:

461: DR. NOEL LIU | SECURE DENTAL GROUP

Dr. Sana Yusuf:

Website: https://www.sanadentalstudio.com/

Past Episodes:

442: DR. SANA YUSUF | SANA DENTAL STUDIO & SPA

Dr. Sundar Jagadeesan:

Website: https://www.dentiq.nz/

Past Episodes:

460: DR. SUNDAR JAGADEESAN | DENTIQ

Dr. Syed Shahabuddin:

Website: http://www.311dental.com/

Past Episodes:

462: DR. SYED SHAHABUDDIN | 311 DENTAL

Dr. Zhanna Konovalenko:

Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-zhanna-konovalenko-the-dentist-coach-board-certified-orthodontist-1a4a3910a/

Past Episodes:

441: DR. ZHANNA KONOVALENKO | BURNOUT AND SELF-DOUBT IN DENTISTRY AND HOW TO BUILD TO A FULL FUTURE

‍

Lisa Simone Richards:

Website: https://www.lisasimonerichards.com/

Past Episodes:

433: LISA SIMONE RICHARDS | HOW TO GET YOU & YOUR PRACTICE FEATURED ON LOCAL TV, NEWS, OR PUBLICATIONS!

‍

Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

‍
Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

‍

p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

Today we're going to introduce a game changer in the dental practice management software world...
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This is an innovative, all-in-one, cloud-based practice management software, and it offers an array of powerful features that are custom built for dentists by dentists ready to revolutionize the way you work.

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If you are a start-up and decide to sign up with Oryx, they will NOT charge you a single dime, until you reached 200 active patients!⁠

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They are partnering up with all startup practice owners and making sure you succeed, fast!⁠

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‍

In this gripping episode of The Dental Marketer, follow the journey of Dr. Preeya Genz, from her early dreams of becoming a dentist to becoming the proud owner of her own practice, "the Whole Tooth," in Dallas, Texas. Dr. Genz shares her experiences working in different environments, including high-stress Dental Services Organizations (DSOs), sharing their impact on her career, her values, and her life. Listen as she talks about her dream boutique practice, how it faltered, and the trials she faced while working in her second DSO. Gain insight into her attempt at a practice partnership, the reasons why it didn't pan out, and the leap of faith she took to win her dream by purchasing her own practice on a loan.

Tune into The Dental Marketer today to hear Dr. Genz's journey navigating the highs and lows while pursuing her dental dream!

‍

Guest: Preeya GenzPractice Name: the Whole ToothCheck out Preeya's Media:

Website: https://www.thewholetoothtexas.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewholetoothtexas/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheWholeToothTexas

‍Other Mentions and Links:

‍

Tools/Resources:

• Oryx
• Dentrix
• Easy Dental
• Eaglesoft

Locations/Establishments:

• Kois Center

Businesses/Brands

• Doc In A Box

People/Communities:

• Dr. John Kois

‍

Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

‍

‍

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• How Dr. Genz's early exposure to dentistry shaped her career path.
• The struggles she encountered working in a high-stress DSO environment and how it influenced her values.
• The ride of running a boutique-style dental practice and the economic downturn that led to its demise.
• The impact of changing management practices and policies on overall work environment in her second experience with a DSO.
• The reason behind her decision to buy her own dental practice.
• The maneuvering skills needed to team build and set professional boundaries, inside and outside the office.
• How to strike a perfect balance between a career as a healthcare provider and a business owner.

‍
Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes! [Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

‍

p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

‍

‍

Join us on today's episode of Monday Morning Marketing, as we connect with, Zeke Kuch, CEO and co-founder at Swell. We take a deep dive into reputation management in the dental industry, discussing the paramount role Google reputation can play in your practice's overall standing. Understand why review frequency and good ratings matter and learn when to ask for patient reviews to get the best results. Zeke navigates us through the trying times of negative feedback and teaches how to effectively use them as stepping stones to refine your practice.‍

‍

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The value of maintaining a positive Google reputation for your practice
• Why a high review score, a substantial number of reviews, and frequent review activity are crucial
• Tactics to encourage patients to leave reviews through various channels
• Strategies on combatting negative reviews and converting bad rep into progress

‍

Tune in to Monday Morning Marketing today! In the game of reputation, you can't afford to be left behind. Join Zeke Kuch and empower your practice with an impeccable online presence.

‍

You can reach out to Zeke Kuch here:

Website: https://www.swellcx.com/

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zeke.kuch

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zekek/

‍

Mentions and Links:

Tools/Software:

• Yelp
• Swell
• Google My Business
• Healthgrades

People/Communities:

• Dr. Ashley Joves

Brands:

• Nike
• Delta Air Lines

TV/Publications:

• Bachelor in Paradise

Terms:

• NPS - Net Promoter Score

‍

If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Marketing, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

‍

Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

‍

Michael: Hey Zeke. So talk to us about reputation management. What advice, suggestions, or methods can you give us that will actually help us attract new patients this way, or just help us overall with

Zeke: our reputation management? Yeah. Thanks, Michael. Appreciate it having me join today. Um, well first let's, let's just define what reputation management really means.

So we, the way I look at reputation management, there's really two parts of it. There's first like managing your actual reputation or, you know, monitoring what people are saying about you on public forums like Google or Facebook or Yelp or health grades, whatever it might be. And then there's what I consider reputation or review solicitation, which is the act of like.

Getting more reviews or more feedback from patients on those same review side. So when you talk about reputation management, I look at as twofold monitoring and managing and learning and getting feedback, but also the proactive approach of making sure that your patients. Are frequently, you know, getting the opportunity to deliver reviews, whether that's via text message or email or QR code or whatever it might be.

So I like stating that first, because at the end of the day, like those are what, what swell does, and that's kind of how we felt practices grow on their digital footprint and build a reputation. but also giving them tools to help manage that along the way and get feedback and better improve the patient experience, et cetera.

So that's kind of my definition of, of, of reputation management. And then at the end of the day, like it really comes down to, and you know, you might've heard me say this on other podcasts or in speeches I've given, but like, Your practice is only as good as Google says it is. And so what I really mean by that is you could be either a startup, a brand new startup practice, you know, a fresh provider right out of school, or you could be a 15 year old veteran that's been serving thousands of patients for those years.

In reality, if Google says that you're a 4. 2 or a 3. 9 practice, or you have a 5. 0 score and very few reviews, You're really not that credible to the potential consumers or patients that find you online. And so when you really think about what reputation management means and why it helps practices grow and get new patients and you can build a business really around that, it really comes down to if you look good on Google, which is king of search engines, king of search in general, local search specifically, and we'll talk about local search in a minute, then you are more likely to stand out from your local competitor and you're more likely to win new patients.

And what does it take to do that? Well, in order to look good on Google, you really need to hit the three criteria. One, you want to establish a good review score. And so from our perspective, targeting a 4. 8 or above average review score puts you in kind of like the top percentile of, practices essentially.

So if you're getting compared to another practice down the street. Hopefully you have an overall better patient satisfaction score, aka Google review score to help you kind of, differentiate yourself a little bit from that local, competitor. The second is the number or quantity of reviews a practice has. good to have a good review score, but if you have a good review score in six reviews. You're just not that credible. It's like going to a sushi restaurant in San Francisco and you're trying to find one, you're looking on Yelp and one has a five star rating and eight reviews. And the other has a 4.

7 and 2000, one is much more credible than the other. And so that's another piece of reputation management that you want to think about score. Volume, because that's the social proof and then the last, which is actually probably the most important and you'll hear me preach about this a lot. It's really about around consistency.

How frequently or how recent was my last review or my last batch of reviews? And the reason why that's so important when you're trying to manage your reputation and grow kind of your digital footprint and dominate your local search rankings is that Google will heavily rank your practice based on a local search on proximity, keywords.

And recency of reviews. And so what you really want to make sure is you're not just getting a review or five reviews a month ago, but like, you know, every day or every couple of days, or even multiple times per day that you're seeing patients, you're getting the opportunity to get a review on Google. And again, that consistency or that recency of reviews.

Is going to heavily impact your local search ranking and as you know, uh, in any business, but particularly in the healthcare space, local search rankings is probably more important than your SEO will ever be more eyeballs. We'll see your Google, my business page, then we'll see your website. So ensuring that when someone searches for best dentist near me or a dentist.

Best pediatric dentist in my area or within a zip code or a specific city. We want to ensure that your search, your practice, your GMB page is showing up in the local map pack, which is basically the top three local search rankings. Again, heavily impacted by frequency. So if I were to recap this, it's You want a good score?

4. 8 or above is our recommendation. The average review score for Swell users is a 4. 98. So we're pretty proud of helping our practices get really good reviews. The second is volume. You want to make sure you have enough reviews to show credibility on that review score. And then the third is really about consistency.

Am I getting reviews on a regular basis? And the way to do that is by deploying services that allow you to get patients to leave reviews in the easiest manner possible, sending a text message after a visit. You know, in some cases, you might use QR codes, you might have them leave a review while they're in the practice.

There's pros and cons to some of these things, but the idea is that you want to have an offensive approach, or what I would consider a proactive approach, at soliciting feedback from your patients that is going to be driven to sites like Google, uh, where you can, you know, kind of dominate those local search rankings.

And at the end of the day, this really comes down to new patients. You know, when someone's searching again for a new provider, a new doctor, a new dentist, a new plastic surgeon, a new pediatric dentist, whatever it might be. We want to ensure that when they're making those search terms, your practices or practices using Swell or whatever it might be are showing up in those local search rankings.

So that's all about new patient flow more than anything else. And really, if you think about it, Michael, if you dumb it down to like the easiest form, we live in a consumer driven world, where if you're, if Michael's jumping on Amazon looking for products, he's looking for some new Nikes or something, the reality is you're going to heavily be persuaded based on what other buyers, their experience was, you're going to look at the reviews and ratings of the seller and the products, and that's what's going to help drive that purchase.

It's no different when choosing a healthcare provider. Gotcha,

Michael: man. That's a lot. So there's a lot. So a couple of questions I wanted to ask you, uh, when it comes to this, I know you mentioned, uh, the three things, right? And consistency is one of the last ones. To be implemented, or I mean, like you should always implement consistency.

What is consistent when it comes to this? Cause I feel like some people sometimes say, Hey, you just got to ask. You just got to ask them. That's it. And, um, then some people say that's not enough. Uh, you have to message them. And then some people go granular and say, well, you got to message them at this time, specific moment.

And right. So in your opinion,

Zeke: what do you, what do you think? Yeah, I think, I think asking them is great, but I think that's usually the least effective, to be honest with you, because what happens is, a lot of times the practice will rely on the team members to ask, and right away you're going to have a failure right there, where team members forget to ask, or they don't do it, or they don't implement it, because generally what happens is if you're not incentivizing a team member to get new reviews, then they're not going to do it.

Um, they're not as motivated as the practice owner is, obviously, to get those reviews, so they end up not doing it. So, if you can instill those in your standard operating procedures of, like, training on it and making sure every time a patient gets checked out, that they're being asked to leave a review, that's one thing.

I think it's great. I think it helps. But I definitely find it to be the least effective. what we tend to find the most effective is by telling them they're going to have the opportunity to leave a review and then at specific times per day, sending out requests both via text message and email in a branded personalized way that looks like the provider themselves sent the invite to ask for that feedback or ask for that review.

We find that to be the most effective way. One, patient knows they're going to get the opportunity to leave a review. Two, it's being sent directly to their device. So in one click, they can be, you know, pushed into Google or Facebook or health grades, you know, wherever the practice wants to get their reviews posted.

And three, the patient can do it on their own time. They're not kind of being forced to do it right there in the practice. They can kind of do it on their own device, which they're probably already logged in on. And it just makes that overall experience, in our opinion, based on data, a lot more effective.

So, uh, you know, we're big fans of asking, but we're definitely bigger fans of leveraging tools that already exist. Um, there's several, you know, software systems out there similar to Swell that allow you to request those based on certain types of procedure codes or appointment codes, whatever it might be to help, you know, ensure that every patient is having the opportunity to post a review on one of those public sites.

Michael: You mentioned specific times in the day. Do you recommend more than once a day? We send that like, Hey, we send an email later and then a text or.

Zeke: Yeah, that's a great question. So based on data that we've tracked for about the last seven years now. We found that actually sending these requests once a day or typically at the end of every business, like business day is the most effective. we used to think that sending them right after the appointment was the best time and it turns out that's actually the worst time based on conversion rates. And the reason for that is, if you think about it, Michael, if you were to go to your provider today, so you go to Dr. Ashley Hovis today, you get treated, you leave, and you know, you're probably getting treated sometime between 9 a.

m. and 5 p. m., right? And which means you're likely going back to work, back to school, picking up kids, doing something in the middle of the day, which is typically when the normal human is busiest. You know, those hours during the general working hours of, you know, eight to five is generally the busiest time per day for most folks.

And what me, what that means is if you're trying to get a review from them, whether it's a text message or an email, or even asking them, It's likely on the bottom of their priority list, right? But if you send it a request to them, let's call it around 7 p. m., 8 p. m. They're at home. They're already done with their busy day.

They're scrolling through Instagram or they're watching Bachelor in Paradise or whatever it might be. That's when people typically have the most downtime. And that's when we find the highest open rate of our text messages and the highest review rate. So we are big fans of actually sending these typically after standard working hours on the same day of the visit. that's based on data that we've tracked for the last seven years. and that goes against what we originally thought would be most effective, which is sending it 15 to 20 minutes after the appointment. Uh, we just found that that's when people are busy commuting or doing those things that we talked about before.

So yeah, big fans of sending them at a specific time per day, end of every business days, generally how we recommend it.

Michael: Okay. And then one thing I wanted to ask you is, I know you talked about the score, right? Having a 4. 8 review score end up is, is probably, you know what I mean? You see the great conversions with that.

How can someone, let's just say, Hey man, I got about a hundred and 200, but my, our reviews, I mean, we acquired another, it's, it's at two, it's at 2. 1 or two. You know what I mean? How can we start climbing back up? And in the right way, and maybe like they just got another new patient and then that patient just so happened to leave them a bad review and you know, their names in it now and they're like, ah, what can we do for, I guess, like the risk management here?

Zeke: Yeah, that's a great question. And honestly, if that's happening to a practice, so if anybody's listening and your practices, let's call it like below 4. 5 and honestly, maybe even 4. 7, but I'll use 4. 5 to be a little more conservative here. you have bigger problems. So the reality is, is the average review score of swell users were thousands of practices.

The average, the average review coming in is a 4. 98. Most patients like their provider. They have a good experience. If you have below a 4. 5 average, there is something fundamentally wrong within your practice. Whether you have a bad team member who's creating an unfortunate experience for the, for the patient, or you as a provider have some improvements that need to be made, you should be really looking at the feedback, this negative feedback that's getting posted online, and try to extract some trends on where you can improve the patient experience. it doesn't happen a lot, but we do see it by the way. And the reality is, is I would take that data. Those negative reviews are probably more valuable than the positive reviews because you're getting the opportunity to get feedback, to improve your operation. my general recommendation is.

Use that data, take it to heart, use that in your team meetings, find out what the challenges are, find out where the shortcomings are, find out where patients are having a bad experience and improve it immediately. that's my takeaway there. It's less about how do I just try to bury those reviews?

Cause there's tools again, that are going to solicit and help you drive those positive reviews from those happy patients, that's really what it comes down to is being proactive against it versus like reactive to your review solicitation. If you have bad reviews coming in, you have a bigger problem. You got to fix your problem first.

And, uh, if that's a trend, then you got to fix it. and just so you're aware, there's tools to help you find out what those trends are. So like, obviously, Swell, we do review management, but we also do NPS and private surveys. So that might be a strategy before you start blasting your patients with the opportunity to leave public reviews.

Capture private feedback before that. Try to find out what your general NPS score is. Try to find out what your patient satisfaction scores are in a private manner before you start, you know, pushing them to public review sites. Most practices have a really high review score. There are some that you're mentioning right now that have those challenges where they're far below, you know, 4.

5. And those are the practices that lose out on new patients every day. Cause they're going to choose the provider in their local market that has a significantly better reputation online.

Michael: Yeah. And I like that idea because I feel like, especially if you acquire new practice or, you know what I mean? You kind of like say, okay, let's, let's figure this out.

Well, what was the issues with the private, right? Like you said, I'm sending out the patient surveys and the NPS.

Zeke: Yeah. NPS. Yeah. Net promoter score, which is, you're not familiar with net promoter. And those listening who aren't net promoter score, everybody's probably received on their life. You're a flight Delta.

They send you like 10 of them after every flight. it's basically a survey. It's a one question survey that says on a zero to 10 scale, how likely are you recommend us to a friend or colleague? And that's kind of like the standard business question when it comes to patient satisfaction still being used by a majority of, you know, the fortune 500 companies.

still being used by a lot of dental practices that we work with. You see it primarily being used by DSOs on a regular basis because their private equity groups typically require it. But if, if you're not using anything right now to pulse your patients on a private standpoint, I have really recommend you do it just to find out what your baseline NPS score is.

Hmm. Swell does that, right? Yeah, we do.

Michael: Correct. Okay. Nice, man. Awesome. Zeke. I appreciate your time. And if anyone has further questions, you can definitely find them on the dental market or society Facebook group, or where can they reach out to you directly?

Zeke: to reach out to me directly.

You can email me as Zeke at swell CX dot com. I'm happy to fill those emails. swell CX dot com is our website. Well, season charlie X is an x ray dot com. and then obviously you can connect with me via Facebook or linked in some of the other social sites. Not super social on a lot of those, but I do my best to respond. trying to be better and, uh, at being more active on those social sites. But, uh, yeah, happy to engage with anybody who has any questions about whether it's public reputation or private feedback. I'm happy to be helpful in any way I can.

Michael: See, we appreciate your time and thank you for being with me on this Monday morning marketing episode.

Zeke: Absolutely. Thank you, Michael. Appreciate it.

Today I want to tell you about our sponsor for this episode,  Olsen  Dental  Chairs!

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Guest: Rhonda KalashoPractice Name: TruGlow Mordern DentalCheck out Rhonda's Media:

Practice Website: https://glomoderndental.com/

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dr.rhondakalasho/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dr.rhondakalasho

‍Other Mentions and Links:

‍

Tool/Resources:

• Pearl (AI software)
• TurboTax
• Google Ads
• HubSpot
• Trainual

Companies/Brands:

• BBC
• MSNBC
• Forbes
• ZocDoc
• Invisalign

Terms:

• HMO
• Medi-Cal
• ROI - Return on Investment
• EBITDA - Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization
• Wet Dentistry
• OL - Oral Leukoplakia
• AI - Artificial Intelligence
• SEO - Search Engine Optimization
• PPC Ads
• LLC - Limited Liability Company
• S Corporation
• C Corporation
• W-2
• Cavitron
• Piezo

Locations/Establishments:

• UCLA
• UCSD

‍

Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

‍

‍

What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• Dr. Kalasho's journey from graduate to successful entrepreneur owning multiple dental practices.
• Understanding contracts and the importance of developing sound business acumen.
• Insights into partnerships and dental practice acquisitions.
• Using dental insurance as a financial safeguard while maintaining quality care.
• Implementing AI in dental practices: from patient care to insurance dealings.
• The role of tax planning and smart investments in building wealth.

Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes!

[Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

‍

p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

‍

‍

In this episode of Monday Morning Marketing, we're stepping into a compelling discussion with Dr. Len Tau as he delves into the under-appreciated powers of reputation marketing. Exploring the crucial shift from reputation management to reputation marketing, Dr. Tau shares invaluable insights and techniques to help you grow your dental practice. Learn how to unleash the full value of five-star reviews, the importance of a solid reputation culture, and how to automate the review process for maximum impact. Discover the best response strategies to both cheers and jeers from patients, so you're prepared for anything. This episode is packed with actionable strategies you can immediately implement to transform your reputation game and see a noticeable increase in patient satisfaction!

‍

What you'll learn in this episode:

• The distinct differences between reputation management and reputation marketing and why you should transition to the latter.
• The importance of creating a reputation culture in your dental practice to spur five-star reviews.
• The best time and methods to encourage patients to leave feedback on review platforms, specifically Google.
• The role of automation in streamlining the review process, making it easy and convenient for patients to leave feedback.
• A guide to responding to reviews, both positive and negative, to maintain a strong online reputation.

Dive into today's episode and upgrade the way you handle your reputation strategy forever!

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You can reach out to Len Tau here:

Website: https://www.drlentau.com/

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrLenTau

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Mentions and Links:

Tools/Software:

• Yelp
• Birdeye
• Swell
• Podium
• Solutionreach
• Google My Business

Terms:

• NAP - Name, Address and Phone Number
• HIPAA - Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act

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If you want your questions answered on Monday Morning Marketing, ask me on these platforms:

My Newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/

The Dental Marketer Society Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2031814726927041

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Episode Transcript (Auto-Generated - Please Excuse Errors)

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Michael: Hey, Lynn. So talk to us about reputation management. How can we utilize this or what advice suggestions or methods can you give us that will actually help attract new patients through this form

Len: of management? So first off, thanks for having me. Number one, uh, number two, I will start off by saying, I am not a fan of the term reputation management.

Reputation management is in my opinion, an old marketing term. Where you are really worrying about negative reviews and hoping to find a way to get them off the first page of Google. I prefer a term called reputation marketing. So it's a way to generate five star reviews.

Whichever way you want to do it. Okay. And then market it to attract more new patients. So if you look at it that way, it's a much more current term. So if you're, if you're out there and you're looking for a company to use for, you know, website design, Google AdWords, and they say, we also do reputation management to me, they're not up in the, current.

You want to market your reputation. It's so important. And what does marketing your reputation allow you to do? It allows you to then do other types of marketing and the marketing is going to be so much more successful than it would have been if you didn't have the reviews behind you as kind of the foundational part of your, your Google by business page and stuff.

Michael: Okay. So then what can we be doing? What can we utilize or how can we utilize this to, to better effect? our marketing and attract new patients through that process.

Len: So in my opinion, the most important thing you have to do is find a way to get your patients to write reviews. And there's a very big difference between a company who says they generate reviews and a company who just sends a link to write a review.

Okay, there are many companies out there that you can use, and there's a lot of communication companies that fall into this, this sector that literally, they say they do reputation, but literally, literally, they're just sending a link to the patient to do a review. In that case, the patient has to do all the work.

Okay, all the work, they have to log in. They have to remember their password. They have to write everything down. They have to hit post and everything else. It's multiple steps. And that's why those products are not successful. In order to be super successful out there to get these reviews, put where you want them.

And you only really want them in two or three places, depending on your geography. Google always. Facebook and then Yelp, depending on where you are. So if you're in California, New York, Chicago, Miami, Seattle, Dallas, any large city like that, Yelp is going to have more clout than if you're in, you know, a town with 12 dentists.

I mean, Yelp is not going to be as important there. So you're really looking to get reviews on Google and Facebook. And why? Because everybody uses Google to find a local business. They're going to do dentists near me, dentists in my town, dentists in my zip code. And when someone's searching for a dentist or you, in fact, your Facebook page shows up on the first page of Google.

So you want to put these reviews where actually your current patients are looking for you, which is on a Google search. That's how you, you take reputation marketing to the nth degree by just finding a system out there. That automatically will get the reviews, allow the patient to auto log into their, account, and within a couple of seconds, they've got a text message and they can put the review directly on your Google My Business page.

That's how to take it to the nth degree, as I like to say.

Michael: Gotcha. So then it's kind of like a little bit of a battle when it comes to like the metropolitan areas, when it, like Houston, LA, stuff like that. Would you recommend, hey guys, Yelp, Google, and that like that, or just focus only on Google?

Len: No, in those specific cities like LA, San Francisco, you said Houston, Miami, you know, Chicago, it's, it's Google number one by far.

You always have to dominate Google. There's, there's no choice out there. Your focus should be on Google. Okay. And then in those specific cities that we just mentioned, Yelp is important. Okay. Now remember someone doesn't go to Yelp and I've interviewed many, uh, local people in these towns you mentioned, and I asked them, how do they find their dentists?

They don't go to Yelp to look for a dentist. They go to Google to look for a dentist. They find information about their dentist, and then they look them up on Yelp to see how their reviews are. So in those bigger cities, Yelp is more important for that reason, but people go to Yelp to look for restaurants.

They don't go to Yelp to look for a dentist. There's a big difference there in the way people search. If people in California say Yelp is really important, it is. But if you don't dominate Google, people can't even find out who you are. So it's always Google first, then Yelp in those specific cities, and then much below that is Facebook.

the only reason you really want to get Facebook reviews is because it shows up on a Google search. When you type a practice name in, you'll see the website's number one, and then usually Facebook is number two or three. It's visibility there. That's why you want to get Facebook reviews.

Michael: Gotcha. Okay.

So then that's the key. We get on Google, right? Number one, right? Especially if we're in metropolitan areas, we would Google then Yelp, right? And then Facebook. Now what? What's the next step to be like, all right, man, I want to start getting these a couple a day, a couple, maybe 15, 20 a week. You know what I mean?

Like, cause we see that in some of these groups. And how, how easy is that

Len: really? Reviews are basically a numbers game. So the bigger the practice, the more reviews you're going to get. I mean, that's just, it's just a numbers game. The more review requests you sent out, there's a certain percentage we expect to come back.

The more you send out, the more you're going to get. So bigger practices should expect more reviews. Okay. But you have to use an automated service. And don't love self promoting myself. So bird eyes, one of them, you know, swell is a very common one. Podium is another one. Those are the three in the dental industry specifically that are designed to make the process easy for your patients.

If it isn't easy, your patients will not take the time to do the review. And a lot of the services out there, they actually have their Own sites they go to. So just as an example, uh, solution reaches the popular communication software. I just had a dentist reach out to me who had 750 reviews on solution reaches page buried where you couldn't find it.

And only 18 on Google. that's a shame that they didn't, they got all these great reviews, but nobody sees them. You have to make sure they're actually putting it on Google. That is such a big deal nowadays. If it's not going to Google, it doesn't help you.

Michael: Gotcha. Okay. Yeah. I remember when we used to have solution reach, that was a.

That was a big thing. It just populated there. And then we were like, okay, what happened? Right? And then it's weird asking the patient. Hey, can you write it again on Google? Right? And then that diminishes it big time, big time. Patients are

Len: not going to do it twice. It's it's a, it has to be a one step clean process, but I know, and I know you're talking about, we're talking about reputation, but I want to make one other thing clear, especially to the startup groups.

One of the missing factors is just generating reviews is not enough. Okay, just having the most reviews is not enough, especially as a newer business, you have to, you have to make sure that Google recognizes and understands your listings and make sure the listing it's called listing management, citation claiming, it's a vital part of local search, because if you only have a ton of reviews and you're listing.

These are not consistent or invisible because you're a new startup. Google is, you're not going to be at the maps. And that's why people say, well, I have a thousand reviews. Why can't people find me? And it's usually because your listings are messed up. So that's a very big part for, especially for startup companies, to know that you have to make sure the name, the address, and phone number is called the NAP is consistent.

It's an online huge part of local search. Okay, so

Michael: that has to be consistent. Google finds you then the reviews come in

Len: Yeah, so the purpose the the kind of way it works is when you make your listings consistent Which should be done before you even open your doors technically So if you once you fix the listings and you have a consistent flow of reviews coming in Consistent flow for google is one to two every single week so if you're getting less than 8 to 10 or 8 to 12 a month, you're not getting enough of them, but that factor 12, plus a consistent listing, you will rank higher on the maps than someone who's not doing it that same way we see it all the time.

Michael: Okay, so then give us the game plan. Now it's we got the automation down, right? Okay, let's just say we signed up with BirdEye. We're starting to send out the links and that's it. Or do we specifically write something and then, or how does this go?

Len: So, so the ideal way to use a product like BirdEye is automate the process.

So we integrate into practice management software. You automate the review requests sending out. Okay. Now. It's really important. People say to me, well, I don't want to automate it because patients may write bad reviews. So if there's a filter built into the system, that's really good. It's not gating.

Gating is illegal and you can't do it, which would be like thumbs up or thumbs down. So, you can't do that. You can't preempt the question like that. But if you give them a feedback button, that's even better. Where they can provide direct feedback to the practice. But you definitely want to integrate and you want to automate.

And then mention to the patients when they leave the office. That they may be getting a communication asking for what I refer to as feedback, not a review, asking for feedback about their experience, and then the patients know they're going to get something. There's a higher conversion when you say something, and then we take it from there and allow the patients to write the review when it goes directly to Google from their phone.

So that's the secret sauce is really, you know, having a discussion and being aware. Of what I call rep, you know, making a reputation culture in the office. If the office revolves around reputation, which basically means that you're being. examined or being, you have, you're being, having a report card written about their experiences and just making sure everybody's on their best a game.

That's how you work the system and get really great reviews written by the patients other than just asking them. You can ask your patients till the cows come home to write a review on Google. You're lucky if two to three do it of every hundred. Because it's just, there's too many steps involved. So you want to make sure you make it easy for the patients to do it using a system that allows an auto login feature.

And it's a simple process. It isn't simple, they won't do it. Like I mentioned that before. Yeah,

Michael: that's true. That's true. I love that though, how you mentioned, uh, give us your feedback. Right, it's different.

Len: Asking for feedback. Very different. Instead of a review. And it's much more comfortable. You know, it's much more comfortable for someone in the office to discuss it with a patient rather than saying, Can you write us a Google review?

That to me sounds like you're begging for it almost versus can you provide some feedback about your experience? We really appreciate it. It's just an easier conversation to have in his work. I've been doing this for, you know, since 2010 now, and it's just an easy way to have a conversation with the patient.

That's why we put it in those those words.

Michael: Yeah. And then you let them know, like you're going to get a text message or something like in about an hour or like right now or when you leave the office or.

Len: So you can certainly do it an hour after their appointment. Okay. The problem, what we found and look, I've been in this space since 2013 in the review space specifically, and I've worked with over 10, 000 dental practices.

And the data shows that when you send the review request an hour after the appointment, it opens up more negative reviews coming in versus waiting until the end of the day. Okay. They all go out at once. Patients who do have a problem won't have a problem usually five, six, seven hours later, so they vent back to the practice.

They don't go online directly to Google. So, I prefer them going out at the end of the day rather than right after the appointment because it also gives the practice some time to say, well, so and so didn't have a good experience, and they can turn the patient off if they have any concern that the patient may go and write a bad review.

Most patients go directly to Google on their own. They don't go to use a service to do that. They will leave the office, they'll be pissed off, and they'll go to Google to write their bad review almost immediately after the appointment. If you wait till the end of the day, it 100 percent changes the results, and that's through years of doing this with, with thousands of offices, like I said.

Michael: Okay. So I didn't know that. Would it also help at the end of the day? Like people are at home, relax. Oh yeah. I got to make a review kind of thing

Len: versus being during the day they're running around there. If they're working, they're going from your office to back to their job. Then they have to deal with their kids.

The kid throws up, you know, they, they don't have time at the end of the day, between usually six or eight o'clock, we see the best results during that timeframe by far and away, not even close to other times during the day. Gotcha.

Michael: Okay. So let's just say they left the review. Awesome. Beautiful. We leave it at that or what happens after that?

Len: When you say when the patient has written the review?

Michael: Yeah. Like they, they're like, okay, yeah. Provide us some feedback. Boom. End of the day, link gets sent. The next morning you wake up, you're like, Oh, they left a review. Cool. Awesome. You know what I mean? And then after that, do we write back on that review?

Like, thanks or nothing.

Len: So I am a big fan of responding to positive reviews. I'm not a big fan of responding to negative reviews. Negative reviews, I like to take it offline and contact the patient to some extent, you know, whether it's on the phone, whether it's via email, not, you don't want to respond to that review right away.

Okay, the reason that you would respond to a negative review online is because you're really responding to the people that are reading it, not to the person who wrote the review. I like to take the conversation offline and have a direct conversation with them. Okay, for positives, you have no, you don't risk anything, you can respond, look technically when you respond to a review, whether it's positive or negative, you really can acknowledge that there are patients, it's a technical HIPAA violation if you do that.

Now, if you do it to someone who wrote a positive review, I don't think they're going to make a big deal about it. Okay, if you do it to a person who wrote a negative review, they may find that as a HIPAA concern, and they may report you to what's called the Office of Civil Rights. So I, I don't recommend, I recommend responding to, to positives.

I would be very careful about negatives for that reason.

Michael: Gotcha, okay. So the positives, we can just say like, Oh, we love you, thank you so much, or something like that, right?

Len: Yeah, thanks for your, thanks for your feedback. We're so glad you, you know, love, love being our patient. Technically, that's a HIPAA violation.

Okay, because you said we love being our patient by the letter of the law you're violating HIPAA by acknowledgements. Okay, but I do not believe you'll ever see a patient that reports you because they just wrote a positive review about you. If you do the same thing to a negative review.

Okay. The patient may say to that, well, they just violated my HIPAA rights and they may decide to report you. It's rare. I've seen it just trying to be very frank with you here. That conversation or that review, the positive one is violation of HIPAA, but I don't think you'll ever see a problem with it.

Michael: No.

Yeah. That saves your butts, man. I appreciate that. So awesome. Any final words or advice or suggestions that you want to give to our listeners

Len: about this? Just reputation has to be something you focus on. It's a foundational part of running your practice. When you open your doors as a startup, you want to make sure you have a consistent presence.

You want to want to also want to make sure you have more than just a couple of reviews because then it looks like you're new. Okay. So, but don't be afraid to ask. Use a service that makes it easy on your patients. Don't expect to be able to do it naturally on your own because your focus is doing more as different things in the practice when you're, when you're a new practice.

So the main thing is just find a way to get your patients the right reviews. It will pay off in the long run, especially because it will then allow you to spend money on marketing and get results in the marketing because of that, without the reviews, you're going to struggle with your marketing in most cases, in most areas.

Michael: Awesome, man. I appreciate you, Len, and I appreciate your time, and if anyone has further questions, you can definitely find them on the Dental Marketer Society Facebook group, or where can they reach out to

Len: you directly? So lots of ways. I'm always on social, so my social media is very easy, Facebook, Instagram.

You can, um, I'll give you my email address and you can email me, um, but it's Len, L E N at DrLentow. com, D R L E N TAU. com. And, um, I also have my own Facebook group, so they can join the Facebook group and contact me through that. I'm very easily got ahold of. So just find, you'll find a way if you want me, you'll get ahold of me.

Michael: Nice. Awesome. So guys, that's all going to be in the show notes below. So Lynn, thank you so much for being with me on this Monday morning marketing

Len: episode. Thanks very much for having Michael. Appreciate it.

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Guest: Michelle JorgensenPractice Name: Total Care Dental and WellnessCheck out Michelle's Media:

Practice Website: https://www.totalcaredental.com/

Living Well with Dr. Michelle Website: https://livingwellwithdrmichelle.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livingwellwithdrmichelle/

‍Other Mentions and Links:

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Tools/Resources:

• IAOMT - The International Academy of Oral Medicine and Toxicology

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Companies/Brands:

• UPS
• Delta Dental
• MetLife
• NuCalm

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Terms:

• IVF - In Vitro Fertilization
• Chlorella

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Host: Michael Arias‍Website: The Dental Marketer

Join my newsletter: https://thedentalmarketer.lpages.co/newsletter/‍

Join this podcast's Facebook Group: The Dental Marketer Society

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What You'll Learn in This Episode:

• The real reason behind Dr. Jorgensen's transition from associate dentist to leading her own practice.
• How she navigated her mysterious health issues and the valuable lessons she learned along the way.
• The impact of her health journey on her approach to dentistry, in particular safe procedures for mercury filling removal.
• How unexpected challenges fueled her decision to shift to a fee-for-service model, and why this could be a game-changer for patient care.
• The power of joining trend topics in mommy groups on Facebook as a marketing strategy and how to optimize the promotion of your practice.

Please don't forget to share with us on Instagram when you are listening to the podcast AND if you are really wanting to show us love, then please leave a 5 star review on iTunes!

[Click here to leave a review on iTunes]

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p.s. Some links are affiliate links, which means that if you choose to make a purchase, I will earn a commission. This commission comes at no additional cost to you. Please understand that we have experience with these products/ company, and I recommend them because they are helpful and useful, not because of the small commissions we make if you decide to buy something. Please do not spend any money unless you feel you need them or that they will help you with your goals.

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