40 Ideas In 40 Days…#11-17

Hola...Bueno Cinco de Mayo! Don't worry, that's about all
the Spanish I know. Don't even know if that was accurate.
But you get the point.

Let's jump back into "40 Ideas In 40 Days". I'm giving you
SEVEN ideas today. Ideas #1-5 were powerful general principles,
while the most recent #6-10 should've gotten you to think about
examining your practice, and looking for things that you want
to add (or maybe take away) to make it better.

Here I'm going to focus on bulletproof VERBAL SKILLS, and how you can use them to communicate more effectively with your patients. Apply these strategies immediately and enjoy the benefits!

Idea #11 (Apr 29) - "I can help you!" This is the way I prefer my team (or myself!) to end our greeting when answering the phone. It's best said emphasizing the "I", as if someone walked into the room and asked, "Who can help me?" Then you say, "I can help you!" We've actually gotten referrals from patients who referenced
our greeting.

This variation on "How can I help you?" may seem minor, but it
has major effects. You turn a question into a statement, and
then exude confidence by proclaiming that you can help the caller
without even knowing the question or request. Also, it's unique,
upbeat, and always gets a great response from patients. They
enjoy and appreciate the fact that we KNOW we can help.

What if you can't help? Well, you ALWAYS can. Even if you don't
know an answer or don't provide a requested service, you can still
find someone that does, or make an appropriate referral. In either
case you still helped the caller, and they'll thank you for it.

Idea #12 (Apr 30) - "Please tell me about your dental health." I've found this simple request to be THE best way for me or my team to open the dental conversation with a new patient. As you can tell it's a wide open statement, and it allows them to go in whichever direction they want. Emergency...cosmetic goals...bad past experience...whatever...they'll start with what's most important to them.

I've found this approach to be much more effective than the
"inquisition" of 20 or more questions about every dental topic
under the sun. You'll let the patient "drive" the conversation
instead of moving through a canned list of questions. Very
comfortable for even a nervous patient.

By discovering what's most important to your patients right off the bat, you immediately make the conversation ALL ABOUT THEM. It also gets them talking, while "yes/no" questions don't.

Idea #13 (May 1) - "What else? What else? What else?" This is
our follow up to "Tell me about your dental health". And it's a
CRITICAL piece of the puzzle. All too often we cut off the
conversation with a patient just before they are about to reveal
something big. "What else" prevents that...as long as you keep
asking it!

That's the key. Do NOT quit asking "What else" until the patient
is completely finished. Over and over and over, until they
literally run out of stuff to talk about. Then you'll have
your problem list pretty much made up for you by the patient.

Sure, there will be things they don't bring up that are important. But at least you made a concerted effort to hear EVERYTHING that the patient wanted to share.

Idea #14 (May 2) - DON'T SAY: "Are you having any problems?"
This must be the absolute WORST question in dentistry. Yeah,
I know...we were all taught to ask it...it seems like a good
question...it shows our concern...blah blah blah.

But also consider the fact that many patients don't THINK they
have any problems. So they say "No" when asked. Then what do
you, the doctor, do? Of course, you look in there and find a
whole mouthful of problems! Now you've got a conflict.

The patients just said no problems, but you see problems, and
you've got to prove that the patient is WRONG. Not good. If
you want to avoid this pitfall, you can't ask a question that
can potentially make patients wrong. So what do you ask?

Idea #15 (May 3) - DO SAY: "Have you noticed any changes?" This
is a flat out, KICK BUTT question that I developed after several
years of frustration with the previous question. I was trying to
figure out a way to learn the patient's perspective without
having to challenge what they just said. This fits the bill
beautifully.

By asking if they NOTICED any changes (since their last visit to us or any other dentist), you get them off the hook for not NOTICING any changes that likely took place. This solidifies our purpose as "the dentist" to find things they DIDN'T notice. Also, it doesn't make the patient wrong when we find something they had
no idea about.

Patients get much less defensive about their problem list when
we approach it in this manner. No more headbutting stubborn
patients who think eveything's OK. They now realize that many
problems are undetectable to them, and they take ownership of
their problems much more easily!

Idea #16 (May 4): DON'T SAY: "What we normally do is..." PLEASE
never say that again. There aren't many phrases that are less
personal than that one. It puts all your patients into a "box"
together, and does nothing to make them feel special, or to
recognize the uniqueness of their situation.

This phrase it at it's worst when the patient requests something
that's outside of your normal protocols...even just a bit. My
advice is to GIVE a little, and be flexible. Even if the patient's
situation calls for your exact "usual" protocols, you must avoid
making it sound as if the patient is "no one special".

Idea #17 (May 5): DO SAY: "For YOUR situation the BEST thing we
should do is..." (can be varied, but don't lose individuality!)
This is the antidote to the previous phrase. It focuses only on
the patient, and let's them know (or believe) that we are
considering their case individually, as if our only patient. We
do that anyway, so why not solidify that fact with our words?

Instead of your patients feeling like you are trying to fit them
into your systems, they'll see that you are fitting your systems
around them. The difference in perception is HUGE!

Again, situations that call for no deviation in normal systems
should still be addressed that way. Patients don't care about
"what we normally do"...they want only what's best for them. So
there's no need to do anything but present the best solutions
for them and them alone. You'll find less resistance to your
recommendations in a number of patients, just by altering the
way you present them.

OK...that'll wrap it up for this time. Remember that these ideas are just a small sample of what my Dental Insiders Alliance members receive on a monthly basis. Of course my regular members receive much more in depth information, but this should give you a taste of my style if you're not a member.

Plus, I'm not finished yet. We're only on #17, and we've got 23
to go! So be on the lookout for my next "40 Ideas In 40 Days"
message, to be sent at the end of this week. Adios amigo!

All my best,
Chris

Dr. Chris Bowman
Dental Insiders Alliance
No membership fees for 2 months at:
www.DentalInsiders.com/testdrive