My Marketing Worked! Now What?

By Carrie Webber, Chief Communications Officer, Jameson

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

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

1. Have an effective New Patient Experience in place. The New Patient Experience is multifold. It involves several systems in your practice: excellent telephone technique, gathering of necessary data, scheduling the new patient appointment, executing a good new patient appointment, and a successful case presentation, to name a few. This may take hours of time, practice and preparation on the part of you and your team members. But, remember, all of this work will protect the investment you have made in your marketing. Otherwise, you risk losing your investment the moment you answer the telephone.
2. Get your schedule in order. Make sure you have a schedule that is organized and ready to take on new patients in an expedient manner. If you are offering a special on whitening, for example, make sure you have places blocked off in your schedule to hold those appointments. If a prospective patient calls in and you can’t see them for three months, chances are it doesn’t matter what you’re offering, they will look elsewhere for someone that can see them in a more convenient fashion.
3. Put an efficient follow-up system in place. In the introductory calls, make sure you gather the prospective new patient’s contact information. This way you can follow- up on a regular basis through marketing and you can also place these people on a call list when you have cancellations.

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

If you are investing in a marketing campaign of any level, my hope for you is that you are investing the time, resources and energy necessary to make sure everything in your practice is reflecting the message you are putting out into your community. Here’s to successful marketing – and ultimately – successful case acceptance!