Part of the ADA’s “Dentistry 101” series is an article entitled, “Why Be A Dentist?”
You almost certainly know all the reasons that the ADA covered. The odds are that your reason or reasons are in that list.
You might have wanted to be a respected member of the community; to be able to maintain a flexible lifestyle; and/or to earn a good salary.
Based on those three criteria, how are things working out for you?
If you’re like the vast majority of dentists these days, the promise has not lived up to the reality. Dentists are typically viewed as interchangeable; they perform a valuable service, but one is largely as good as another. Respect is intermittent at best.
Dentists everywhere reported being swamped with low-value patients. So swamped, in fact, that the idea of time away from the practice is a non-starter.
But those dentists, while well-paid, aren’t seeing much movement in terms of average case value, meaning that they’re having to work very hard for their money.
Maybe that’s you, maybe it’s not. Still, how are you feeling about your profession these days?
Let’s Rethink This
The key to making dentistry everything it’s supposed to be is to increase your average case value. That’s a bold statement, but here’s why it’s true.
The best way time away from your practice is to not have to pack your schedule every day, week after week. Higher case value allows you to make as much or more as you’re making now… while working less.
Higher case value also means you’re likely to get many more of the cases that you love doing, whether that’s cosmetic dentistry, implants, clear orthodontics, or anything else.
Elective procedures are almost always fee for service, meaning that you don’t have to accept what an insurance company thinks your time and skills are worth.
That’s not to say that you won’t do routine exams and drill-and-fills, just not nearly as many of them. And when you’re not doing those routine procedures, you’ll be having a lot more fun and feel more professionally fulfilled.
You can also plan to attend your child’s school recital, play some golf, or maybe even take a vacation.
All this while you make as much money or more.
Yes, They’re Out There
Unless you work in a severely disadvantaged market, at least 20 percent of your prospects have the ability and willingness to pay more for the right dentist. The odds are good that actual number is closer to 30 percent. Replace 30 percent of your current low-value patient base with better patients, and watch your numbers soar.
Low-price marketing won’t get you the fee-for-service patients you need to grow your practice your way. The low price approach is based on a misunderstanding of what motivates the better prospect segment. They don’t care about saving a few dollars, or even a hundred. They want what they want, and they’re willing to pay for it.
SmartBox specializes in helping dentists grow their practices on their terms while practicing the dentistry they want.
It costs you some time to discover what SmartBox can do for your practice – about as much time as you need to place a single crown or an implant.
Get started by scheduling a Roadmap call. The call is a deep dive into your goals, the competitive forces in your market, and how you’ll reach those goals.
Following the call, we’ll send your completely personalized Roadmap to your success.
You know why you started practicing dentistry. If the reality isn’t living up to the promise, it’s time to rethink the how. Give SmartBox a call.