Identifying Your Competitive Advantage

Recently during a study club presentation, I asked the participants to identify their competitive advantage. More than half responded that their customer service was their competitive advantage. The term “competitive advantage” implies that you are doing something that sets you apart from your peers. If over half of the offices in your area are doing that same thing, does anyone have a competitive advantage? As you work to identify or create a competitive advantage, be specific in identifying what you do that makes you unique. Your customer service may in deed be your competitive advantage but if it is, what exactly are you doing that is unique? What about your customer service sets you apart?

Keeping Your Eye on the Ball

In baseball, all of the action is determined by the ball. The winner is determined by who can control the ball best, whether it is the pitcher, the batter, the runners or fielders. The team that controlls the ball wins the game. Keeping track of the ball is essential.

Today as I listened to two of my friends relate the story of how their trusted office manager had be caught embezzling from the office, I was reminded once again of the importance of have sound accounting practices with checks and balances in place. Many times dentists forget that in spite of being health care providers, they are executives of a small businesses which for most of us provide the means of supporting our families and the families of our dental team. Our inability to manage our businesses will ultimately limit our ability to provide quality dental care. When we take our eyes off the ball, we open ourselves and practices to those who would take advantage of our lack of attention.

My Story

I was recently asked how I got my start helping others as a dental practice consultant. It gave me an opportunity to reflect upon my own career as a dentist and my transformation to a dental management consultant. I was reminded how important it is to have the right start and a path outlined early on for a successful dental practice. I think it's especially the case for dentists today, because many are facing tough challenges in this economy.
While I had been interested in consulting for many years, the transformation really took shape about six years ago as I was beginning my quest for an MBA degree. Several years before that, I began to use a dental lab about three away from my office even though there was a dental lab across the street. My desire to provide the top quality dentistry had lead me to this particular lab who consistently delivered superior dental restorations with an outstanding support team.
Around the time that I began my MBA program I had a conversation with the customer service representative from the lab. He had commented many times about the efficiency and productivity of our dental team. So when I told him of my decision to pursue an MBA, he said that once I finished my degree, he would like to introduce me to some of their customers who may be interested in improving their practices. He noted that while dentistry is a technically oriented career, that many dentists are intend on expanding their technical skills at the expense of building their executive skills.
So as I concluded my MBA degree, as promised my customer service friend introduced me to some the lab’s customers. And so my career as a dental consultant began. Over the last few years I have been excited as I have watch my clients incorporate some of the sound business practices that I used and learned about in business school into their practices. I have seen skillful dental practitioners become skillful dental executives and create for themselves personal, professional and financial fulfillment.
I'm looking forward to helping more dental practices and their teams... especially during this time when dentists have to adapt with the times and create strategies to help them succeed in a challenging economy. So whether you are struggling with the challenges of building a productive dental team, creating a competitive advantage or recognizable brand, improving your leadership skills or getting the overhead monster under control, I can help. We can analyze your situation together and create a plan to improve it. Trust me there is a dental executive in all of us.

Principles and Boundaries

A year ago we bought a new puppy, Scooter. He has grown into a handsome young dog. Unfortunately he became quite a hand full. While he was loving and affectionate, he was not very disciplined and often tried our patience. He seemed kind of like “an out of control teenager.” I had considered purchasing a shock collar and finally did so after our house sitter had to spend 45 minutes catching him one weekend. Once I acquiesced, bought the collar and spent a weekend working with him, I was amazed at the speed in which he learned. Over the past six weeks I have had to shock him only a handful of times. He has become a great dog. He plays when we want to play but when he needs to obey he does so willingly. Consequently he has more freedom now than he ever had before. Walks no longer involve a leash; when visitors come, he is welcome to be part of the visit; he can run freely at the park. The secret is that now he understands the principles of behavior that are acceptable and where the boundaries are.

May times I was complimented on the productivity and attitude of my staff. Patients and vendors were amazed at their level of activity and cohesiveness. They made dentistry fun. As I have analyzed Scooter’s transformation, I realize that the same principles apply to staff development; a successful dental team understands their doctor’s business principles and boundaries. Often as a dental practice management consultant, I am asked how to create a successful dental team. My answer would be teach principles and create clear boundaries. Just as it took several sessions of consistent work with Scooter to teach him boundaries, it takes consistent reinforcing of boundaries and principles with the staff. Obviously the first step is that dentist as practice executives need to have a clear picture in their own minds as to what those principle and boundaries are. Staffs many times complain about unclear expectations and boundaries. Without knowing exactly what you expect they are unable to deliver. Just like Scooter, inherently they want to please, they just need direction.

Retention

One of the key elements of a successful practice is the ability to turn new patients into "returning patients." Just as a saving account grows exponentially with time due to compound interest, a practice grows exponentially as patients return year after years as patients return and refer their family and friends to the practice. The cost of maintaining a patient is minor compared with those associated with getting a new patient, but unfortunately is seems that most dental practices pay more attention to prospecting than to maintaining. This is short sighted indeed.

A worth while project for a staff meeting would be to review the list of new patients from the previous mouth and evaluate the services that you provided for each of them to determine if you have done everything that you possibly could have to insure that all of those new patients will be returning to your office in six months. This exercise could have some interesting results. If your find that most have not completed the recommended dental work, you might want to look at your case presentation and office procedures. If your are doing a good job of selling necessary work, perhaps your billing procedures are deterring patients from completing work or perhaps you your credit policies are too stringent. An other possibility could be that your communication lines between the front and back office are so muddled that you are not instilling confidence in the patients. If the work was completed, has the billing been handled properly? Was the patient preappointed for their next hygiene appointment? Were post operative concerns resolved satisfactorially?

By completing the above procedure for several months, you will be able to increases the percentage of those new patients who return again year after year. One of the real pleasure of a dental practice is the having the opportunity of seeing patients year after year as the are converted from "new patients' into "returning patients' and ultimately into "friends."

The Doctor's Brush Picks

Every once in a while I run across a product that makes me wonder, "Why didn't I think of that?" I was visiting a friend recently and she shared one of her "toothpicks" with me. Wow what a great little tool. I loved the ease at which I could clean the interproximal root surfaces. I am sure everyone has patients who would benefit from an interproximal brush but we all know what a hassle they can be to use. Before recommending a interproximal brush I always have to make sure the space is adequately large for the brush. These nifty little brushes are small enough for most spaces and do a great job of cleaning. They are available on line or in the dental section of larger grocery stores. If you haven't tried them, you really should give them a try.

The New Beginning

This week our nation celebrated a historic event as Barak Obama was sworn is as our first black president. I view the inauguration activities with renewed interest and pride. While I may not agree with many of President Obama's political views, I personally have felt a sense of patriotism as we have witnessed his rise to the achieved the highest political office in our nation. For many President's Obama symbolizes a new beginning. To some degree perhaps they are right in that many barriers have been broken. No longer will the high political office be seen as unattainable by certain groups within our country. Not only do I wish him well because the stakes are so high and the costs so enormous if he fails but because in him we should all have a sense of hope in the possibilities for each of us as we work to face our individual challenges.

I always look forward to the beginning of a new year because it offers an opportunity to evaluate where I am, where I am going and how well I am doing on the journey. If you haven't done so already, I would encourage you to have a close look at your practice. How well are you doing? Do the numbers look good? It isn't too late to set some goals for 2009. Monitor your numbers and see what a difference a little extra attention can make on your productivity for the year. We are all monitoring President Obama's numbers to evaluate his competency as our nation's leader, should we do no less for our own practices.