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Exceptional Customer Service Jeffrey Behan

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by Jeffrey Behan

The consumer market has changed drastically, and prospective patients are finding you in different ways than they used to. Some of the very things that helped you build your practice prior to the consumerization of orthodontics now work against your ability to deliver great service. By modifying your techniques for delivering customer service: like your morning huddle, the new patient consultation and your patient interactions you can continue to have effective customer service.

As a result of the growing use of Internet search engines like Google, more and more people are finding you without the benefit of a referral. This means referrals are down for many practices and people "shop around" before choosing a doctor. To succeed with the self-referred patient, "the shopper," it is critical for you to recognize the difference between a referred and self-referred patient so that you can adjust your approach accordingly.

The shopper believes that you are just one of the many options available for treatment, while a referral arrives at your door seeking treatment. The shopper has no position on whether you're the right choice, while the referrals have been told you're a good choice by someone they know and trust. Shoppers are actually more likely to make decisions based on emotion and aspiration. If you can tap into how improving their smile will change their life, you've got them. Referrals are more likely to make decisions based on treatment approach (for example, extraction versus non-extraction) and on price. Shoppers need to be convinced that orthodontic treatment will change their life while referrals only need to believe you're the better choice among orthodontic and cosmetic dental options. Shoppers want what they want, and they want it now. If you're one of the practices blessed enough to be booked out several weeks for a new patient consult, watch out. The shopper will schedule, but there's a good chance he won't show up. It's not, as you might expect, that he was never a good prospect. It's that he moved on and did something else; he was after all only casual about the idea to begin with. If you could have seen him right away, there's a much better chance he would have chosen to start. Referrals, on the other hand, are willing to wait if you've been highly recommended.

All these reasons are why the first question you ask on the phone (after you've asked their name and contact info) is, "What prompted you to call today?" so you can qualify if the person was referred or found you on the Web. With this information you can treat accordingly.

The key to delivering customer service lies in building strong relationships. Under the referral model, where most of your patients came to you as the result of a referral, it is possible to simply do a good job, make a good presentation and win. Not so in trying to build relationships with people who only see orthodontic treatment as one of many options. To get them to go into treatment with you – and to become a valuable source of referrals for you in the future – you have to make relationships your goal. Clinical excellence is expected, but relationships are what moms talk about when the subject of orthodontics comes up. To win this kind of relationship you have to shift from making presentations to a more interactive approach. You need to understand what is important to them and then solve these issues. Listen for key phrases like, "I need…," "I want…," "I'd like…" When you hear phrases in the new patient consult that include these key words, pay attention. Acknowledge what they say and then satisfy their felt needs. If you're just presenting and educating, it's likely you'll miss the opportunity to make the right connection. Your dental IQ isn't what impresses them. They expect that. It's your chairside manner that makes or breaks the deal.

The key to developing a lasting relationship is in forming common ground. Think about a social interaction and then apply a similar dynamic to your new patient interactions. If you and I were to meet at a party, we would probably start by exchanging names and the second questions asked would almost certainly have to do with what we do for a living, hobbies, travel, etc. All these things enable us to potentially form common ground. If it exists, the relationship develops. If you don't find common ground, the relationship doesn't develop. Also, using a person's name is magic. Forgetting it is deadly. The bottom line is people want to be understood and accepted, appreciated and acknowledged. This is particularly true in the orthodontic practice where your primary customers are women between the ages of 25 and 54 years of age.

Listening is also an important critical skill. Intentionally getting patients to open up might seem like small talk but value the information they give about their jobs, their families, their hobbies and interests. Are they ever in the public eye? Are they in sales? Do they interact with people face-to-face every day? These are all fruitful areas for discussion and will enable you to uncover their motivations for seeking information about treatment. Then be sure to connect the dots between what they tell you and what orthodontic treatment can do to satisfy their felt needs.

One way to check how you're doing is to observe a typical consult in your practice. Do you spend 80 percent of the time talking or 80 percent of the time listening? Let the listening side win and you'll see your conversions are more beneficial to your relationships. It's like "building your relationship trust bank." They expect you to be credible and to provide excellent care and results, but if the consult ends and they feel you've heard them, acknowledged what they've said and responded well, it will be very hard for them to say no to you.

There are five principles that can help you transform your practice into a customer-focused organization and help secure your position as a recommended practice among patients. Some of these guiding principles will help you take advantage of things you're already doing. Others might be new, but they're all conceptually simple and very implementable, as long as the entire team shares the goal of delivering exceptional customer service.

Guiding Principle #1:
Think through your day before it begins
Begin with the end in mind. The point is to plan to deliver great service. You can do this by thinking through your day before it begins. Who is coming into your consult room today? Who will be sitting in your chairs? What do you know about them? Do you know where they go to school or where they work? Can you remember things they've shared with you in the past? Don't wait until they get there to think about your conversations with them. Spend a few minutes before all the busyness so you'll be ready to amaze and delight. Most orthodontic practices begin the day with a morning huddle. Take some time during the huddle to tell stories on your patients. Don't allow it to just be about what trays need to be at each chair. What have they told you recently? Were there any events they talked about on their last visit? A sports tournament? Big game? Reunion? Family event? Remember it and ask them about it. Don't forget a very powerful part of your brand identity relates to every member of your team being able to greet patients and parents by name. This basic skill has a profoundly positive effect.

Guiding Principle #2:
What you don't do to patients is as important as what you do
Most practices treat everyone like they've already decided to become a patient. Everyone is asked to fill out a new patient form and the staff spends time entering all that data into the system before they've even decided to become a patient. This is fine with a referred patient, but in this new world where more and more patients are finding you without the benefit of a referral, it's a lot to ask of a shopper, and not very welcoming. When consumers get in touch with you, they're checking you out. They aren't signed up for sharing their personal information with you at that point. They don't like being asked for their social security number, for example, before they've even chosen to go into treatment with you. This gets the whole interaction off on a tricky footing. Consider simplifying your new patient form for consumers. Remember they're checking you out as much as you're examining them.

Guiding Principle #3:
Make patients "insiders"
See the practice as a stage and every member of your team one of the players. The front door is like the stage door and the receptionist is the stage manager, as well as a key player. Every time the door swings open someone new is entering the play. This is why you have to be tuned in to what's going on around you and why it's so important to make patients "insiders."

Have you ever felt like an outsider when visiting a business? I can always tell long-time patients versus new patients by the way they interact with the staff. There are greetings and hugs while the new patients look on quietly from their seats in the reception area. Ask your receptionist to come out from behind the desk to greet a new patient. Don't just point toward the coffee – pour them a cup. Make it your goal to pull new people into the "conversation," like you would a guest in your home.

Guiding Principle #4:
Focus on the one
The only way you can be customer-focused is if you're not self-focused. Keep your cell phone in your locker. Keep the Big Gulp cups in the break room. And keep your work area clean. You spend every workday there and it's easy to miss things that the newcomer sees. Take a stroll around the office and try to view it through the eyes of a new patient. Better yet, have a female between the ages of 25 and 49 do the walk-through. You'll be surprised what she sees.

Have you ever been at a business, trying to get some attention from the people behind the counter, only to be constantly put on the back burner while they work with people on the phone? There's nothing more frustrating. On the other hand, every caller deserves great customer service as well, so what do you do? Focus on the one – the one right in front of you. But the only way your practice can deliver this kind of service is to remember that customer service is a team sport. You'll never deliver great service if the members of your team have a "not my job" attitude. The only way it works is if every member of your team makes it their mission to keep an eye on what's going on around them and take up the slack, either on the phone or with the patients at the front desk.

Guiding Principle #5:
Try to see things from their point of view
What your patients say about you and your practice essentially equates your brand. Because of this, you need to be able to see things from their point of view. Put yourself in their shoes. The best way to keep your pulse on what your patients are thinking and feeling is to ask them.

I've put together a pair of questionnaires, one designed for your patients and one designed for your staff. E-mail jbehan@visiontrust.com if you would like a copy. You might be surprised at both the good things… and the not so good things you hear. This questionnaire is a good way to get on the road toward exceptional customer service.
Author’s Bio
Jeffrey Behan is president and founder of VisionTrust Communications, a firm specializing in development and implementation of marketing communications for print, broadcast and the Internet. Based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Behan has more than 25 years of experience in marketing, strategic planning, customer relationship development, product and business development, market research, brand development, advertising, public relations and audio/video production. He can be reached at jbehan@visiontrust.com or 719-531-7527.
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September 2025
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