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Game Changers: The Five Factors of Orthodontic Success by Dr. Roger P. Levin

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Game Changers: The Five Factors of Orthodontic Success 

by Dr. Roger P. Levin

Historically, there have been enough patients to fill orthodontic practices and almost all orthodontists have done well. For this trajectory to continue, orthodontists need to focus on five key areas that will contribute to success and financial performance.

1 Referrals
Without question, the single most important factor in the success of an orthodontic practice is to have a steady stream of the right referrals. The beneficial supply and demand scenario described above is changing. We now see practices that have multiple partners, varying numbers of chairs per provider and utilization of many different orthodontic techniques and technologies. With these changes, it is more important than ever before to have a strong referral marketing program that allows practices to receive enough new patients and improve performance on a continual basis.

There are five focus areas in which referral marketing needs to be addressed. These include patients, parents, referring doctors, social media and the general community.
  • Patient marketing focuses heavily on creating an enjoyable experience for all patients.
  • Parent marketing shows appreciation for the families who come to the practice and goes a long way toward increasing referrals from both that family and their friends in the community.
  • Referring doctor marketing is often overlooked but shouldn’t be. Our data shows that at least $3.6 billion per year of orthodontic practice revenue is referred by general dentists.
  • Social media marketing is very popular and can be extremely successful. The key is to have the right social media campaign and to measure results.
  • Community marketing is more about branding than having a specific call-to-action. Supporting the community and gaining name recognition can be a powerful way to become the dominant practice in your area.

2 Work to become the dominant practice
A dominant orthodontic practice has no problem generating referrals and starts. They have a strong brand reputation that will attract parents and patients from the community. For a practice to become dominant, two things must happen. First, the practice must strengthen its weaknesses. Any weaknesses will inhibit reaching dominance. Important components include the first new patient phone call, the treatment coordinator experience, interaction with assistants and the orthodontist during treatment and, of course, clinical results. If any of these areas have weaknesses, then the progress to being the dominant practice will be greatly slowed.

Second, the practice must increase its annual production. This is a key indicator that the practice continues to progress in terms of the patient experience and quality of care.

Of course, not every practice can be the dominant practice, but just the act of striving in that direction will yield positive results. Becoming the second or third most dominant still ensures an excellent stream of referrals, satisfied patients and good practice revenue.


3 The first new patient phone call
I cannot stress enough the importance of the very first phone call or contact from a potential patient or parent. Too many orthodontic practices view this as a logistical function. The front desk person answers the call and determines whether the caller is a new patient, parent or current patient, then schedules the appointment and says goodbye. This is fine, but an important opportunity is missed.

Building relationships is a critical element of orthodontic practice success. Otherwise, you will find patients and parents simply gravitating to the least expensive offices. The new patient phone call should be scripted as if it were a ballet. This means that every aspect of the new patient call should be broken down, studied and then scripted with the goal of building a strong relationship. You should learn something about the caller, tell them how much you appreciate them calling and tell them how much they’re going to enjoy their experience. At Levin Group we have a mantra we teach clients, “Make your patients your friends.” I cannot stress enough how important and powerful this is.


4 The treatment coordinator experience
The job description of the treatment coordinator (TC) comes down to one word—sales. And sales start with building powerful relationships. TCs must have an upbeat, positive personality and a method of asking questions to learn about the parent or patient to quickly develop a friendship. Furthermore, the TC must understand patient psychology. Today’s patients do their research on the internet, they do not make immediate decisions and some have significant credit card debt. When the TC is prepared to address all of these issues within a 60-minute appointment that is scripted down to the minute, the close rate will be excellent.


5 Customer service
I am fanatical about customer service. It is the differentiating factor that makes an orthodontic practice great. Customer service is a science that needs to be applied to every aspect of practice life with patients, parents and the team.


Summary
In any industry, there are typically only a few things that really make the difference between being average and highly successful. Right now, most orthodontic practices are somewhere between successful and highly successful, but a fragmentation of orthodontic practice performance is coming. My goal is to help all readers move toward being in the top 50% of practices. The five factors explained above are an excellent starting point, and I encourage each practice to assess their strengths and weaknesses in each area so that their practice can move to greater levels of excellent performance. 

Author Bio
Roger P. Levin, DDS Roger P. Levin, DDS, is the CEO and founder of Levin Group, a leading orthodontic practice management consulting firm that has worked with more than 30,000 practices to increase production. A recognized expert on orthodontic practice management and marketing, he has written 67 books and more than 4,000 articles, and regularly presents seminars in the U.S. and around the world.
To contact Levin or to join the 40,000 dental professionals who receive his Practice Production Tip of the Day, visit levingroup.com or email rlevin@levingroup.com.
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