How does the anchoring effect from a patient’s first dental purchase shape what they buy later?
Retail research consistently shows that the size of a customer’s first purchase from a store strongly predicts the size of subsequent purchases. Customers who start with a small first purchase tend to keep buying small. Customers who start with a substantial first purchase tend to buy at higher levels going forward. The mechanism is psychological anchoring. The first transaction sets the customer’s reference point for what is normal in this relationship, and subsequent decisions get measured against that anchor. Dental practices can use this principle ethically. The Complete Dental Physical fee, set at a meaningful level, becomes the patient’s first non-free transaction with the practice. The anchor lands at the level the doctor’s expertise actually warrants. Future treatment fees feel proportionate to the anchor rather than shocking against it. Practices that anchor low through bargain consultations or under-priced first visits find that future fees feel disproportionate to the patient, and resistance to treatment commitments stays high. Set the anchor deliberately.
If the answers you are finding here resonate with you, my team and I work with a small group of clients each year. The next step is a complimentary Discovery Consultation and Practice Review with Dr. McAnally.