james, Author at The McAnally Selling System

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So far james has created 3065 blog entries.

Dental IQ Questions to Ask Big Case Patients

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What dental IQ questions should I ask a big case patient? Skip the brushing and flossing quiz. With a big case patient you do not care how well they clean their teeth, you care how much they grasp the bigger picture, because that tells you how deep to go in your treatment discussion. Ask them true or false on a few things that matter. Your teeth can make you feel better or worse. Problems with your teeth and gums can affect your whole body. How your smile looks changes how other people treat you. The severity of dental disease is often [...]

Dental IQ Questions to Ask Big Case Patientsjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What Counts as a Major Dental Case by Fee?

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What counts as a major case in implant dentistry? You have to define it for yourself, by fee. For me and my practice, anything larger than fifty thousand dollars was a major, major case. In a niche where fees never climb that high, your number is lower. The point is not the exact dollar figure, it is that every type of case has a threshold where the decision gets big enough that the patient cannot make it alone. Once you cross that line, your acceptance rate drops unless you change how you run the process. So sit down and decide your [...]

What Counts as a Major Dental Case by Fee?james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What Is Dental Fee Framing in the Sales Process?

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What is fee framing in a dental sales process? It is deliberately setting expectations about cost at the right moments so the final number never lands as a shock. Fee framing shows up at several stages. Sometimes in the information packet, though that is mainly useful if you are busy enough to screen patients out hard. Sometimes in the consult itself. And it absolutely belongs at the diagnostic visit, where you prepare the patient for treatment costs so there are no surprises at presentation. It even appears again as a range during the actual case presentation. The thread running through all [...]

What Is Dental Fee Framing in the Sales Process?james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

When Should a Spouse Attend a Dental Consult?

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

When should the spouse attend a dental treatment consult? On a major case, the spouse or financial partner has to be there early, not just at the presentation. I want that person at the complete dental physical too, because a fifty thousand dollar decision is not made by one person in a vacuum. The veto holder, the one who controls the money, needs to see the problem with their own eyes. The way I preface it is honest. I tell the patient that what stands out today are some serious problems, and because of that, their spouse should come along to [...]

When Should a Spouse Attend a Dental Consult?james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Telling a Patient You Accept Them After Consultation

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How should I tell a patient I can help them after the consultation? Use two sentences, and use them on purpose. First, tell them they did something smart by coming in to see you. Then say it plainly, I am happy to accept you so we can find some solutions for you. Pause after the smart decision part so it lands and they think, I did something good for myself. Those two lines do real work. The compliment is genuine, they truly did make a smart move, and compliments boost compliance, the data backs that up. The word accept does the [...]

Telling a Patient You Accept Them After Consultationjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Loss Aversion in Dentistry: Ethical Patient Motivation

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How do I use loss aversion ethically in a dental consult? People are wired to fear losing something more than they want to gain it, and you can use that honestly. When you tell a patient "I am happy to accept you," you are doing two things at once. You pay a true compliment, and you signal that acceptance is a thing they now have and could lose. That quiet pressure of not wanting to give up a spot moves them toward the next step. I do the same with scheduling. I tell them I only hold a few appointment times [...]

Loss Aversion in Dentistry: Ethical Patient Motivationjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How to Set Patient Expectations After a Consult

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How do I set patient expectations after a free consult? Tell them exactly what happens next, in order, before they walk out. Vague patients get disappointed, and disappointment loses cases. So I spell out the path. The next step is a complete dental physical where I look at everything. After that I spend about a week building options. Then we sit down together to review them. Three beats, stated plainly. I also tell them up front who needs to be in the room for those visits, so nobody is surprised when I ask for a spouse to attend. Think of it [...]

How to Set Patient Expectations After a Consultjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Why Use a New Patient Consultation Checklist

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Why do dentists use a checklist during the new patient consultation? Because there are too many moving parts to trust your memory, and the cost of forgetting one is huge. Think about everything that has to happen on a single consultation. Hand off the gift, deliver the reason why tour, decide if this is an aesthetic patient who needs a full-face photo, decide if it is a niche case that needs full-mouth imaging, run the right video, brief the doctor. Miss the smile preview on the right patient and you may have lost the case entirely. A checklist is not a [...]

Why Use a New Patient Consultation Checklistjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Why Top Dentists Use a Consultation Checklist Every Time

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

Why do successful dentists use a checklist during patient consultations? Because memory fails and a checklist does not. In a fifteen minute consult you have to look the part, ask the right questions, find common ground with the patient, keep hunting for what is really motivating them, and decide whether you can genuinely help. That is a lot to carry in your head while a stranger is sitting in your chair. Try to wing it and you will forget the question that mattered most. A pilot does not skip the preflight just because they have flown a thousand times, and you [...]

Why Top Dentists Use a Consultation Checklist Every Timejames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

How to Find a Dental Patient Pain Motivation

james2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

What is a patient's pain motivation and how do I find it? The pain motivation is the real reason this person showed up, and it is the single most useful thing you can learn at the consult. Ask plainly, what motivated you to come see us today? They may repeat what they told you on the phone, they may say the same thing differently, or they may come out of far right field with a brand new reason. Whatever it is, write it down, because it points the whole treatment discussion. You get a few chances to surface this across the [...]

How to Find a Dental Patient Pain Motivationjames2026-06-16T00:00:00-04:00

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