What Dentists (and Patients) Buy…..and Ethical Selling Dentistry
I developed my ethical selling dentistry system when studying what patients and dentists buy outside of dentistry, based on the rationale (or lack of) based on their wants and needs. If you want something badly you will seek a way to get it !
Last weekend I was in NYC for a wedding of a staff member (Amber, who has worked with us in a number roles for many years). Besides the wedding (fantastic–on the roof of the Gramercy Park Hotel–one of the big investors in Studio 54 owns the place and basically uses it as a place to store and display his multi-million dollar art collection) and dropping in on a new godson, I also paid a visit to the private music academy I attend (100% online!) where courtesy of $12,000 in tuition I’m adding 18 months of computer and hardware technical expertise for music production into my “interest” sack and also filling in some gaps in music theory that I missed growing up in and around a lot of music and playing of analog instruments.
The school itself is actually more honest than most post-secondary academic institutions of any kind in that they publish a disclaimer on their website and in promo materials informing those taking “training” that there are no promises of any jobs or money on the other end of these courses.
That same disclaimer would be fair to apply to most institutions that you could send (or have sent) your kids to for higher education.
The same also very true for almost ALL clinical CDE programs. Yet, you never find that kind of honest disclaimer being handed to you with your children’s tuition bills OR to you as the attending dentist at a course.
This visit stimulated my thinking on a topic that I revisit a lot and that is what dentists (and patients) choose to buy and the rationale (or lack of) behind purchases some foolishly made and others foolishly NOT considered. Look closely at the things often purchased by the clinician that deserve a similar disclaimer. This is what I do and have done and emerged with my ethical selling dentistry program.
For those aiming to be above average there are world class CE courses (think a Kois, Misch, Spear, LVI, etc.), then there is CE that is world class in price but means little more than a vacation (think CE on a cruise ship), then there’s the lengthy lists of capital intensive equipment purchases made related to operatories, surgical instruments, $100K radiography units, $50K lasers, $10K over the patient microscopes, etc.). Disclaimers sorely needed by woefully absent.
and….all the things on the personal side–things that either you, a colleague you know, or your patients are buying-expensive cars, clothes, motorbikes, trips, neighborhoods. The dentist is buying and the patients are buying and deciding on these “investments” that don’t return income (without disclaimers).
How many dentists sign up quickly for a $30K motorcycle (or $30K in CE) but won’t invest 2% of that on jump starting their understanding of an ethical selling dentistry system which by itself typically adds 3X-10X the cost of that bike in the FIRST year (the 3X number being for the laziest). The latter an example of something foolishly NOT considered.
How many will spend months of time researching that cycle (or 40 hours with travel to a 3 day CE course) but won’t spend a few business development hours in a single month or 5% of the bike’s purchase price to get their hands on pre-tested advertisements plus marketing training for finding patients who need and will buy $10K-$20K treatment plans every month—treatment that runs at 50% margins. Once again, something ignored to peril especially under the new rules of practice.
How many will ignore the two things no longer optional for creating all the lifestyle stuff they want to “afford’ as part of owning a professional service business not to mention the professional satisfaction that only comes to those getting to deliver higher level services (e.g. the fun procedures). Yet, the majority won’t invest a pittance on what makes real differences for returning income from all the CE and the equipment.
Baffling…..
While that’s baffling from a business ownership standpoint, here’s what’s even more baffling.
The very fact that patients are choosing many other things to spend OVER you is the one single most over-riding reason to “go deep” into understanding how you can influence decision making of those weighing treatment options. You can choose to influence or let random patient actions be the norm. Again, a choice.
In case it hasn’t been made fully apparent, relying on patient “logic” in health matters of any kind is a losing proposition as the logic of dentistry being important as something purchased something that exists predominantly in the brain matter of dentists–not patients…
I trust you aren’t operating under any of these unrealistic assumptions or allowing such inane thinking interfere with your service business……If you wish to change your thinking and learn more about my program you can check out #1 top selling book on Amazon, or go to learn more about my ethical selling dentistry system here.
