Independent Dentist-Countering Poor Economy
The independent dentist is never more so at risk of losing his/her practice given the poor state of the economy and a shrinking middle class.
My program members know that I keep talking about something called the “new dental economy” which is literally the permanent change in consumer discretionary spending and buying power in the post-credit bust world. Anyone practicing in the industrialized west minus those who are net exporters (Germany), have significant commodity wealth (Australia, Canada Norway), or who have net capital inflows thanks to short-term interest rates (New Zealand) everyone else is effected by this change.
This image sums up the drop in consumer spending in the U.S. that’s the greatest since the depression. The only way to get out of this funk is for suddenly the rest of the world to value what we do more than they do know and pay more for it and an independent dentist. Those patients buying power has re-set to 1975 and that’s with TWO (count ’em) TWO members of the household combining incomes to create that buying power. Without more buying power thanks to others wanting what we have, this is a sinking ship taking on water and the middle class has been locked in steerage. Dentists as have had a 80 year luxury of an always rising and expanding middle class. It allowed them to be lazy, slothful, and ignorant about economics, pricing, and selling. Those days are over for the independent dentist.
Dentists aiming their services at the average insured patient are going to see demand for their services continue to shrink year on year. The only way to counter is with more promotion and running faster.
Highly trained dentists are going to be frustrated unless they step outside of their boxes and market and sell to those with problems so serious that they are more determined to fix them. Even while the middle class goes down with the ship there are patients who have money and who want to spend it on a better quality of life. They aren’t going to find you unless you let them know you exist.
Either way, choosing to run faster in the old model, or marketing to those with problems who really want to have them resolved, the new and permanent challenge for every indenpendent dentist is how to qualify prospective patients without shock or embarrassment on anyone’s part. After all we are professionals and not used car salesmen in polyester suits and big gold chains.
The method of selling that I developed over 17 years in clinical practice is now being used on every continent and has been proven and successful before, during, AND after the great recession.
While I’m an optimist in that the next “big thing” that shapes the next 50 years will come out of the U.S., in the meantime, you dear colleague are STUCK.
What’s YOUR personal plan to deal with the new reality? Want to join my program members here who have no problem increasing their revenues by using my marketing and selling strategies.
You can also learn more from my #1 top selling book on Amazon.
