How does Maslow’s hierarchy of needs apply to selling dental treatment?
Think back to psych 101. Maslow stacked human needs in a pyramid, and people sit at different levels at different points in their lives. Once a patient’s basic physical needs are handled, almost everything you do as a dentist lives in the three middle bands: safety, love and belonging, and esteem. That is your territory. A patient is rarely buying a tooth. They are buying the feeling of safety in their own body, the confidence to smile around people they love, the self-respect of not hiding their mouth. Self-actualization at the very top is mostly out of your lane, so do not aim there. Identify which of those middle needs is actually driving the person in front of you, then speak to that. When you connect the dentistry to the real need underneath, the decision gets a lot easier for them.
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.