Trouble Finding New Dental Patients? Experts Have Some Advice

Attracting and retaining patients in healthcare isn’t what it used to be. Referrals and word of mouth, once the dominant methods for bringing in new patients, have given way to digital channels. And retaining patients can be difficult as well amid rising healthcare costs and changes to insurance policies.

For dentistry, the challenges may be even greater in comparison to other providers. Multiple factors, such as people tending to put off dental visits until they absolutely need them and dental insurance only paying a fraction of the total cost for care, make it challenging for practices to find and maintain patients.

So, what are dental practices left to do?

Quite simply, they must use all the tools at their disposal—particularly the most modern ones. Let’s take a look at some of the most innovative technologies and methods that can help providers maintain a steady flow of clientele for the foreseeable future.

Beef Up That Online Presence

Every business today needs a strong online presence, and dental practices can’t afford to lag behind anymore. Even if you’ve historically been able to find patients through referrals and word of mouth, making your practice easily accessible online will only help you in the long run. And that starts with having a great website.

But a great website isn’t just a compilation of nice photos and standard bios. As Jeff Gladnick, CEO of Great Dental Websites, a Rectangle Health partner, explained on The Modern Practice Podcast, a good website should feature actual media and content that gives patients a sense of the practice and its expertise. Having a video testimonial from a patient or a short clip of a dentist explaining a procedure can really go a long way.

Furthermore, creating content like videos allows the practice to market itself elsewhere online. A good video can be posted to YouTube or Facebook, which has the potential of reaching people who might never have visited the practice’s website.

Get Your Reviews in Order

While we’re on the subject of establishing your online presence, let’s talk about reviews.

If your practice is consistently rated highly, there’s a great chance new prospects will see that and reach out. But even patients who have a good experience might need a little prompting.

After a visit, it’s a good idea to check in with the patient and ask if your practice met their expectations, explained Morgan Shepard, treatment coordinator for Chesterfield Dentistry in Chesterfield, Mo., and an AADOM member. If the patient had a positive experience, then you can direct them to your review page.

“We tell them that we would love it if they could leave us a review just so that we can take what they say into consideration and try to improve things overall,” she said. “I think patients really appreciate that, just because it helps us grow it and it helps them keep coming back.”

Shepard noted that while Chesterfield still receives a lot of new patients via word of mouth, the good reviews have certainly helped. “A lot of new people come to us who haven’t been to the dentist in years because they’re fearful. They’ll hear about us from a friend or family member, and that builds that first level of trust. But also, when people see those reviews, it just backs everything up and shows them that we’re capable of doing,” she said.

Put Patients’ Fears at Ease

As Shepard alluded to, many patients hesitate to make dental appointments or schedule major procedures because of dental fear or dental phobia. Even with advancements in dental care, practices often have to address patients’ fears.

Fortunately, once a practice has made that initial contact with a patient, modern technology can really help a practice to put patients’ minds at ease.

“Having intraoral photos, extraoral photos and taking scans to show them the progression of any issue they may be having—I think that builds trust, because they’re able to see those things for themselves,” Shepard said. “When you show them in a way that they understand, it clicks. You can tailor each experience to the patient and show them that you can make them as comfortable as possible.”

Prioritizing communication is also key.

When patients understand their dental treatment and what it entails, anxiety can be reduced. Providing educational information on your website and sending a link through text or email in advance answers some preliminary questions and preps patients for their office visit.

Don’t Let Insurance Choose Your Patients for You

Dental insurance can be a major problem for many practices when it comes to finding and retaining patients. Even if your practice participates with a patient’s plan, that plan might not pay adequately and can cause patients to put off regular care or more elaborate procedures. But there are clever ways around that.

Rachael Rudanovich, office manager for LifeSmile Dental Care in Kirkwood, Mo., and also an AADOM member, explained that her office has been able to work around the limits of insurance by offering patients an annual flat fee that covers all preventative care. So even if LifeSmile doesn’t participate with a patient’s insurance plan, the patient knows that they won’t have to pay any more than that flat rate for standard procedures.

Rudanovich explained that using this type of flat rate for care has enabled her practice to bring in a lot of patients. And then by providing them with exceptional customer service and care, LifeSmile keeps patients coming back. Her practice has patients that travel from as far away as Chicago and Los Angeles to receive care.

“Other offices are charging so much for that preventative care that patients are willing to pay for a flight to be able to come to a practice they can trust,” she said. “We’ve learned that we can make it accessible and affordable, and still have incredibly great service.”

Rudanovich believes that more practices will implement this type of rate so that patients continue to seek out dental care rather than put it off.

“I think as a community, we realized that it’s just a changing world,” she said. “People are so much more aware of everything now. And I honestly think that those offices that really take that extra step are being celebrated now, and that’s reflected in their online reviews. The days are gone of people just saying, ‘Oh, I need to go to this dentist because it’s what my insurance accepts.’”

Additionally, offering patients financing options can help.

Instead of just showing the patient the amount they owe, Shepard advises practices to also present them with a plan for how they can pay. This can really help to destress the situation. “Map out a route for them that will work with their personal finances, through various options of payment like using Rectangle Health,” she said. “That can help them extend that payment period.”

Evolution Time

As the healthcare industry continues to evolve, dental practices will have to evolve as well to keep pace. The challenges presented by rising costs and insurance complications only appear to be increasing. Practices that recognize these obstacles and adjust accordingly will be the ones that survive and thrive. By utilizing new technology and innovative methods, dental offices can keep those patients walking in the door—and keep them coming back.

About the Author:

Andrew Deichler
Senior Content Manager, Marketing
Rectangle Health

Andrew Deichler is the Senior Content Manager, Marketing for Rectangle Health. An experienced multimedia communications professional and award-winning journalist, Andrew develops and produces a multitude of content, including blogs, case studies, eBooks, whitepapers, executive reports, videos, and more. Prior to joining Rectangle Health, Andrew served as the Content Manager for Kyriba’s Strategic Marketing team. Other previous roles include Editor, Students and Emerging Professionals for SHRM, and Multimedia Content Manager for the Association for Financial Professionals.