How to Create Raving Fans in Your Dental Practice

What is the difference between a satisfied customer and a raving fan?

A customer is defined as “a recipient of a good service, product or idea”, whereas a “raving fan” is defined by Ken Blanchard himself as “a customer who is so overwhelmed and floored by the customer service they’ve received that they can’t stop telling everyone about it”.

You can turn your patients into raving fans that sing your praises and refer your services to family and friends by focusing on some key elements. We’ll cover topics such as developing a patient-centric culture and creating an exceptional customer service experience. So, keep reading to learn more about how to create raving fans in your dental practice.

1. Know Your Patient’s Needs
2. Mastering the Art of the Patient Experience
3. Reward Your Best Patients
4. Listen and Empathise

1. Know Your Patient’s Needs

By knowing your patient’s needs you can exceed their expectations. We know from a clinical standpoint many of our patient’s needs may be a big contrast from their actual needs. But taking the time to do a thorough pre-clinical examination to understand the patient’s past dental experiences and address their current needs will ensure alignment. Focusing on being patient-centric, means that you are not only focusing on the patient experience but considering your patients in every decision the business makes.

2. Mastering the Art of the Patient Experience

You know the saying “People don’t remember what you did or what you said, they remember how you made them feel”. This is the essence of your patient experience and where you can go over and above with your patient experience. Your patients do not know how exquisite your margins are or that you only use the highest-grade composite they judge you on their experience.

The patient experience is your product and that’s what distinguishes you from the competition. So how do we make our patient experience exceptional? When did you last walk in your patients’ shoes and experienced it through their eyes? By doing a ‘Walk of The Patient’ and having a consistent patient experience and clear systems for all the touchpoints in the patient journey you are well on your way to mastering the art of the patient experience.

Having done the ‘Walk of the Patient’ over the years for many dental practices sometimes we have the systems in place, but we don’t hold the accountability of it happening consistently by every team member. By being consistent and going over and above at every touch point for the entire patient experience can make a difference in creating raving fans not just satisfied customers.

3. Reward Your Best Patients

We spend so much time and money focused on new patient acquisition, but your existing best patients (those who return every six months, are on time, accept treatment and maybe even bring in some yummy, sweet treats for the team) can be very beneficial for your business too. You’ve already established a trusting and loyal relationship.

This is a great initiative to get your team involved. Have a brainstorming session at your next team meeting and come up with some ideas on how to reward your best patients. How about a ‘Patient of the Week’ award? A bottle of champagne and a handwritten card thanking your best patients for their continued trust and loyalty will almost guarantee a lifetime of referrals from your favourite patients. Or how about creating a VIP Patient database? Where VIP patients are offered exclusive offers or rewards for their continued trust and loyalty. No doubt your team will have countless ideas to celebrate your best patients.

By rewarding your best patients, encouraging referrals, building your reputation, and raising brand awareness, you will acquire more patients and can help you save money on patient acquisition.

4. Listen and Empathise

This may sound like an expectation of service but those who sharpen their skills well can tune in to more subtle aspects of behaviour and communication to really uncover and address patient needs and challenges. Patient surveys and feedback are a great way to learn about gaps in creating raving fans. When there are upsets and inefficiencies, looking at how we can recover service quickly and prevent the same situation from happening again can support creating more raving fans for your business.

By creating an army of raving fans who can be your biggest advocates and who can promote your practice, you can have a consistent stream of new patients. Instead of having to hustle for new patients and invest in large amounts of advertising spending, start by focusing on how you interact with your existing patients and your phone could start ringing right off the hook.

Introducing the Walk of the Patient Implementation Bundle—a transformative experience led by ex-Practice Administrator and Coach Louise Howlett. Through a half-day patient journey session onsite, your team will gain clarity and motivation to implement practical actions for positive change in your practice. Practice Leaders will also receive personalised consulting to develop successful implementation structures. Experience alignment, coaching, and elevated patient care with the Walk of the Patient Implementation Bundle.