When To Use Third-Party Financing – and When Not To
Most practices that I work with prefer to use in-house, no-interest financing arrangements with their patients, but also offer the option of third-party financing. If your practice falls into this category, I recommend re-evaluating the way in which you present your financing options. The TC’s primary objective when presenting fees should be to eliminate obstacles […]
What to Do When the Answer is “No”
What is the best way to handle situations when patients say “no” to treatment at your practice? To address this, we should first consider some practical points regarding how people who visit your practice actually arrive at “no”. Here are four key points to remember: Most people know at the end of the consultation whether […]
The Sound of Silence
One of the keys to a good initial consultation process is to a smooth transition from one step in the meeting to the next. That said, one step that becomes a common disruption in orthodontic practices is the calculation of fees and payment options. Specifically, this occurs when the doctor leaves the consultation and turns […]
The Importance of Policy
Among the many questions that families ask during the initial consultation, some involve the request of special “favors” – things that are not within the normal scope of services which your practice provides its patients. Some common examples from my experience in working with your peers include: A request to lower your fee to match […]
The Aversion to Selling
“Welcome to McDonald’s!” The man’s voice boomed at me through the loudspeaker of the drive-through, crystal-clear and friendly. “Would you like to try our new Apple Cinnamon Walnut Oatmeal today?” “No thanks”, I replied to the cheerful man on the loudspeaker. After a brief pause…..“okay.” A much different, meek voice this time. “Please order when […]
Avoiding TMI in Doctor Consultations
For the garden-variety treatment case, a ten-to-fifteen minute time allotment for the doctor consultation with the family is not only achievable, it is also optimal. Unfortunately, many doctors, in an effort to be helpful to the family, exceed both the time limit and the family’s need for information – a situation that not only impedes time […]
Asking vs Recommending
If you were to ask me to pick one consistent thing that outstanding TCs do, it would be the way in which they talk to prospective patients. As I’ve told many clients, when I watch one of these Treatment Coordinators speak to a visiting family, I cannot tell by the way they manage the consultation whether […]
Addressing Choices in NP Consults
In cases where your potential patient is presented with more than one treatment option, if you simply present multiple options to the patient and ask them to pick one, you are doing both the patient and your practice a disservice. Let’s look at why. In Yes to Treatment, I make the point that your value […]
The Prompt-Decision Discount
Most of my orthodontic practice clients offer financial incentives to practice visitors. Perhaps the most common is a family discount for siblings of an initial case; in videotaped consults that I observe, this is almost universal in your profession to the point that the parents expect and often ask for it. A less common example […]
The Porcupine
During the orthodontic fee presentation, it is common for visiting families to ask the TC questions about flexibility regarding payment options. Some common examples would include: “Can I put more money down?”“Can I pay this off early?”“Can I extend the monthly payments?”“Can I use my FSA account to pay for treatment?” In most cases, questions like these indicate an interest on […]