As a dental business owner, “growing your practice” can mean two things. Either you want to grow your revenue and patient base, or you’re looking to open more locations of your practice.
Both are admirable goals, but the question is, how do you grow your dental practice? It’s easier said than done.
As an end-to-end revenue cycle management partner, DCS has helped dental businesses grow financially and professionally since 2012.
This article is your roadmap of expert tips for growing your dental practice. We’ll cover these 5 tips for dental practice growth:
- Find and invest in resources to support growth
- Unlock hidden profits by optimizing your revenue processes
- Orchestrate a filled schedule with strategic appointment planning
- Ignite your online presence and marketing strategy
- Cultivate an environment your patients will enjoy
Expert Tip #1: Find and invest in resources to support growth
First thing’s first—if you plan on growing your dental practice, you need to be strategic about laying the foundation for your success.
Growing your patient base will be great, but how do you plan to sustain that growth? You will need additional resources to handle your expanding dental practice.
To start, identify deficiencies at your dental practice to see where its needs are. That’s where you require additional resources to support growth.
Revenue cycle management services are a powerful resource for managing the following processes as your practice expands:
- Insurance verification
- Claims management
- Patient billing
For example, part of DCS’ revenue cycle management services is providing and managing an automated patient billing system. This service is perfect for dental teams with growing patient volume—serving more patients won’t create more payment problems.
Automated patient billing will save you time and money while improving your income. Watch this video to learn more:
As your patient base and revenue grow—or even as you open more locations—RCM-related processes accumulate and become more intense to manage. With experts handling these processes, you won’t have to worry about revenue slipping through the cracks.
Expert Tip #2: Unlock hidden profits by optimizing your revenue processes
The processes at your dental practice are like the chain on a bicycle. If even one link in the chain is broken, the bicycle’s wheels won’t turn.
If there is even one deficiency in your revenue processes, you’re likely not collecting every dollar you’ve earned.
Missing out on revenue will stall your growth as a business. And yet, collecting all you’ve earned is a challenge because revenue processes such as insurance verification, claims management, and patient billing are complicated and time-consuming to handle.
Those vital processes require expert attention to be fully optimized for revenue.
Related: Why a profitable dental revenue cycle depends on a good billing process
An easy way to optimize your revenue processes and collect more from both insurance claims and patients is to use resources like RCM services, as we mentioned in Expert Tip #1.
RCM experts optimize your revenue processes by implementing:
- Technology-assisted insurance verification that confirms patient coverage at least 2 days before treatment
- Expert best practices and strategies to submit, appeal, and follow up with unpaid insurance claims
- Automated patient billing systems that magically send patients’ statements and payment reminders with convenient online payment options
Don't let financial obstacles hinder your dental practice's growth. Connect with our dental RCM consultants for personalized solutions.
Expert Tip #3: Orchestrate a filled scheduled with strategic appointment planning
A filled schedule is a profitable schedule. Patients equal revenue! Keeping the calendar full is how you keep revenue flowing into your dental business.
To nurture the growth of your dental practice, your team will need to strategically keep its calendar full. Here are a few quick tips for maintaining a busy treatment schedule:
- Be proactive. Schedule patients for their next appointment as they check out of their current appointment.
- Follow-up with patients who have unscheduled treatment. These are patients in need of treatment who were never put on the schedule. They likely said, “I’ll have to check my calendar,” but never got back to you.
- Take steps to prevent cancellations. Use automated technology to confirm appointments several times and reschedule patients immediately if they have to cancel.
Dive deeper by reading, “4 tips for preventing dental patient cancellations”
Growth isn’t possible without more appointments. Keep your schedule full to keep revenue flowing.
Expert Tip #4: Ignite your online presence and marketing strategy
You are a dentist, but you are also a business owner. A growing business requires marketing strategies to promote it.
Ask yourself, “When is the last time my dental practice’s website was updated?”
When someone is searching for a new dentist, they’ll likely Google search “dentist near me” and click through the first few websites. If your website hasn’t been updated in years, it won't appeal to potential patients when compared to the others.
Take the time to update your website to make it as user-friendly as possible. Some modern dental practice websites even offer online scheduling.
Posting on social media is another marketing tactic you can easily implement to grow your dental practice. Use Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn to share photos of your office, staff, new clinical technology, and even happy patients.
Also, be sure your Google My Business listing is up-to-date—this includes your address for Google Maps, your hours of operation, and more.
Your Google listing is also a place where patients can leave online reviews. These reviews will go a long way in promoting your business—you’d be surprised how many people make choices based on Google reviews.
Marketing is essential to the growth of your practice. An up-to-date website, engaging social media channels, and word of mouth will bring you new patients and keep current patients coming back.
Expert Tip #5: Cultivate an environment your patients will enjoy
Being at the dentist causes anxiety for some patients. It’s your duty to ensure their experience is as positive as possible.
Cultivating an environment your patients enjoy will keep your dental practice growing. A positive dental office environment includes:
- A happy and balanced dental team—both your clinical and administrative team members
- Smooth check-in and check-out procedures for dental patients
- Modern furniture, technology, and decorations
- Short wait times for patients
Your front office staff should treat every patient with respect and kindness. This is why it’s crucial that your dental team is not overworked or rushed—your patients will notice a stressed-out team.
The growth of your practice is deterred when your patients have less than pleasant experiences at your practice.
Related: Do you know the top 5 billing reasons your dental patients will quit your practice?
Reach new heights at your dental practice using RCM as a resource
To recap, we’ve covered 5 expert tips on how to grow your dental practice:
- Find and invest in resources to support growth
- Unlock hidden profits by optimizing your revenue processes
- Orchestrate a filled scheduled with strategic appointment planning
- Ignite your online presence and marketing strategy
- Cultivate an environment your patients will enjoy
Your dental practice needs support so you can sustain and nurture the growth of your business. DCS provides expert revenue cycle management services that will help increase your revenue, which ensures dental practice growth, as well.
Maximize your growth and revenue potential by using expert RCM services. Book a call with an RCM expert today.
Related Posts
Dental billing resources