Introduction

Have you ever met a patient who didn't want to be treated like a unique and important person? The need to be treated well is simple human nature. For every type of service enterprise, including dentistry, it's the smart and successful business owner who can translate this understanding of humanity into how customers are treated. Examples of excellent customer service abound in the number of thriving small businesses, who do so despite the proliferation of huge "big box" warehouse stores. These small stores flourish because they have personal relationships with customers, often provide better service, and the staff takes time to really get to know their customers' needs.

Take Time to "WOW" Every Patient

Dental practitioners can take a lesson from successful businesses. To the extent that dentists emphasize customer service, in every single patient interaction, they're moving in the direction of practice success. In fact, one of the main tenets of the Levin Group Method™ is the simple but powerful philosophy – "WOW" every patient! Begin to think of "WOW" as an essential component of practice success. Ask yourself what you can do so that patients will literally leave the office and say "WOW" when they walk out the door. Patients should be impressed and amazed by your level of courteous service, the doctor's expertise, and the thorough attentiveness to their unique needs.

What's the best way to establish and maintain this high level of customer service? Make step-by-step, documented business systems part of your practice culture.

The Power of Integrated Systems

When step-by-step systems are integrated into every level of customer service, you can reliably create a WOW experience for your patients. Analyze every step of your practice systems not only by how well the technical aspects of dentistry are performed, but also by the impact on the customer service experience.

Scheduling is an example of a technical activity. Its goal is getting patients booked for a set amount of time. Ideally, booking an appointment time the patient perceives to be convenient should be accomplished in the same moment as a positive interaction with the scheduling coordinator. The result is a patient who leaves your office with the impression of having received attentive service. Your current systems may only require that the patient be scheduled for the proper amount of time to complete treatment.

However, you run the risk of patients hastily accepting appointments and leaving unsatisfied with the quality of service. This increases the likelihood of cancelled appointments, as people rarely inconvenience themselves for an appointment they do not value. It's a mistake to believe that patients should come when they are told. To create more positive scheduling interactions:

• Use suitable scripts to determine if appointment times are convenient.
• Address patients by name at least three times.
• Offer a minimum of two choices of appointments. This approach encourages patients to consider which is a better choice rather than requesting what may be an ideal slot that isn't available.
• Inform patients that they can call in advance with any questions about the appointment.
• Thank patients for coming.
• Tell patients that you look forward to the next visit.

The example above demonstrates how you can still perform appropriate scheduling tasks while turning the interaction into a positive WOW level experience. When you can accomplish this for every step of every process in a dental practice, you are well on your way to achieving WOW!

Systems Make Good Business Sense

Improving the level of customer service becomes far easier with a systemized approach. Systems can help build outstanding service because they establish high levels of consistency for the team. Training new team members can be accomplished in significantly less time, while practices are increasing the WOW factor. The goal is for staff members to understand the exact steps that are to be followed, with scripts, for each practice activity. This increases the likelihood that your team will incorporate the whole protocol and create an excellent customer service interaction. When team members follow the steps, every patient receives exactly the same treatment with the same consistent attention to quality. And in turn, high levels of customer service make it easier for patients to recognize value in the money they are spending, resulting in practices being able to justify fees.

What are some further ways to improve customer service in your office? Try these approaches:

1. Avoid making patients wait. When the doctor does not keep appointment times, patients receive an impression of poor customer service, no matter what other conditions may exist.
2. Renew your office décor. Update the furniture, buy new pictures, or add new lamps and floral arrangements.
3. Provide refreshments. Offer juice, coffee, or water in a refreshment area for guests waiting for patients.
4. Be sure to greet patients warmly in the treatment area. Patients need to feel welcomed in the treatment area. A smile or a handshake goes a long way toward conveying friendliness.
5. Provide clear directions for getting to your office. Don't let patients become frustrated just making the effort to drive to your office. Provide directions to allow patients to arrive with the least amount of anxiety. Will your patients have to pay for parking? Make it clear if your office validates.
6. Provide your staff members with clear job descriptions. Knowing exactly what is required of them will make staff members less stressed and friendlier to patients.
7. Remember that good communication is good customer service. Patients will assess the practice, team, and quality of care by how you speak, the words you choose, and your level of enthusiasm. Use scripting to train team members with little dental experience to help them present themselves in the most professional way.

Many factors can affect patient expectations about the dental practice experience, including everything from age, gender, the day's weather, or the patient's past dental experiences. A normally agreeable patient may arrive in a bad mood because of a fight with his spouse. It's clear that most of these elements are factors over which you have no control. But you can control the level of customer service your practice achieves. Make the decision to surprise patients by giving them a superior level of treatment. Think about how you can set yourself apart from all of the other dentists that your patients could be seeing. It is possible to make every interaction with every patient an overall pleasurable experience. By consistently providing high levels of customer service, you are taking real steps toward reaching the next level of practice success.

Incorporate Training and Scripting

Once your practice systems have been refined, integrated, and solidified with scripts, the next step is training. Systems that have been written in a step-by-step manner with accompanying scripts empower team members to follow ideal customer service protocols on their own. You may want to schedule training sessions where team members can role-play selected scripts to get a feel for how to put the concepts into their own words. Providing script training to employees also establishes a level of responsibility and accountability for each team position.

The need for training never ends. Use systems as a baseline. If any changes are introduced or if staff turnover occurs, it's easier to train new individuals without losing all of your accumulated knowledge.

Conclusion

Achieving WOW customer service can be challenging, but it's not impossible. The secret to consistently creating excellent customer service is scripting and integrated, step-by-step systems. With these elements in place, the outcome is effectively trained teams and happier patients.

If you are interested in learning how to achieve "WOW" customer service in your practice, Compendium readers are entitled to a no-cost consultation on the subject with a Levin Group Practice Development Specialist. Call 888-973-0000 or e-mail your name, phone number, and address to with "WOW Customer Service" in the subject line.

Dr Roger P Levin is founder and chief executive officer of Levin Group, Inc, a leading dental practice management consulting firm that provides a comprehensive suite of lifetime services to its clients and partners. Since 1985, Levin Group has embraced one single mission—to improve the lives of dentists. For more than 20 years, Levin Group has helped thousands of general dentists and specialists increase their satisfaction with practicing dentistry. Levin Group may be reached at (888) 973- 0000 and