How to Train Front Office Staff to Convert Calls
Date: September 19, 2018Category: Author: Sarah Skidd
Dr. Howard Farran of Dentaltown said he’d never want to own an internet marketing company for dentists.
Why? Because it doesn’t matter how many new patients he’d bring you, if your front office staff can’t convert the calls to appointments, he’d get blamed for the bad results.
Yup. Been there.
Dentist: “I’m getting no new patients.”
Dental Marketing Company: “Hmmm, I’m seeing 26 new patient calls here.”
Dentist: “Whatever. Nobody made an appointment.”
Rules to Convert Calls to Patients
Rule #1: Recognize that the person you hire to answer the phone is not a receptionist, she’s in sales.
Rule #2: Train your front office to convert calls to appointments. If you don’t know what it takes to convert a call to a patient, bring in professional training. It’s that important.
Rule #3: Trust but verify. Listen to the calls. We ask every new client for permission to record their phone calls for the first few months after launching their website.
Poor Call
New Patient Caller: “I would like to schedule a cleaning.”
Untrained Staff: “Dr. Jones has to do an exam first before we can schedule your cleaning. Until we do the exam, we don’t know what kind of cleaning you need.”
New Patient Caller: (Thinks: Are they going to try to sell me a super-cleaning, so they can charge me double or triple?) Oh, okay – thank you.” (hangs up)
Good Call
New Patient Caller: “I would like to schedule a cleaning.”
Trained Staff: “Dr. Smith usually starts with just the exam and then schedules the cleaning after that, so he can give special instructions to the hygienist if they are needed. If getting a cleaning at this appointment is important to you, I can set you up with a combined exam and cleaning appointment in three weeks. If you’d like to start with an exam, I can get you in early next week and you’ll be able to get your cleaning later in the week.
New Patient Caller: “Okay, let’s start with just the exam.”
Another Poor Call
New Patient Caller: “How much does Dr. Jones charge for an implant?”
Untrained Staff: “Prices vary so I can’t tell you what the fee is. You’ll have to come in for a $69 consultation to get his recommendation.”
New Patient Caller: “Oh, okay – thank you.” (hangs up)
Good Call
New Patient Caller: “How much does Dr. Smith charge for an implant?”
Trained Staff: “Darn it, you need an implant? Are you feeling okay? Are you in any pain? (Waits for response.)
Well, there’s a lot of variation in pricing because there are mini implants and standard implants, plus some people need bone grafting or other work to get them to a point where their mouth can even accept an implant. I’d say the range is $900 – $5000. Would you like to see what Dr. Smith thinks about your case?
New Patient Caller: “Yes.”
Trained Staff: “Sounds good. The doctor will spend 30 minutes with you doing XYZ. Dr. Smith will give you his recommendation and our staff will review all costs with you before any work is scheduled. I just want you to be aware that there is a $69 fee for the consultation. What day and time works for you to speak with the doctor?
New Patient Caller: “Tuesday mornings are good.”
See that? The front office staff in both examples took the time to listen and understand the patient, ask questions if necessary, and respond to their concerns. When leading with genuine interest in the patient, educating them a bit and being upfront about fees, it proves the practice cares and makes them feel that the doctor will too.
Your dental marketing company can drive new patients to you all day long through all sorts of beautiful websites and advanced techniques but if your staff isn’t trained to care and convert, you’re not getting the full value from your marketing dollars.
Excellent points. One thing I would add is that this can be a tough issue for some dentists if they have an underperforming receptionist/sales person. Sometimes what is needed is a change in personnel, and it can be very difficult to face up to that.