Being this is the first business I have ever owned I wanted to be sure that it was manageable. I found my practice, that had two chairs and two employees. This was a good size for me, and is only three miles from my home. It has been a long time goal of mine to be able to ride my bike to work, which I am able to do often. It's funny how I find such success in being able to ride my bike to work, but the daily commute can really effect a persons life.
Doing root canals in the office rather than referring patients to a specialist has helped fill my schedule and add days to the work week. (The last dentist worked 3 days a week and did all of the cleanings at the office himself, he also referred out all root canals and extractions) We have also added extractions, IV sedation and laughing gas. I have added a hygienist to our ranks but she is here only one day a week and most patients prefer seeing the dentist for cleanings; many patients actually say "I come here because the dentist cleans my teeth" so it looks like I will be cleaning teeth for a while.
During the last 8 months two new dental offices have been built within one block of my office. One is a corporate chain that offers steep discounts and advertises heavily, the other is a large pediatric dental office. It has become my strategy to compliment their business style rather than compete with them. When they chose generic dental office names, I chose to use my personal name for my business. I think this shows the dentist won't change, while other offices suffer high turnover of the dental staff. When they spend big money on postcard mailings, I am networking with the Lion's club and spending hours sorting through newspaper bins as a service project. While my time would be better spent doing dentistry I find satisfaction in servicing the area's Lion's club and they have helped me by referring friends for dental care. I hope that the low overhead and personalized service will win patients over in the long run. I am happy seeing all of the patients that were driven away from the corporate groups because of the lack of personal service.
During the last 8 months two new dental offices have been built within one block of my office. One is a corporate chain that offers steep discounts and advertises heavily, the other is a large pediatric dental office. It has become my strategy to compliment their business style rather than compete with them. When they chose generic dental office names, I chose to use my personal name for my business. I think this shows the dentist won't change, while other offices suffer high turnover of the dental staff. When they spend big money on postcard mailings, I am networking with the Lion's club and spending hours sorting through newspaper bins as a service project. While my time would be better spent doing dentistry I find satisfaction in servicing the area's Lion's club and they have helped me by referring friends for dental care. I hope that the low overhead and personalized service will win patients over in the long run. I am happy seeing all of the patients that were driven away from the corporate groups because of the lack of personal service.
I have also added a small digital photo frame to the office waiting room showcasing local businesses which has created free advertising for the offices across the hall like this one. This has helped improve my relationship with the businesses greatly. ( I am too cheap to get a television in the waiting room, and the photo frame is silent, so patients can chat with the front desk receptionist.)
These are some of my thoughts on how I run my office, time will tell if they were good ideas.
