Running a dental practice can be challenging, especially when it comes to increasing revenue. It might have crossed your mind that you signed up to take care of a patient’s teeth and not run a business, but here you are! Running a dental practice does include wanting the best for your patients and their health, but also figuring out how to keep the cash flowing. However, there are a few strategies you can implement to help boost your bottom line.
Improve Patient Relationships
First and foremost, you’ll want to focus on providing excellent patient care. This means investing in the latest technology, staying up to date on the latest dental techniques, and hiring a skilled and friendly staff. By providing top-notch care, you’ll be able to attract new patients and earn positive word-of-mouth recommendations.
It’s also important to focus on patient retention. You want new business, but you also want to keep the business you have. This means keeping in touch with patients after their visits, asking for feedback, and addressing any concerns or complaints promptly. By retaining a strong patient base, you’ll be able to increase revenue through repeat business.
Market Your Business
In addition to expanding your services, you can also increase revenue by promoting your practice through marketing and advertising. This might include things like creating a website, setting up social media accounts, and running ads in local newspapers and magazines. Utilizing these tools are all low to no-cost ways to market your dental practice while benefiting from the business you will hopefully receive in return. By getting the word out about your practice, you’ll be able to attract new patients and build awareness of your brand.
Satisfied patients are typically more than willing to give out a referral, so a refer-a-friend link for a social media page or adding it to your website design is a great way to utilize two of those marketing tools you have at your disposal.
Expand Your Services
Another strategy to consider is expanding the services you offer. For example, if you currently only provide basic dental services, you might consider adding cosmetic procedures like teeth whitening or veneers. This can help attract new patients and increase revenue, as these types of procedures often come with higher price tags. If you already have services like these, consider offering them to a patient before they even ask. Just offering a patient an extra service like teeth-whitening during a routine cleaning could add $100 to the typical service if they accept.
Although it may seem counterproductive, it might be a good idea to consider investing in new technology that would allow patients the ability to receive a new type of procedure at your practice or to make a common procedure less invasive or painful.
Be Precise When Working with Insurance
Since patients aren’t normally paying out of pocket for procedures when they come to visit you, someone in your office is going to be filing a claim with an insurance company. This is an especially important job because claims that are filed incorrectly can take away time and revenue from your dental practice. When working with insurance claims, there are lots of things to remember. There are codes for specific procedures (which may change frequently), there are time frames as to when claims may be submitted, and of course, there is personal information from the patient that must be submitted. All these things must go right to have a claim successfully filed and paid, which means you need to be careful and precise when working with insurance.
Aside from this, there is just the fact that you may have to reconsider what financing options you offer, including what insurance providers you accept; make the decision that will garner the most profit and the best patient care at your practice.
Stay Organized
Finally, it’s essential to stay organized and keep accurate records of your finances. This means keeping track of expenses, monitoring your cash flow, and analyzing your financial data to identify areas where you can cut costs or increase revenue. By staying on top of your finances, you’ll be able to make more informed business decisions and grow your practice over time.
Increasing revenue for your dental practice takes hard work, but by focusing on providing excellent patient care, expanding your services, promoting your practice, being precise when working with insurance, and staying organized with your finances, you can boost your bottom line and grow your practice. Remember, it’s not always about the money, but you need to make sure that you can pay your bills and have a healthy and profitable business.
If you think you may need some assistance when it comes to boosting your practice’s revenue or cutting some costs, PPO Negotiation Solutions can help. We offer a complimentary assessment for your practice, so you can get an idea of where your practice can improve. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.