Dental Drills Bits
201 episodes - English - Latest episode: 12 days ago - ★★★★★ - 37 ratingsSandy Pardue of Classic Practice Resources & Michael Arias of The Dental Marketer discuss issues facing the dental practice owner of today. This is the podcast where you will want a pen and paper to take notes on every single procedure, system, step by step process, and lessons Sandy shares that she has accumulated in 40 years.
Enjoy the fun, laid-back vibe as things get real.
Sandy is an energetic lecturer and consultant in the area of dental practice management. She is Director of Consulting with Classic Practice Resources and has over 40 years of “hands-on” experience.
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Episodes
Steps to Take When a Key Employee Leaves
July 05, 2023 08:00 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency? Check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this episode of Dental Drill Bits, we're jumping into the challenges we all face when a key team member leaves, and exploring effective strategies to combat the resulting disarray. We discuss the importance of having standardized operating procedures (SOPs) in place, establishing robust systems, and creating specific job descriptions to ensure a...
Taking Control of Attendance in Your Office
June 28, 2023 08:00 - 23 minutes - 21.6 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency? Check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Do you ever get that text the night before from a team member that will be out the next day? We know how much of a strain this can put on the rest of the team, and in this episode we're exploring what it takes to craft an effective attendance policy for your office! From setting boundaries on communication methods, to empowering your team's respons...
Vacation-proof Your Team: Strategies for Seamless Workflow Continuity
June 21, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.2 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency? Check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Welcome to another episode of Dental Drill Bits! In this episode, we dive into the topic of "Vacation-proofing Your Team". Going on vacation as a dental professional can be challenging, but with the right strategies, you can ensure that your team keeps things running smoothly while you're away. We discuss the importance of setting goals for each de...
Should I Share Practice Numbers with My Whole Team?
June 14, 2023 08:00 - 21 minutes - 19.9 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this episode, we explore the question, "should I share practice numbers with my whole team?" We say yes! From the perspective of embracing transparency and utilizing numbers to establish concrete goals for employees in the dental office, we think sharing your numbers is a valuable asset. We address the common fear among doctors that shar...
Prescheduling Myth Buster
June 02, 2023 08:00 - 24 minutes - 22.6 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Welcome to this week's episode of Dental Drill Bits, where we dive into the world of "Prescheduling Myth Busters." In this episode, we debunk the common misconception that it's acceptable to preschedule a patient six months out, despite multiple broken appointments. We break down the common practice owner mistake of "somebody said we should alway...
Marketing SOS: How to Recognize Red Flags and Transition to a New Marketing Partner
May 26, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.5 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Welcome to this week's podcast, where we delve into the crucial question of "When is it time to switch my marketing company?" Join us as we uncover key insights to help you make informed decisions about your marketing strategies, and spot red flags with your current company. In this episode, we explore essential factors such as maintaining a cons...
Acknowledgement's Role in Positive Patient Experience & Loyalty
May 17, 2023 08:00 - 18 minutes - 17.1 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In the US, approximately 1.6 million people are changing dentists every month, making patient retention and loyalty critical to any dental practice's success. When the value per patient is so heavily weighted on retention and loyalty, we wanted to dive into some points on improving customer service, increasing retention rates, and how to show apprec...
Measuring Success in Your Dental Practice: Key Metrics to Track
May 12, 2023 08:00 - 27 minutes - 25.5 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this episode, we explore the question "How do you measure dental practice success?" For one, there's more to it than just looking at production numbers or collections. You may have sky high new patient numbers, or massive amounts of production, and still not be financially successful! When it comes down to it, retention and collections are the re...
5 Key Steps to Develop an Outstanding Dental Team
May 03, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this week's episode, TEAM is the focus. Without a strong team, your practice isn't producing at it's full potential. We know hiring and firing isn't your favorite activity of the year, but making sure the right members are in the right positions is essential. Have you ever wondered how to inspire your employees and give them purpose in the workpl...
Tackling the Top 5 Issues Practices Encounter with Effective Solutions!
April 26, 2023 08:00 - 31 minutes - 28.5 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ This week's episode is all about common issues that practices have. Some of these issues, you may not even know you have! Covering the topics of productivity, scheduling, and communication, we will dive deep into what it takes to move your practice in the right direction. We discuss having unscheduled chair time, why you may have low patient retenti...
Maximizing Acceptance with Active Listening: The Key to Treatment Acceptance
April 19, 2023 08:00 - 20 minutes - 19.1 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this week's episode, we are breaking down effective patient communication and addressing objections properly. It all starts with truly listening to patient concerns, whether it's based in fear, financial worries, or another common issue. Highlighting that the procedure is routine and performed every day can help provide much needed comfort and re...
Ignoring Patient Complaints Can Shrink Your Practice
April 14, 2023 08:00 - 19 minutes - 17.7 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this episode, we explore the idea that complaints are a gift rather than a curse! We discuss how listening to complaints can provide valuable insights and opportunities for improvement in your dental practice. We emphasize the importance of actively listening to trends in complaints, identifying common issues, and taking proactive steps to addres...
Juggling Patients: Balancing In-Person and Phone Interactions in Your Practice
April 08, 2023 01:29 - 21 minutes - 19.9 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ In this episode, Sandy and Michael discuss the age-old question: "What comes first, the patient in front of you or the one on the phone?" They share insights on how to handle both effectively, with a focus on friendly and upbeat patient communication. Gone are the days when callers took precedence simply because they couldn't see what was happenin...
Successful Patient Interactions Are The Key to a Happy Practice
March 29, 2023 13:00 - 24 minutes - 22.3 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Did you know that up to 93% of communication is done non-verbally? Well, it’s true, and it might be the key to handling tough patients in your practice… Successful Patient Interactions will make or break your practice when trying to stand out from the crowd. To have these interactions, we need an upbeat, positive, and attentive tea...
The Importance of Acknowledging Team Members
March 21, 2023 18:05 - 24 minutes - 22.8 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you:: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ It was "dental assistant" appreciation week not that long ago...did you feel like you HAD to do something instead of wanting to do something for your dental assistant? You never really know what goes on in the private life of team members. Sometimes a little acknowledgement goes a long way. Sandy shows us how to properly do this and gives us a ...
Is Your Front Office Decreasing Your New Patient Flow?
March 09, 2023 23:36 - 35 minutes - 32.9 MBSponsors: Do you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you:: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Does your front office understand your marketing? If they don’t then they are probably decreasing the amount of new patients you could and should be seeing! Did you also know that your website and marketing campaigns, such as Google Ads, can decrease your case acceptance percentage? In this episode we dive deep with Sandy and Ali fr...
How to Successfully Conduct Group Interviews!
March 01, 2023 18:17 - 26 minutes - 24.7 MBThink about it, if you put an ad out and get 10 applicants… 8 out of the 10 sent in a resume that seems good… will you take a whole day to interview those 8 applicants? There’s a better way, a much better way! Group interviews! Sandy gives us the tools and system to establish and conduct an extremely successful group interview. Once you hear this episode, I wouldn’t be surprised if you wanted to ONLY do group interviews! Sponsors: Do you need a new website or an affordable mark...
How to Build a Productive Front Office Team!
February 22, 2023 21:40 - 21 minutes - 19.8 MBDo you feel like you can’t find any great employees? Are you tired of recommending procedures, systems, or even tips to your front office but for some reason they don’t stick with the recommendations? Do you feel like you are always having to micromanage your team or a team member? Do you even know if some team members are really contributing to the practice growth, or are they just doing the bare minimum? In this episode we dive deeper into this as Sandy gives us 4 pillars that we ne...
A Closer Look at Electronic Statements & Recare Notices
February 16, 2023 23:33 - 21 minutes - 19.6 MBSponsors: Check out Docsites LIMITED TIME OFFER here: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ Get the money! Sandy’s a real world consultant and having a ZERO A/R is not real world! You’ve got people that come and get the dental work and ins pays, or your going to bill them, if you get a 30% open rate in emails you’re in the top tier. Sandy came across a practice that had 100k in A/R, and stopped sending sending out statements. That’s when Sandy noticed something MA...
Quick Tips for the Front Office!
February 09, 2023 03:47 - 19 minutes - 17.7 MBThis episode is for the person greeting patients and answering the phones at the front desk. Some new team members need to know and master some of the basics, so if you have new team members, this episode is a “mandatory listen” as part of their training. We discuss these four essential tips: Practice Information. Know basic practice information. How long has the doctor been practicing? Know the website & office address. Greeting and checking in patients. Have the front office understand i...
How to Use the “New Patient Call Slip” for Consistency
February 02, 2023 17:53 - 24 minutes - 56.2 MBDo you need a new website or marketing agency, check out what Docsites can do for you:: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ It’s a piece of paper. But what’s on this piece of paper that’s not in your software? This slip is going to keep your new patient calls on task and in order. It will have all the necessary information you need and it will ensure the conversation flows well and the front office makes the appointment! You want to have really good relations with people ...
Are You The Problem in Your Practice?
January 26, 2023 03:56 - 28 minutes - 64.8 MBThis is a serious talk we have to have. Have you ever said to yourself: “my employee isn’t smart, my team isn’t doing the best, I buy new equipment and no one uses it… I’m not buying them anything anymore!”etc. Or maybe people aren’t delivering and producing on your team, or you can’t keep people on your team... Whose fault is it… the leader. Sometimes your own lack of trust and organization may be holding your business back. Sandy gives us the system and steps we need to ...
“Why can’t I find great people for my team”!?
January 19, 2023 00:39 - 24 minutes - 56.2 MBCheck out Docsites here and schedule a completely free personalized demo: https://www.docsites.com/landing-pages/ddb/ You need to have protocols in place and systems in order to find someone GREAT for your team and it starts with your reputation. That’s step one in the system, what are your employees and ex-employees saying about you? Your reputation is where it starts for easing the workflow of hiring. The second step in your system is to make sure that the people on your team k...
The Forgotten Patients
January 12, 2023 01:26 - 20 minutes - 46.7 MBDid you know January is one of the best months to reactivate patients? Think about the retention rate and see what’s the percentage of patients you're retaining. The problem is practices are always looking for new patients because the back door is always open. Some of us have two back doors open! You need to stay in touch with people and mix up the types of communication with your patients, it keeps the interest there. That’s what Sandy discusses in this episode and gives you a s...
A Solution for Chronic Absenteeism
January 04, 2023 22:07 - 22 minutes - 50.8 MBYou get a text message from a staff member that says they can’t come to work today, now what do you do? In this episode Sandy talks to us about the proper steps we need to take with handling staff members who seem to be absent or miss a lot of work days for whatever reason. We discuss how we can remedy this and how you can ensure it doesn’t spread to other employees. She also gives us a step by step process on how to start this system today!
Production Focused v.s. Patient Focused
December 29, 2022 03:35 - 21 minutes - 19.9 MBYou may have heard this or possibly, some of you listening, may even think this way: “we don’t have a production goal because we are patient focused”. Knowing your income and taking care of patients are two different things. In this episode Sandy gives us the exact formula you need to boost your production. She also lets us know how patient care is woven into this. There is a way to reach production goals without the patient feeling like you are upselling or pushing treatment on them ...
Ask Sandy Anything!
December 22, 2022 01:31 - 33 minutes - 31 MBIn this episode we dive into our Facebook group: Dental Gumbo and answer questions you have asked Sandy in the recent weeks. Sandy answers and discusses these 3 main questions: How early to confirm appointments? How do you deal with assistants or hygienists not showing up for work (slightest cold)? How to present 3rd party financing as an option and favorite company?
The 10 Key Elements for 2023
December 14, 2022 22:22 - 24 minutes - 22.3 MBLately in the last week or two people are thinking ahead and what they’ll do differently in 2023. And we love it! In this episode Sandy gives us 10 key principles we MUST upgrade or improve within our practice! They are: Low retention rate. Too many broken appointments. Bonus systems that don’t work. Poor Recare systems. High accounts receivable balance. Low treatment acceptance. No marketing or poor marketing. Phones!! Too many people are falling into the “practice...
How You Can Go Broke Saving Money?
November 30, 2022 17:28 - 31 minutes - 28.7 MBMost dentists and especially practice owners, watch their money, and the decisions they make to KEEP money is causing missed opportunities and keeping the income down. Now, saving money is not a bad thing, that’s not what we are discussing here. We are talking about how often we step over dollars to pick up pennies. In this episode Sandy gives us about 7 main reasons on where we stumble and mess up. These 7 reasons/ mistakes are causing an illusion that we are saving money, when in rea...
What Exactly is Covered, Taught, & Given Away at a Scheduling Academy
November 22, 2022 16:45 - 24 minutes - 22.6 MBIf you ever wanted to be a fly on the wall in Sandy’s Scheduling Academy, this is it!
Stop the Surcharges for Credit Cards!
November 10, 2022 01:18 - 14 minutes - 13.2 MBShould you add 3-4% on the dental bill if people are going to use credit cards? The quick answer is “NO”! This can easily make your patient lose trust in you. Remember people don’t carry cash or checks as much anymore. More and more people are using credit cards. When you add the 3-4% on the patients bill, this is working against your internal marketing! In this episode Sandy breaks down for us what we should do if our terminal/ credit card charges come with a fee and how we should pre...
Do you have an Office Manager or Front Office Employee?
November 03, 2022 21:22 - 30 minutes - 28.1 MBDid you know if your team is less than 10 employees, you more than likely should NOT have an office manager! Some practice owners put someone who has some dental experience in the front and name them an office manager. That is not the right thing to do. In this episode Sandy breaks down the real responsibilities of an Office Manager and when is it time to bring one on. We also discuss how promoting or having someone considered an “office manager” can actually cause more harm than good...
Why Do Patients Leave!?
October 26, 2022 23:31 - 20 minutes - 18.5 MBThere’s a shocking statistic that Sandy mentions in this episode which is: 1.6 million people are changing dentists and 25%-50% patients are lost over a 5 year period. This means we MUST work on our attrition, retaining these patients! In this episode Sandy tells us the 3 main reasons why we lose patients and how we can stop making these major mistakes. She also gives us a system on what our team should do to make sure our attrition rate is good. We also discuss and talk about scripts...
How to Drastically Improve Your Performance Reviews
October 19, 2022 08:31 - 19 minutes - 18.2 MBYou know what? You shouldn’t even call them “performance reviews” anymore! In this episode Sandy lets us know exactly what we should do with the “one on one” meetings we have with our team members. Meeting one on one with team members is always a good thing. Sandy tells us how we should call them a “one on one” and bring the employee’s: Attendance record Statistics Ask them “how do you think it’s going”? Involve the whole team She breaks each one of these things down and di...
Handling “Inter-Office Wars” PART 2
October 12, 2022 17:54 - 17 minutes - 16.4 MBIf you haven’t heard “How to Handle “Inter-Office wars” which was the episode before this one, please go do so! It got so much feedback! Because of all the questions we received, Sandy decided to answer those questions and do a part two! The 2 most popular things that people contacted Sandy after the previous episode was: What to do if you are new to the office and you witness “inter-office wars”/ what do you do if you are a team member watching on the sidelines “inter-office war” happeni...
How to Handle “Inter-Office Wars”
October 05, 2022 15:10 - 23 minutes - 21.6 MBAre you experiencing gossip, negativity, conflicts between your team, dishonesty, and employees always shifting the blame to other employees? This episode will help! 20% of all workers are unhappy with their jobs! This means that 80% are trying to get along with their workers and the other 20% are sabotaging that relationship! A lot of this dissatisfaction doesn’t have to do with the job itself, but it’s with the worker’s attitudes. One thing Sandy has observed over the decades...
The Ultimate Goal of a Practice Management Consultant
September 29, 2022 03:36 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MBNowadays there are lots of consultants out there. Specific consultants and consultants who try to cover everything under the sun. However, what is the ultimate goal of a consultant? In this episode Sandy gives us insight on this and what we MUST look out for, when it comes to bringing on a consultant. Sandy tells us what questions we should ask before hiring the consultant, what their goal should be, how much productions should be going up, how the team should feel, what road-bumps the...
Quiet Quitting: How to Identify & Deal With It
September 22, 2022 03:06 - 21 minutes - 20 MB“Quiet quitting” is nothing new, it just has a name now. According to a recent study: “Quiet Quitters” make up 50% of the US workforce! 32% are disengaged employees and 18% are the type of employees that go on social media and trash talk or display how they hate their employer. Why does “quiet quitting'' happen? In this episode Sandy lets us know how we can identify these "quiet quitters" and what you should look for before it’s too late. These types of employees will kill your product...
When is an Appointment Confirmed?
September 15, 2022 15:24 - 18 minutes - 17.4 MBConfirming appointments is one of the most important things that a scheduler does every single day. Confirming, when done the right way, assures the schedule will stay intact. In this episode Sandy breaks down the mistakes we tend to make when we “think” we have confirmed an appointment but in reality, we have not. A lot of the time we tend to send a text or reminder, but the reality is this is doing nothing most of the time. Listen in as we discuss the proper systems and proto...
Take Your New Patient Calls to Another Level!
September 08, 2022 01:20 - 39 minutes - 36.2 MBSandy was doing a mystery call for a practice and noticed a major issue… the practice didn’t answer her phone call… that’s how this episode came up! There’s two main things we need to do if we want more new patients in our office. Make sure there are absolutely NO barriers blocking the new patient from reaching you over the phone. Make sure you take away every single barrier that’s stopping the new patient from walking through your door! In this episode Sandy tells us ways ...
5 Steps to Improve Employee Attendance
September 01, 2022 00:30 - 30 minutes - 28.3 MBYou know that one person who's always missing days, calling in, or maybe they save up time off and leave for a long time. Welp, there’s procedures and systems to prevent that and actually improve all of your employees' attendance! In this episode Sandy gives us 5 major steps that will improve attendance and help motivate employees to not miss a day! Sit down with your team and talk about your core values. Create an attendance policy. Track when people miss work. Address thes...
10 Actions That'll Skyrocket Your Treatment Acceptance
August 25, 2022 19:15 - 31 minutes - 30.1 MBTreatment planning starts much earlier than you expect. If you want your treatment acceptance percentage to increase you first have to know what to look for and then implement these specific actions to see results. Sandy gives us the 10 bulletproof actions steps that will increase your treatment acceptance. One of the first steps is making sure you’re on top of your “Public Relations”. This is something that won’t get you instant results at the beginning but it is something that every ...
The 5 Productivity Killers in Your Practice & How to Prevent Them
August 18, 2022 02:58 - 31 minutes - 29.3 MBThere's nothing worse than seeing the schedule full the day before, or even the week before, then… once the productive day arrives… the schedule starts falling apart. Why is this happening?! Could it have been prevented?! What is killing this productive day!? A lot of us are unaware of how much productivity is being killed in the practice. Some of us are so used to these killers that we see it as a “norm” when it occurs. Anything that kills your productivity is NOT normal! In this epis...
How to Do a Soft Credit Pull on an Applicant or Patient
August 10, 2022 23:30 - 26 minutes - 25.2 MBWhen you're listening to this episode we want you to think about your accounts receivable balance. We want you to think about how many patients have accepted treatment, have received treatment, maybe only paid a portion of the whole treatment cost or not even a penny... and never came back. This means the patient has committed premeditated fraud. How did this happen? Why does this continue to happen? How could we prevent this? Sandy gives us a formula so you can have predictability with ...
5 Action Steps to Avoid "Sucktember"
August 03, 2022 21:56 - 23 minutes - 22.5 MBSeptember has been widely known in dentistry as “Sucktember”. Everything seems to slow down, no shows are high, production is low, and the schedule seems to fall apart insanely fast. In fact, some of you even decide to take September off! DON’T! In this episode Sandy breaks down the reason why we had a horrible September and how we can prevent “Sucktember '' from happening by doing these 5 steps today! The sooner you do it the better, and not only will this prevent your production from slo...
Why are "No-Shows' & Last Minute Cancellations Happening to You
July 28, 2022 21:54 - 28 minutes - 27.3 MBKey takeaways from this episode: 1. What do patients that "no-show" have in common. 2. Every practice needs an "appointment wrap up" process. 3. What to ask a patient in regards to following up with them. 4. What's the best script for confirmation calls. 5. What to do when presenting treatment plans to ensure a second visit.
3 Systems That Open The Door to Fraud & How to Prevent It
July 21, 2022 23:31 - 23 minutes - 22.6 MBWe know how convenient it is to have your employee order supplies for you, deal with credit checks, and even order things on Amazon for you and handle any returns… but you need to be more aware of it. Why? Well, Sandy received a call about a situation the other day. And this isn’t the first instance an office has called her to see how they should handle it. This is common. The Office Manager had been using the practice’s Amazon account to make purchases for her own birthday party, Christ...
Why Patients Don’t Pay & How to Handle It!
July 13, 2022 17:53 - 21 minutes - 20.6 MBWhen it comes down to it, there's basically two reasons why patients don’t pay: the first is dishonest patients, and Sandy gives us a breakdown on how to stop these type of patients to save us any headaches. The second, and probably most important reason is: patients can get mad or upset with a situation. Your team can make patients mad or the patients can misunderstand and perceive something wrong. Patients who are mad or upset won’t pay. And when you initiate the collection procedure aga...
How to Elevate Your Customer Service with These 10 Tips
July 07, 2022 03:10 - 24 minutes - 23.4 MBOverall, when it comes to excelling at customer service, we need to build more and better relationships with our patients. Remember that our patients have a choice, they can either choose to continue to come to you, or move on at any moment. They can get their teeth cleaned and get turned off so fast or be highly impressed to the point they want to bring everyone they know to you. That’s the difference between average and exceptional customer service. In this episode Sandy tells us 10 str...
The "Recipes" Every Practice Needs to Have Before They Open Their Doors
June 29, 2022 19:43 - 34 minutes - 32.5 MBIf you’ve followed a recipe before, then you’ve followed a system. In this episode Sandy gives you the recipes to make sure you have a successful practice BEFORE you open your doors to the public. There are about 42 systems every single practice needs to have in place and Sandy discusses and dives deeper into each of them. Now just having these systems is not enough, Sandy discusses how being consistent with them is crucial for success. Consistent action gives you predictability. These are...