As I’ve written before, now that we’re through 2023, it’s clear to see it was an even tougher year than we realised at the time. But for businesses, 2024 is heralding the growth of green shoots. The market is becoming healthier, even if it isn’t the same as it previously was. Now, customers are more financially restricted and as a result, more discerning.

This doesn’t mean that people aren’t buying, but that they’re being more fickle about what they buy. So, how can you help show that patients should be choosing your practice over others? Or even that they should prioritise elective treatment over the family holiday? It all comes down to the customer experience – or for dental practices, the patient journey.

Starting strong

Before you do anything, it’s vital to establish your brand position. Brand is far more than a marketing watchword; it’s the true foundation of everything that you do. To adequately “sell” your practice to potential patients, you first need to know what you’re selling. This includes what you stand for, who you do and don’t serve (your demographic), and ultimately, your purpose. This is your mission, or your reason to exist: why you do what you do (for more, I heartily recommend dipping into the insights of Simon Sinek).

Following this, you can begin looking at your overall patient journey. Sales can sometimes feel like a shadowy realm, but it needn’t. In fact, to understand the patient journey far better, we only need to track a few things every month. Because we believe that this patient journey is so important, we at Hive have worked hard to develop a direct and definitive framework to help: our Sales Reporting template.

This template is entirely objective but provides tangible value to both practices and their patients. Tracking just these things every month never fails to shine a light that is genuinely revelatory:

1. How many enquiries?

This doesn’t mean new patients, but all enquiries of any kind. Make a note of the number from each source, such as Google Ads, word-of-mouth recommendation, or walk-by interest.

2. What happened after this?

What happened following this enquiry? Were they uncontactable, did they turn up to a consultation, or are they still being nurtured?

3. How many agreed to a treatment plan?

From your pool of enquiries, note how many said yes to a treatment plan and the monetary value of each one.

Staying on top of things

Once you’re tracking these things, the final piece of advice I’d offer is to get your bookkeeping up to date and keep it current. For this, we always recommend Xero: it’s online and app-based, it links directly to most bank feeds, and – best of all – it’s simple and jargon-free. With this information at your fingertips, you’ll find it far easier to make decisions and seize opportunities. As a bonus, it also gives the platform to save you the most tax possible.

Admittedly, data doesn’t have much glamour and romance – so if you find it hard to get excited about, you’re probably in the majority. But you’d be surprised at what it can do; often, it’s the results we achieve that are the most exciting. By drilling down into facts, you can find solid ground to work from.

Certainly, there are other KPIs you could look at outside of this, but as a starting point, these would top our list. This is because by keeping tabs on your patient journey, you can take meaningful steps forward and channel your energies in the right direction. Data may not be the end destination but it’s the much-needed signpost. The practice that wins in 2024 will be the one that focuses on the journey.

If you’d like to find out more about using Hive’s Sales Reporting template, get in touch.