We’ve Got Spit. We’ve Got Class…

Posted on November 24, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

FL-vs-NY…New York dentists kick Florida ass!

Or so it would seem, if you look at this ad.  My hygienist clipped this from the newspaper over the weekend and brought it in.  See the full ad below (after the jump).

The headline and pitch is a bit tortured and self-contradictory, if you consider that the dentist running the ad is, in fact, a “Florida Dentist.”  He’s located in Florida.  But, hey… at least he is “New York Trained.” 

I’ll make a brand new start of it… in ol’ south Florida

Well, Sparky… I’ve got news for ya.   A LOT of dentists in Florida were trained in New York.  They say southeast Florida is the “sixth borough” of New York City.  I suspect most of the dentists in Florida were trained out-of-state.  Not that it matters.  Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Marketing, What Happened Today | Tagged | 10 Comments

You Lost Me at Hello. Red Flags.

Posted on November 17, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

With 26 years of practice under my belt, one of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned is when to NOT treat a patient.  Just ten days ago, I blogged about a very nice new patient:  You Had Me at Hello.  With a more recent patient, it was “You lost me at hello.”   Sort of.  It was really at “good bye.”

As a group, dentists tend to take on all comers.  We want to treat everyone… probably for a couple of reasons.  First, many of us want everyone to like us.  Everyone should like me, right?  Just ask my mom!  Who wouldn’t like you?  Well, as we get older, we learn not everyone will like us.  Even better, as we get older, we learn not to care that not everyone will like us.

Secondly, I submit that most dentists will take on all comers, because he or she simply wants the income.  If we’re honest, we are all driven by the desire to make money.  Nothing wrong with that….  Who works for free?  But, when that desire supersedes all other factors, we can get into trouble.

Listen to that little voice!

I’ve only been “sued” once.  It never went to court.  It was settled by my insurance company.  The dental issue isn’t really relevant (though it was minor).  What IS relevant is that I KNEW I shouldn’t have treated the patient.  I KNEW IT!  I actually dismissed her before beginning treatment because of the red flags she was waving in my face.  She had already written a (big) check for the treatment plan in full, and I sent it back to her.  But, then she came back, crying and begging me to treat her.  She went on about how I was “the best,” and that she only wanted ME to treat her.  And, I caved.  Big mistake.  Lesson learned.

The dissatisfied patient.

A few weeks ago, I met a new patient who was in distress after her experience at a “McDentist” corporate office.  She had a 3-unit bridge prepped and temped.  The teeth were hurting her and her jaw was sore.  She wasn’t happy, and she was adamant about not going back to that office.  Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Practice Management, What Happened Today | Tagged | 9 Comments

“I’m on the beach, and my crown came out.”

Posted on November 12, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

beach-crown-I’ve said it a thousand times, if I’ve said it once.  The smartest thing I ever did, business-wise, was to create a well-optimized and well-written website.

Today, at the end of the day, we got a call at the office.  A gentleman said his front crown came out, and he’s at the beach.  He’s visiting from upstate New York.  We told him to come on in!

I can chew for miles and miles…

Once he got here, we learned that he drove TWENTY-TWO miles (about 30 minutes).  He passed dozens and dozens of dental offices between the beach and my office.  Right there on the beach, he used Google to find a dentist.  My practice came up in the search results, and he visited my mobile website.  And, he made the call.  Bear in mind that Google Search favors “local results.”  I’m far (literally) from being the most “local” to that beach.  Yet, my website came up at the top of his search.

He really did come straight from the beach! Sand on the base of the chair (left) and at the foot of the chair (right).

He really did come straight from the beach!  That’s sand on the base of the chair (left) and at the foot of the chair (right).

Write your website copy like you speak… Friendly!

I always try to ask patients what they used as search terms or if they visited other sites.  In other words, Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Websites, What Happened Today | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

You Had Me at Hello.

Posted on October 31, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

had-me-at-hello-7131Today a new patient came in for an exam.  He is a 50 year old who hasn’t been to a dentist in about 15 years.  He is embarrassed by multiple missing and broken teeth… some right up front.  Some are starting to hurt.  He told me that he keeps conversations short so that people won’t notice his broken and decayed teeth.  He was visibly upset just talking about it with me.

had-me-at-hello-

Access to Care?

He works in a town that is 45 minutes away from my office.  He lives in a city that is 20 minutes away.  There are several hundred dentists in the county.  I’d bet he drove past at least several dozen dentists on his way to my office.  He found my practice website with a Google search.  By the way, he works as a computer network administrator.

had-me-at-hello--2

I had to ask how he found us and why he picked us.  Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Marketing, Websites, What Happened Today | Tagged , , , | 12 Comments

I Never Use Retraction Cord

Posted on October 15, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

Except when I do…

ultrapak-singleI rarely use retraction cord for crown preps, as I try to keep my margins equigingival or supragingival.  If I need retraction, I’ll usually reach for my Picasso Lite diode laser first.  Or, I may use the H&H impression technique (which drives impression material subgingivally without any retraction).

But, there’s one situation that I almost always use retraction cord:  Cervical composites.

Why?  First, if you’re using magnification and a headlight, you’ll be amazed at the very visible flow of crevicular fluid.  You blast it away with the air syringe, and it immediately starts welling up again.  That spells inevitable contamination of the bonded composite at the gingival margin, which can lead to early failure.  Well-placed retraction cord is an effective dam against the crevicular tsunami.

Secondly, the retraction cord affords good visualization of the restorative margin during the prep, during the placement of the composite, and while finishing.  Keep reading and see the case presentation below.  Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014-2020 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Case Presentation, Clinical Technique, Dental Product Reviews, Tips & Tricks | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Is It Safe? Yes. The Dental Warrior Is Safe.

Posted on October 15, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

is-it-safeMy blog got hacked (despite some pretty heavy-duty security measures).

But, it’s fixed now.  Hooray!

To my fellow bloggers and website owners, I can recommend the service provided by Sucuri to clean and protect your site from malware.

http://sucuri.net/

Now, back to our regularly scheduled program….

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2020 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Dental Warrior Announcements | Leave a comment

The Dental Warrior (mobile) Has Been Hacked!

Posted on October 14, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

Fair warning, and my apologies… My blog has been hacked such that if you access it with a mobile device, you will be redirected to a porn app.

I’ve got people working on it at this time.  I hope to have it resolved soon.

Please stand by.  Thanks!

FIXED!

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2020 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Dental Warrior Announcements | Leave a comment

Website + Email + Remote Login = New Patient

Posted on October 11, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

appointment-request-2I’ve had a website for my practice since 1999.  Several years ago, I added an Appointment Request Form that is forwarded to me by email.  And, for many years, when I got such a request over the weekend, there wasn’t much I could do other than send a reply letting them know we’d call them first thing on Monday to set it up.

Back in June, I replaced my very old computer at the front desk and switched to a new PMS (practice management software).  I also connected the new computer to the internet (there was no reason to do so before with the old PMS).  And, I subscribed to “Logmein,” a service that allows me to connect to the office computer remotely.

Today, I got an appointment request.  Here it is:

appointment-request

Added arrows to indicate key information.

Here are the emails that followed (in order): Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Marketing, Practice Management, What Happened Today | Tagged , | 9 Comments

Spelling & Grammar Count!

Posted on October 5, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

Or do they?  Should they?

Increasingly, I’ve noticed poor spelling, grammar, and syntax in the media.  I see it in print and on TV.  While I suspect many don’t think it matters, and many don’t see it (because of their own deficits), it bugs me.  I believe it is symptomatic of the “dumbing down of America.”  Sadly, I’m also seeing it in dental marketing pieces.

You’re JOURNALISTS, for gosh sake!

The stock and trade of the news media is the English language (here in the U.S.).  And, they get it wrong far too often.

I pulled all of these off my own TV, watching at home.

Are the security officers going to dress provocatively and prance about the campus?

Are the security officers going to dress provocatively and prance about the campus?

Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Marketing, What Happened Today | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Insurance Salesman: “Dental Plans Are Crap”

Posted on September 12, 2014 by The Dental Warrior

I wish I could have recorded the conversation I had with a patient’s husband yesterday.

Sometimes they leave.   Sometimes they come back.

boomerangThis was a new patient… sort of.  She first came to me about 3 years ago.  We did an initial exam and noted multiple (10 – 12) carious lesions.  She saw my hygienist twice and then disappeared.  Earlier this week, I got an email from her (through my website) saying that several teeth had broken and she’d like to come back.  I promptly replied to her email and passed it on to my office manager who contacted her to make an appointment.

During her visit yesterday, we took a new FMX and did a comprehensive examination.  Remarkably, her hygiene had improved quite a bit.  All the decay was still there (go figure), and two teeth had progressed to the point of needing endo and crown restorations (or extractions).

This patient was pretty nervous, so she came in with her husband.  It turns out she was nervous that I would be “judgmental” of her.  I easily put that fear to rest.  Her husband sat in the room with us as I reviewed my findings.  We chatted a bit back and forth, and the discussion turned to costs.  I mentioned that we have an in-house dental savings plan called Quality Dental Plan (QDP).  Hubby says, “Yep… I already signed up with Jo-Ann (my office manager) while you were doing the exam.”

It IS better than dental “insurance!”

QDP Brand LogoI extolled the virtues of QDP and how it’s better than so-called “dental insurance.”  Hubby then informs me that he sells insurance!   He went on to say, “Dental insurance plans are crap!  I sell them.  But, they are crap.  People think they HAVE to have a dental plan, so I sell them.”  He also mentioned Continue reading →

Digiprove sealCopyright protected by Digiprove © 2014 The Dental Warrior®
Posted in Practice Management, What Happened Today | Tagged , , | 3 Comments