Dos and don'ts for referral marketing

Are you getting enough referrals from patients?

When current patients are satisfied with the care and service their dental practice provides, they would probably be comfortable recommending it to others. The question is, are enough of your patients actually doing this? Practices that rely on referral marketing strategies taught by Levin Group are able to generate at least one referral per year from 40% to 60% of their active patient base. If you're not reaching this level, you have tremendous growth potential just waiting to be tapped.

Launch a patient referral marketing plan. Come up with several strategies for getting new patient referrals from existing patients. From simply asking to posting "We Welcome new patients!" signs and to offering incentives, there are many proven techniques for motivating patients to mention your practice to family members, friends, coworkers, neighbors, and others.

Don't forget to thank patients for referrals. When new patients first contact your practice, find out how they heard about you and note the names of patients who gave referrals. Send a thank-you message right away -- and when referrers are coming in for their next appointment, alert staff at the daily business meeting so all team members can express their thanks. The result will be even more referrals.

Roger P. Levin, DDS, is the founder and CEO of Levin Group, the leading dental practice consulting firm in North America. For the complete list of dates and locations where you can attend his latest seminar, visit www.levingroup.com/gpseminars.

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