Dental A Team Podcast

Dental A Team
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This podcast is here to give dentists and all dental office team members, in EVERY position, TACTICAL and PRACTICAL TIPS to: - Be more efficient - Have more fun - Improve doctor and team communications - Eliminate frustration - And make your life easier! Jump in! We are thrilled you have decided to LEVEL UP and be part of the DENTAL A TEAM! New episodes every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

  1. 2d ago

    #1,222: The 90-Day Culture Turnaround Challenge

    Did you know you can change the entire culture of your office in three months by leaning into consistent leadership and clear standards? Kiera shares how to know what truly matters for your practice, including returning to the basics of leadership, future visualizations, and core areas to focus on. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and I am so excited for today. I am hoping some of you are going to join me. I am on a 90-day like comeback challenge. And so I thought it'd be really fun to share something that I'm doing in my company and in my life right now in hopes that it can benefit you guys because truly in 90 days we can change how our entire feel of our practice is, our business is, how we are. And this isn't like a retreat, it's not a pizza party.   It's just consistent leadership and clear standards. And I want you guys to remember that like culture is not a place where everybody gets along. Like that's not what this is. But culture is where our team experiences every day, how people communicate, how we solve problems, how we handle accountability, and honestly how we treat each other. So we're gonna go through a 90-day challenge. I'm in the middle of it. So I don't have like, this is what happened. Don't worry, we'll have a part two to this podcast of like how it's going. but I just recognize within our company and our culture.   Sometimes instead of adding more, it's the need to cut. So what have we been doing? What things should continue to maintain and sustain versus what is really necessary to get rid of? And it was interesting because I had a call out of something like, Kiera, I don't think you're having a good time anymore. And I'm like, I'm not. I'm drowning. I'm dying. I feel like everything's being piled on me. We've had a lot of crazy things happen in the company this year. So I don't feel it was a like overnight sensation. It was just the stack of a lot of little things. And   So what we did is we just all band together, right? We had somebody leave on maternity leave. Then we had a second maternity leave. And then we had some different pieces come up and we had some team turnover and some team additions, like normal day in, day out of business, right? but what we noticed is we just kept going. We kept operating as full steam ahead. So it was like, all right, this person's out. Britt, you're gonna take this, Kiera's gonna take this, Tiff, you're gonna take this, Dana, you're gonna take this. And it was dispersing of tasks. Well, then what happened is everybody kind of felt like they were.   Just like piecemeal together. I've said many times in our company it's felt like Willy Wonka. And I'm like, I only have half a person for this, I got half a person for that. Like it just has felt a little messy. And so when we work with this, it's a space where then communication starts to break down, culture feels heavy, like the owner doesn't know if they want to be here or if they don't want to be here. and you've got to change leadership first. So it was a couple of days ago, and I was like, all right, that's it.   I am setting up a 90-day comeback challenge where we are going to love where we work. I'm going to love where I work again. And I have been the like yes girl saying yes to so many things in the company, thinking I'm helping our team out. Well, what I realized is I'm not being buried. I'm running lead consultant. I'm running sales operations. I'm running the marketing. I'm running podcasts. I'm running, I got a pretty large client load. and in saying all the yeses, and it's cra fascinating because I have a bracelet that says no on it. And I I failed to say no.   But again, we're doing it out of like necessity, right? Like these things come up. You can't like maternity lease going to happen. People are going to be out. People are going to get sick. People are going to turn over. But what we don't have to do is keep running at the same speed. And so what I started doing is I'm like, all right, I feel like there's that that corny analogy of the gardener. And what does the gardener do? They need to go out and they need to prune. And my husband and I were   Working the other day in the yard and I was it was just a day and I took the pruning shears and man, my husband said, like, I he felt sorry for that bush. Like I just whacked that thing down to nothing. I was out there just chopping away. I had my music blaring. And I realized that sometimes we need to cut in our companies as opposed to continue to add. I think a lot of times on the podcast, like, well, let's implement this system, let's implement that. But today I really wanted to talk about like what do you cut and how do you cut? So number one, I had to get my mindset right. So   Things that are non-negotiable for me are working out. Like I gotta work out because I gotta exhaust the body, tame the mind, as Dan Martell says. Like we gotta make sure that this pent of energy gets out somewhere. So I know I'm a better boss when I'm going to work out. So that's my first box that goes in. I am getting back on track with those things that I know are going to protect me. So phone goes on silent at 5:30. I don't answer any more text slacks or emails. That's out because I got to create some mental space for me that I have some shutoff time.   Sleeping eight hours every single night. So we're working on sleep hygiene and making sure that I'm eating and getting the like physical exercise. Like that was part of my reset. Was I was like, I gotta get back to human basics. I've been running for a long time on this. So check yourself. Are you as a CEO putting your oxygen mask on first? Are you having that? Number two is gratitude bookends. I realized like   I can sit here and complain a lot about things, right? When things are just chaotic and mayhem, it's easy to be like, my gosh, our schedule's not full. my gosh, this person, this, my gosh, this. but what we what we say and what we focus on, we create more of. And I realize like, I don't want create more of this. So I need to bookend gratitude. Like I'm okay to have issues, but I can say like, my day is outstanding. We have this issue, and I'm super grateful for an awesome team.   so that way what I'm starting with and what I'm ending with are always positive. And again, I'm a few days into this, I'm about two weeks into this, and I've noticed it's just forcing me to spin for like what am I grateful for? I have a bracelet on today that says find the joy, and another one that says grateful. And so, how can I be more grateful, even going through the quote unquote suck of success? How do we maintain that gratitude space? Number three, meditation every morning, money and journaling, mindfulness.   So every single morning I started it. If you guys want to join me, I do Joe Dispenza as a meditation. I've done a lot of different meditations over the years. I really have loved Joe Dispenza. I went to one of his courses. I've just found that it helps me like laser focus in on the life that I want to achieve. What are things that I don't want to be doing right now, and how do I actually maintain that for myself? So every single morning I throw on a 15-minute meditation, literally the second I wake up, it's a visualization, it's a creation of what's the life in the business and the company that we want to create.   I really believe it's it's easier to get above the clouds and to think about this. So it's like perfect, we want to have this, we want to have this. And that way I'm priming my mind, I'm priming what I'm looking for. I'm turning on that reticulated activator. Like, let's go look for these items in my world. Like, if I keep saying, my gosh, team's turning over, my gosh, we're stressed with this, my gosh, we're cash flow low, like we're not. But if I say that I'm going to create that, so I don't want to create that. So be really careful with the words we're saying as well to ensure.   We're creating the life and the practice that we want to have. After that, I go through a journal. I have it. I threw it on my nightstand, so I can't pull it on the podcast and show you. I like these adorable little notebooks. I think that they're really pretty, and I like to write in pretty notebooks. So I have a notebook, it's the same one I write in it every day. And today, like I literally have written like we're on day six of our 90-day comeback challenge. I'm on day seven of my 90-day comeback challenge, and I'm going to be consistent with it because I believe consistency, focusing, and forcing myself into a 90-day comeback challenge.   Like I like a good challenge and I like to stay consistent with it. And I know it was great. I started on the first of the month. So it's helpful for me to know what day I'm on. But hey, you don't need to do that. Let's just start today. Let's get into our 90-day comeback challenge. And it can be for your physical weight, it could be for a relationship at home. It could be of your company and team. It could be on building the next level. I don't think that I've done a quote unquote cut reset in a really long time. And so for me, it's like great. What are the simple things? And let's boil it down.   the four core basics of the company. So for me, it is our profit margins. It's our like case acceptance would be an equivalent for you guys. And then it would be on like our like new patient bringing them in if you want. and then like whatever it is for you, like those are kind of the core four of our company. Like what are the core four true functions for you guys and your practices? I'd say it's your production and your collections percentages, which is going to tie to your overhead if we keep that in a solid space. I track your case acceptance, your new patients and your hygiene productio

  2. 3d ago

    #1,221: Private Buyer vs. DSO: What Can Go Right (and What Can Go Wrong)

    Part two of Kiera's conversation with Brannon Moncrief, principal and CEO of McLerran and Associates, is about common misconceptions with private buyers and DSOs. These include which tends to have more patient and/or staff turnover, types of equity that matter more than others, when deals tend to go south, and a ton more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:23) Can you walk me through private buyer versus DSO? Like what is the dark? What's in the shadows? What are like the horror stories? And I don't want to freak people out. I feel like it's just a good way to educate of like what things can go wrong instead of just looking for all the things that can go right. And then we're able to make the most educated decisions.   Brannon Moncrief (00:39) absolutely. So let's talk about private buyer deals first. So couple of things that we see in the private buyer world. One, I think a lot of sellers are under the misconception that selling to a private buyer means protecting their legacy and less change for their practice post sale compared to selling to a DSO. I would tell you that as long as you're selling to a good DSO.   And there are good and bad players out there, no doubt. We'll talk about that in just a minute. As long as you're selling to a good DSO that is in the business of buying great practices, partnering with great clinicians, and wanting to just perpetuate what you've built, more change will actually occur in your practice post sale with a private buyer than a DSO. And the reason being is that a private buyer is going to show up every day. They have bought 100%   Kiera (01:30) For sure.   Brannon Moncrief (01:31) of your business. They're going to physically show up to your practice every day.   They're likely from a different generation. They were trained differently. And they will have different ideas and different motivations clinically and personally, professionally, financially, about where they want to take the business. Therefore, you're going to see more change faster when you sell to a private buyer than selling to a DSO. And because they physically show up to your office every day, they have a different personality than you. You have these long-term relationships with your staff and patients. They might not click.   Kiera (02:05) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (02:05) So you might see   more patient turnover, you might see more staff turnover with a private buyer than a DSO. A DSO is not gonna plant somebody in your office that's going to, you know, wear the DSO cap all day and transform your business into something that it's not. They're gonna rely on you to continue doing what you do well and then outsource all the administrative and operational tasks that you're not ultimately good at to them.   And behind the veil, they'll help make your business operate more smoothly and more profitably. So I think that's a big misconception that, if I sell to a DSO, they're gonna destroy my legacy, they're gonna change my practice. If I sell to a private buyer, that's the perpetuation of of what I've built over the past 30 years. That is not necessarily the case. from a private buyer, you know, perspective, I think dealing with associate to purchase and partnerships.   It is a big thing to talk about. The partnership failure rate is extremely high. It's higher than the divorce rate. Partnerships   Kiera (03:07) Mm-hmm. Yes.   Brannon Moncrief (03:09) are very easy to get into and very hard to get out of. So you need to make damn sure that you're ready to get married to somebody from a professional perspective and have an ironclad partnership agreement   Kiera (03:24) Anyway.   Brannon Moncrief (03:24) where you address everything that could go wrong on a go-forward basis because   Kiera (03:28) Yep.   Brannon Moncrief (03:30) there is a high probability.   That there are going to be, whether it's life events or disagreements within the business, that you're gonna have to get through. And if you don't have   Kiera (03:38) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (03:39) the right partner, communication is going to break down and the business is going to suffer, you know, as a result. We've also seen a lot of situations where an associate will join the practice with the intent of eventually becoming the successor and the owner, but the associate and the seller don't work out the details on the front end. And oftentimes when   They're ready to consummate the transaction. They have very different ideas about what the business is worth or how the deal is going to be structured. Sometimes the timing doesn't align. You know, sellers said that they were going to sell the practice in two years. Two years comes around   Kiera (04:14) Okay.   Brannon Moncrief (04:14) and they're like, you know what? Life's pretty good. You know, I'm only working two days a   Kiera (04:17) Yeah.   Brannon Moncrief (04:18) week now. I'm playing a lot of golf. You're working your ass off. You know, I'd like to wait another two years. And you're going to continue, you know, supplementing my production and helping create this lifestyle practice for me.   And then the associate's got to go, crap, do I wait two more years or do I bounce and try to find another opportunity? Or vice versa, where seller said,   Kiera (04:39) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (04:39) Hey, I want to be ready to sell in two years, you get there and you know, associate just started a family, right? Or decided they don't want to pursue   Kiera (04:46) Yeah.   Brannon Moncrief (04:47) practice ownership. And now seller's going, do I wait for this person to mature and turn into my successor? Or do I need to start over with somebody   Kiera (04:57) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (04:58) else? So if you're gonna go down that path.   My advice is to have those conversations on the front end and establish the rules of the game   Kiera (05:05) Great.   Brannon Moncrief (05:06) and do it in a formal framework in writing.   Kiera (05:09) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (05:10) don't wait until the day you're ready to sell to sit down and have serious discussions about when that's going to happen, how it's going to be done structurally, how the practice is going to be valued. Do it on the front end. And then from a private buyer perspective, I would just say like a lot of these deals can go south post sale.   Kiera (05:31) Yeah.   Brannon Moncrief (05:31) As a   result of a breakdown in communication between buyer and seller and arguments over petty, petty stuff. Right.   Kiera (05:38) Yep. Yep.   Brannon Moncrief (05:40) And I will tell you that the number one way that buyers and sellers get sideways in a private buyer deal is over accounts receivable and credit balances. so y yeah, you you you know I'm speaking your language here.   Kiera (05:51) You're not wrong. I do.   Brannon Moncrief (05:56) Making sure that your AR and credit balances are as clean as possible when you go to sell, and   Kiera (05:58) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (06:01) ideally selling the AR to the buyer and writing them a check for the credit balances at close so that the day   Kiera (06:10) You're done.   Brannon Moncrief (06:11) after the sale, every dollar of revenue that comes in it belongs to the buyer. And there's no   Kiera (06:16) Yep.   Brannon Moncrief (06:17) weird conversations about, for instance, patient patient comes in.   Kiera (06:21) These make me laugh.   They're a mess.   Brannon Moncrief (06:24) We see these things all the time. So a patient comes in post sale, seller's no longer there, but seller did not sell the receivables. So the buyer is collecting the seller's receivables and remitting them to the seller post sale. Patient   Kiera (06:36) Yep.   Brannon Moncrief (06:38) comes in that has a previous balance with the seller, gets work done by the buyer, the new owner, writes one check at the front desk. What do you think the front office person does? They don't, they just deposit the check into the buyer's   Kiera (06:50) They deposit it. Exactly.   Brannon Moncrief (06:52) bank account.   And now the buyer has some of the seller's money sitting in their bank account and it hasn't been properly accounted for at the front desk. Eventually, especially if that happens multiple times, there's going to be a problem. And even if there was no malice, right, involved, the seller's going to get pissed off that the buyer is not abiding by their word and collecting those receivables and remitting them to them properly, even though the buyer didn't mean to.   End up with some of the sellers money in their bank account. So these are the types of things that one, if you can plan for it on the front end and make it as clean as possible, you know, in regards to how you structure the deal, how you how you navigate the agreements. But two, on the back end, just communicate and be calm and behave   Kiera (07:40) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (07:42) like normal people and do the right thing. And as long   Kiera (07:46) Yeah.   Brannon Moncrief (07:46) as everybody does that, everything's gonna be fine.   But we have seen people get in lawsuits over 300 bucks. I mean, just crazy,   Kiera (07:54) Yep.   Brannon Moncrief (07:55) crazy stuff. And unfortunately, we haven't talked about this yet. It's a very emotional process, especially doctor to doctor. For the seller, they're selling their identity. They're they're dealing with talking about their own mortality, right? And it's their baby. it's been their life's work, you know, for the past 30 years. It's not just a financially impactful.   Transaction. It's very emotionally impactful. And for the buyer, you know, they're five years

  3. 4d ago

    #1,220: Why You're Not Getting the 'Yes' From Patients Right Away

    This episode is all about dentistry as a relationship-based field—finding your patients' motivations and blending what they want with what their teeth and mouth needs. Tiff and Kristy provide tips on getting to know the human in the chair (even when you're seeing 30 to 50 patients a day), so they truly feel like their needs are being met. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are back here with you on our consultant takeover, is what I like to call it. The consultants here at Dental A Team, myself, Tiff, Tiffanie, Tiff, Spiffy Tiffy, whatever you want to call me, and at least one other consultant every single month will come to you with some actionable, implementable words of wisdom and advice, things that we've seen in offices on the road. We do virtual consulting, we do in-person.   Boots on the ground consulting, and we also do masterminds in person. Right now they are located in Phoenix, where all of our Dental A Team doctors and their mass their office managers can come mastermind together. So a lot of the things that we come to you with are from our experience. We are all experienced in the office. We've had hygiene hygiene or dental assisting, and all of us have had front office and at some point or another have managed a practice, andor some of us.   Kiera have owned practices. So we've got a vast wealth of knowledge here within our company. And then again, also we are still experienced as in we are going into offices and we're helping to innovate. So Dental A Team does it differently because we will smash all the knowledge that we're getting, all of the experience that we're getting, and create new exciting things without completely reinventing the wheel. But again, just putting it out there that we're not stale and stagnant. We are.   constantly in offices and our teams constantly talking about the things that we're doing. And today I bring with he with me to you, Miss Kristy. Kristy, you have been in dentistry for a while, same as me. We've both been in it for what feels like forever. And you did some really cool things in office. And one of my favorite things about your experience is not only like the boots on the ground experience that you have, you've been in   so many practices physically in practices as a dental consultant, but you really work on personal development and leadership as a skill set to layer on top of the dental. And I love that. I I you know I love the same kind of genre of learning. We share books   DAT- Kristy (02:11) Yeah.   Tiffanie (02:11) and podcasts all the time. but how do you I'm gonna like just ask you a little snippet how do you feel that that layering in your consulting   as you're working with team members and doctors, how does that layering help you to get them to that space of change where they're ready to implement something new?   DAT- Kristy (02:32) Yeah, I love that you say that tip because I think truly if if I had to summarize it, it's really investing in the per person, you know. while I think we love to vision our teammates or, you know, even as doctors and employers, we think they're gonna stay forever, right? And that's kind of our goal. But sometimes it's not meant to be that way. And I I truly believe that investing in the person, whether they're   staying there in that practice or moving on or heck, how many go back to school and then come back to you? So I think you know we talked about systems earlier today and there's only so many systems within a dental practice, but when you can layer in and invest in the person on top of teaching systems, it just takes it to a new level. And I I liken it to how we treat our patients, you know?   Tiffanie (03:30) Yeah.   DAT- Kristy (03:30) We can   and it ties to our conversation today, I know, but so many times we can just jump in, diagnose, treatment, plan, tell, or we can really get in relationship and figure out what patients want and create a different experience. And I think to your question, Tiff, no different than how we deal with teammates or employees,   Tiffanie (03:50) Yeah.   DAT- Kristy (03:50) investing in them for sure.   Tiffanie (03:53) Yeah, I completely agree. As you were speaking about that, I started thinking, my gosh, yeah, it is it's just that relationship, right? Like you said to the patient experience as well. And being able, I think for our consulting team in general, I think we're all a little bit more inclined towards that like personal development and leadership side. more so than many people I've met in the profession that are very like ready to go, let's just   change this thing like do and i i get that because people get excited for dentistry too and we do as well i think i i love the people aspect of it like dentistry paved my way is what i say i think it's cool i think it's awesome but it's not end all be all it's more to me it's more about the people and like you said investing back into them and i think that's something that Kristy you do really well and i know the rest of our consultants do as well   Of really investing in the human that's on the other side of the screen, or that's standing in front of us when we're in person and really letting them know and understand that we do care. Not even just I was gonna say making them think. That's not even it. Like we're not making people think anything, we're truly investing in them and letting them know that this is the right place. This is where they should be, and they love their jobs, they can love their jobs and inspiring them.   To love what they're doing and love the patients that are coming in. And then I think, Kristy, what you do is create a space of safety for them and then a space of learning. So they get to see, they get to be poured into. And the best part about pouring into someone is the idea that they're going to take that and pour into someone else. So then you're pouring into your teams and your doctors when you're working with them.   And then hoping right that now they're pouring into the patient. And to your point, what we're talking about today is patient like treatment planning and really why we're not getting the yes right away. The patients that are saying, I need to think about this. And I think Kristy, to your statement, to the point of your statement, we've got to make sure that we've poured enough into the relationship to be able to speak to.   treatment plans to issues and problems because like you know you go get your car oil done and then all of a sudden this man you've never seen before he's not even the guy who checked you in comes in he's like Kristy he's like you need and he goes down the list and you're like who are you like   DAT- Kristy (06:19) Yeah.   Tiffanie (06:19) why are you like I what are your credentials like how do you know this and and when we're so automated or busy   I fear that we might get in that same space within a dental practice.   DAT- Kristy (06:34) Yeah, I I agree one hundred percent, Tiff. And I think we do get in that space, right? We get busy and and they do come to us for our knowledge. And you know, don't get me wrong, we have a due diligence to diagnose and and treat and tell them what we see. However, I I I literally like I joke about this, but when I teach like even phone coaching and I say to people, why are they coming in for a cleaning?   They're like a cleaning. And I'm like, but what's a cleaning? Like, why are they   Tiffanie (07:05) Yeah.   DAT- Kristy (07:06) literally coming in for a cleaning? What do they it they're coming for what it gives them? N there's nobody that calls on the phone and says, Hey Tiff, will you make sure my hygienist has really sharp instruments so she can scrape my teeth? You   Tiffanie (07:20) Yeah.   DAT- Kristy (07:20) know? Like nobody says that ever. They're coming   Tiffanie (07:22) Yeah.   DAT- Kristy (07:23) for what it gives them. And if we want,   To really interact and change lives of patients and get them to say yes more often, we really have to figure out what their motivation is. And again, it ties with that diagnose treatment plan and tell them what they need. But in reality, and especially in dentistry, I think patients truly buy what they want, not always what they need, right? And the want   Tiffanie (07:50) yes.   DAT- Kristy (07:51) usually has an emotional side to it.   Tiffanie (07:54) Yeah, that's so funny. Yesterday I went to Target. I went Target's dangerous.   DAT- Kristy (08:02) Ha ha ha.   Tiffanie (08:03) I went to Target. So my fiance Aaron and my son Brodie, they decided to it was   I said it looks nice outside. Apparently it was still very hot. But I told them maybe you guys should go, you know, to the driving range and hit some balls. I've been waiting months to be able to go golfing, right? So I'm like, why don't you guys go hit some balls? I'll run to the store. I had to get everything, groceries and stuff. I said I'll do the pickup and I gotta run to Target for a couple of things. So I go to Target with the littles, right? So I've got a 13-year-old boy, 10-year-old girl, and I'm like Roman Target, you know, and I'm just taking my time. And I said, gosh, you know, sometimes Target just   Target needs to tell you what you need. You don't always know what you need going into Target,   DAT- Kristy (08:43) Yeah.   Tiffanie (08:43) right? And I'm like, doo-doo doo. And then later that evening, one of the boys, one of the one of the older boys, said something about, I can't remember, something about the my Target experience, right? I think Brodie, Brodie's like unpacking Target, right? And he pulls out this like loaf pan and he's like, What what what is you went to Target for this? And I was like, well.   I d

  4. Oct 22

    #1,219: How to Make Your Practice a Viable Asset For Your Eventual Exit

    Kiera is joined by Brannon Moncrief, principal and CEO of McLerran and Associates and expert on dental practice sales and DSO affiliates. The two talk about running your practice with a mindset to sell (maybe not today or tomorrow, but eventually). That means thinking about your business as it is and preparing it for a private buyer or DSO or associate transition; "keeping your foot on the gas" when it comes to finances; knowing what those sale numbers can look like depending on how successful your practice is; and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I have one of my favorite people in the industry on the podcast today. He and I have podcasted multiple times. I just think he's a wealth of knowledge. And today I'm really excited because I think that the landscape of what to do with our practices, whether I have a private buy, whether I have an associate legacy transition, whether I go to a DSO, like what do I do? And how do I make my practice like a viable asset as opposed to just a job for me for the rest of time?   I feel like Brannon Moncrief is one of the best of the best in the industry to answer these questions. He and I chat shop often and he is a wealth of knowledge for me. So Brannon, welcome to the podcast today. How are you?   Brannon Moncrief (00:38) Thanks for having me. Appreciate the kind words.   Kiera (00:41) Of course. you and I were just chatting. I think you and I have talked like, what, this is our third time in less than a week. So it's kind of fun to have this in a a real podcast setting. but Brannon, for those who don't know you and don't know about your business and what you do, just give the listeners a little bit of background of who Brannon Moncroep is, and then we're gonna dive into how people can valuate their practices and kind of like what do I do in this choose your own adventure landscape that they're living in.   Brannon Moncrief (01:05) Appreciate that. I am the principal and CEO of McLaren and Associates. And I've spent pretty much my entire professional career on the business side of dentistry, about 25 years now. I can't believe it's already been that long. I I wish. I wish. That's the filter on my camera.   Kiera (01:17) It's okay. You're not a day over 25, Brannon. You just started this from a baby. it's a nice one.   Brannon Moncrief (01:27) thank you. So I spent the first 10 or so years of my career as a dental lender, lending money to dentists all across the country to   Buy and start practices. And then I purchased McLaren 15 years ago. The legacy business that I acquired was a small mom and pop practice brokerage firm focused on traditional practice sales, doctor-to-doctor, practice transitions, specifically in Texas. Scaled that business significantly over the past five, six years, expanded it nationwide. So now we have offices all across the country handling doctor-to-doctor deals.   In general dentistry and across all different dental specialties. And then a lot of your audience has probably seen me on different podcasts, webinars talking about DSO affiliations. We got heavily involved in the DSO and private equity space about seven years ago, really out of necessity. We were watching a lot of doctors that we thought would engage us to sell their business to another clinician choose to go down the DSO path for one reason or the other.   And we knew that private equity was likely here to stay and gonna consolidate our industry rapidly. So we evolved. We built out a team, built out a process to provide cell set advisory to large practice owners who, for one reason or the other, are gonna choose to affiliate with a DSO or private equity as opposed to sell in a traditional sense to another doctor. So we've done about 250 DSO affiliations across the country, general dentistry and all dental specialties.   And   then we've been involved in about 1500 private practice sales. So have really seen everything that can go right and wrong in monetizing your business. But I look at my job first and foremost to educate doctors regarding what is your business worth, private buyer versus DSO? What are the pros and cons? What are the nuances of each of those options? Get you educated, and then you get to choose your own adventure from there. And we help you execute. We help you take the practice to market and monetize it.   at the highest possible outcome and also ensure that we find the right fit for your practice, the right buyer to protect your legacy.   Kiera (03:33) No, Brannon, I think that you guys do so much in the industry and you've helped the industry. And I've learned a lot working with you, working with several of our clients. And I feel like this is just something as a business owner, whether you are thinking of selling today or selling in the future. I remember when I first started Dental A Team, people were like, Kiera, you're gonna sell it. And I was like, always. Like I'm always building this to be sold. That doesn't mean that I want to sell it today or tomorrow or the next day.   But I would be an absolute rookie if I didn't think about selling this at some point in time. I think you build businesses better when you have that exit in mind. Again, that doesn't mean like I have no intentions of rapidly firing this off. I've been here for quite some time. I feel like I'm getting cozy in this chair, just like I'm sure Brannon and you are in your business. but it's constantly building it, innovating it, creating systems, creating EBITDA, creating those profit margins that are necessary. So when the day comes, because I don't believe that any of us are probably going to really know.   The day we want to sell. I've seen plenty of doctors who have had divorce hit, they've had death hit, they've had accidents. I had a dentist get hit by a bike. Like he was on his bike and he got hit by a car, so he didn't get hit by a bike. He was on a bike getting hit. And I'm like, I promise you that day leaving the office, it wasn't like, I'm on a bucket list to get hit by a car today. Like that just surely was not there. But he had built his practice to where if he wanted to sell, he could, or we had the systems and processes in place to give him the options. And I think that just preparing for this gives optionality long term.   So you're doing it on your terms as opposed to being forced to make a rash decision unexpectedly. So going into that with that mindset, and I hope people, and I know Brannon, you agree with that. Otherwise, we wouldn't be podcasting. You and I have very aligned interests in the industry. But I am really curious, like helping people to kind of have that mindset. Like, what are some of the things that DSOs versus private buyers versus like just transitioning to an associate? What are some of the things? Because I know that there's different flavors and factors. Like, I don't like mint chips.   But I definitely like a grasshopper shake. Like I like both, but don't give me the little chips in it. It's disgusting. Like I prefer the like Oreo mashed up with the mint flavoring. So like I'm gonna prefer different things. And I guarantee you that while both might like the same flavor with air quotes around it, there's nuances that both of those buyers are going to want differently. So how do people, when they're looking at this, thinking about that future sell? again, not tomorrow, but when they're when the time comes, whether planned or unplanned, what should they be preparing for for both of those different types of buyers?   Brannon Moncrief (05:57) Love   what you said about like being prepared to sell at any moment in time. Because if you take the steps to prepare your practice to be marketable, valuable, and sellable, those are the same steps you need to take to make your business hum, you know, on a daily basis, right?   Kiera (06:12) Exactly.   Brannon Moncrief (06:13) but you never know what life's gonna throw at you. So you always want to be prepared, whether you're looking two years down the road or 20 years down the road. we'll kind of bifurcate our conversation today in a flip-flopping back and forth between private buyer versus DSO because they're really.   know two different worlds. So when   Kiera (06:27) Mm-hmm.   Brannon Moncrief (06:28) we talk about the private buyer world, you want to do check as many boxes as possible as far as what private buyers are looking for when they call somebody like McLaren and say, hey, I'm looking to buy a practice. And we ask, okay, great, tell me about what you're looking for. Because the answer is pretty consistent. Typically private buyers are looking for a practice within 60 miles of a major metro area. So urban, suburban markets.   Those practices are going to see higher valuations and more demand than practices in tertiary or rural markets. Doesn't mean that if you're in a tertiary market, you can't sell your practice. It just means that all things equal, it might take a little bit longer and it might trade for a lower valuation. they're looking for five plus operatories. Most young dentists these days are relatively entrepreneurial.   And eventually want to grow into a multi-doctor practice for one reason or the other. A lot of that is lifestyle driven. Some of that may be value driven, the fact that they eventually want to sell the practice for a premium to a DSO or private equity. They're looking for PPO and fee for service practices. So if you have an HMO component or a Medicaid component, that's definitely going to impact demand and valuation. They're looking at technology, equipment, facility, curb appeal.   All of that matters when you go to monetize your business, but you also want to be evaluating what is your runway to selling the business

  5. Oct 21

    #1,218: Chick-fil-A's Secret Sauce in YOUR Practice

    Re-releasing a favorite of Dental A-Team listeners! Kiera chats with Chick-fil-A owner and operator George Demetriades — and it's all about applying the chain fast-food restaurant's success into your dental practice. There's a lot of gold packed into this episode, but some of the highlights include: Abiding by character, competence, community Creating realistic and attainable systems Hiring ideal employees Identifying high performers Acquiring a loyal fanbase Cultivating a consistent culture Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, literally thousands of episodes. And I wanted to start bringing a few of these amazing episodes back for you. So I hope you enjoy. And as always, thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time.   on the Dental A Team podcast.   speaker-0 (00:31) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And my gosh, I am like fangirling so hard right now. if you guys have heard, Dr. Nate Tillman, he was at Dental A Team Summit, and this year we had a really strong theme where we talked about Chick-fil-A and how much their customer service and their experience is just unmatched. So after Summit, Nate texted me and said, Kiera, I have a friend. He owns some Chick-fil-A franchises.   Would you be interested if I could get to him on your podcast? And my gosh, heart eyes, like gold stars galore. I have the one and only George Demetriades on today, owner of Chick-fil-A. He owns these. I am so giddy. George, welcome to the podcast. I have been so ecstatic to podcast with you.   speaker-1 (01:15) Thank you so much, Kiera. I really am grateful that for the opportunity to to chat with you guys. And yes, Nate is a very, very close friend of many, many years. If I mess this up, then it then I don't know Nate. It's not Nate's fault. And we'll we'll make up a name of Sam Schmuckatelli, the dentist in Hobble or something like that that that that referred me to you. So   speaker-0 (01:38) my gosh. No. Honestly, George, you're seriously so nice. And Nate is incredible. And for those of you who like can if you're just listening, be sure to snag our little snippets of this one. You literally can see George's name tag on. He is sitting in Chick-fil-A corner office right now, hanging out. He's in boots on the ground. So George, let's just kind of take it through. You and I have chatted a little bit. I have so many questions. Sure. I just I l I mean I wasn't a huge Chick-fil-A fan until I learned about their spicy deluxe sandwich. Mix it with the Chick-fil-A sauce.   my gosh, every Saturday Jason and I wake up and Jay says, Kiera, what's today? And I say Chick-fil-A day. Like it's every day. and so George, kind of just tell us a little bit about your background. I know you're an owner operator for eight years of Chick-fil-A, but kind of prior to that, you and I had chatted before. I just want the listeners to know who is George, and then we're diving all into Chick-fil-A today.   speaker-1 (02:28) Awesome. Yeah, thank you so much again for allowing me to join the podcast. so I was born and raised in Atlanta, which is the home of Chick-fil-A, been eating it my whole life. graduated from high school, went off to Wake Forest University, which is where I know Nate from, and was commissioned into the Army as an intelligence officer. Served in the Army for a number of years, and then when I left, left active duty, some time on Capitol Hill, some time in the consulting business, and and after about 10 years of that.   I found my way to Chick-fil-A. I had just become kind of it was a mid midlife, I guess, or pre-midlife crisis, professional crisis, and didn't didn't find a lot of fulfillment in the consulting world anymore. Talked to a friend of mine down at our corporate headquarters about a few ideas I had and he said, Hey, if you haven't thought about a about a franchise, you should go to this website, check it up, check it out, and and holler back with questions. So did that.   Called him back and at some point over the next eighteen months of interviews, probably at many points during those eighteen months, my buddy down at corporate snuck into people's offices in the dark of night and took my file from trash cans back into their inboxes and I made it through the process and so took over the the Chick-fil-A in Crystal City, Virginia, just outside of DC in January of twenty fifteen. Nate and Carrie were there that day, that morning, which means a great deal to me. And   And then two years ago, a little bit more than two years ago, opened up my second location in Pentagon City, which is yeah, just a less than a mile from the original location that I had. And so I operate those two franchises with with a team of of well over a hundred folks that are just incredible people who inspire me every day. they really they they make my my job and my life not only easy, but it's really fulfilled.   so and that's me. It's it's me and a dog, a couple of nieces and a nephew and nine godchildren running around.   speaker-0 (04:36) How fun. George, okay, I'm really curious. Number one, you talked about being an intelligence. So I mean I'm gonna derail from Chick-fil-A a little bit. Tell me the craziest experience in intelligence. Like you have this like very undercover life. Intelligence, Chick-fil-A, anything crazy in intelligence?   speaker-1 (04:52) I   so I tell people I was an intelligence officer but not a very intelligent officer. And and the guys that I served with are all like, Well, he finally got one right. so I was a tactical intelligence officer, so I wasn't like James Bond. I was I was out helping commanders on the battlefield understand what the enemy was was likely to do, what capabilities they had and and how we would counter that. and you know, the army was was really, really good to me. I my my some of my closest friends in the world are   are from that that period in my life still today. And a lot of them are still in. A couple of them are generals now, which makes me feel very old. and but it's the army was really, really good to me. So nothing nothing crazy. It was it was it it was I was very fortunate throughout my survey.   speaker-0 (05:41) Interesting. Well, I do feel like there's probably strategy trying to figure out what they're going to do, which probably helps you potentially in your Chick-fil-A franchise as well. So I need to know now how do you become a Chick-fil-A franchise owner? Like is I feel like this is a hard process because Chick-fil-A is so well known. They're so like they're across the board. Like, how long does this process to become a franchise owner? And how do even do it?   speaker-1 (06:02) Yeah,   it's a it's a very long process. It starts with an expression of interest, which is kind of like a mini application. And and we have I think the most the number I heard most recently was last year we had around a hundred and eight thousand people express interest in becoming a Chick-fil-A operator.   speaker-0 (06:17) my gosh. Okay.   speaker-1 (06:18) The the opportunity is this is this is my my only job. so we are we are not looking for folks who have a collection of franchises and just want to add a Chick-fil-A to their portfolio.   and we are we are looking for folks who have a lot of leadership background who can use that to to really move the objectives and goals of the restaurant forward. we we kind of rely on three things when we're looking at at operator candidates and even our corporate staff candidates, which is character confidence and community. character speaks for itself. We wanna we wanna know that you're a person of character and that you've had that consistent character throughout your life.   We want to know that you're part of your community and that wherever you've been, that you find ways to contribute. you know, not just not just a job and and family and all those things, but ways beyond beyond what others might do in the community. And and the competence piece really is all about leadership. Chick-fil-A and and coming in from the military, a lot of the systems they use have a very they they our training systems especially   you can tell there was where there were folks involved in that development that had military experience, but but Chick-fil-A is exceptionally good at putting a system around as much as possible. they're even better at personalizing those systems and making sure they don't seem stale or or systemic, so to speak.   speaker-0 (07:51) Like I need to know this, George. This is what I'm dying to know. Because Chick-fil-A, every experience, no matter where I'm at, and this is what we talked about. This is why I'm so giddy to talk to you. It's like I think Starbucks, I don't know how they do for their on-boarding and Chick-fil-A. Like, but Chick-fil-A has good food. I don't drink coffee, but man, Starbucks could definitely take a look no on how to make delicious hot chocolate. Like it's disgusting. Probably the worst hot chocolate I've ever had. But they have an incredible experience there. And I love to go work there. But Chick-fil-A, like you cook great food.   Great service. People are so happy there. And I have been so giddy to know about their system. So George, explain this more to me. And of course, I told George and I will tell all the listeners, Chick-fil-A is a special business, just like your businesses are special. So if I ask any questions

  6. Oct 20

    #1,217: Would You Rehire Everyone On Your Team?

    As practices grow and new people filter in, it's normal to want to measure each member of your team against your current goals versus where they were when first hired. Tiff and Nikki talk about assessing positions from a bird's eye view, working with someone who's stalled out in individual growth, differentiating emotions from the practical, and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are excited to be here with you today. I am just putting this out there. Nikki and I have tried to record this podcast now three   Nikki Mack (00:09) Yeah.   Tiffanie (00:10) times, and we are excited to get this information to you guys and hoping that our network works with us full time today. Nikki, thank you for being flexible, for being someone that will just jump in and for loving on Dental A Team and your clients as much as you do. I value and appreciate you so much.   This week and every week. How are you today?   Nikki Mack (00:32) I am good. It's so good to be here. I'm hopeful for today. We've got it. I know it's gonna work. and just, you know, what a fun testament of like we're committed. We're gonna get this to you, we're gonna do what it takes. And couldn't think of anyone to be doing it with that would be better than you. So yeah, happy to be here.   Tiffanie (00:50) Thank you. Thank   you. I think you pointed out something very special there. It's Sterilis. It's a part of our core values, right? Do the right thing. We've got the grit and the passion for excellence and   the results focus. We are living and breathing those this week. I completely agree. gosh, Nikki. so fun fact, we both head out for offices soon. we're both gonna be   Nikki Mack (01:15) Mm-hmm.   Tiffanie (01:15) on the road again. And I was looking at the weather.   This morning with my fiance. Have you looked yet?   Nikki Mack (01:23) I have it. Now I'm nervous. It's share. Share with the class.   Tiffanie (01:24) Yeah. So mm-hmm.   So just for everyone's knowledge base, at the time of recording this, it is mid October. We're like a week into October of twenty twenty six. And yesterday here in Phoenix, in my area of Phoenix was a hundred degrees. That was our high. Today's   Nikki Mack (01:44) Mm.   Tiffanie (01:44) high is ninety nine. Next week it's like high sixties and we're gone.   Nikki Mack (01:52) Okay, yeah, that tracks. Got it.   Tiffanie (01:55) No, so last week when Nikki   was gone, or the week before last when Nikki was gone, we were both traveling that week and everywhere we went we had just missed the rain. Like it was trailing right behind us, including at home. So it was beautiful at home, it was raining, the weather was gorgeous, and we get back and it's sunny and hot and we've been living sunny and hot now. And as soon as we leave, like legitimately I think Sunday, it starts cooling down. Yep.   Aaron said, he said, my gosh, it's gonna be so pretty next week. I Yeah, and it's literally the entire time that I'm gone. Seven days of beauty, seven days I'm gone. So I thought I'd share that with you today. I get you prepped, ready to go. It's Thursday. So, you know, here we are. It's gonna be great.   Nikki Mack (02:40) Yeah.   It's my mind for it. I love it. You know what? Well but I will say this. At least almost everywhere we go is beautiful and green. Everywhere's   beautiful.   Tiffanie (02:50) This is true.   Nikki Mack (02:51) Walk that back. Everywhere's beautiful. Just most places are also green. And as desert girlies, like I love to see it. So there's a win.   Tiffanie (02:57) Yeah, it's so true. And we should   get some fall colors, which they're not good, it might be beautiful here, but there's no fall colors in Phoenix. So I love that. I love that.   Nikki Mack (03:05) Absolutely. my god.   Tiffanie (03:08) Well, more testaments to our core values, which actually, as you said that earlier, like our our testament to getting this done, I kind of I think that actually we spoke a little bit about what we were gonna talk about today, but I think that kind of ties into today's statements as well and really talking about our core values. So   Today, Nikki, I'm picking your brain on team. And something it's been a very recurring theme. and I think actually, now that I say it out loud, like I think a lot of practices right now are pushing for growth. It's towards the end of the year and they've experienced some growth. For whatever reason, this year has been like a like a stale growth. It hasn't been a lot at one time. It's been kind of intermittent and a weird year for sure.   But practices are experiencing that growth. And within that, we hire new people, shift things shift and people shift, but we really start taking a look at the people that we have, the people that we need, et cetera. And today's topic, we really wanted to talk about your team. Like, would you rehire everyone on your team? And I love this title or this topic that our marketing team gave to us so much because it's like hard.   Core, right? Like it hit. It was like, wow, that's like cut into the chase. Would you rehire everyone? So, Nikki, I think this is something that comes up for a lot of practices, at least in my consulting. And I think you're seeing it. I know specifically a couple of practices you have that have onboarded new doctors and new hygienists and just this expansive growth. When it comes to looking at the actual team members, what are you helping practices work through? How are you walking them through that and really?   trying to decide on something like this, like would you hire this person again? How do you, how do you work that with them?   Nikki Mack (04:58) So I think the first step is you have to take an honest look at the practice, yourself as a leader and kind of your expectations, right? Where are we like truly at? What's changed this year, and what do I still want to change, right? You know, like what what goalposts are we still working towards and how has that translated with my team? Because here's the thing at the end of the day, you hired everyone on your team for a reason, right?   Nobody, I think, wandered in off the street and was like, Can I stay for a bit? And you're like, Yeah, sounds good, right? You know, we'll teach you how to use Tentrics, it's fine. but our teams do change, right? Our office changes, and we change as leaders and kind of our goals and things we're looking for. So being able to say, like, okay, let me take a real honest look at where we're at, where I'm trying to go, and how everyone kind of fits in with that right now, not from that personal relationship standpoint.   not from you know past experiences with them, but just how do they fit into my team and my structure because what do I need? a good example of that, I think a lot of times when we talk about org charts with teams, right? we love an org chart. But what do   Tiffanie (06:08) I do.   Nikki Mack (06:08) we usually tell them, let's design an org chart for what your office needs, not for the people that you currently have in place. And then we figure out how they fit into those positions. Because we have to be honest about what we're trying to build and what team structure gets us there.   And I think it's that same kind of mentality, even if we have an org chart, if we're evaluating our team, what do we really have? Right? Like what is in place and what are our goals?   Tiffanie (06:34) Yeah, I love that. And   Nikki Mack (06:35) Mm-hmm.   Tiffanie (06:36) within that like org chart and that structure and really looking at those goals, I something I notice is even just in the same position, no growth for the practice, a lot of times someone can just like get stale or stagnant, or maybe they were in a space that worked for a while and now that's that space just isn't working. Do you feel, Nikki, that once someone's a bad seed, they're always a bad seed?   do you feel like there's opportunity for individual growth? I've seen all of it, and I think we can walk through so many scenarios, but like when you consult a practice and when on Dental A Team consults a practice for all of the listeners, we rely heavily on a lot of information that you provide to us. And so we're the bird's eye viewpoint. and we try to see everything from that high-level kind of looking in.   But we really do require so much data and input from you. So Nikki, with that, when you're coming in like blind, we'll call it, right? You're just you've just got the information that you have. How are you helping a doctor to assess those people? And I'm like truly interested.   Nikki Mack (07:50) Yeah. Okay, so this is possibly one of my fatal flaws. we're full transparency, right? Here on Dental A Team. I absolutely believe people are you   Tiffanie (08:00) Same.   Nikki Mack (08:00) rehabilitate, right? Like I know it and sometimes look guys, sometimes I've tried way too long to my detriment. But what valuable experience to know when to tell you, like, guys, cut it. We've done what   Tiffanie (08:13) It's fair.   Nikki Mack (08:13) we can.   but I do often think there's room. And I know a few of my teams right now would be listening to this and being like, Yes, we had that same conversation. I was like, This person, we've done everything, there's no hope. And I was Well, let's just try one more thing, right? Now I'm   Tiffanie (08:28) Yeah.   Nikki Mack (08:28) fresh, new set of eyes. Let's be for sure that we've done everything. Because it's completely fair as a leader. Sometimes we think we've done everything, and sometimes we've only responded out of frustration in the moment. And so I do think people can be   Saved, right? So to speak. but we have

  7. Oct 15

    #1,216: Here's What's Happening in the Dental Marketing Space

    Kiera is joined by Ryan Gross, CEO of Grapevine (formerly CEOShare), to discuss the future of dentistry in terms of marketing and AI, and how practices can stay up-to-date on everything. They touch on using AI to work smarter, not harder; utilizing the patient base you have more effectively; how to balance your practice's revenue with marketing benefits; and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team Listeners. This is Kiera and today is an exciting day. I have a dear friend on our podcast, Ryan Gross, who used to be part of CMO Share and has now rebranded into Grapevine, doing all things fun in the marketing world. Ryan, how are you today?   Ryan (00:13) Good. I'm so excited to be on your podcast. You know, we've known each other for years and kind of both seen each other's you know, how we've grown as companies in our in our careers and our journeys. So excited to be here and chat some marketing and you know, see you catch up on on what's going on in in in the industry.   Kiera (00:31) Absolutely. Well, Ryan, for those who haven't heard you or don't know anything about you, tell them a little bit about now the new renamed Grapevine. kind of like how you got into marketing. I know you worked at the zoo. kind of just some fun backgrounds, but kind how did we get from where you were to where you are today?   Ryan (00:46) Yeah, so my my marketing journey you know starts fairly fresh out of college. I went to work for the Walt Disney Company while I was in college and I did recruiting for them for years and then I went into the attractions industry and other areas, worked for a couple of museums, then went back to work for Disney again, working for Disney Vacation Club, doing marketing for them, and then went to work for a zoo.   And so spent, you know, that that time span's about 18 years of working in the attractions industry. and then I have a a friend, a good friend, Dr. Addison Kaleen, who was saying, hey, I need some help with my marketing. And I said, Okay, let me see if I can help out. And so I just did some stuff on the side for him and decided to go out on my own and started the journey of our company was CMO Share. started that out as basically a fractional CMO for practices.   you know, had a had a small group that I was working with and what happened during that time was we started to realize that on a digital marketing front, the dental like basically websites and Google ads, just the strategy at that time wasn't really what what I felt could have been the best approach to it. So we got into the website business and digital marketing business, and that's really where we've kind of   exploded since then in terms of our ability to to acquire new patients that way. And then over time when we started to look at the company, we said, okay, well, we're more than just websites. We have a phenomenal data set. And that's really where Grapevine was grown is the fact that we're one of the largest holders of dental data and when it comes to marketing, phone data and operational data combined. And so Grapevine was grown out of that as   now of our AI platform which kind of runs everything that we do.   Kiera (02:45) That's awesome. Yeah. So let's talk about how offices are starting to like stand out in today's era with AI. I think that'd be a fun way to kind of dig into that marketing AI. I know it's a a very unique piece. So yeah, take it away on what you're seeing of like what's the future of dentistry and marketing and AI and how practices can can stay top of mind.   Ryan (03:06) Yeah, so you know, I get this question often from practices and you know from from other companies is you know what is happening in the dental space when you look at from a marketing standpoint? And the thing is that I tell people e AI is an aid to what's what's out there right now and and to help you with your marketing. It's not gonna be the you know the only way to acquire new patients. but what it does is essentially is if you have enough data sets on on   your market and your area and patients, what you can do is you can use that to to go after more patients who are more likely to convert and to essentially accept treatment. That's that's the goal in my opinion and how we're seeing it work the best. And so you know one interesting data point that we have is we've seen this year the amount of traffic to our practices, their sites go down, but the number of people converting through phone calls increasing.   Because if you're using AI properly, what you're doing is you're getting in front of again the people who are most likely to convert for your business. And so that's that's a a powerful tool because it's you know you're getting you're working smarter, not harder. And the people who are coming into the practice, if you're doing this correctly, are more likely to spend money with you and accept that treatment. And especially now if you look at how you know a patients are navigating   the dental space, you know, they're really cost conscious. And so if you aren't doing this correctly, you're gonna get in front of a lot of people who aren't gonna accept treatment. And that's a big issue that we're seeing across the board.   Kiera (04:39) Yeah. So Ryan, break that down in a bit deeper. Like how do people find those data points on practice? I think they I think it's fascinating to like less people are clicking, but more converting. I feel like that's always like a backwards. It feels a little backwards from what we've been taught for so long. How do they find these data points? How do they laser focus in on these patients? Like what are some of the specifics? Like let's get nitty gritty go under the hood and what are some of those specifics that they can do?   Ryan (05:02) Yeah, so you know, if you wanna look at from a higher level first from a number standpoint, you know, I always ask or I always say you need to know a few data points. You need know, first of all, I always start this, what is your phone call answer rate? You know, and that's that seems simple, but you know, I presented a few months ago to about five hundred practices and I asked people to raise their hand in the room and it was, you know, dozen or so op raise their hand if they know their phone call answer rate. Because if you look at the phone call data, that's gonna   determine or give you a baseline just how well you are performing in terms of conversions of new patients. So you need to understand your phone data, how many calls you're getting, how many you're answering, first of all. The second piece of that is how many people are attempting to convert through your website. So when I say conversions in this case, I'm looking at people who are trying to call you through your website or through Google Ads, and people then who are trying to schedule online.   You take those data points there and you can start to compare the numbers. you know, we we have such a large data set, you know, over ten million phone calls we've analyzed and millions of Google conversions that we can basically use our AI tool to then say, okay, here's how many new patients you should have and in your market how many you should have. but you can do this on a on a practice level too, just by looking at and start to compare those numbers and you know, use tools out there like ChatGPT or Claude or things like that to help you analyze this and then   You want to also start to look at what are patients accepting in terms of production and look at your current patient numbers as well. So you kind of have to look at trends because you know we'll get questions like, Well, you know, my my schedule has holes in it. And I'll say, Okay, let's let's look at   Kiera (06:43) Yeah.   Ryan (06:44) your numbers, and I'll say, Well, you your new patient numbers are actually you know up five percent this month. But how so they're like, well,   You know, what do we need to do? And I'm like that, you know, we gotta look at it from deeper than if you have holes in your schedule and your new patient numbers are strong, you know, it typically means that you're not having treatment accepted. And that's why the doctor's schedule is open or you have cancellations, things like that. So when you start to actually take and unpill the onion of these numbers, you can take a look at it and say, Okay, there's a correlation between. So like when we look at correlating marketing numbers, we we we again we go to   Online conversions, we do phone call, the number of calls answered, and the total number of calls, then we look at the total number of new patients in production. And those three are independent numbers that if you're analyzing correctly, you can say, okay, I should have had based on my phone call, 100 new patients. based or I'm sorry, on on based on Google and my website, I should have had a hundred new patients. on my phone call I should have had ninety and I ended up with seventy. Well you can say, Okay, why did I end up with seventy when   marketing and phone set I should have had ninety to a hundred and you can start to dive in and look what's going on.   Kiera (07:53) Interesting. Yeah. And I think so many practices think that marketing is harder than it really is, right? But you said like how are we answering the patients that are coming through? So is it a is it a awareness? Like, do we need more people to call us? Or is it a answer? Like, let's just pick up the phone and have the people that are there. Or is it when the people actually get in our doors, are we actually maximizing them, utilizing them, following up on the treatment that we're presenting and accepting? And like, is that the area? So it's almost like it sounds there's three bench points.   If people are wanting more of that awareness p

  8. Oct 14

    #1,215: Strategic Partnerships Grow Your Practice. Here's How to Form Them.

    Kiera takes a spin on profit growth by talking about a tactic many people don't consider: strategic partnerships. This means looking at the community around you, those in your field and outside of it, and learning to refer and support one another. Kiera's tips will help even the most introverted person begin to utilize their network. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I want to talk about something really fun. We talk about it in our mastermind groups with our clients. and it is like your network is your net worth. And so how strategic partnerships, you might not even be thinking this is a completely different, innovative way for you to grow your practice in a very easy, effective way. And so I'm super excited about it because a lot of times we just think that like the only way for us to grow our practice is to do more, hire another team member, or   To like just I think it's that GSD, which I'm very grateful that you have. but sometimes it's not even about that because sometimes there are other people around you that can actually elevate you, can grow you, can grow your practice, and that's through your network. And so really it's going to be about what are maybe the some of the partnerships you've you've forgotten, or maybe some of the partnerships we could rekindle that actually might help you elevate. Now, for somebody who you guys might think is very extroverted human, I am very extroverted, but you better believe we were just talking about an event.   I love to speak, you guys. I love to be on stage. but I am very much somebody that doesn't always love to be a porcelain doll on stage. And I know that might come as a shock for some of you, but like when I go to events, I'm like, the happy hour networking time is like my most stressful time of all of it. Like I love to have a conversation, I love to talk to people. It also stresses me out to no end. So just hearing that I recognize that what I'm about to talk to today.   might be foreign for some of you. For some of you, it might be the easiest thing and you might be like, Kiera, this is a great idea. for those of you who might be a little Kiera-esque or maybe a little less Kiera and like way less extroverted, just know that you don't have to do everything. But one of these things even can help you tremendously. And I just think it's a really fun way. Again, we talk about so many things and there's so many places of like grow your practice with this, grow your practice with marketing. I thought partnerships was a really fun spin on a great way for you to possibly grow your practice, grow your net worth. And you never know   Who your network's gonna bring into your place. Like, truly, my next door neighbor was Shelbi. Shelbi now is my EA, and she's absolutely incredible. there's been several people that I've just happeningly randomly met that have made my life exponentially better by being connected. And there's people that are way more connected. So, this is also a podcast for Kiera Dent. So it's all for you guys, but truly, I just want you to know that strategic partnerships really can be a benefit for you. If you're new to the podcast, hi, I'm Kiera. I hope I can be your best friend in dentistry. I truly am here to help you in whatever way possible.   I am obsessed with all things Dental. Our team is obsessed with it. I've built a team of consultants that truly their passion is to make you successful. We believe that running a successful practice should be fun and easy. And so I'm so happy you're here. For all of you OGs who have been listening, thank you. I hope you just give yourself like a little squeeze. Like give yourself a little squeeze and know I'm giving you a giant hug and saying thank you so much for your support, for being on the journey. And hey, if you're obsessed with us like I'm obsessed with you, go leave us five stars because your reviews are what ultimately are gonna make us.   continue to reach more people, be one of the top podcasts in the dental industry. And I just want to say thank you for making Dental A Team that I try to provide value for you. We're here all the time for you, three days a week, giving you practical, tactical tips. And we've been doing it for shoot. Like five years, six years, so long. So thanks for being on the journey. I'm obsessed with you and I hope that you remember dentistry is the greatest profession you could ever be in. Let's continue to make it great together. with that said, I hope that you know that like number one on this is we got to build referral relationships. So that's   Beyond sending patients. So I know a lot of you might have relationships with specialists. So I know a lot of people listening to our GP practices, also on the specialist side. there is a doctor that works with us, one of my dear friends, and he's a periodonist, and he literally is like the mayor of our town. He knows every single dental practice. He is always at offices, he's always driving around, meeting people, taking them to dinner, knows all the best restaurants in town. And that's what specialists have to do. And I think sometimes generalists don't realize that like you connecting and knowing all of your community.   really can drive like I text him at any time I'm like, hey, who's got the best hands in dentistry in our area? And he's like, you want to talk to this person? You meet somebody else. They know that person. Like he's so interconnected. And I just think like how amazing is that because he is referring back and forth. He's always looking for ways to connect somebody else. And I have found that when people come to the mastermind, that's something they tell me that they're obsessed with. So like all of our clients get together and we're like, my gosh, John, you need to go talk to Kevin and Kevin, you need to go meet Jamin. And Jamin, you need to go meet   Susie, like all of them connecting together. That's the same thing that you should be doing. So this is when like a partnership is broken and maybe we're being a little bit more of a user rather than a a giver on it, is if we only reach out when we need something, or we only have minimal communication with that specialist when we're referring a patient there, or we have very little collaboration on patient care. When it's thriving of a successful partnership, it's building that relationship with the specialist. It's connecting when we refer offices, it's communicating about our shared patient.   And it's creating a mutual trust. And so that can be as much as going over and saying hello. Like I have a doctor who was trying to get sleep. And I was like, get out of your office and go say hello. And she's like, I just don't want to, Kiera. And I was like, I know. I don't want to do half of this either. You guys think I enjoy being on video for the podcast? I absolutely do not, but you're welcome. Go say hello and say thank you on Instagram. Like, I hate being on video, but guess what? This is part of the name of the game. This is what I signed up with when I became a business owner. It doesn't mean you have to do everything, but I promise you, you go start to say hi, they know who you are.   Think about your neighbors. Like if you know your neighbors that refer people to you. I have a neighbor, I went and met our whole neighborhood. She literally watches for my packages every single time I'm out of town. That was a great strategic partnership, if you will, that benefits my life so much. I'm able to help her out with her kids. But we want this mutually referring. It shouldn't be a one-sided space. So I will say that when I've seen doctors, especially GPs and also specialists, you've got to build this. And there was a doctor who is a specialist, he's like, Kiera.   Is there any way for me as a specialist not to need my GP doctors? And I was like, unfortunately, no, we work in a we work in a referring basis. And so how do you become the person? It's like the lawyers or whomever in your town, how do you become that person that when they need a dentist or they need a referral, you are the first name that comes to mind? I want my specialist to be thinking about you as a dentist, not all the 50 other ones. Remember, people like pull out of their pocket what's familiar to them. So I want you to just know that like this is a reality, this is a space.   I want you to be the trusted partner and having that, it really will drive new patients. Also, you could go look at your new patient referrals and see how many of those are coming from specialist or from referral partners. If you don't have very many of them, it might be a good c key indicator for you to say, Hey, I need to go make more friends. I need to go build these stronger relationships. It's over time. It's not something of like, and please know there's a book called The Go Giver by Bob Burry. We had him on the podcast. If you didn't listen to that podcast, go listen to it. I was a fangirl that day.   but that's a book that was what I started the company on. And the go-giver is we are always giving more value than we expect. So I'm not going to meet these people hoping that they send me referrals. I'm going to find out what value can I give them, how can I support them? How can I grow their business? And in return, it always comes back to you. So I would encourage each of you to refer reach out to like one referral partner. every single month you could even like put it in your calendar. So you just have a rotating basis. Maybe it's I meet this person, and then in three months I reach back out to them.   staying top of mind, doing whatever we possibly can to make their life easier. and doing it not because you need something, but because you genuinely are interested in building this amazing relationship with t

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This podcast is here to give dentists and all dental office team members, in EVERY position, TACTICAL and PRACTICAL TIPS to: - Be more efficient - Have more fun - Improve doctor and team communications - Eliminate frustration - And make your life easier! Jump in! We are thrilled you have decided to LEVEL UP and be part of the DENTAL A TEAM! New episodes every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

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  • Creator
    Dental A Team
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2026
  • Episodes
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