Episode 608: Office Autopsy: Growing a Practice 5x its Worth

 It’s time for another office autopsy! Kiera shares the example of a practice she’s been working with for three years that has grown in value five times from what it started. In her time with the practice, they’ve successfully switched software, changed collection protocol, created an operations manual, receive 30 to 40 new patients, and many more successes. To get there, the practice has applied the following:

• Executing tasks effectively

• Set goals and kept them

• Showed patience in getting what they want

Think about the goals you set this year and how effective you’ve been in trying to complete them.

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Transcript:

0:00:51.5 KD: Hello, Dental A Team listeners, this is Kiera, and you guys, I hope today is a rockin', awesome day for you, and if it's not, just imagine me giving you a huge hug. Sometimes I need a huge hug, guys. Some days, I don't have my best days either. I know I come on here with tons of positivity but you know what? Some days, guys, are just hard, so I hope that you know wherever you are, if you are right in the high of life, keep riding that. If you're riding the low wave of life, keep riding that as well, and let's find a way to get you up into that high life. Just imagine, reach out for friends, reach out for support, and just remember everything is a season, and it will come and go, but do something to change. I do love Tony Robbins, guys, I'm obsessed with him, and so if you're in that low life, make sure you do something where, first of all, you change your state, so if you're depressed, look at how your body is, see if you can change that because you can change that in a second. Go for a quick walk, jump up and down, turn on your favourite song. Oftentimes, just a quick state change can help get you out of that rut.

0:01:51.9 KD: Next, what is the story you're telling yourself? For me, it's that I'm depressed. Truly, guys, that has been my story for the last three weeks, and trust me, I'm making it a reality, so change that. I could say that I am super happy and that things are going well. This isn't a 'fake it till you make it', it's just changing the story because language is truly power. And then the last thing is, figure out your resources, like our strategy, so what is the game plan? But that's third. For me, I often go for strategy first, then story, then state, but if I'm trying to make a good strategy when I'm depressed, hunched over, laying on the couch, eating potato chips, I'm probably not going to have my best strategy. So make sure you change your state, then your story, then your strategy. Guys, it's something that is easy to say right now, but I do know when I'm having my rough days, that's kind of hard. So I just wanted to put that out there. If you need help, sometimes even having an accountability coach can really help, or even just somebody to listen, tell you you're not crazy and give you perspective in that time. I know I've got trusted advisors, trusted coaches, and I really do lean on them, especially when my days are hard.

0:03:04.6 KD: So, guys, I know end-of-year is coming, and if you haven't had the 2022 of your dreams, reach out, it's not too late, guys, we can literally turn it around. Prices for Dental A Team's Platinum, so our in-person travel is going up next year, so if you've been thinking about it... This is not a sales pitch, guys, it's just genuinely inflation and trying to be able to come out and see you guys. We by default have to increase our fees. So if you want us to come, you've been thinking about it, reach out, [email protected], I'm super excited to come help you. If you don't want us to fly to your practice, be sure to reach out, we have virtual options, guys, that are more affordable. So if you're like, 'I don't know if I can do that', no problem, there are virtual options. But I would say, if your year has not been what you want it to be, be sure to reach out because, I will promise you, one decision is all it takes to have a very different life.

0:03:58.6 KD: And I know Dental A Team has completely and utterly transformed the lives of hundreds of people, so I'm going to just share an office autopsy with you of an office that I've been coaching with. In this office, I've flown to their practice a few times but most of the time I've been working with them virtually. This practice when I started with them, brand new, they just purchased their practice, now they are three years in and we have grown them five times what they were at. That's a pretty solid ROI, guys. But more than that, we are getting ready to expand their practice, so right now it's two doctors in a four-hour practice. Yep, it's tiny. Don't worry, I freak out about it too. Fee-for-service practice. They did not have... They were bringing in less than 10 new patients a month. Guys, think about this. Two doctors, less than 10, fee-for-service, yeah, you and me are sweating bullets over there. But this practice, we have been able to change their software with them, we've been able to train people who are not dental because they're in a small town that doesn't have a lot of dental people.

0:05:02.9 KD: So in today's society, we've had to get creative to think of, How can we hire people? How can we train people? How can we bring people on? So we've been able to, like I said, switch their software. We have successfully brought on, gosh, I think we're at three, if not five, I'm trying to remember how many we've brought in, non-dental people, trained them to work and work very successfully. We've also changed their collection protocol, we've taught the doctor, because she lost her biller, we taught one of the doctors how to actually be a rockstar biller. No, she doesn't do it now but she knows how to do it so she can hold her office team accountable. We've created an operations manual and got that done. Plug right here, guys. If you don't have your ops manual done and you are like, 'I'd love to do some type of consulting.' Try us out on ops manual intensive. Guys, three months, we'll have that thing done.

0:05:56.5 KD: Head on over to thedentalateam.comopsmanual, it's three months, guys. Come join me in January. Get that done. Or join us for consulting, and we'll get it done with you too. Anybody who joins our platinum consulting, you actually get to come to the ops manual intensive. So it's a double whammy, guys. We also have a few real fun surprises we're rolling out in January. I'll just put it out there. A couple of different masterminds for doctors, office managers, front office and hygienists, so we're going to actually be basically like mass-attacking your whole practice for the same price of what we've been doing. So again, I would surely snag that before our prices go up, I think it's going to be rad value for you guys with a ton of awesome things.

0:06:38.0 KD: But this office, they were able to get their ops manual done, so we have training, onboarding for every single position in the practice. They also had a hygienist, guys, we're talking two years of no hygienist, and within those two years, we were able to find, recruit, maintain the hygiene team, we're talking... This is when like hygienists were going gangbusters, we couldn't find anybody, we spent thousands of dollars on Indeed ads, and finally were able to find a hygienist. This practice is also getting ready to expand, so we have an expansion that's getting ready to roll this year. The doctor is also taking implant courses, so we're adding implant specialty to the practice. We've been able to increase them up to 30 to 40 new patients a month, we've been able to fix their collections, and this practice, like I said, is on track to be five times what it was when we started.

0:07:30.4 KD: Now, what are the things, like, how do you do that? I love to get into the how, like, How do you do this? How did this practice do this? I will say, number one, these people are incredible executors. Like I think that that's something that sets them apart. Now, there's a husband wife duo, and the husband knows that he's not as strong as executing. So doctors, if you are not as strong at executing, have a good counterpart who's incredibly good at executing. So I don't care if it's a spouse, I don't care if it's an office manager, a personal assistant, but if you're not strong at executing... Guys, I'm not the strongest at executing. People never believe me when I say that, but I have a freaking army of people behind me to help execute. So they're really, really, really fantastic at executing.

0:08:14.9 KD: I don't ever have to follow up with them and ask them if they got their things done, I still do from call to call. They get it done. So they're really, really, really fantastic at just executing, checking the boxes, getting things done, implementing. They also are willing to have the uncomfortable conversations. I've watched them grow in their leadership through time. They were not the best at having uncomfortable conversations. They've had to tell people that they're not changing benefit packages. They've had to have conversations about pay raises. They've had to figure out how to work with their hygiene department within the confines of what they can and can't afford. They've literally had to level up. They've also done an incredible job of training their team members, so we set goals every year, I do set goals with them, and we think of what they want to do personally and professionally. And they've actually had a lot of fun, we've had them get a new deck for their house, we've had them take personal vacations, they've had babies in the midst of all this, and the cool thing about it is we haven't just grown them professionally, but we've grown them personally.

0:09:20.7 KD: So I think through all of it, they have really grown as leaders to have the conversations, to put themselves first, to be able to look at their budgets. They become financially savvy. They literally know how to look at their P and L, see where they need to cut costs, where they could increase costs, and they now use their P and L as a reference guide before they make any decisions.

0:09:45.7 KD: Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and you guys, how was your 2022? I want you to look back and tell me. Was it the year of years or was it a really hard year? Did you crush it or did it crush you? This is the time, guys, for end of year Dental A Team Platinum is welcoming you, where we will physically fly to your practice, we will come and we will elevate your dreams and make them into a reality. And, guys, space is limited and prices are going up. This is not a sales pitch, this is not something where I'm trying to scare you into it, I'm just facing the reality of, Inflation is here, flights are expensive, and I want to see as many people as we possibly can and serve as many as we can.

0:10:28.8 KD: So if you want to be part of our elite group of people, there are limited spaces because our consultants can only see as many. We are taking on 10 new Platinum offices by the end of the year, and that's it. That's all we have space for, so if you want to be one of the elite 10, come join us, be a part of our top-notch elite doctor community. Be a part of our office manager and hygiene and front-office communities. Get your operations manual done and live the life that you've only been dreaming of today. Email me [email protected] and make 2023 truly a year that's unforgettable. We are a complete tax write-off, and like I said, we are only taking 10 offices, so don't get left behind, be one of those 10. And I cannot wait to give you the biggest, warmest welcome to completely and utterly changing your life for good. Welcome to the Dental A Team, I can't wait for you to join us, [email protected]. Cheers to 2023 and making you your best self yet.

0:11:33.1 KD: I will also say something else that sets this practice apart, is they have learned patience. About two years ago, we talked about them wanting to do an implant course, and implants would have been awesome to add into this practice. Like, guys, it would have been freaking rad to add it. There's a really, really, really awesome implant course. If any of you are thinking about it, I will say it is by far the best ROI for implants that I have ever seen. It's in Alabama, if you want their information, email us, [email protected]. This is not a weekend course. This is a year long basic residency. And I will say, every single doctor that I have seen come out of that course closes 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, $80,000 cases in their first year. I'm not trying to... Like, guys, I don't work for them, I'm not affiliated with them. They are just that good because they're a hands-on basic residency program.

0:12:30.7 KD: So this doctor, the doctors that I'm talking about with this office today, I knew that they wanted to go in and get this implant course. But we literally looked at the budget and we thought, Yeah, we could go fly this doctor out there every single month. We could have them train, we could start implementing into the practice. But they weren't maximising everything in the office that they could have already. Namely, they weren't doing endo, they weren't doing ortho, we weren't doing Botox, things that were very simple and easy to add to the practice. They literally practise patients. And I think for that, that was just a really awesome opportunity for them because it would have cost financial struggles if we would have implemented it two years ago. Yes, people are always like, 'But Kiera, we could place implants and we'll pay for it.' The answer is, 'A hundred percent yes, but why are we not picking the low hanging fruit first? Why are we not maximising and optimising our practice now, rather than going and throwing one more chip on our plate that we're not going to execute on?' Because they took the time and they executed patients... Like I said, five times growth, guys, overhead, dreamy McDreamy. They have been able to take off, vacations every single quarter as well, so practice has closed down, they've taken time off. We're talking... They don't have...

0:13:48.8 KD: And they only work four days a week, it's not like they're running crazy schedules. We're not doing split shifts, we're not having them there because they realise they want to be home with their babies, they want to be able to be parents and not have to always be at the office. So we have life, patience, execution, but I will also say it's been the consistency of brainstorming together. They tell me all the time... They're like, 'Kiera, you have been so exponential in our growth, they said, 'because you come to the table every single month and we create a plan, a strategy, you help us build our goal for that next year. You've taught us when we're struggling, what to do in that area.' So yes, it is problem-focused coaching, while also being proactive growth-minded coaching as well. This practice, guys, is going to rock and roll, and the reason why is because we just looked at their end-of-year and I said, 'Guys, we're not even on track for this, so what do we do as a... ' I don't feel like I'm their consultant, I feel like we are working in tandem together, we collectively as a group decided, 'Alright, what do we need to do this quarter to ensure we maximise our goals?'

0:14:56.8 KD: We found out what we could do, we're going to be running ortho specials, because remember how they added that really great low-hanging fruit two years ago? Well, now we've got our whole team trained, our entire team, they realised they also want all their assistants to learn ortho. So we thought, 'Okay, twofold mission, we want to add in ortho for end-of-year plus we want to get their assistants all trained up on ortho.' Guys, this is where the magic happens. This is where we've looked at their goals, we knew what their goals were and I keep pushing and reminding and creating with them how to achieve these goals. I would ask you to think back to your goals in January. Hopefully, you can remember them. If not, why not? I did a goal-setting with my family, it was actually really interesting, I had me, my sister, my husband, my mom and my dad all on this goal-setting and my other sister. So there was my parents, my two sisters and my husband and myself, so six of us there. I will promise you, and I'm not boasting, I know I'm one of the few who's actually on track to finish her goals. And the difference is, one, I'm a freaking coach, guys, this is what I do for a living. Two, I have my goals written and I actually do review them every single week, and every quarter I assess and make a game plan of what needs to happen for that quarter to end my goals where I need to be.

0:16:25.0 KD: I know because I've watched them and I've asked them that the discipline to do that for my family has not been there, but the discipline for my clients is there because they've invested, and so they show up. People are always like, 'Kiera, am I going to see the ROI? I'm terrified to pay for coaching.' And I'm like, 'Guess what? Me too.' Do you gotta believe my coach, guys, she was $5000 a month. I don't charge that, just so you know, so don't worry, we're not 5 grand a month, guys, we're less than that. $5000 a month. Guys, I was making... Like the company was profiting a hundred thousand dollars a month... Or a year, a hundred thousand a year. She's $5000 a year, guys... Or a month. That's not a lot of wiggle room, I don't have a lot of space, I don't have a lot of options to mess up. Her ROI, by holding me accountable and helping me consistently execute radically transformed my life, my business to, At the end of that year I had over $750,000 remaining, I went from a hundred thousand, invested 5000 a month, executed because I was freaking scared out of my mind and had no other option, I burned the freaking boats. And profited and had 750,000 left over at the end of the year. Now, how does that math work out?

0:17:46.2 KD: The way it works is exactly what I told you. Consistent execution, patience to not make hasty decisions, to have someone bounce off ideas when I'm on freaking psychotic world. My clients, they come to me on freaking psychotic world too, and they're like, 'Kiera, I'm ready to fire everybody.' Fantastic. You just tell me that and then get your steam off and then let's come up with a plan of what we need to do. 'Kiera, we just lost a team member. They gave us our notice. What do we do so we're not reactive?' Fantastic. Here's a plan, I'm not reactive with them, guys, because I'm not living it, and I can see where they need to go and therefore get them there. So there's a million different reasons why people call us. This office wanted help to be able to navigate through and make less mistakes, I will tell you, they have referred me so many clients because they said, 'Kiera, you have helped us so much have our personal and our professional life there. So again, going back to your goals this year, guys, if you haven't achieved them, reach out, it's time, guys, you're not going to get better next year. The best predictor of future human behaviour is past human behaviour. You're not going to change. The only way I changed, guys, is because I had a rock-bottom meltdown, I hit my bottom, guys, I hit it, I had nowhere else to go, and I said, 'Kiera Dent, you have to change who you are.'

0:19:01.1 KD: Then I hired a coach, I have three coaches, guys. Yep, it's a true story. [chuckle] I have three of them, I pay a lot more than $5000 a month now on coaching. Why? Because I need people to hold me accountable, I need people to guide me when I'm making decisions like this, I need a board of trusted advisors who have been there, done that, done it successfully and can help take me there. That's what a leader is, that's what a consultant is, is they help guide you to where you want to go. They don't sit here passively with you, they're actively a part of your team. Now your dreams can change whatever it is. If you are a rock star who crushes your goals, don't call me. Unless you want to go to the next level because you can't see outside of it, then call me. But I'm not here for those people because I even crush my goals, but I need someone to grow me to where the next step is because I can't see it because I'm too close to the business. These business owners are great, I've taught them a ton. They keep coaching with me because they're like, 'Kiera, you keep pushing us, you keep making sure we're not getting lazy or complacent because that's where danger lies.'

0:20:04.0 KD: So again, look at your year, guys. Has it been the year where you have executed? Are you on track to hit your end-of-year? Have you successfully completed those goals? Did you even remember what those goals were? If not, reach out, I would love to help you. If so, take what I just taught you. Are you executing consistently? Do you have patients? Are you looking at your numbers to make the decisions or are you going with your heart and just winging it? Do you have the numbers to back up what your heart wants and make sure that the timing is right? Do you have the hard conversations? Have you elevated as a leader? Do you have a yin to your yang as an owner? If not, execute on that first. If you want to help, guys, call us, [email protected]. You can call me personally, 801-885-5351. That's legitimately my number. I don't live in Utah, I went to school in Utah and I've had that number since I graduated college. Call me. Reach out, [email protected].

0:21:09.8 KD: You do not have to have this year be the forecast of where you're going, you can change it even right now and we can set a plan for next year. So reach out, [email protected]. Execute consistently, guys. This is why people hire consultants. This is why I do what I do. These stories like... Guys, I have hundreds more, I love to share them with you, I love to tell you what I've done, I love to tell you what these offices have done, that way you can either paint it yourself or know that you can reach out and have a guide to guide you exactly where you want to go. That way you can be taking the four vacations in a year and still be growing. You can still have profit. Even in the hard times, you can still have a guiding light to take you where you ultimately want to go and not have the chaos and the stress. My offices are less stressed, they have futures, they have personal lives, they get to spend time with their kids, they get to leave work at work.

0:22:10.3 KD: Do they have it like it's stressful? For sure. I've got an office right now I'm thinking of, and he's freaking banana town because he's trying to open an office. That doesn't mean he's getting out at 5 o'clock every night. He's crazy, it's psychotic. That's also the flavour of business in the season. Don't worry. Soon as it opens, life's going to calm down and he'll be back to his normal world. So it doesn't mean every day is awesome, it doesn't mean everything is super easy but what it does mean is that you have a guide to continue to guide you. So, guys, I'd love to help you if it's an option. Reach out, [email protected]. Let's see if you even qualify to be a client. All it takes is just booking it online. You can go on our website, thedentalateam.com. Click 'book a call', it's right there. You can just schedule a call right there. Right now, just schedule a call and let us help you. Let us guide you. Let us have you sitting on the beach next year, sipping whatever you want to sip. For me, it's a virgin mocktail, guys. I love to either do...

0:23:06.2 KD: I just got into mojitos. Don't worry, totally virgin, guys. And awesome, I started making them here at home, it's real fun, I'm becoming a great mocktail person over here. So that's what I would be drinking. You can drink whatever you want to drink. But have you sitting on the beach, taking time or going to the mountains or getting home and being with your kids, whatever your dream is, let's make it a reality. And with that, guys, thanks for listening. I'll catch you next time on the Dental A Team podcast.

0:23:35.7 KD: And that wraps it up for another episode of the Dental A Team podcast. Thank you so much for listening, and we'll talk to you next time.