Dental patients can be fickle; they rave about you one minute and the next minute they’re complaining about your fees. Some are patients forever and some leave at the drop of a hat. What’s going on?

The Loyalty Matrix takes a look at life in the dental office from the patient’s point of view.

Your patients can be classified into 4 categories:

1. Raving Fans are satisfied with your relationship and satisfied with the product and service.
2. Vulnerable to the Competition are those patients who are dissatisfied with your relationship, yet satisfied with the product and service.
3. Saboteur patients are dissatisfied with your relationship and also dissatisfied with the product and service.
4. Give you a 2^nd chance patients are satisfied with your relationship and dissatisfied with the product and service.

The patients with the greatest staying power are found in the right half of the matrix. These are the ones who are satisfied with the relationships they have with the doctor and the team. You’ll find the raving fans, otherwise known as your top 20%, and you’ll find those who will give you a second chance, and probably a third and a fourth. The latter might have had a moment of dissatisfaction, but they are not ready to jump ship. Your relationship is still strong at this point.

The patients with the least staying power are those in the left half of the matrix. They are dissatisfied with your relationship. They might like your product and your service, but they are ready to jump ship to your competition at any time if your relationship does not improve. The saboteurs neither like your relationship nor the product and service. These are your bottom 20% patients and would be better off in another dental home.

You can see how important relationships are in the success of your dental practice. People want to do business with doctors and team members who they like, trust, and believe. Strive to improve your relationships and you’ll find more of your patients will have staying power. As sales guru Jeffrey Gitomer has said,

“Relationship is more powerful than price. Relationship is more powerful than delivery. Relationship is more powerful than quality. Relationship is more powerful than service.”

Dr. Stephanie Houseman has over 30 years experience in dentistry, 25 of which were spent in private practice in St. Louis, MO. She created the 7 Steps 2 a Balanced Life Program^TM and works with dentists who feel their life is a juggling act. She brings authenticity to her coaching, speaking, and writing, as she helps dentists discover how to have more joy and more LIFE in their life. She’s the author of The Balance Beam eNewsletter (subscribe at her website) and The Mentor’s Mind column in the Woman Dentist Journal. She is the 2007 Vice-President of the American Association of Women Dentists and the Vice-President of the Smiles for Success Foundation.

Contact Info:
Dr. Stephanie Houseman
7 Steps 2 a Balanced Life
Email: drszh@7steps2abalancedlife.com
Website: www.7steps2abalancedlife.com
Phone: 618-639-5433