Starting a dental clinic is a daunting task, especially for young, budding entrepreneurs. The medical equipment can be pricey, putting the owner at great financial risk. Because of that, planning is a crucial step of the process that can save you a lot of money and stress down the line. Luckily, even if you don’t have experience running a business, you can learn most of these things.
With that in mind, here are the five mistakes business owners make when they open a new dental clinic:
1. Hiring Too Quickly
Due to high expenditures, business owners tend to rush the initial processes when opening a clinic. Hiring the right staff is crucial for your success, but unfortunately, some entrepreneurs make a decision for all the wrong reasons.
As a way of cutting expenses, lots of owners will hire young professionals straight out of school. Sometimes, they will put them on probation even if they have experience. When the time comes to hire them as full-time employees, they might not have enough loyalty to stay with your organization.
Having enough experience is crucial for dentists, but you also need to consider if this person is the right fit. Business owners neglect long-term plans and team suitability for short-term financial goals. Hiring a reputable professional is usually a better idea as it will bring stability to your team.
2. Not Creating a Beautiful Website
Word-of-mouth marketing was always crucial for companies, and it is especially important for small businesses such as dentistry. Unfortunately, getting those first clients is always a choir.
Many owners neglect the power of promotion, thinking that it’s enough to have a good service. However, unless you’re able to attract those initial patients, you will never be able to scale the business.
Having a great website is important as it sets up the basis for search engine optimization. Down the line, it will help you reach more people through Google. But it also works as a digital business card. Like your clinic, the website needs to be clean and to instill confidence in potential patients.
3. Ignoring Search Engine Optimization
Performing search engine optimization or SEO is a time-consuming job. However, small local companies can achieve great results in just a few months.
According to several professionals that conduct dental SEO by Dental Marketing Guy, local search engine optimization is an ideal way of promoting dental services to your local community. When a person looks for medical experts in their home city, your clinic should appear at the top of Google search pages. By investing some money in this promotional activity, you can get thousands of new clients in a short time.
Among others, search engine optimization is great for branding. Unlike other digital marketing activities, such as pay-per-click, the SEO results will remain even when you stop paying for the service.
4. Not Having a Stellar Customer Service Plan in Place
We can argue that customer service is more important for dental clinics than most other businesses. This is because lots of patients are anxious before treatments and exams. Like with any other medical procedure, a person wants to be certain they’re in good hands.
Most patients are willing to pay extra for premium dental services. However, if you have poor customer service, it can dissuade them from giving you a chance. Even if they visit your clinic once, they might not return.
Retaining a patient is especially important in dentistry. Like with some other services, a patient is willing to travel long distances to perform an exam at the same clinic. Once a person chooses a dentist, they will likely return to the same person for most of their lives. And the lifetime value of one patient can be high.
5. Not preparing for the unexpected
Similar to other businesses, dental practices are subject to inherent business risks. For example, an equipment malfunction can set you back for months. In some situations, it might take weeks before you can get back to business. Losing a staff member can also be a major problem.
Although you cannot avert some potential issues, you need to have a contingency plan. First off, a business owner needs to have a healthy cash flow to cover any unexpected expenditures. Having debt is normal for dental offices, but you need to reduce liabilities as soon as possible.
One way to protect yourself is by getting insurance. Certain policies can cover dental practice overhead and provide you with income when you go on a hiatus.