The first step in having a case conversation is to focus on build­ing a strong relationship. Doctors and staff members who can build great relationships will be highly successful in generating case acceptance, which benefits both patients and the practice. It all begins by asking questions. At Levin Group, we have a concept called The Golden 10, which means that you do not examine a patient until you know 10 personal things about them. A simple interview­ing technique of asking questions and getting to know patients on a deeper level will automatically build powerful relationships that lead to higher case acceptance.

Each question might be based on something the patient has shared with you, leading to the next ques­tion. Then, you can deepen your personal knowledge of the patient by saying something like, “Tell me more about that.” You never know where this question might take you.

SAMPLE QUESTIONS TO BUILD RELATIONSHIPS

• Where are you from?
• What type of work do you do?
• How many kids do you have?
• How old are your kids?
• Do you have any pets?
• What are your hobbies?
• Where do you like to travel?

This first step may be the hardest for dentists to master because it requires taking a few minutes on the front end to just sit down in a relaxed setting and get to know a patient by asking questions. But the deeper the relationship you build, the more likely the patient will accept the dental implant recommendation. This process also leads to one of the mantras we hope that you will adopt: Make your patients your friends. People like their friends, trust their friends and buy from their friends. That is what comes from building strong and deep relationships.

Ask patients why they are interested in dental implants, and once you hear an answer, stay with that objective. Some people want function, others want esthetics, and others are interested in over­all health. If you can identify the main reason a patient would like to have dental implants versus other types of treatment, then you will tap into the psychological motivation. The orientation of the conversation should center around the patient’s main objective.

Think through your potential answers to patients’ questions ahead of time. What would you say to a patient who can benefit functionally from dental implants but only really cares about the esthetic results? The answer is not to spend endless time explaining how implant dentistry will improve function, help them keep their teeth for a lifetime and improve their systemic health. The focus is simply to tell them that they will look better, end up with a beautiful smile and be more attractive. You can go further by explaining that people react posi­tively to other people’s smiles. Some dentists may feel remiss by not going through the check­list of everything dental implants can do for a patient, but keep in mind that many patients do not care, and those other items on the checklist become a distraction. It is worth taking the time to really understand why a patient might want dental implants and then addressing that patient in a highly customized, one-on-one manner relative to that main objective.

In traditional case presentation, you do most of the talking. In this new approach, the patient is highly engaged. A mathematical approach to the concept of having a conversation is not to do more than 50% of the talking. Asking questions, as noted above, gives the patient an opportunity to talk, which is highly desirable. Not only do we want patients to talk about themselves as we get to know them and build a relation­ship, but we want to leave time for patients to ask questions and make comments by participating in the conversation about implant dentistry. In most cases, if you let patients do 50% of the talking, which is the backbone of having a great conversation, patients will often lead themselves to case acceptance on their own. And this can happen long before fees are even discussed.

WHEN LISTENING, DON'T FORGET BODY LANGUAGE

• Sit at eye level with the patient — makes the patient feel equal
• Make eye contact — shows attentiveness
• Keep arms and legs uncrossed — shows warmth
• Maintain good posture — shows interest
• Lean forward — creates positive energy

Dentists must become more honest with their patients. In this case, honesty is not refer­ring to integrity or telling the truth. Honesty is about not holding back. Every dentist would like to look at a patient toward the end of a case presentation and ask if the patient is going to accept treatment; however, we often feel that doing this is pushy or impolite. But there is a straightforward, polite way to ask this question, and it actually helps patients advance their think­ing toward a decision. Simply ask, “Mrs. Jones, would you like to have this done?”

This one question helps many patients revert from wanting to go home and think about it to making their decision in the practice. It can lead to an affirmative answer, rejection, questions or objections. Hearing a “yes” or a “no” right away is good because an answer saves time going forward. Asking questions and stating objections is a patient’s way of working toward case acceptance. If you answer the questions and objections properly, with true compassion, it almost always leads to case acceptance. 

Whether it is a dentist or a finan­cial coordinator who covers the financial options, patients should be aware of all the options that are available. Many practices use an approach of presenting one option at a time. For example, they first try to have the patient pay with cash or check and maybe receive a small discount. If the patient rejects that, they will move on to credit cards. If the patient still rejects that, they move on to short-term payment plans during the treatment process. Finally, the office will offer patient financ­ing, which many practices would like to avoid due to having to pay the financing company’s fee. This “parsing it out” approach to offering financial options is no longer effective. It is essential that patients know all financial options upfront so that they can decide about implant treatment affordability. Many patients are not aware that the practice has available financing and often reject treatment because they don’t think they can afford it. In many instances, the availability of interest-free financing is one of the most important options for patients, as it minimizes the financial burden of paying for treatment all at once. Not cover­ing all the financial options upfront, especially the inclusion of patient financing, is a critical mistake made by many practices.