Mistake #3: Playing it Safe
- Making decisions from a place of fear
- Thinking you can do it all yourself
- Not building and planning large enough to accommodate growth potential
I’ve talked about making decisions from a place of fear in the first blog in this series, and the mistake of thinking you can do it all yourself in the second one. The third biggest mistake doctors make is simply playing it too safe.
Many clients I’ve met over the years conservatively underestimate how large and successful they and their practice can actually be! Most doctors can manage a patient load of 1200-1500 patients and which can be accommodated by a 5 operatory office. The down side of conservative planning is that doctors reach the plateau of growth very quickly and outgrow the new facility while still paying off the loan for it. Each operatory generates $250,000 a year and over 10 years the revenue and collection on each treatment room is $2.5 million. If you short yourself the revenue from production, in even one operatory, by underestimating the value it brings, you’ll be making a very expensive mistake!
With the formulary I just described, and the correct location and strategy in place, we can pretty exactly determine how to build the business to achieve the financial outcome you are seeking. One of the only regrets I hear from doctors who have done projects with me is, “I wish I had made it bigger, or designed it so I could add more operatories.” A preoccupation with empty chairs blocks the pathway to growth and the space to treat patients and expand the dentistry you can offer in an efficient and timely manner.
Focus instead on having the capacity to handle your busy times. When you don’t have a place to put a patient, what is it costing your business to reschedule, or turn patients away during those peak times? They may not return at all, or change their minds while waiting for that next appointment. Planning your business capacity for busy times means creating the space for immediate treatment options and expands amount of dentistry you can offer. The ability to treat patients on the spot during their current visit is very profitable. Your incremental overhead is just the materials and a lab fee. That immediate treatment option for your patients can equate to 86% profit on that treatment. In a state of the art practice, offering the a convenient patient experience, I can say with certainty you will find all the patients you’ll need to meet, and often exceed, your goals for return on the investment.
Don’t make these common mistakes! If you are looking to start, looking to grow, or have reached a plateau in your business I can meet you wherever you are at in the process and work with you to plan for your goals. Take a look at some of my featured projects and read testimonials from doctors about their success stories. You can also fill out Getting Started forms on my website. Let’s meet to discuss ways we can work together to plan and build the successful modern dental practice of your dreams.
Read the Part I of this series, Making Decisions From a Place of Fear »
Read the Part II of this series, Thinking You Can do It ALL Yourself »