Finding great new patients…”Follow that car!”

Dental Marketing, New Patients, Personal

Happy Monday to you.  We’re all getting over almost 2 weeks of
one-kid-after-the-other illness, which Elizabeth just caught
Sunday night…ugh!  Am I next?

We also had an awful but beautiful ice/snow storm this past
weekend, and we’re still digging out from it.  We’ve got pretty
wimpy shovels down here in North Carolina.

At least we all got to go on a rare Charlotte sledding outing
yesterday.  We hardly ever get “sledding snow”, and this was
a first for the kids.  We all had a blast, which brings me to
today’s message for you:

“Follow that car!”

The hill where we were sledding was packed with kids and parents,
almost all of whom were taking their turns zooming along on the
hard packed snow.

Reid (6) looked at me and said, “Daddy, where’s the FASTEST way
down?”  Pretty cool I thought.  He didn’t want to ‘just’ go
sledding.  He wanted the BEST sledding experience he could get!

I looked across the hill for the sleds going the fastest and/or
the longest, along the same path.  Then I said to Reid,
“Follow that car!”

Call me crazy, but that moment immediately reminded me of one
of the most savvy marketing strategies you can employ to find
the best quality new patients for your practice.  It’s actually
called “follow that car”.  Dan Kennedy speaks of this approach
often.  Here’s how it works, internally, today.  On Wednesday I’ll
cover an external approach.

Internally, you’ll want to first identify your absolute best
patients…perhaps your “Top 50″ or so.  Then analyze that small
list for any similarities they may have, either demographically
or behaviorally.

Once you’ve found several commonalities among this small sample
group, now you can “follow that car” to find more people just
like them.  Besides asking for referrals from this group, you
can literally select an ultra-targeted mailing list including
many of the desired traits as filters.  This list will cost more,
but it’ll be WORTH IT.

Then you can send direct mail to this smaller group with a more
targeted message that matches their characteristics and
preferences.  Not sure exactly what those preferences are?
Well, ask your “Top 50″!

What are their likes?  Their dislikes?  What’s most important to
them?  What caused them to choose you in the first place?  The
answers to these questions becomes the language of your marketing
messages to this group, as you seek to attract more of your
“ideal” patients.

When you can zoom in on a specific group of people and speak
their language, you’ll likely connect with a higher percentage
of that smaller group.  More importantly, you won’t have the
“waste” involved in shotgunning your marketing message out to
the masses and connecting with very few.

The more you can focus your message on one market segment…
IF you can match the message with that market…the more
successful your marketing campaigns will be, period.  And
you’ll get the types of patients you want too.

Yes, there’s some work involved, but it sure is worth it!

All my best,
Chris

Dr. Chris Bowman
Dental Insiders Alliance
www.DentalInsiders.com/patientattraction

PS: I’m pulling the “Patient Attraction” Collection offer off
the table very soon.  If you haven’t joined Dental Insiders
Alliance but you’ve been thinking about it, now is the time to
go to the above link and test drive your Preferred Membership!

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Video: We’ve been Elfed! Merry Christmas!

Main Content, Personal

My whole family was “ELFED” last night, and we made a Christmas
video for you.  That’s my wife Elizabeth, and my sons Reid (blond)
and Kenan (brown), along with Olivia and myself, dancin’ up a
storm!  You’ve gotta check it out here:

http://elfyourself.jibjab.com/view/wXn5nUEp9022arUZ

Merry Christmas to you if it’s your holiday, like it is ours.

If you just finished your Hanukkah celebration, I hope it was
special.

Whatever your religion, my family and I wish you all the best
this holiday season!

All my best,
Chris

PS: The white stuff around Kenan’s mouth is ice cream…we just
can’t keep him away from the sweets!  At least he brushes great!

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Happy Thanksgiving Wishes!

Main Content, Personal

Today’s message is simple:

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

From my family to yours, I want to take a moment to
THANK YOU for your interest and involvement in Dental
Insiders Alliance, either as a coaching client, member,
or free subscriber to this E-Alert list.

My wife Elizabeth just finished getting everything set up
for our family feast, and I was just thinking how blessed
we are to be together with Reid (6), Kenan (4 1/2) and Olivia
(2 1/2), plus many of our relatives.

I’m also blessed to have you in my “family of dentists”…
and team members too!

Sharing philosophies, information, concepts and ideas is
a passion of mine, and I’m fortunate to know that so many
dentist/entrepreneurs (you are both you know!) are a part
of my professional life.

As you spend time with the ones you love, please know that
you are appreciated here!

All my best,
Chris

Dr. Chris Bowman
Dental Insiders Alliance

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I’m baaack…with another BIG idea!

Customer Service, Personal, Webinars

I’m baaaack…with another BIG idea!

I’m also back in the saddle again, after a fantastic long
vacation with the family at beautiful Figure Eight Island,
NC.  It’s a phenomenal private island with miles of
incredible, uncrowded beaches…ultra-safe for the kids.

Two weeks of the beach, golfing at Eagle Point Golf Club
(Golf Digest #83 in the US), the pool, and a little fishin’
and I feel like I’ve “reset” myself.  Now I’m ready to
rock for the remainder of the year!  Just in case though,
there’s that next week off coming up in August…sigh.

OK, now for the BIG idea.  This one may seem obvious at
first, but when you think about it, you may realize that
you and your team need to work on it quite a bit.  It is:

“ALWAYS give your patients the OPPORTUNITY to say ‘yes’ or
‘no’ to your absolute BEST treatment, no matter what!”

When it gets right down to it, that’s what allows me to:

- experience continued practice growth in ANY economic climate

- find out what they really want, and what means most to them

- discover my patients’ true motivations behind their dental goals

- find out what true limitations they have, financial or otherwise

- not worry about US trying to figure out what they’re thinking,
or whether they can afford it, or whatever else

- sleep well every night, knowing that my patients have the freedom
make their own decisions about their care…with ALL the relevant
information of course!

That last point is perhaps most important to me…and to my patients.

By the way, don’t miss the IMPORTANT CAVEAT I threw in there
about being certain that you and your team have given your
patients ALL the relevant information they need to make wise
decisions.  I’ll discuss that in more detail tomorrow.

Until then, be sure to share this message with your team…
and hold them accountable for following through.

All my best,
Chris

PS: Be on the lookout for a flurry of communications from
me over the next several weeks and months.  Since I haven’t
been in touch in a little while, it’ll seem like a lot.
Don’t worry though, I won’t bug you…I’ll make sure that
every message I send has a solid purpose.

Case in point:  Soon I’ll be announcing my 1st Annual
Dental Insiders Alliance “Summer Blitz” Teleseminar &
Webinar Series.  I have an impressive lineup of guests
gathered to help you learn and implement new ideas and
strategies in your practice.  While most of the events
will be reserved for Dental Insiders Alliance members,
I’m opening some up for non-members as well

However, the ONLY way to get the schedule for the upcoming
DIA Summer Blitz Teleseminar & Webinar Series is to be a
subscriber here!  So stay tuned.

Dr. Chris Bowman
Dental Insiders Alliance

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Which is better? PLUS, an announcement…

Communications, Dental Marketing, Dental Team, Financial Issues, Personal

—————————————————————–
Which is better: Coaching or Mastermind?

Plus…an announcement for you!
—————————————————————–

Last time I mentioned that I would address the above question,
which has been asked of me by several doctors since I started
this thread about Coaching and Mastermind groups. I
meant to get this out to you earlier, but my family kept me
booked with some planned (and unplanned!) birthday weekend
activities…and Monday was CRAZY busy.

Yes, my “3rd Annual 39th Birthday” was Sunday, and we had
the whole weekend packed with Kenan’s soccer practice and games
(I’m his coach), Reid’s T-ball pictures and games, golf with
my dad, family birthday dinners, etc…beginning THURSDAY night.
I’m still tired, and it’s Monday night…and we’re ALL (family and
team) going to Destin for Woody Oakes’ Spring Seminar on
Wednesday, where I’m speaking not once but TWICE…WHEW!

Anyway, back to the question. “So what should I be looking for,”
asked one doctor. “A Coaching program or Mastermind program?”
Although I could spend hours going on and on about each, I’ll
try to break it down pretty thoroughly but quickly here.

First, Coaching. These programs tend to be rather short term in
nature, often lasting one or two years in dentistry, with many
variations. There are in-office and out-of-office versions,
either involving primarily the doctor or with team heavily
involved.

Coaching more frequently involves an individual, per-practice
model, meaning there is more emphasis on one dental practice
or partnership. While group Coaching does exist, it must be
primarily standardized when presented in the group model…
which can have limitations.

Benefits of Coaching include the personal attention given to
the client practice, and the ability to customize the program
for each individual office. Coaching without customization should
NOT be considered, as all practices have different nuances that
require variations in protocols.

What’s usually missing from Coaching programs, however, is the
involvement and participation of other practices who are going
through similar circumstances and share common goals. That’s
where the Mastermind group comes in STRONG.

Mastermind groups bring the power of SYNERGY, which I described
in detail last time. In the Mastermind group, both diversity
and commonalities should be balanced so each member can get
different perspectives and angles on the same issues. The
collective thought processes, under careful guidance of a solid
leader, bring big breakthroughs that can literally transform a
practice, and the lives connected to that practice.

Another significant benefit of Mastermind groups is CONTINUITY.
Unlike most coaching programs that “teach and set free”, the
Mastermind group can continue perpetually. As you might
imagine, the tendency is for each group to get stronger and
stronger over time. Some members occasionally opt out after
some time, while new members join off the waiting list as slots
come open, albeit rarely. The best Mastermind groups stay largely
in tact for many years.

Masterminds are usually best carried out with only the business
leaders present, and perhaps one primary team member. These are
more strategic leadership meetings, usually held 2-4 times
per year. In between, implementation takes place…and it had
better, because each member of the Mastermind is held ACCOUNTABLE
by the group. That accountability leads to BIG growth.

Pure Mastermind groups, however, don’t often include personalized
coaching. That’s the primary limitation. Sure, you do get the
personal benefits of your own “hot-seat” hour or so, when the
entire group is focused on you and your business. And I can
personally attest that EVERY time I get BIG takeaways from OTHER
members’ hot seat hours. But other than that, there’s little
to no one-on-one time with the leader/coach.

Lastly, it can often be quite difficult to assemble a like-minded
group of business leaders, especially on a local level. Just
recently another doctor emailed me about this very thing. He tried
to form a local group with other entrepreneurial friends, and
as he put it: “the reception was lukewarm at best”. Unless there’s
a rather large group of entrepreneurial business leaders from which
to form a much smaller Mastermind group, forming such a group is
a huge challenge.

So, WHICH IS BETTER??

Can you FEEL my answer??

You got it……..BOTH!

Yes, both Coaching AND Masterminding in my opinion are the way to
go. Problem is, virtually all coaches and consultants out there
in dentistry either have one or the other. Most have a “Coaching”
program, or a “Consulting” program, or a “Mastermind group”. But
none that I know of have taken the best elements of both and
put them together into one solid Coaching AND Masterminding Program.

Until now.

That, my friend, is the announcement I have for you today!

In just a few short days, I will LAUNCH dentistry’s newest and
most innovative…and most COMPLETE…Coaching and Mastermind
Program! This program will be for a small number of dentists
who are TRULY SERIOUS about reaching levels never before thought
possible in their practices. Through ONE-ON-ONE Coaching and
cohesive Masterminding, each member who is selected for this
ELITE group from highly-interested applicants will be presented
with the most unique business building environment in dentistry.

All the details, including the composition and organization of
the program, as well as how to apply, will be covered over the
next several days. I will also reveal the NAME of the program,
which is perhaps the only thing I’m still debating! Everything
else is in place…ready to help a small, motivated group of
dentists SOAR through ANY economic conditions.

If you’d like to indicate your preliminary interest, just send
a message to Tonya Andrews, my new Dental Insiders Alliance
Business Coordinator. Her direct email address is
Tonya@DentalInsiders.com. She will organize messages and funnel
them to me…I will address them as quickly as possible.

You most certainly want to be following the next few messages,
during which I’ll outline my new Coaching and Masterminding
Program, and how to apply. Again, because of the intensive
nature of the Program, and the amount of my time involved, I
must strictly limit the size of the group to just 16 doctors.
As you can see, it’ll be quite easy to “miss the boat” if
you’re not watching closely.

That’s it for now. Have a fantastic day, and be on the lookout.

All my best,
Chris

PS: I know you may be thinking, “How much…what’s my investment?”
Well, now’s not the time to answer that. I can say right now that
the investment WILL be significant, and it should be, because the
VALUE of the information and breakthroughs uncovered during this
experience will no doubt lead to six-figure LEAPS in revenues.
Not just in the coming year, but also during subsequent years too!

Dr. Chris Bowman
Dental Insiders Alliance

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