Last week I was walking down George Street Sydney with throngs of people who had emerged out of office buildings wanting to catch a glimpse of some lunchtime sunshine and also a bite to eat.

I crossed the street and on either side of the path I was walking were two fit looking guys with flexed muscles wearing sports gear giving out one day membership cards for people to come to work out at their gym.

As I approached them I was not sure whether to feel disappointed or flattered when they didn’t stop me and give me a card.

Why didn’t they give me a free membership card? My curiosity got the better of me.

I walked back and asked why.

The fit gym guy said, “I just know when someone is going to say No.”

Wow!

This gym guy is a genius.

He has special mind reading power.

Does he really know if someone he stops on the street will say Yes or No?

One of the Golden Rules is………unless someone says No to you, they have not said No.

Give everyone the opportunity to say YES!

I wonder how many other people had been prejudged and not had the opportunity to say Yes?

It made me think about how we do this on the phone and in our Dental Offices every day.

Do we sometimes presume our patients will say No to an appointment or treatment and not even give them the opportunity to say Yes?

I see it all the time.

We actually decide for the patient.

We prejudge our patients by thinking:

• They can’t afford it
• They have no money
• It’s too much to do all at once.
• They are too old or too young
• They look scared
• They won’t get much back from their Health Fund
• I can’t find a suitable time for them
• They are going on holiday and won’t have time

The worst part is we don’t even know we are doing it.

Like the gym guys in George Street who have had so many people say No, we start to think about other patients who have said No and it gets in the way of helping our patients.

The golden rule to follow in the Dental Office is to NEVER believe the patient has said No to treatment until they tell you.

Give ALL your patients the opportunity to say YES and most of the time they WILL!

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On Friday August 19 and Saturday August 20 I will be co-presenting Dental Phone Excellence in London England at Dr. David Moffet’s Ultimate Patient Experience Workshop.
Click here for details and Early Bird Registration.
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This blog will feature simple practical ideas that are easy to implement tomorrow in your Dental Office, impacting immediately on your Patients’ Dental  Phone Experiences, and ultimately, improving your practice profitability.

At present I have availability for four new private clients. For more information on how I can improve your Dental Office’s Phone Numbers contact me, Jayne Bandy at  jayne@theDPE.com