5 Steps to Building Dental Phone Skills and Converting New Patients

Even though it’s easy for your prospective and current patients to learn about your practice online, some of them will still choose to call your practice. According to a study by Inova, 41% of patients call healthcare providers to gather information about their services. This is why you must train your front office team to feel comfortable and confident on the phone and invest in a reliable dental phone system. Both go a long way in building relationships with patients and helping them take care of their oral health.

In this post, you’ll learn the tried-and-true steps needed to master phone skills so it’s a positive experience for your team and patients and ultimately brings more patients to your practice.

Step 1: Evaluate and Train Your Team

A well-trained front office team is key to making a positive practice experience, including being on the phone. Regular training and coaching will keep your team at the top of their game.

• Schedule frequent phone training. Whether you’re onboarding new team members or have more experienced team members, everyone can benefit from consistent training. It helps them learn a new skill, hone an existing one, and sets them up to be successful at your practice. Your training can include role-playing scenarios, rapport building, and communication skills to be more effective on the phone.  

• Use call recording features. This allows you to review and assess how well your team is handling calls. It’s an opportunity to praise what team members are doing well and  coach them on where they can improve.  

• Provide feedback and coaching. The only way your team will know if they’re succeeding is through feedback, coaching, and praise. Provide constructive and positive feedback and regular coaching for team members so everyone feels equipped to answer calls.

• Keep a log of FAQs and phone scripts handy. Phone scripts are a tried-and-true solution to handle typical patient inquiries, but a frequently asked questions (FAQs) document gives  team members more resources to answer possible patient questions. So, keep your FAQs and scripts by the phones so anyone can refer to them quickly when needed.

Step 2: Master the Greeting on Your Dental Phone System

Many people (including some of your team members) experience phone anxiety. In fact, 81% of millennials experience it. Despite that, some of your patients will still call your practice, even if it makes them uncomfortable. Be sure to make the call experience as pleasant as possible so they’re more likely to return to your practice because you gave them a positive experience. To start, make the phone introductions as easy as possible. And for anyone on your team who has phone anxiety, these tips can also help them by adding some structure to making and answering phone calls.

• Say more than “hello” or “good morning.” Try: “Thank you for calling [your practice name]. This is [your name]. How may I help you today?” Say it with a smile, because they can hear it in your voice. A warm greeting is a good start to building rapport and putting patients at ease so they can ask their questions with confidence.  

• Take down their contact information early in the call. This includes name, number, and email. If the call drops, at least you can quickly get back to them. If  your dental phone system doesn’t have caller id, have a backup option in place to get their information.  

• Show interest in the caller. Ask how they’re doing, if they’ve ever visited your practice, when their last visit was (if they say they’ve visited before), and be present. The more you know about them, the better equipped you are to give them the best and most appropriate solution to their needs. Repeat the caller’s name back at some point to help create a deeper connection and to help you remember their name.  

• Limit how often you have to put patients on hold. No one likes waiting on the phone longer than necessary. If you must put them on hold, try to keep it as brief as possible. If it’s longer than a minute, be sure to check back and let them know you’re still there and will help them shortly.  

Step 3: Build Rapport with Patients

Building a genuine connection with your patients over the phone is necessary for making them feel comfortable enough to book an appointment. This can be done through active listening and asking the right questions.  

• Use empathetic listening. Even though front offices are busy places, try to stay hyper focused with the patient on the call so you can respond accordingly.  

• Take notes. Take notes on the patients’ needs to offer the right recommendations. You can input these notes directly into the patients’ notes section of their profile so everyone has access to it.  

• Reassure the patient. Reiterate the benefits of the care and level of experience they’ll receive at your practice, so they know they’re making the right decision on a proposed treatment.

Step 4: Convert Calls into Appointments

Many patients call with questions about services, costs, or insurance. Turning these conversations into scheduled appointments lets you fill your schedule over time and gives new patients an opportunity to experience your practice and hopefully return.  

• Invite them to schedule an appointment. Research shows that only 45% of callers are invited to make an appointment. Don’t assume they’ll ask; you must ask if it’s relevant to conversation.  

• Offer flexible scheduling options. Ask their preferred day(s) and time(s) to give them control of their health and schedule. You can give them options to help them narrow it down if they’re not sure what days work for them.  

• Offer a free consultation. A lot of people avoid the dentist for fear of high treatment costs. They will call different practices to price shop or check which ones accept their dental plans. Take the time to explain that the fee depends on the extent of care needed and the time involved. Offer a complimentary visit to get a better estimate of the treatment they need. This may also encourage hesitant patients to book.  

• Follow up on the conversation. Be sure to send a detailed email or text to recap the conversation and to keep them engaged so they don’t forget.  

• Use your patient engagement system. Once a patient has agreed to make an appointment, you can use your patient engagement system to schedule it, find out their communication preferences, and send confirmations immediately so they don’t forget.  

• Answer the phone during lunch hour. Lunch is a popular time to make calls because it’s the only time they’re able to. Have one of your receptionists take an early or late lunch so that there’s someone who is connecting with potential patients calling in at that time.

Step 5: Use a Reliable Dental Phone System

Your dental phone system should have features that facilitate call handling and streamline communication. Proper setup is essential to ensure your front office team can operate smoothly. Typically, your phone system provider will help you get up set up during onboarding, and they’ll show you how to configure your phone system even after onboarding in case you want to change any settings.  

• Set up auto-attendants to direct calls. This will help you direct incoming calls to the appropriate team member quickly. It’s like having a virtual receptionist for your phone so it helps to ensure calls get answered.  

• Configure voicemail settings. Use a professional and friendly greeting that provides clear instructions for patients, so they know what to do next.  

• Enable call recording for quality assurance and training purposes. Be sure to include in your greeting that calls may be recorded in the phone greeting so patients are aware and mindful of what they ask and share.  

• Integrate the dental phone system with your existing tools. If you haven’t already done so, be sure to connect your phone with your patient engagement tools and practice management system (PMS) to streamline appointment scheduling and maintain consistent information across systems.  

Implementing these steps can improve the call experience for you and your patients and bring them back to your practice. And one of the best ways for your team to build and hone their phone skills is by practicing. Practicing goes a long way in building confidence and putting your patients at ease. Additionally, having the right tools at your disposal makes your job easier too. This is why a dental phone system can be helpful. RevenueWell Phones is a VoIP phone system designed for dental practices that integrates with your PMS making it possible to clearer and better phone calls with patients. It comes with a variety of features so you can configure your phone system based on what your practice needs. Schedule a call to learn more about it.  

‍