"Most people know how to set goals; few know how to achieve them." - Robert Kiyosaki
This wise qoute by Robert Kiyosaki tells us something important: making goals is easy, but achieving them can be hard. This is true for dental clinics too. Let’s talk about how you can not only set goals for your dental clinic but also make sure you achieve them.
Simple Steps for Setting Your Goals
When you make goals for your clinic, remember these steps:
1. Make Clear Goals: Say exactly what you want to do. Instead of saying "increase my clinic revenue" say "increase my revenue X amount in 3 months by increasing the number of new patients to from 20 to 35 a month."
2. How to Know You Did It: Decide how you will know when you’ve reached your goals. Regularly check your revenue and new patient count reports from your dental clinic management software to monitor your goals and their achievement percentage.
3. Be Real: Ensure your goal is achievable. While ambition can push us to aim high, it's crucial to ground our objectives in reality. Use your clinic's historical data as a basis for setting attainable targets rather than drawing from others' experiences. Clearly define your strategy and the specific steps you will take to realize any increase in your metrics.
4. It Should Matter: Your goal should help your clinic, visitors and the staff in a way that matters. More patients mean you can help more people and your clinic can grow. Think about everyone’s interest while thinking of the new target.
5. Give It Time: Determine your goal’s timeline: whether it’s set for a month, a quarter, or a year. A recommended approach is to establish an annual goal and then segment it into monthly and quarterly milestones. This method facilitates tracking progress and discussing achievements in your meetings.
Now that we've set our goals, let's explore the best ways to achieve them.
1. Small Steps, Achievable Steps:
Having a big goal for your dental clinic, like attracting more new patients, might seem daunting. The best approach to tackle this is by breaking your big goal into smaller, manageable steps, which we call milestones.
An initial small step could be to review how you advertise your clinic. Start by setting up a meeting with your media buyer to assess your current advertising strategies and messages. This is your chance to make sure you're reaching the right people in the best way possible. After accomplishing this step, celebrate this progress with your team.
Thinking carefully about your goal from the start helps you understand the steps to achieve it. It's good to stick with your initial goal unless a very big reason makes you reconsider. Changing goals too often can make others doubt and lose trust in the goal. So, enjoy each small victory, stay focused, and work together towards your big goal.
2. Planning Your Actions: it's crucial to map out the steps needed to get there. Begin by evaluating your current marketing strategies—are you maximizing the potential of each channel, or is it time to integrate new methods such as email marketing, SEO, Referral System and influencer marketing? Beyond broadening your reach, it's equally important to refine how you engage with potential patients from the get-go. Assess every interaction, from the initial phone call or message, to the creation of treatment plans, right through to improving the acceptance rate inside your clinic. Crafting a comprehensive plan that not only attracts new patients but also optimizes their journey through your clinic is key to achieving your goals.
3. Tracking Your Progress: It's like checking road signs to see how far you've come on a journey. These signs help make sure you're heading in the right direction. But, it's also good to enjoy the journey itself, not just aim for the destination . Sometimes, when we are attached to the goals, they start to be harder to achieve. To keep track of your progress, figure out which reports or updates will show you how you're doing. Your clinic's management system should be able to give you these reports. Choose a team member to collect and share these updates with you on a regular basis. This way, you can make sure you're moving towards your goals while also appreciating the steps you take to get there.
4. Be Ready to Change: Sometimes, you need to change your plan. Maybe you tried one way to get new patients and it didn’t work. It’s okay to try something else.
5. Look Back and Learn: Sometimes, look back at what you’ve done. See what worked and what didn’t. This can help you do better next time.
Keep Going
Reaching goals is about trying hard and not giving up. It's okay if things don't always go as planned. What's important is to keep going and to learn from everything that happens.
In your dental clinic, every small step towards your goal is a big win. Keep in mind, it's about helping people and making their visits to the dentist a good experience. When you focus on these things, achieving your goals will not only make your clinic better but also make you proud of the work you do.