Dental Phone Training Tips for Team Training
Dental phone training tips here to help guide you as you lead your team. Phone training is necessary in any business. But especially in dentistry. As this is truly where our new patients and existing patients interact with us most.
So, we do well to cross-train our entire teams to handle the basics. With more in depth training for our team members that carry the brunt of our phone conversations.
Plan in Advance
This training is for an existing team. And not specifically targeting our new team members. So, a weekly business meeting is a great place to host this training. You may even want to extend this from a one-hour to a two-hour session. And provide a fun lunch for the gang!
Then, know what materials you plan to use. Perhaps mix it up a bit. Provide some hand outs. Perhaps a video or slide presentation. And then, allow time for some practice and role play.
Review Some Basics
It’s so easy for all of us (and I speak for myself too) to slip into a place of being unaware. A place of comfort allows this to happen. And it can be a very good thing. But, it also can be a space for “bad” habits to develop.
Remind the team members that food and phones don’t mix in a business setting. That we want all our attention on patient care, even when we are on the phone. And to interact with each patient as if they were standing before us in the office. We certainly wouldn’t be eating a candy bar while talking with them face to face!
The Machine
How does this machine work, anyway? Does everyone on the team know which buttons do what? It may seem silly, but it’s truly important. And you just might find out that there are some things you don’t even know about your office phones.
Open up the dialogue and find out! If everyone knows just how the machinery works, that’s great! And you haven’t lost a thing. But it might be a time to learn something small that converts into greater confidence in answering the office phones.
Talk About Tone
Our tone and body language say more to our patients than our words. So, it is a good idea to talk about tone a bit. And to train the team to be intentional in tone and presentation.
Again, we can easily slip into the comfort zone and forget that we are in the business of patient care. That our tone builds trust and helps our patients feel safe. They look to us for reassurance and security that comes from our tone more than our words.
Dental Phone Training Tips : Script It!
What do you want the team to say when a patient asks if they can reschedule their appointment? And it’s a two-hour production block. Tomorrow! Lead the way. Write the script and then demonstrate.
Provide a little role play and demonstration to help your team grow more confident and clear on just how you want this to go. Think of each scenario that happens and supply the script.
If You Say it Twice, Script It!
Many of our dental office phone conversations are alike. We don’t encounter than many unusual conversations. Most likely, they just vary a little from patient to patient. But are not all that different in the end.
This provides the team with the opportunity to really learn how you want them to confirm, schedule and reschedule your patient appointments. Which is what the business of dentistry is all about!
