Episode Player

The New Patient Mistake 90% of Practices Make

Dental Practice Heroes

Chapters
0:00
The Hidden Cost Of Missed Calls
3:01
Meet The Hosts And Mission
4:03
Data Reality: Answer Rates And Loss
6:08
Culture And Training For Phones
8:43
Phone Trees, Auto Attendants, Text Back
12:18
The Nine Call Types Framework
14:23
Preventing Confusion And Documenting
16:09
KPIs That Actually Matter
18:06
New Patients As A Growth Engine
20:08
Capacity, Blocks, And Priorities
22:03
Referrals, Reviews, And Momentum
24:08
Simple Rules: Answer, Be Kind, Measure
25:28
Closing Mindset And Next Steps
Dental Practice Heroes
The New Patient Mistake 90% of Practices Make
Jan 21, 2026 Episode 637
Dr. Paul Etchison

Before you spend another dollar on marketing, look at this first: your phones. Most practices assume their staff has it handled because calls are coming in and the team feels busy, but missed calls and poor phone systems could be costing you more new patients than you realize.

In this episode, the DPH coaches explain how to audit your phone systems, reduce missed calls, and get more new patients on the schedule. You'll get ideas for simple workflows and automation tools that keep calls from slipping through the cracks.

Topics discussed:

  • The most overlooked KPI in most practices
  • How to use phone trees, auto-attendant, and automatic texts
  • Phone training and the nine most common call scenarios
  • Why you should prioritize new patients and emergencies
  • KPI benchmarks and what every practice should track
  • How to create a culture where phones are prioritized
  • Why practices always need new patients

This episode was produced by Podcast Boutique https://www.podcastboutique.com


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