Dental Bun Podcast

Your Greatest Asset Is You: Elevating Your Professional Presence

• Janiece • Season 2 • Episode 9

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Ever wondered what truly sets one dental practice apart from the dozens of others lining "dental row" in your town? Kelly Dugan, certified image consultant and presence expert, shares a refreshing perspective that might surprise you.

The secret isn't found in your clinical skills or even your office décor—it's in the subtle nuances of how you and your team show up every day. "When we think about communication, it comes from how we dress, to how our bodies communicate, to how we verbally communicate, to the sound of our voice," explains Kelly. "Individually, we're our greatest asset."

Drawing from her background with the Association of Image Consultants International, Kelly reveals how personal branding transcends mere appearance to encompass a total professional presence. She walks us through the process of building authentic consistency across all touchpoints—from in-person patient interactions to digital platforms. Using her 360 Reach assessment tool, she helps professionals understand current perceptions and define their unique brand personas that resonate with patients.

What makes this conversation particularly valuable for dental professionals is Kelly's emphasis on "the little things" that create memorable patient experiences. Something as simple as body language during patient handoffs or the energy a team member brings into a room can have a significant impact on trust-building. Through individual coaching, team training, and even uniform development, Kelly helps practices create the consistency that elevates the entire patient experience.

Kellye Duggan's Contact Information:

- https://kellyduggan.com/
- https://linktr.ee/kdiconsulting 

 

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Speaker 1:

When we think about communication and communication it comes from how we dress, to how our bodies communicate, to actually how we verbally communicate, to the sound of our voice. All those things that create the experience it backs to the person. And individually, we're our greatest asset.

Speaker 2:

Of course I want to let them know how I met you. It was in a cab on the way to the DEW Retreat, and if you don't know what a DEW Retreat is, it is a retreat where women in dentistry go to become better at being in business with the great Anne Duffy. If anyone's interested in looking at the website is dolifecom. But we were talking back and forth and she's telling me that she is an image consultant and of course my ears perk up because I definitely need help in the image department just in getting dressed. And then of course we're always worried about our business presence. So it intrigued me. I wanted to hear more. So then Kelly started visiting with me about her business and I had to have her as a guest. So she is here today to tell us what is image consulting. Thank you so much, Kelly, for joining us today on the Dental Bun Podcast.

Speaker 1:

Thank you so much, denise. Yeah, it was great riding with you and like, yeah, where that my rides kind of condensed and it was a perfect storm, so always great. But yeah, so what is an image consultant? I think it gets tagged a lot of times where you think of image immediately goes to style and appearance and dress and like the fashion side of image. But the image industry is actually much broader. So I'm a member and certified with the Association of Image Consultants International and if you visit their site you'll see that it's a combination that we are. That and my business actually started there in the fashion, I say kind of the girly fun makeover land side of image consulting. But where it grew to is more within that corporate or business side. So you will see image consultants that are more like a stylist and fashion focused, which my business still has a part of it, but then you will see those that have moved on and look at more of the communication or leadership branding. There's many other focuses that are actually a part of image. So great question.

Speaker 2:

When personal brand is like used all over the internet, it's very like a generic word that everyone's like oh, it's your personal brand. No, it's your personal brand. I'm like oh, I know what, like, I know who I am and what I put out there, and of course, I'm building my brand. But what is a personal brand?

Speaker 1:

Personal brand aligns with the individual, and so we think of like corporate branding it's all around the product and so forth, which is great, but when you bring it back to personally, it is I mean, it's all those things you said, and I think that's why you get people using it in a whole variety of different ways but it's a combination of really a total presence that has consistency off from who you are. So a personal branding process or survey that I use is 360 Reach and it lets you consider how you want to be perceived by others. It allows you to anonymously look at and hear in a qualitative manner how others perceive you and from that then it builds off and creates what your brand personas are like, who you're about. So you've done strength finders and you know what your strengths are. It has some similarities to that, actually it can marry in and be a part of strength finders. So you can, even if you know your strengths, you can, incorporate that into your brand, and so you define these brand personas for yourself.

Speaker 1:

But then from that you know like well, how do you exude it? So first you extract from yourself it's like who you are and your personality to. Then you start to look on the outside of how you present. So it does have that appearance component to it, but where I bring it back into is more of a total presence model of it's a combination of how you think, look, act, speak and dress and what you want to grow. Where it creates a brand is that there's continuity and consistency in it so that it supports who you are and where you're going and who you're in front of your audience and then from there it can travel on out. Your personal brand should resonate through on let's say, you're on LinkedIn how you present there as a solo business owner like myself and yourself, I would say too, it's like what you do with your letterhead or your business cards or your website. It's so that all of it has continuity and consistency working together so it crafts a brand that's personal back to you.

Speaker 2:

So, when people are building their personal brand, what is the most common thing that people do wrong? As a business owner, you're just starting out or you're just trying to like put your best self forward and you don't recognize that that's probably not the best way to do it, and it's the common pitfall that we do when we're entering the business world and we don't know what we're doing.

Speaker 1:

Well, you know my brain goes a couple different ways. I'll bring it back to say that 360 reach assessment tool that I use, one of the things that we look at and that is a part of the survey. It also goes into. It looks at your strengths and weaknesses, and we always say you want to build off your strengths, which you do, but if there's a weakness that's going to get in your way of where you're going to go, then you need to address it. So I think there can be some times where one it might not be that you don't want to look at weaknesses, it's more like the time to do it.

Speaker 1:

If you're a solo business owner, there's you got a lot of hats to wear and things to do. So you know, maybe it's just taking the time to consider that, but sometimes it could be too where it's. You know, it's maybe a little painful to look at something that might be a weakness for yourself and you steer away from it. So that can be something that I have seen. So you know you've got to be brave. I'll tell you that the other from the opposite side of it, I would say is where you don't give yourself credit for the gifts or talents that you have and you foo-foo that thought, but really it's something that's a great gift and talent and that you're doing well in. So it's okay to not, you know, not the thought of boasting, but being proud of some of these things that actually you do do well and are an asset for yourself.

Speaker 1:

I would say, if we come back to the thought of image and dress, you know most people say they run into their closet and they don't have anything to wear. With my personal style development, where we take a deep dive and look at what colors, what cut and proportion and line are best, what your clothing personality is, and you look at your closet and actually people have quite a few pieces that are really true and nice and you know, coordinating off from what their personal style trait is, but again they just kind of shove it to the side. They don't think it's there. Most people are doing fairly well. It's helping them see things differently.

Speaker 2:

It's always hard to look in the mirror. Sometimes I use Stitch Fix because I'm lazy and I don't. I'm not a big shopper because I'm hard on myself. I get the kids and sometimes they're great and sometimes they're not, but I do feel we are our harshest critic, whether it's looking at yourself in the mirror or looking at all the accomplishments we've made.

Speaker 2:

Because in business I have a hard time elevating myself without feeling like I'm being boastful. I sometimes I don't know that I felt ashamed, but I felt like I don't want to be like too much where they're like oh, here comes Denise. All she does is like talk about how amazing she is, don't want to be that person. So it is very difficult for me to be able to pick those wonderful things that I want to share and then present them in a manner that comes off nicely. So how do you help people do that? So how do you help people do that? Because when I looked at your website, you said it's the little things that matter to elevate an experience that builds rapport, trust and helps patients to return. So how?

Speaker 1:

do you help people get that, all those good qualities out there, so that we can start building the rapport? We can start building the rapport. You know what I say. You know the little things is that we don't realize the subtle little details that go on that really shape a feeling or an experience Created. If we bring it to the dental practice specifically but it can be anywhere.

Speaker 1:

But if we think about the dental practice and the individuals that make up the team, that each individual is their own, what I consider kind of like a heat-seeking missile to get done, what you got to get done through the day or with your career success. And it's again with the little things that we shape from our own presence that's going to help that happen. And when we think about communication, in communication it comes from how we dress, to how our bodies communicate, to actually how we verbally communicate, to the sound of our voice all those things that you know create the experience. It backs to the person. And individually we're our greatest asset. That's one of my, you know, main quotes or statements that I say you and or your team are your greatest asset. Because when you think about in dentistry and in my community and I've seen this in other communities as well. Like you have your, your dental rows, you know, like the streets that have all the practices on it. I don't know if you see, do you see that in Colorado? Oh, yeah, yeah. So I mean, what's going to set you apart from one practice to the next? Everybody's doing dentistry, oh yeah, but it's the people and within the people. It's how we think, look at, speak, dress, and how it supports the culture and the brand and the vision of the practice. So again, it backs into those little things, an exercise that I do. It's actually an exercise I learned for relaxation, but it really makes you stop and think about the little things that happen.

Speaker 1:

So if you put yourself in your favorite setting or you look out your window and and think about the little things that happen, so if you put yourself in your favorite setting or you look out your window and you think about the little things that you're seeing, the things that you're hearing, something you might be feeling, maybe internally, you can go on into what you might taste or smell too. If, like, if you're outside and you know there's fresh spring flowers that are going to be popping up that they haven't already. All those create an experience and it's the same thing in the practice. You know how we choose to. Maybe maybe in the handoff of the patient didn't go quite right or something. And I was in a hospital one time doing a walk through because I was going to do some work for them and as we were walking through, a gal came flouncing through the door, shoved it open, came pounding with her feet down the hallway and that created an experience.

Speaker 1:

It was the little things. So you know, I think, about our behaviors that happen. So again, it's all those subtle little things that we do automatically when awareness muscle of how you really come off to others and how you can come together collectively as a team to create a better experience and a better impression and elevated experience. So again, so the patient has that, feels that trust and rapport and chooses to come back, chooses to refer and all those things that we want. So we get butts in seats.

Speaker 2:

I know that you have a monthly event coming up.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so it's Influence, confidence Be seen, be heard, be known. It's a monthly event, so monthly, through the spring, we may take a break in the summertime and come back in the fall, but monthly we are doing influence, confidence, with different topics that remold around the thought of developing a total presence, which then supports growing a personal brand that's going to support you in all that you do.

Speaker 2:

So someone, either an individual or a group, can come and join these events monthly and learn from you and, of course, if they want to move forward services that you provide for groups and individuals, can you go over that with our listeners?

Speaker 1:

Yes, thanks, jenny. So yeah, so I offer individual coaching and or group coaching too. Within the training work that we move in, we do some group coaching forums that support and help implement the work. But within my individual coaching we can help individuals who you know are leaving, in any manner, whether you're the practice owner, office manager, or maybe you're a hygienist, like myself and Denise here, who we have our own businesses and so you are the face of your business, have our own businesses and so you are the face of your business. So it's that individual level where what I meet, whether it's individual coaching or on into the training and consulting work that I do with practices, where we sit down and really look at what you're struggling with, what do you want to achieve, and we create a customized plan for that, ultimately all revolving around again elevating the presence of the people, the person and the individual. So within teamwork and with practices we can do introductory, just kind of get the wheels turning with a thought that, hey, I have power in my own presence that could shape a better experience in the practice or in-depth work where I worked with hygiene teams, of helping them.

Speaker 1:

We all know how to do clinical work but we were not taught maybe some advanced communications or this could sound dirty sales conversation.

Speaker 1:

We want our patients to make better choices in their oral health care and that's a sales conversation will help you do it.

Speaker 1:

So how to seed a conversation is a component, but again, my work is tailored, customized to the needs of the client. But it's built off from again how we think, how we look, how we act, how we speak and how we dress. So I've done uniform development work, consulting work as well, and then, at a fun standpoint too, too, we're coming into a practice to do more of a team building. Like you combine, I can combine that fashion side of image, of color analysis. I'm trained in three different color programs through the years, so, but color is a huge component to communication. So I mean you can use it for the fun side of color and wardrobing, but you can move it on into your uniform. So, selecting colors, they're going to help support the brand of the practice, the brand of the culture, back to the individual as well and again, again, help keep that environment that you want to grow for your patients environment that you want to grow for your patients, when you're talking about all the services that you provide when someone goes all right.

Speaker 2:

I want to hire Kelly to come to either work individually or with a group practice. What can they see in benefiting from hiring you?

Speaker 1:

The first thing that comes to my mind was several years ago I did work for an actually economic development company and what they found out of it was consistency, that we have a common language, that we can come together as a team, that we're all delivering at the same level. And again it just backs into that continuity piece so that everybody on the team is headed in the same direction and then the patients are going to feel and see and know that as well.

Speaker 2:

I think there's just like a form of security when everyone is consistent and then, on top of that, confident, I know exactly what they're doing within their day, which just naturally starts to elevate the brand of the business. So I think it's just amazing that you have taken all those little pieces of what makes a great business and brought it into the service that you provide, because there's so many things that you have to think about in business and, like you said, it is the little things sometimes that move the needle, and you are hitting those markers with the services that you provide. Can you tell my audience how we can contact you?

Speaker 1:

great. Yes, definitely, if you remember my name, you are all set. You can visit kelly dugan Y-D-U-G-G-A-Ncom. Also, I am socially on Facebook with KellyDugancom LinkedIn. I do have a business page, kelly Dugan Image Consulting, but actually my Kelly Dugan page is where I started and most of my content is. So, if you can go to Facebook or excuse me, linkedin Kelly Dugan. And then I am also on Instagram.

Speaker 2:

Well, I appreciate you so much for coming on today and being a guest on the Dental Bun Podcast. It was exciting to see you again outside of you know, the cab. I'm glad that we're able to sit down and I was able to share what you do with my audience. So thank you so much for being a guest on the Dental Bun Podcast.