Continuing Education: Starting Off Right by Sandy Pardue

It’s time to transform your “receptionist” into a director of first impressions and brand ambassador. Here’s how to define the job and determine who’s successful in the role.

Abstract
Many may think of a receptionist as being someone who sits at the front desk smiling and serving coffee to patients, but it’s just not the case anymore. Patient expectations are higher than ever. Just “good enough” will not help you build or grow your practice. Patients are tuned in to online reviews and social media posts, and have elevated awareness when it comes to customer service. They know there are many dental practices that would welcome them, and unless you have created loyal patients through better-than-average experiences, they will think nothing of leaving.

Because most dental practices have system failures or no division of duties, the teams tend to go through the motions throughout the day and handle only the obvious and immediate tasks right before them. There’s little time to focus on exceeding patient expectations, promoting the practice and improving customer service. Practices may think they are organized, but key actions get left undone. This creates many missed opportunities and inconsistencies, which adds stress and increases the number of patient upsets.

When patients call your practice or enter through the front door, they are comparing their experience to every other dental practice they’ve called or visited. The receptionist of the past is now considered the director of first impressions and is a brand ambassador. Every practice needs one. The most obvious and immediate benefits are increased new patient numbers, more referrals and improved retention.

Course Description
This course details how to raise up the receptionist position and establish a director of first impressions in the dental practice, along with key actions to ensure success. It includes the purpose of the position, recommended customer-focused actions, hiring tools to assist with finding and appointing someone for the position, and recommended job-performance tracking monitors.

Educational Objectives
Upon reading this article, participants should be able to:

1. Realize new opportunities with upgrading the receptionist position.
2. Create a customized job description and checklist.
3. Implement the key functions of the position.
4. Train and manage a director of first impressions.

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