dental survey Archives - The Wealthy Dentist

Dental Implants: What Do Dentists Charge?

March 17, 2019 By Jim Du Molin

In this survey, we asked dentists what was the average cost for dental implants. Dentists reported an average of $1,559 from a general dentist, and $1,853 from a specialist.

“It needs to be less expensive,” complained a Missouri dentist.

“I wish surgical fees for implants weren’t as steep as they are,” said a Washington dentist. “The price point seems to prevent a good share of my patients from receiving the service.”

Here are some other comments from dentists on dental implants:

“We charge $1,750 for first implant then $1,200 for additional implants placed at the same time.” (New York dentist)

“I am a general dentist who places implants. If I place the implant, I charge for the crown — not the abutment. If I send the case to the surgeon, then I charge for the abutment and the crown.” (Georgia dentist)

“I bill out implant, abutment-type and crown-type all separately.” (Colorado dentist)

“I do ceramic (zirconium) implants. They are more bio-compatible and more esthetic. I charge $3800/implant, but for the implant itself is $600.” (General dentist)

“I find that it is easier to restore, but are some dentists charging more than $850?” (Florida dentist)

Oral Health: Dentists Disagree on Which Toothpastes Are Best (video)

March 17, 2019 By Jim Du Molin

It is estimated that Americans spend more than 1.6 billion dollars on toothpaste a year.

But, does it really matter which toothpaste you use?

A Pennsylvania dentist reports that he has patients who see great results by brushing with Ivory soap. Most dentists, however, felt using the right toothpaste makes a difference in your oral health.

The Wealthy Dentist conducted a survey asking dentists if it mattered which toothpaste dental patients use. Two out of three dentists say it matters!

Watch the following video to hear what dentists have to say about the best type of toothpaste for maintaining good oral health –

What kind of toothpaste do you recommend?

Filed Under: Dental Surveys, Dental Videos Tagged With: Dental Care, Dental Marketing, dental survey, dental surveys, dental videos, dentist, dentistry, dentists, Internet dental marketing

22% of Dentists Spend Over 5k a Month on Dental Marketing

March 17, 2019 By Jim Du Molin

What do dentists spend monthly on dental marketing?

It all depends on the dentist you ask.

54% of the dentists who responded to this question in The Wealthy Dentist survey spend over $1,000 a month on marketing, while a mere 7% spend nothing at all.

“We budget 6 percent of collections at approximately $18,000 per month,” revealed a California dentist.

Here are the survey results —

7% — No marketing expenses.
6% — Under $200.
9% — $200-500.
25% — $500-1,000.
20% — $1,000-2,000.
12% — $2,000-5,000.
22% — Over $5,000.

What dentists had to say about their monthly marketing expenses —

“We spend $80,000.00 + a month.” (Texas prosthodontist/orthodontist practice)

“In this rural area, it is difficult to reach a large number of people.” (Rural general dentist)

“Internal marketing is clearly the best form of marketing and the least costly. We’ve focused a lot on that the past 2 years and have seen significant benefits and practice growth!” (Texas prosthodontist)

“Our business is less than 2-years-old. We are now over 50% internal referral. I may cut some of the marketing budget for external next year.” (Missouri dentist)

“It seems every year it costs more and more to get a descent ROI.” (California orthodontist)

“Our practice is over 50% dental implant related and we could not do the volume we do without extensive external marketing.” (General dentist)

“$500 – $1,000 and growing.” (South Carolina periodontist)

“We get over 30 new patients a month every month by great “word of mouth” in our community. No amount of “marketing” is better than treating your patients like you would want to be treated!” (California dentist)

“$2,000 – $5,000 and looking to increase.” (Michigan dentist)

What does your practice spend on dental marketing each month?

Filed Under: Dental Surveys, The Wealthy Dentist Tagged With: Dental Marketing, dental survey, dentist, dentistry, dentists, internal new patients, marketing

Dental Marketing: Dentists See a Difference in Online Dental Patients

March 17, 2019 By Jim Du Molin

In The Wealthy Dentist’s weekly survey, we recently asked: Are patients who find you online any different from patients who find you via more traditional methods?

The dentists we polled were pretty split on this dental marketing issue.

34% of those polled said, “No, I don’t see a difference.“

While 23% of the dentist respondents felt that online dental patients are more likely to follow through with treatment; the other 24% felt online patients are less likely to follow through with treatment.

Another 19% felt that word-of-mouth referrals by patients are the best type of dental patients to follow through with treatment.

One dentist replied, “Word-of-mouth referrals brings in the most loyal patients!”

Dentist certainly have different opinions about online verses traditional patients! Here are some of the comments we received on this survey:

“Referral patients have more trust from the beginning. Online patients are typically younger and not as financially able to afford treatment.” (General dentist)

“The majority of our big cases the past few years have come from the Internet.” (Minnesota dentist)

“The younger dental patient is more tech savvy and tend to believe what they read on-line. They are less critical thinking and very wed to their smart phones. They are also not big conversationalists.” (California dentist)

“They were motivated to look for a dentist. However, they also are more likely to have been regular patients elsewhere and have little work to be completed; may be prophy only.” (Texas dentist)

“The stronger the site encouraging appointments the better the lead. Most dental websites are so easy to give information, but the prospect is not ready or willing to come in.” (New York dentist)

“For me, a cold online lead is not unlike a patient who drove by and saw my sign. They are a tougher sell than a true internal referral. A Facebook referral can be close to an internal referral when referred by an existing patient.” (Georgia dentist)

“Online patients have done their research and know a lot about our office before becoming patients. They are certainly more likely to follow through with recommended treatment.” (Ohio dentist)

“Online patients are generally young, looking for the best price and not dentally educated. Anyone who chooses a dentist based upon online reviews sees dentistry no different than a gas station or a supermarket.” (Massachusetts dentist)

The rising popularity of researching dental care online proves that for an increasing number of dental patients, factors like online reviews and easily finding a dentist online, seeing what dentist family and friends recommend online, and getting to know the dental practice before ever stepping foot through the front door may continue to outweigh the advantages that traditional offline dental marketing has offered in the past.

What are your thoughts on traditional verses online dental patients? Do you notice a difference?

Filed Under: Dental Surveys, The Wealthy Dentist Tagged With: Dental Care, Dental Marketing, dental survey, dental surveys, Dental website marketing, dental websites, dentistry, dentists, Internet dental marketing, survey, website marketing

Dentist Believes Dental Insurance is Detrimental to Dental Patients

March 17, 2019 By Jim Du Molin

Recent statistics have stated that roughly one out of every two Americans lacks dental insurance coverage.

It has been proven that having dental insurance makes dental patients visit their dentist more often for treatment.

According to a report by the Institute of Medicine, patients who do not have dental insurance are approximately two-thirds less likely to have visited their dentist within the past year, compared with those who have dental insurance coverage.

But do these statistic tell the whole story on dental insurance?

The Wealthy Dentist conducted a survey asking dentists what percentage of their dental patients still carry dental insurance.

One general dentist responded, “We will file for all our patients but are not in network with any insurance companies. I see about 50% of patients with insurance.”

The dentists reported the following percentages of patients with insurance —

29% — 50 – 70% of patients have dental insurance
26% — 70 – 90% of patients have dental insurance
18% — Less than 50% of patients have dental insurance
13% — 90 – 95% of patients have dental insurance
08% — Don’t accept dental insurance
06% — Answered “other”

How dentists feel about dental insurance is another matter and here’s what they told The Wealthy Dentist in their survey responses —

“I hate dental insurance!” (Alabama dentist)

“Taking dental insurance allowances is a recipe for financial failure. Just look at the numbers.” (Pennsylvania dentist)

“Dental insurance? Bah humbug!” (Virginia oral surgeon)

“Dental insurance is detrimental to dental patients and practices.” (Texas dentist)

“Many of our patients know most dental insurances stink as far as reimbursement amounts and yearly maximums, yet 70% of them still carry dental insurance. It’s a huge factor around here.” (Ohio prosthodontist)

“We don’t accept dental insurance as a form of payment, but we will fill out their forms so they can get paid. Some insurance companies will then send a payment to us and we have to reimburse the patient.” (Illinois dentist)

“Dental insurance: love it/hate it, but so it goes.” (General dentist)

“There is a definite reduction in companies who are willing to provide dental plans and a definite move by patients to either drop their coverage or to seek out a dentist in their network.” (Texas dentist)

“Dental insurance creates more problems than it solves.” (California” dentist)

“We are not a preferred provider for anyone, but accept any insurance that allows out of network dentists. We do charge the patient the difference between our fees and what the insurance pays.” (General dentist)

“Regardless of our profession’s exhortations regarding lifelong dental health, the fact is that many people would never visit a dentist if they didn’t have dental insurance. The idea of “free” services is their motivation. If they had to pay the full cost, they wouldn’t visit the dentist at all.” (California dentist)

The Wealthy Dentist agrees with the last statement by a California dentist. Patients who have some type of dental health plan are more likely to return regularly to your dental practice and accept treatment recommendations.

This results in your dental practice having more active cases and fewer inactive patients, thus increasing your practice bottom line over time, which makes you more profits in the long run.