3 Ways to Prevent “Sucktember”
The Marketing 32 Minute
As promised: 1 growth insight. 1 minute or less. Every week.
September has a reputation in dentistry.
Summer is over.
School is back.
Patients get busy.
Schedules get weird.
And suddenly…
Sucktember.
But September doesn’t have to suck.
In fact, the practices that prepare now can turn September into one of their strongest months.
Here are 3 things you can do before September hits:
Start filling the calendar NOW.
Don’t wait until September 1st to worry about September production.
Look at your schedule today.
Where are the holes?
Then start working your database, overdue patients, unscheduled treatment, and new patient leads to fill them.
Empty chairs don’t magically fill themselves.
Reactivate patients before they get busy.
Your patients are about to get pulled in a dozen directions.
School.
Sports.
Work.
Travel.
Life.
Reach out to them before the chaos starts.
A simple message like:
“We noticed you’re overdue for your visit. Would you like us to find a convenient time for you before the fall gets busy?”
Can be surprisingly effective.
Create a September offer NOW.
Not a discount.
A reason to act.
Maybe it’s a limited number of consultation appointments.
A complimentary smile consultation.
A special implant consultation day.
Or simply a campaign reminding patients to use remaining insurance benefits.
Give people a reason to make the appointment now instead of “sometime this fall.”
Lesson?
The best way to survive a slow month…
Is to prevent it from becoming a slow month.
Great practices don’t react to their schedule.
They engineer it.
Action:
Before the end of August, ask your team:
“What can we do TODAY to put 20 more appointments on the September calendar?”
Then make it someone’s job to make it happen.
Because September isn’t inevitable.
You can market your way out of it.
— Marketing 32
P.S. Want to see where your practice has the biggest opportunities for growth before September hits? Take our free 12-Point Practice Growth Diagnostic and find out where you can improve your marketing, patient conversion, operations, and overall growth.
