From Surviving to Thriving: How Smart Planning 
Can Revolutionize Your Dental Practice

What if we told you there's a mental barrier preventing most dentists from taking their practices to the next level?

The answer may surprise you, but it's rooted in a fundamental misunderstanding about how modern dental practices thrive.

When running a practice, you're not just a healthcare provider – you're a business owner navigating the challenging environment of the new dental economy.

The secret to running an effective practice lies in having a solid roadmap to follow and that means having frequent checkpoints along the way. 

In this comprehensive guide, we're going to supercharge your practice management skills with the ultimate planning checklist. 

We'll break down the essential review periods – monthly, quarterly, and annual reviews – that will keep your dental business running at peak performance. Whether you're a solo practitioner or steering a multi-location DSO, this blueprint for success will help you:

• Streamline your daily operations
• Boost your team's performance
• Stay ahead of the curve by investing in dental tech
• Increase profit margins and cash flow

Monthly Planning Checklist: Your Practice's Regular Check-up

Your practice probably already has some form of monthly planning to keep your practice on track. But are you maximizing the potential of these regular planning sessions? Let's explore how to refine and enhance your existing processes and make them powerful drivers of practice performance.

Review Your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Sometimes it can be hard to tell how your practice is really doing. That’s why your monthly review should always include a focus on concrete numbers. Focus on important KPIs that ensure your practice is on the right track. This includes:

• Production Numbers: Assess if you're meeting daily and monthly targets. If not, identify areas for improvement.
• Collection Rates: Monitor your collection percentage, aiming for 98% or higher. Collected revenue is what truly drives your practice forward as it represents actual dollars and cash flow that can be reinvested.
• Patient Attendance and Cancellation Rates: Track these metrics to minimize disruptions to your daily schedule.
Progress Toward Monthly and Annual Goals: Regular check-ins help you stay on track and avoid year-end surprises.

Expert Tip: Use your e-procurement platform to track supply costs against production. This data-driven approach can help optimize your spending and improve profitability.

Conduct Effective Team Meetings

Meetings are a double-edged sword. They can either be huge drivers of productivity and build rapport amongst your team or be an expensive waste of time. Monthly staff meetings ensure everyone is aligned and working efficiently. Here are a few tips to make sure you’re getting the most out of these conversations: 

• Set a Clear Agenda: Outline key topics including performance review, goal discussions, and identifying areas for improvement. This ensures your meeting stays focused and productive.
• Encourage Active Participation: Create an environment where staff feel comfortable sharing insights and feedback. Their on-the-ground perspective is invaluable for enhancing practice operations.
• Balance Retrospection and Planning: Allocate time to celebrate successes and address challenges, but also focus on forward-looking strategies and necessary adjustments.
• End with Action Items: Conclude each meeting by assigning clear, actionable tasks based on the discussions. This ensures that insights translate into real-world improvements.

If you look behind the scenes of any thriving dental practice, you’ll find a team, working in unison towards shared goals. Regular monthly check-ins are so important to fostering a culture of collaboration and clear communication.

Identify and Target Short-Term Goals 

Ever started your week with a clear idea of how it might go only to find that it’s pandemonium by the end? We’ve all been there. Since this can be a common occurrence in practicing dentistry, it’s important to keep your short term goals flexible. During your monthly planning sessions, you should focus on the following:

• Evaluate last month's goals: Assess what worked and what didn't.
• Set new targets: Be ambitious yet realistic.
• Align individual goals with practice objectives: Ensure everyone understands their role in achieving broader practice goals.


Expert tip: SMART goals are really helpful to setting goals. This acronym refers to setting goals that are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and have a set timeline.

Alternatives to Using Credit Cards for Dental Practice Accounts Payable

Effective inventory management helps dental practices reduce costs, improve cash flow, and prevent revenue loss because you didn’t have the necessary supplies for a patient. Monthly inventory reviews ensure you're always stocked with what you need, when you need it. Here are a few tips to make sure you're maximizing your inventory efficiency:

• Review Usage Patterns: Analyze consumption trends to forecast future needs accurately. This ensures you're ordering appropriate quantities of each item, avoiding both overstocking and shortages.
• Implement a Rotation System: Establish a first-in-first-out (FIFO) approach to minimize waste. Regularly check expiration dates and position older stock to be used first.
• Explore Cost-Saving Opportunities: Continuously research market options. Consider more cost-effective alternatives or bulk purchasing without compromising on quality. Remember, savings here directly impact your practice's profitability.
• Leverage Technology: Utilize inventory management software to automate tracking and ordering processes. This reduces human error and frees up staff time for patient care.


Behind every efficient dental practice is a well-managed inventory system. Regular monthly inventory audits are crucial for maintaining optimal stock levels, reducing waste, and ultimately enhancing your practice's financial health.

Marketing to support production

Your practice's success isn't just about what happens in the chair – it's also about getting patients in the door.


Plan Next Month's Marketing Activities

Whether it's a social media campaign or a local event sponsorship, stay proactive in your marketing efforts. Look to capitalize on:


• Social media: Plan engaging content for platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or LinkedIn. This could include educational posts about dental health, behind-the-scenes glimpses of your practice, or patient testimonials.
• Local events: Research upcoming community events where you could sponsor or participate. This could be anything from health fairs to school sports events.
• Email marketing: Plan a newsletter with valuable content for your patients, such as dental care tips or updates about your practice.
• SMS marketing: If you don’t already have a tool that allows you to reach out to patients via text message, you’re missing out on a major touchpoint.
• Partnerships: Consider collaborating with local businesses or influencers to expand your reach.

Review Current Campaign Effectiveness

What's your ROI on that Google Ads campaign? Adjust your strategy based on real data. Start by gathering comprehensive analytics from all your active marketing channels. This could include:

• Website traffic and user behavior (from Google Analytics)
• Social media engagement rates and follower growth
• Email open rates and click-through rates
• Conversion rates from digital ads
• Number of new patient inquiries and their sources

Once you have this data, analyze it critically. 

Which campaigns are performing well, and why? Are there any underperforming areas where you're not seeing a good return on investment? Use these insights to make data-driven decisions about your marketing strategy. 

This might involve reallocating budget from low-performing channels to high-performing ones, tweaking your messaging based on what resonates with your audience, or exploring new marketing avenues that align with your successful campaigns.

Expert Tip: Use your patient management system to identify patients due for recall and plan targeted communication efforts.

Quarterly Planning: Elevate Your Practice's Performance

While monthly planning keeps your practice on track, quarterly planning sessions offer a valuable opportunity to take a broader view of your practice's performance and make more substantial adjustments. 

Think of these quarterly check-ins as a chance to step back from the day-to-day operations and focus on the bigger picture.

Financial Performance Review

A quarterly financial performance review should go beyond the monthly review of KPIs to include a comprehensive analysis of your practice's financial health. Start by comparing your actual results to the budgeted goals you set at the beginning of the year. Are you on track, ahead of the game, or falling behind? This comparison provides crucial insights into your practice's overall performance and helps identify areas that may need attention.

Next, turn your attention to profit margins and overhead costs. 

Dental practices often operate on tight margins, so even small fluctuations can have significant impacts. Analyze each category of expenses, from staff salaries to equipment maintenance, and look for trends or anomalies. 

Are your supply costs creeping up? Has your marketing spend yielded the expected return on investment? This detailed examination can reveal opportunities for cost-saving measures or areas where additional investment might boost productivity and profitability.

Fee Schedule Assessment

The quarterly review is also an ideal time to reassess your fee schedule. Things move fast when you’re running your own practice or DSO. It's easy to let your fees stagnate, potentially leaving money on the table. 

Review your current fees against industry standards and local competition. Consider factors like inflation, increased supply costs, or new technologies you've implemented that might justify fee adjustments. 

The reason we advocate for doing this quarterly is because small, regular increases are often more palatable to patients than large, infrequent jumps.

Treatment Plan Evaluation

Beyond financials, your quarterly planning should include a thorough evaluation of your treatment plans and follow-up procedures. 

Are patients completing their recommended treatments? If not, why? 

This review can uncover issues with patient communication, financial barriers, or scheduling difficulties that may be impacting your practice's productivity and patient care quality.

Technology and Equipment Assessment

Technology and equipment needs should also be on your quarterly planning agenda. 


New items are coming to market every day that can improve patient care and practice efficiency. That said, it’s important to not upgrade for the sake of upgrading.


Assess your current equipment: Is it meeting your needs? Are there new technologies that could enhance your services or streamline your operations? While major purchases might be part of your annual planning, identifying needs quarterly allows you to budget and prepare effectively.

Patient Satisfaction Analysis

Patient satisfaction and retention rates provide valuable insights into your practice's performance from the patient's perspective. Review patient feedback, survey results, and retention statistics. Look for patterns or trends that might indicate areas for improvement in patient care, communication, or office processes.

Procurement Strategy Adjustment

Your quarterly planning sessions are a perfect time to review and adjust your procurement strategies. It’s frequent enough that you can make decisions that’ll impact your practice quickly without acting on imperfect information. 


With three months of inventory data to analyze, you can get a much clearer picture of whether your current suppliers are meeting your needs in terms of quality, cost, and reliability. This is an opportunity to negotiate better terms with existing suppliers or explore new options that might offer better value for your practice.

Like your monthly sessions, each quarterly session should result in a clear action plan with specific goals and strategies for the coming months. By dedicating time to this level of strategic planning, you're setting your practice up for long-term success and continuous improvement.

Annual Planning: Charting Your Practice's Course for Success

While monthly and quarterly planning keep your practice running smoothly, annual planning is where you set the course for your practice's year over year success. This is a prime opportunity to take a bird's-eye view of your practice, assess your progress, and map out your strategy for the coming year.


Here’s how you should structure these conversations.


Start with a Strategic Review

Begin your annual planning session with a comprehensive review of your practice's performance over the past year. This should include:

• Financial performance analysis
• Patient growth and retention rates
• Staff performance and turnover
• Technology and equipment upgrades
• Marketing efforts and outcomes


Use this information to conduct a thorough SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats). This exercise will help you identify areas where your practice excels and where there's room for improvement.

Set Comprehensive Goals

With a clear understanding of your practice's current state, it's time to set goals for the upcoming year. Be sure to make these goals SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound). Consider setting:

• Production targets
• Collection goals
• Patient growth objectives
• Staff development milestones
• Technology adoption goals


Expert Tip: Aim for a mix of ambitious and realistic goals. Include 3 large goals that will significantly impact your practice, 3 medium goals, 3 smaller, easily achievable goals, and 1 stretch goal that pushes your practice to new heights.

Financial Planning and Budgeting

Your annual plan should absolutely include a detailed budget and financial forecast for the coming year. 

This process should involve:

1. Reviewing your chart of accounts
2. Analyzing expense percentages relative to production
3. Forecasting next year's expenses, including:

• Equipment purchases or upgrades
• Office improvements
• Staff raises and benefits
• Marketing initiatives

Remember to factor in potential industry changes, such as new regulations or technological advancements, that might impact your financial planning.

Staff Development and Scheduling

Make space to talk about your team’s performance and work-life goals as well. Use your annual planning session to:

1. Conduct comprehensive performance reviews
2. Set individual and team development goals
3. Plan staff schedules, including:

• Vacation time
• Continuing education opportunities
• Team building events

Marketing Strategy

The end of the year is the best time to develop a comprehensive marketing strategy for the year ahead. A few things you should include in your conversation:

• Setting a marketing budget
• Identifying target patient demographics
• Planning major marketing campaigns
• Evaluating and selecting marketing channels (social media, local advertising, community events, etc.)

Technology and Equipment Planning

While this is something that you may be looking at quarterly, be sure to work in larger investments or longer term plans into your annual conversation. 

1. Assess your current technology infrastructure
2. Research emerging technologies in dentistry
3. Prioritize potential upgrades based on ROI and patient care improvements
4. Create a timeline and budget for implementations

Do your due diligence for any new tech you decide to bring in. It should enhance your practice's efficiency and patient care, not just be a shiny new toy.

Patient Care and Service Offerings

Consider how you can enhance your patient care in the coming year:

• Evaluate current service offerings
• Explore new treatments or specialties to add
• Plan for any necessary additional training or certifications
• Develop strategies to improve patient experience and satisfaction

Procurement and Vendor Relationships

With a full year’s data to work from, you should use your annual planning session to take a deep dive into your procurement strategies. In particular, you should be paying attention to:

1. Reviewing vendor performance over the past year
2. Negotiating new contracts or terms with key suppliers
3. Exploring potential new vendor relationships
4. Setting targets for supply cost reduction or efficiency improvements

Implementing Your Plan

Once you've developed your annual plan, break it down into quarterly and monthly goals. This will help you stay on track throughout the year and make your plan more actionable.

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Don’t feel like your annual plan is set in stone. 

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Regular reviews during your monthly and quarterly planning sessions will allow you to adjust your strategy as needed, ensuring your practice remains agile and responsive to changing circumstances.

Effective Planning: The Cornerstone of a Thriving Dental Practice

Successful dental practices are going beyond just reacting to changes. They're anticipating and preparing for them. Your planning sessions are your opportunity to do just that.

If you’re looking for a way to take your planning up a notch, consider leveraging Method's comprehensive procurement platform. 

With Method, you can easily track and analyze your supply costs against production, providing invaluable data for your financial planning and budgeting. Our platform's robust reporting features allow you to dive deep into your procurement strategies, helping you identify cost-saving opportunities and optimize vendor relationships. 

Talk to a Method expert today and see how our solution empowers you to make more informed decisions during your planning sessions, ultimately driving your practice's efficiency and profitability.