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Key Takeaways Growth doesn’t come from leads alone: If you have lots of leads coming in but no real growth, the problem is conversion (or a lack thereof).
Many businesses lose potential customers simply by not responding quickly (or at all) to calls, voicemails or online inquiries — despite those leads already showing interest.
Once contact is made, listening, understanding, clear communication and follow-up are essential to building trust and guiding prospects to commit.
Imagine for a moment that you’re a small dental practice with a full schedule of patients every day, yet you’re not seeing significant revenue growth. Why might that be? Could it be that many of the patients on the books aren’t qualified? Could there be a disproportionate number of cancellations and no-shows? Not likely.
In most cases where there are lots of leads coming in but no real growth, the problem is conversion, more specifically, a lack thereof. All the leads in the world won’t make a difference if they don’t convert.
What’s conversion?
Conversion occurs when a prospect or lead becomes a paying customer. The specifics of conversion can vary by business depending on the product, timeline, cost and other factors, but the principle is the same: Interest must become action.
For simplicity, let’s continue to explore the example of the dental practice, an experience we can all relate to from the patient’s perspective, and an area where I have particular expertise. While dentistry is a healthcare profession, it differs from many areas of medicine in that it offers numerous elective procedures — such as cosmetic dentistry — that also enhance a person’s overall well-being and quality of life.
All patients want a functional, healthy smile. Some need more extensive treatment than others to achieve that goal. Treatment plans can range from a single, simple procedure completed in one visit to complex, multi-step plans that require months or even years to complete. Whether a patient needs oral surgery to replace missing teeth or adult braces to correct their bite, the dental practice’s job is to help them understand why following through is essential and persuade them to accept treatment.
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