Why lovers and haters are marketing gold

How does staff and client behaviour affect the growth and success of your business? Inspiring staff to work better and getting patients to avail your services often stems from their behaviour. In Episode 164 of the Savvy Dentist Podcast, I’ve invited Penny Burke, Director of Essence Communications, to share the psychology behind these behaviours and how we can implement effective strategies that encourage commitment from both employees and clients. Penny has had over 20 years off experience in the field of marketing and advertising and is also the author of “Forced Focus.”

In this episode we discuss:

• 01:40: Penny’s backstory and how she found her way into the space of behaviour change.
• 06:29: The meaning of behaviour change and its importance as part of the toolkit for business owners.
• 09:23: The successful elements that precede behaviour change.
• 12:06: Does behaviour change come from crafting a logical “why?” or an emotional “why?”
• 14:33: The source of the lack of engagement from staff.
• 15:43: The psychology behind pricing and services and the behavioural elements behind those choices. Why people choose discount offerings versus premium offerings and vice versa.
• 19:21: The emotions going on when individuals purchase luxury goods.
• 21:08: I share my experience in effecting a price hike in my dental practice and Penny shares her thoughts on it.
• 23:48: Strategies behind marketing your practice.
• 31:13: Elements for Strategic Planning in your business.
• 36:29: Effective strategies that successful, independently-owned optometry practices have done to stay relevant and profitable and carve out their niche and market share despite not participating in corporatisation.
• 41:01: Penny’s research services and a breakdown on the types of customers who give feedback.
• 44:45: How Penny uses survey results and turn it into meaningful data to come up with 4 processes for the business owner.
• 49:02: Penny’s 3 Laws of Marketing