Running a dental practice can get expensive—especially when small expenses go unnoticed with the staff’s attention focused on providing exceptional dental care. But over time even the smallest expenses can add up and increase overhead costs to make your practice less profitable.
The good news? With a little extra work up front you and the rest of the practice team can take steps to eliminate some unnecessary spending while still keeping patient care top priority.
With these six simple tips you can reduce overhead costs for increased profitability.
- Avoid Payroll and Other Financial Errors
A simple one-time mistake in payroll or tax reporting can be costly so ensure that you’ve got a system in place that minimizes errors as much as possible. This could mean hiring part time financial support to handle the more minute details of practice finances, taking some time to research payroll software to make it easier on your current office staff, or working directly with a trusted payroll company or financial firm to keep things on track. One little mistake here or there could leads to hundreds or even thousands of extra dollars in overhead costs throughout the year. - Consider Long Term Website Costs
If you only considered the upfront costs of creating your practice website you could be spending too much money to support and maintain it. Do your research on elements like your hosting company to ensure that it provides the support you need while being a realistic cost for your practice. See if there are savings you can get by paying up front for hosting for an entire year instead of monthly. And work with your web designer to find out if there are any website updates practice staff can be trained to do (like adding blog posts, events, updating hours, etc.) so that you’re not always needing to have your web developer make every minor update for you as those costs can add up. - Invest in a Programmable Thermostat
While it may seem minor keeping heating and cooling costs to a minimum can be a simple yet effective way of reducing costs of a dental practice. One of the best ways to do this is with a programmable thermostat that allows you to set desired temperatures for any given time or day. This ensures you can keep the office a comfortable temperature when staff and patients are present but reduce the use of heating or air/conditioning when the office is empty—without having to rely on someone to remember to change the thermostat as they come or go. - Keep a List of Reputable Vendors on Hand
Whether you need a repair service for office equipment, IT support when a computer glitch becomes too difficult to fix in house, or a plumber to fix a leak sink it’s always best to research and vet vendors before you need them. This vastly reduces the chance that you’ll overpay for services because you simply don’t have the time to shop around for quality work at a price point that’s in budget. By maintaining relationships with vendors you trust you’ll know who to call and what to expect in terms of cost, keeping bills from outside vendors as low as possible. - Negotiate Phone and Internet Rates Annually
Because of the competitive nature of phone and internet service providers, companies are often willing to offer specials savings to customers if they ask. Put annual or semi-annual reminders in place to call and see if they have any specials going on or, if you’re truly struggling to fit the payments into your budget, let them know and see if they can offer a price reduction before you look for other options. More often than not they’ll work with you to keep your business. While these may not be overly large expenses even the smallest savings add up over months and years.
When it comes to balancing practice costs with quality technology and care it’s no small feat. But taking small steps to keep costs in check can be a game changer in your practice’s bottom line. These simple suggestions don’t take much effort yet can provide savings to help your practice be successful. If you try any of these tips and are happy with how they’ve worked let us know in the comments!
