DentistOffices.comFrom Group Practices To DentistOffices.com, These Are The Lessons Learned Throughout My Journey.
Why do we, as dentists, feel the need to leave the comfort of our associate positions and chase the challenges of practice ownership? As associates, we have structure, stability, and the luxury of time—a schedule filled with patients, a guaranteed paycheck, and evenings spent free of worry. We get to enjoy hour-long lunches, maybe even sneak in a nap, and return home without carrying the weight of the office on our shoulders.
Yet, many of us can't resist the call to ownership. Maybe it’s the pressure to take the “next step” in our careers. We’re told the natural path is from student to associate, associate to owner, then finally retiring and selling the business. But is it a deep-seated desire to truly take on the responsibilities of running a practice, or is it the allure of being able to say, “I’m an owner”?
My journey into ownership began like many others—with excitement and hope—but it quickly turned into a series of hard lessons, one of which was realizing how harsh the business side of dentistry can really be. Here are few short stories, and the lessons learned along the way.
The First Practice Acquisition: Lessons from a Minority Partnership
My first experience with practice ownership came as a minority partner in a multi-location practice. The offer seemed like a dream. I was already excelling as an associate, performing complex procedures like full-mouth reconstructions, implants, and IV sedation. So, when the opportunity arose to invest and become a part-owner, I jumped at it. What could go wrong?
Problem #1: Minority Ownership
I invested a significant amount of money, eager to call myself “an owner”. I was invited in with kind words and a false sense of power, hearing the “big-shots” call me a partner, gave me all the assurance I needed that this was the right decision. However, what followed was nothing short of a nightmare. As a minority partner, I had little say in the business, and the majority owners were free to make any financial decisions that were in their best interest. The gross revenue climbed, but the net profit dropped.
The promised returns never materialized, but the loan payments stayed steady. Us minority owners would get the crumbs, even though we paid for a fraction of the cake. I found myself trapped with partners who did not have my best interest at heart, and the sense of betrayal was deep. I had walked into the situation full of optimism, thinking this was the path to success. Instead, I left disillusioned, drained financially, and with the sobering realization that not everyone who offers you a seat at the table has your best interests in mind.
The Lesson: Business comes first. People will almost always look out for their own interest above all else, even friends. Keep an eye on the finances, and do your best to watch the actual transactions. And finally, when going into a contract, always expect the worst but hope for the best.
The 50/50 Partnership: You Don’t Know, What You Don’t Know
After my experience as a minority partner, I was determined to approach practice ownership differently. So when a trusted colleague and friend proposed a 50/50 partnership, I jumped at the chance. Equal footing, equal say—what could go wrong?
After closing on the acquisition of the dental practice, reality hit hard and fast. From the start, we faced major issues. I went into this thinking I could handle it all, after all, I was an “owner” before and the practice did well, I assumed that we had it all figured out.
Problem #2: People Lie, And Numbers Can Too
I found that the original seller may have taken some lessons in accounting, and the numbers we were provided did not exactly match with the reality. I did not know what production reports to run, or how to read a P&L statement, so I had to trust what was provided. I didn’t know, what I didn’t know!
We trusted the advice and guidance of the seller, but never independently ran the numbers for ourselves. We trusted the practice evaluation that the seller had completed, and never executed our own independent evaluation.
The Lesson: Always independently verify any advice or numbers you are given. Learn what reports to pull, and how to read them yourself. Finally, always execute your own independent evaluation.
Problem #3: In-Network or Out Of Network?
We were told that the practice was Fee For Service only, absolutely no insurances. This was just an outright lie by the seller. The reports were altered and we did not realize that 80% of the office was made up of insured patients, who expected an in network provider. We credentialed with the insurance companies to save the patient base, but by this time it was too late, and this lead to a major loss.
The Lesson: Always do your due diligence. You should believe none of what you are told, and only half of what you see. If I knew what to look for, this could never have happened. How do you protect yourself from this, though? Run reports through the PMS, ie “production by insurance” reports. Additionally, ensure that everything you are told, is in writing, and you are willing and able to enforce the contracts.
Problem #4: Where Are All The Patients?
I like to think I am a relatively well respected GP in my local area. I do a lot of difficult cases, my patients are happy, I do volunteer work, I give out free dental care to patients in need, and I take a lot of pride in my work. So, how hard could it be to get new patients? Build it, and they will come, right? Well—not always.
Every office needs one thing, new qualified patients. The million-dollar question is, how do you get them in the door? My partner and I are very different, she was very cost conscious, while I was eager to invest back into the business. In short, we went against my wishes and hired a marketing company that was pretty well known. So, they had to be good, right? At this time, my now husband who has done marketing for seemingly half the world at this point, was not in the picture. I wish I knew then what I know now, but we signed a contract with an agency and expected the patients to start rolling in!
Well, they never did. We were actually losing patients, but we were paying a fortune in costs. We now not only were struggling to pay the bills, but we were wrapped into a bad contract, inherited an awful website, and had no light at the end of the tunnel in sight.
Lesson learned: To get patients, you have to learn your own marketing. Research your areas demographics using tools like DentaGraphics or The DentistOffices.com Demographics Tool. Learn your area, your traffic, learn about SEO and only then should you decide on a company.
If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Join ‘Em : The Story Of DentistOffices.com
Naturally, My office was the first premium member of the DentistOffices.com platform, and it has single-handedly been the best and most reliable source of patients that I have. We no longer have to pay 100s of dollars to get a single qualified pt in the chair, and I don't have to waste thousands of dollars with SEO companies that specialize in selling hopes and dreams, and search engine ads disguised as inbound marketing.
Problem #5: The Catch-22 Of Dental Advertising
I learned one very important fact over the years: Many dentists struggle to find qualified patients, it wasn’t just me, so I could finally stop beating myself up. I also co-founded a tele-dentistry startup years back, and this showed me that there are countless patients out there who are struggling to find a dentist. How could this be? Dentists can’t find patients, and patients can’t find dentists?
This catch-22 is caused by a mix of saturation, big patient backlogs at offices, the heavy marketing budgets of DSOs causing increased competition, the predatory nature of the marketing companies, and the lack of a proper way for patients to search in a dental specific way, where they could search by procedure type, appointment availability, insurance type, and much more.
These issues are what gave birth to DentistOffices.com. Our vision was to create a platform that could compete in a very competitive SEO market, and start putting control back into the hands of the practice owners. Since launch, we have added well over 100,000 dental offices to the platform. We offer a free or low-cost way for smaller practices to get out there, gain visibility, and start reaching the patients that best fit into their office.
Our goal is to use our massive size to our advantage, and act as a one-stop resource and tool for both patients and providers to connect. Trying to move towards the FFS-only model? Do you want to attract more implant cases? Do you have too many patients and need to better select the type of patients that call? DentistOffices.com is the answer.
Lesson learned: Seeing more new patients is not enough, you want to see more qualified patients. Attracting new patients isn’t easy, so you should take control of your marketing efforts, and use every free or low cost opportunity made available to you.
We created this platform to help private practice owners reach new patients, for free. Results may vary based on traffic in your area and your ranking. We already host over 150,000 dental offices, and we would love to start sending targeted patients your way. Click here to add your office to DentistOffices.com.
If you are already a free member, and want even more, premium may be available in some areas. Click here to learn about premium!
The State Of The Union
After navigating the ups and downs of partnerships and business ventures, I finally decided to go it alone—and it’s the best decision I’ve ever made. Today, I can walk into my office and breathe. There’s no more tension, no more second-guessing every decision, and no more drama. I am in control, and it’s a feeling of peace I had long forgotten. I can sit down, enjoy my coffee, and practice dentistry the way I’ve always wanted to—on my terms. Some want control, some want money, I just wanted freedom.
In the end, isn’t that why we choose practice ownership in the first place? To have the freedom to shape our careers the way we see fit? Now, I get to focus on what I love most—my patients and my work—without the constant stress of dealing with business partners or power struggles. Owning my practice gives me that autonomy, and it’s worth every lesson learned along the way. Finally, I can say I’m practicing dentistry the way I’ve always envisioned. However, practice ownership does come with its own set of struggles… but that is for another article.
Would I go back to being an associate, where life was simpler and stress-free? No. But make no mistake: the path to ownership is filled with bumps, bruises, and the occasional betrayal. The real question is, are you ready to face them head-on?
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