Orthotown November 2013 - (Page 6)

wired for // success Building Your Dream by Alan A. Curtis, DDS, MS, Editorial Director, Orthotown Magazine One of the most important parts of your professional life is the physical environment where you go to work each day. Whether building out a leased space or building your dream from the ground up, it is important to get it right. "Getting it right" for one doctor might be completely wrong for another. By following a few simple steps you can get this all-important process done right. assistance of a business demographer such as Scott McDonald of DoctorDemographics.com, who will aid in making sense of complex data. Meet with designers and equipment sales people, but beware your goals and their goals are often at odds. When building out a shell, start with the empty space and layout your design taking into account the key elements of business production. Today's Dream Big It all starts out with the vision of how you plan to practice. Whether you are a young resident starting out or a veteran orthodontist transitioning from the 2D paper chart world to a new all-digital 3D workflow, the process is the same. Start by interviewing orthodontists and visiting as many offices as you can to see what workflow matches your style of practice. During my residency, one of my favorite activities was to visit the offices of adjunct faculty of the department of orthodontics. Being the son of an orthodontist and working in the family business during school breaks, I was shocked to find not all practices ran like my father's. In most parts of the country you can travel 30 minutes or less to visit offices that don't compete with yours to get ideas about how to build your dream. If a 30-minute drive is still within your competition zone, hop on a plane and visit a met- "Meet with designers and equipment sales people, but beware your goals and their goals are often at odds." ropolitan area. Go see at least five offices to get your creative juices flowing. Taking pictures and notes about your experience will help your dream become a reality. Next it's time to look at your area and develop an idea of your demographics. You should consult the best available information to make sure you know where you're planting your business. An analysis of your competition, along with the demographics of your patient population can be accomplished using tools on the Internet. Additionally, you can seek the continued on page 8 6 NOVEMBER 2013 // orthotown.com http://www.DoctorDemographics.com http://www.orthotown.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Orthotown November 2013

Orthotown.com Highlights
Wired for Success: Building Your Dream
New Members’ Thoughts on SL Brackets
Help! Any Good Resources Out There for Office Start-ups?
New Office Design – Thoughts?
Seven SEO Strategies to Accelerate New Patient Acquisition
Office Visit: To Serve Others
You Should Know: Boyd Industries
Product Profile: DEXIS
Implementing Strategy in Orthodontic Practice
Addressing the Issue of Compliance – Treating Severe TM Joint Pain Without Surgery
Ad Index

Orthotown November 2013