Today on the Book More Show, I'm very excited because we have another author interview to share with you. I just finished talking with Jason and Denise Henderson, dentists with practices in Palo Alto and Tahoe.
Their patients are slightly different. There's a different demographic, and they specialize in different procedures, but the book they created addresses one of the common problems across all patients.
We often talk about this question of 'What's the common question in the minds of your potential customer?', something you can help with, or help them overcome. Well, this is what Denise and Jason have done. Their book helps people start to overcome any anxiety they may be feeling, by talking about their practice, their approach, and helps set the scene for how their practices operate and what people can expect.
Your book won't 'cure' someone, but it can put people's minds at rest, and it lets them peek behind the curtains a little bit, so there are no surprises, and it starts to build a level of comfort, enough for people to take the first step.
I talked with Jason first and then Denise, and it's great to hear both their perspectives on what the book provides, how it's being received, and their take on the responses they've already got.
You can find out more about the practices at KingsBeachDental.com and DHendersonDDS.com
I'm looking forward to you hearing this one.
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Transcript: Book More Show 093
Stuart Bell:
Hey, everyone, welcome to another episode of the Book More Show, it's Stuart Bell here. And today, super-excited because we have another author interview episode. I just finished talking with Jason and Denise Henderson. Now, they're both dentists. They've got two practices across in Palo Alto and Tahoe. Their patients are slightly different, there's a different demographic, and they specialize in different things.
But the book they created was really to address one of the common problems. So, we often talk about this issue of what's the common question that's in your potential customer's mind? Something that you can help them with, something that you can help them overcome, something you can help them start the journey, and this is what Denise and Jason have done. The book specifically is talking about their dental practice, their approach, and really helping people overcome anxiety that they might have.
And it's a fantastic example of something that not only will engage new customers, the title is, Transforming Lives One Smile at a Time. There's the amplifying sub-heading that we talk about that really builds on the promise of what the book delivers. But it also helps set the scene for how their practices operate and puts people's minds at rest, builds comfort, lets people peek behind the curtains a little bit so their expectations can be set, and on the right page, and just remove some of that anxiety.
So, fantastic to be able to catch up with them. Very interesting to get both of their opinions. I talked to Jason first and then Denise afterwards. So, great to see both of their opinions and how they anticipate using the book and very excited to see how they're going to get this out there and hear about the responses that they've already got.
So, another great episode looking forward for you to hear it, and I will catch you on the other side.
Jason Henderson, how are you doing?
Jason Henderson:
Yeah, very good. And yourself?
Stuart Bell:
Yeah. Fantastic. Thank you. Thanks for making time. So, I'm excited to finally catch up. I think I usually say at the beginning of all of the calls, it's oftentimes that I see the books coming through, and then, I'll be talking to the team about various aspects to it. But it's great to put a voice to a book cover, as it were.
Jason Henderson:
Yeah. Great.
Stuart Bell:
Fantastic. So, for everyone listening, Jason has just finished a fantastic book, Transforming Lives One Smile at Time, focused on dentistry and helping people get to the point that they're comfortable coming into the practices. They've got two places over in California, I guess, rather than me hashing through it, Jason why not give your introduction to everyone?
Jason Henderson:
Yeah. So, my wife and I are both general dentists, GPs. We have two dental practices, one in Palo Alto, California, and one a few hours away in Lake Tahoe, North Lake Tahoe, California. And we do a little bit of everything from cosmetic to surgery. We do refer out some stuff to specialists. We know our bounds, we've been doing it for, I guess, about 17 years each, and it's been going pretty well.
Stuart Bell:
Fantastic. So, have you guys always worked together or did you meet after you were both in practice already?
Jason Henderson:
Yes. We grew up in the same area in the Bay area. Denis and I didn't know each other and I went to school back east in a school called Tufts in Boston for dental and she went to school in Michigan called U of M, and we met about a year after dental school. Denise actually had gone to play in Australia for a year, field hockey, and did a study abroad.
Yeah, we're the same age but, dental-wise, I graduated a year earlier just because she took a year off, and then, yeah, we came back to the Bay. We started working for a gentleman who owned a few practices and that's how we met. We met actually at a dental meeting.
Stuart Bell:
Oh, fantastic. It's so interesting the thin threads that weave people's lives together. You always think about that Sliding Doors movie. One small change, and everything changes further down the tracks.
Jason Henderson:
Exactly.
Stuart Bell:
I'm interested in how people find themselves.
Jason Henderson:
That's exactly right.
Stuart Bell:
The practices and the book, so, as I mentioned, it's focusing a lot on that making sure that people are at ease, which I'm guessing is one of the main reasons that people don't like reaching out to dentists in the first place.
So, was that something that you guys had found across both practices or it's more in a particular community or a particular group of patients that found it worse? It seems like, as an outsider, it's a very common thing that happens, and a common problem and that is to be addressed. But is that actually the case or is it pretty niche, really, that people are that concerned about coming in?
Jason Henderson:
Yeah, no, it's pretty universal. We have two practices. One's in a rural area, the one up in Tahoe, and the other one is in more of a dotcom, higher-stressed area in the Bay. But really, I mean, heck Denise is even my dentist and I still get a little anxiety. Everybody goes through the same. You're upside down, somebody's working your mouth and lots of times you just don't know what's going on.
For me, I'm not a very good mechanic and, honestly, I rely on and trust the gentleman or woman that fixes one of our vehicles. And it's the same thing. You rely and have a lot of trust and faith in that person. So, there's pretty much universal anxiety, I guess I would say.
Stuart Bell:
I think it's so interesting when you said that it's not only the lack of clarity and feeling like the junior partner in the relationship and really not understanding what goes on, which gives people anxiety, even if it's only their wallet that's at risk.
But having the physical element of it as well be potentially uncomfortable, although lesser these days, potentially uncomfortable nature of it. But the fact that the position is strange and just every element psychologically builds on it to make it something that just feels awkward, if nothing else, even if you're not concerned about it, there's definitely an awkwardness that it brings to it.
Jason Henderson:
I agree. And, of course, what compounds that is if you did have not one of the greatest experiences as a kid or even as an adult, that just increases and adds to the anxiety level, and maybe even, you can talk about fear a little bit too.
Stuart Bell:
Right. Yeah, yeah, exactly. That anchoring unfortunate experience years ago. It's amazing how long that carries on through. I know my mum, for a long time was in the exact same position, really not keen on going, so just avoided it for year, after year, after year. So, which I'm guessing that never makes it better. Its not going to fix itself.
Jason Henderson:
No, exactly right. That's exactly right. Which then leads to more anxiety because then you need more of a major treatment or workup where maybe if you did catch it early enough it would have been a little more of a simple procedure. But yes, that's exactly right.
Stuart Bell:
So, give us, I've jumped the gun a little bit there and dived into some of the issues that people have, and give us a quick overview of the book itself, and then, maybe thinking about what was it that made you come to a book in general as a tool, and then, specifically this book, why pick this subject and the way that the questions that you've answered in this particular book.
Jason Henderson:
Yeah, I actually got turned on to the 90 minute books. A gentleman I worked for had done, I think, one or two books, one by himself and one with a colleague, and I read them and his more were surgical-based and Denise and I wanted to give something to our clientele basically to tell them about our philosophy from the time you pick up the phone to make the first call to the time you leave our office.
We just wanted to make sure that when you go somewhere, lots of times, like I said, back to the mechanic, they're throwing all kinds of stuff out at me and I had no idea half the terminology and even if I did, it's in one ear, out one ear. So, this is something we give to a lot of our new, even existing patients, and patients that aren't sure if they're ready to see a dentist, we'll mail them out a copy.
It basically tells them our philosophy and how we treat people, how we're there to treat the whole person, not just their tooth. And when they do go home, "Hey, I wasn't sure if he told or she told me to do this or that." Well, they can look at a particular chapter and it goes over that, and then, of course, they have our email and our phone numbers if they need further explanation.
But, for us it's just a second way of getting our notions and our feelings across about whatever happened that day, or what we're about to do to help treat their needs more in writing. Some people like to have it in writing, it's just easier for them to remember.
Stuart Bell:
And it's easy, like you were saying, to refer back to. That's such an interesting point that actually doesn't come up that often. But when you're talking about, if not the details of an individual procedure but the ballpark in which it lives, the idea, and philosophy, and what people can expect, and what to expect even after the process.
Having that in writing to the audience who are receptive to it or those who are slightly uncomfortable about some of the elements but including this stuff after the procedure as well, so thinking about that longer term relationship with the patient. It's not just that you wrote something to get them in the door, and then, that's it. They're on the regular treadmill. This is really looking at the end-to-end, the holistic view of the procedure, of the treatment, of what they can expect next of maybe when they should be thinking about coming back, and what issues to be mindful of, and which things are normal. All of that.
We started off by talking about putting people at ease just from the procedure itself, but putting people at ease of the bigger picture, of the overall procedure, or the overall issue, rather, not just the individual procedure itself. That must resonate with people as well.
Jason Henderson:
100%. That's correct because lots of times you have one issue, and then, like you said, maybe a month down the road they start having pain or they fall and chip a tooth. Well, then they can go back to the book and say, "Okay, yeah, well, we didn't have this problem back then, but this book is overall healthcare wellbeing of my mouth and so let me reference this. Okay. It sounds like I should give Jason or Denise call now. It sounds like I should get on this before it's too late."
You're right. It's an ongoing process, dentistry is. There's never a dull moment, we say, but this book at least helps guide you when you are in need, and then, we take it from there for you.
Stuart Bell:
It's so interesting because we talk quite a lot about this idea of a single target market and in writing the book and in fact everything we do across from our side, to think about the single target market first and it's very easy to take that idea and run with it a little bit too far. So, either be too narrow on the people that you're trying to deal with, and then, it just executes a few too many people, although usually the problem is people are going too wide.
But also, I think the point that you've hit upon is the life cycle or the thinking about the single time market in the sense of how the book, as a useful tool, sits in the overall picture. So, you're not just using it as a lead generation tool to get people in the door. That would be one thing. You're using it really to nurture that lifetime relationship with people and build that relationship and become that trusted partner way beyond just the initial transaction and the initial procedure that they're doing.
Jason Henderson:
That's right.
Stuart Bell:
The feedback that you're getting from people, does it reflect a broader piece, rather than just, "Oh, this was useful information in the time that I read it.", through more to a longer, "I was reading again that book that you'd written.", talking about in the past tense and them themselves referring back to it rather than you having to refer people to the book?
Jason Henderson:
Right, exactly. Yeah. They use it as a nice resource and going back onto the referral words, for dentists, we always say our best referrals are the ones that are in-house. There's already built in trust there and lots of times they find that our current patients are actually giving a copy, or their copy, of the book and we're getting plenty of new patients just because of that. Because before they even make the phone call they have trust because their friend or family member goes to see us, and then, furthermore, now they have a book which is somewhat knowledgeable, I feel, and to take those two and it's just a nice a referral source.
Stuart Bell:
Before I jumped on the call I was running through some ideas of points that I wanted to cover. I haven't seen the process go through and thinking about how other people are using their books and just jotted down a couple of notes to touch upon. And the referrals element was one of those because I think, particularly the way that you position your organization, you're very much the other end of the spectrum from just transactional, it's very much about building that relationship.
And I think the whole referral opportunity of using the book as almost an expected tool that people share, separated from whether or not they become patients afterwards, but very much using every point for that. Sharing the knowledge, making people feel more comfortable. If you hear of someone talking about some concern they've got or a bad dental experience that they have, let me know and we can get a copy of the book to them. Has that been, going into it, was that something that you were thinking about a lot, using it in that referral sense or has that come to happen now that there are people...?
Jason Henderson:
Yeah, that's pretty much 100% why we wrote the book. We actually give them away, so we purchased the copies and we actually don't make any money on them, but we send them, and even if they never give us a try, at least when they go to wherever they decide to go, they'll have a little bit of a basis of dentistry itself. It may not be the same way we do things in our office, but it's a universal profession. So, looking at the overall wellbeing of the patient wherever they decide to go.
Stuart Bell:
And you've given them a benchmark against something that, from your perspective at least, should be the way that it should work. So, if they do go elsewhere and see things not happening in that way, at least it will get them to raise a question and not just accept it thinking that this is the way it is.
It's some information from someone else in the know who says, "Hey, it doesn't have to be that way. It should be this way instead." I imagine, if nothing else, then that's super-valuable, just to give people the opportunity to ask questions even if they end up not taking any action on it.
Jason Henderson:
Great, Yes, that's exactly true.
Stuart Bell:
Okay, so moving on. We're actually going to change it up a little bit now, and I've got Denise on the phone so we're going to run through Denise's. I'm going ask a couple of questions and we can get Denise's perspective on the book as well, which usually, when we've got a couple of people who have written, very often there's one lead author who we have most of the dealings with, and then, the second person is in the background.
So, it's great with you guys, having to such strong voices on the same subject but just with very different perspectives. So, I was talking to Jason about who the book is best suited for and how it can best help them. He was talking about the opportunity to share your philosophy and how you work with people and try and get them to the point that it's very comfortable. So, is that your perspective as well? It's that group of people who it's good at serving?
Denise H.:
Yeah, definitely. The new patients coming in, the ones who deal with anxiety and fear of going to the dentist, maybe those who haven't come in in a few years, would be ideal for the book because it just goes through, step-by-step, what to expect when they come in and how we work with them to ease their anxiety and make it a more comfortable visit.
Stuart Bell:
Yeah, talking to you, it's such a fascinating opportunity to get in front of people for the longterm and really establish that relationship, not just to the point of bringing them into the practice for one particular procedure, but the ongoing and year-after-year care and what they should expect afterwards.
That view of the patients that you're working with, is it much more like that, where they are people who you're their family dentist for many, many years rather than they're just passing through and they need some work done now?
Denise H.:
Typically, yeah, we have a lot of families, a lot of longterm patients. I have people in my practice that have been there since three dentists preceding me.
Stuart Bell:
Right.
Denise H.:
So, there's definitely lifelong patients in those scenarios. But I know Jason's office is different than mine, but I practice next to a university. So, we also get a lot of people who are there temporarily, as students or faculty. They're there for a couple of years, and then, they move on and they just need somebody while they're planted in Palo Alto.
Stuart Bell:
In that time.
Denise H.:
So, I definitely get a variety of those people.
Stuart Bell:
Yeah. So, we were talking with Jason about the referrals and using the books with existing patients to pass to their friends who might also be friends and family suffering from anxiety to help those guys. But I'm wondering if there's also the opportunity for those more transient communities, like at the school, where there is that added anxiety of people not being in their home town, not having their referral network around.
Have you guys done anything like that with the book to look for groups of people, go into the school and present this as an opportunity to say, if some of the students here are, for sure, having some anxieties, here's copies of the book to make them feel more at ease? Have you guys ever done any of that outreach into groups of people who might cross over with that group who are anxious about dental work?
Denise H.:
Sure, yeah. Once we start seeing trends and things coming through, let's say we get a lot of grad students from the law department that are coming in, we say, "Hey, we've seen a lot of people coming in from the law school, grab some books and pass it on with your friends too.", if they might be looking for a dentist or are dealing with procrastination on going to the dentist because of fear, or being away from home and they just want to feel a little bit more comfortable before picking up the phone, then pass the books around and that might help ease their anxiety and maybe allow them to pick up the phone and give us a call.
Stuart Bell:
Yeah. Like you say, it really does those two things of one, getting them to the point where there's more information to feel less anxious about something. But also the point that if they do raise the phone, there's more of a relationship that you've established with them because, through the virtue of the book, you're the person that's got them to that point in the first place. So, it definitely does that relationship building and gets people more to the place of being more likely to trust you before they move forward.
Denise H.:
Yeah, exactly. They build the relationship before they even meet you. So, it gives them a good intro to our office and how we work and just that passing off of the book to somebody else is, I think it's worth more than just a word of mouth referral or a Google review online that they read. It's definitely a lot more personal and it gives them a little extra boost and confidence in picking up the phone and calling us for an appointment.
Stuart Bell:
Yeah. It really starts that journey and allows the point at which you're talking to someone, or the office is talking to someone, to be three or four steps down the path.
Denise H.:
Right, right.
Stuart Bell:
It was interesting that Jason was saying that the aftercare elements of the information in the book. So, it's really not just, here's ways to overcome anxiety or here's some details about getting to the point of the procedure, but there's really that longer term what people should expect to see afterwards.
So, has the experience in the office been anything around that, anything around the length of the usefulness of the book after the procedure, or is very much the feedback in the moment? Because, obviously, it's still relatively new. So, is the feedback at that moment very much in those early stages of getting people to make that call in the first place?
Denise H.:
For me it's more in the early stages of introducing people to the office. I think their after care helps more in his situation because he does a lot more surgical stuff. And I think a lot of it goes into if you're extracting a tooth and what to expect. And so, I think he utilizes that and in that respect. I usually refer most of my extractions.
Denise H.:
But if somebody is being sent out for an extraction or a bigger procedure that they're going to expect longer healing times from, that would probably be a good source for them as well, even preparing them for what they're going to do when they go out to the specialist.
Stuart Bell:
I guess that's interesting as well because in so many other circumstances you'd refer that work out and the after care, and the followup, and the expectation settings, and that part of the relationship would get handed off to the other person.
Denise H.:
Right.
Stuart Bell:
Even, I guess it gives you an opportunity to keep a little bit closer to that loop and saying to people, "You've been referred out to our trusted network for this particular procedure, but you're really still our patient and we're concerned about your health and wellbeing.", so here's an opportunity to refer back to the book even though the procedure was done by someone else.
Stuart Bell:
I would imagine that's an interesting way of keeping that relationship alive a little bit in a situation where, otherwise, it might, typically, people are thinking about it as just being passed out to someone else.
Denise H.:
Exactly. And we do touch in the book as well on when we refer and why we refer, and so, people don't think we're just passing them off to somebody. It's actually a relationship that we have with the surgeons and specialists to enhance the care that we're giving, that we're giving them to these people for a purpose for their overall health. It's not, like I said, you're not passing the buck, but you're preparing them for a better procedure, for a specific reason. And then, you can also prepare them for what they should expect after they see the specialist, and then, return to our office for care afterwards.
Stuart Bell:
And that's such a fantastic way of laying the ground. You've given them the roadmap ahead. When Jason was talking, he was comparing it to a mechanic, and saying that once you've got the trusted partner, the fact that you don't understand the language necessarily or understand how one bit of an engine connects to another, but it doesn't matter because you've got that trusted relationship.
Denise H.:
Exactly.
Stuart Bell:
You guys are doing exactly the same in laying that groundwork and setting the expectation that this is all perfectly normal, this is the best way of doing it. There's nothing to be concerned about. It's not extraordinary. This is just this stage of the process, and then, after that you come straight back to us and we'll be here to take care of you for the rest of the journey.
Denise H.:
Exactly. Yeah.
Stuart Bell:
So often we're talking with people about the books as lead generation tools and people think about it, or the conversations that we happen to have, because this is often the problem that people are trying to solve, is just in that initial getting people to raise their hand, and then, being able to start the journey.
But this has been a great call for people to think about really that relationship building. So, even if you're not interested in, I'm not saying anyone is, and even if you weren't interested in any more customers, being able to nurture that relationship with them and make the most of the relationships you've got, one element of your book is a fantastic example of being able to do that and giving people something of value that helps them be in a better position but really sets up the longterm relationship with someone, not just that initial transaction.
Denise H.:
The initial meeting. Yeah, exactly. We want to keep them comfortable and keep them informed every step of the way.
Stuart Bell:
Right. Fantastic. This has been a great call. Thanks a lot for your time, guys. Really appreciate you sharing your experience and this, I'm sure, has sowed a lot of seeds as we're heading into 2020 and the year ahead.
We've got lots of people who have not necessarily pulled the trigger this year, but I've been thinking about it and really dialing in their ideas waiting to get started. So, this has been a really great way of bringing in an extra elements that I don't think many of the calls this year have managed to hit upon. So, just wanted to say thanks again for your time.
Denise H.:
Thank you. Of course, thanks.
Stuart Bell:
I usually put a link to people's websites in the show notes so are you okay if I reference the two practices?
Denise H.:
Yes, absolutely.
Stuart Bell:
Perfect. So, that's just for anyone listening and not looking, Denise, yours is the Tahoe practice.
Denise H.:
Jason's is the Tahoe practice.
Stuart Bell:
Oh, Jason's is the Tahoe. Oh, so yours is the Palo Alto?
Denise H.:
Right.
Stuart Bell:
On the east coast, I'm losing my west coast geography.
Denise H.:
Yeah.
Stuart Bell:
People can visit Denise's at dhendersondds.com and that's Palo Alto, and the Tahoe practice is kingsbeachdental.com, so definitely recommend people check out those two and take a look at what's going on. And obviously, if you're in the area, give the guys a call.
We'll wrap up there. I'll let you get, as I mentioned, we're recording this in between Christmas and New Years, so let you get back to the holiday settings. I just wanted to say thanks again for your time and look forward to checking in again and see what you guys are doing with the book.
Denise H.:
All right, sounds good. Thanks a lot. You have a happy new year.
Stuart Bell:
And there we have it. Another great episode. I always enjoy talking with people that we've worked with because it gives that real life case study, that real life element to the things that Betsy and I, or Dean and I, talk about in the other episodes.
It's always useful to see how people are really using it in their real life, their examples and the journey that they go through from the start of the idea to the completion of the book. So, then how are they using it and the responses that are coming back. That feedback is always valuable, and always appreciate the opportunity to share that with you guys.
In the episode, we talked about the book blueprint scorecard, the eight mindsets that we've got to really measure your book against our framework for developing a book to build your business. So, you can go through the exercise itself. It's bookblueprintscore.com and that's a great way of really, across these eight mindsets, developing each of them so that they build and create the best possible book depending on the individual outcome that you've got in mind.
So, that's over at bookblueprintscore.com, and then, of course, the easiest way to get it completed is to work with us and you can do that by heading to 90minutebooks.com and following the get started links.
So again, appreciate Jason and Denise's time. Always glad to be able to share people's stories with you. Looking forward to working with you guys over 2020 and hopefully be able to share your story in an upcoming episode. So, with that, thanks everyone. Enjoy the weekend and I will catch you in the next one.