According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, there are 57.7 dentists per 100,000 population in the country, and 1 in every 2 Australian has visited a dentist or dental professional in the last 12 months. In other words, dental care will always be one of those constant in-demand medical services which is why it’s a good idea for dental practitioners to expand their practice to be able to meet this demand and become more accessible. However, before you decide to expand your dental practice, there are a few things you’d want to consider first.
1. Is it time?
You first and most important thing you have to ask is if it’s the right time to expand. Or, to be blunter, does your dental clinic have enough clients, demand, and reputation to warrant an expansion? You have to consider that expansion takes a lot of money, perhaps even more money than what you invested when you first started up (depending on the scale of the expansion), and expanding too early could lead to losses. If you’re still in the process of building your clinic’s brand or reputation, and you’re barely receiving enough clients to fill your appointment schedule or break-even with your operational costs, then you may want to delay any plans for expansion.
2. Do you have the funds?
As mentioned earlier, expansion is going to need a lot of money. When expanding, you’ll need to be financially prepared by having enough funds and funding sources (such as loans) when acquiring a new lease, new office furniture, technology, and additional manpower.
3. Do you have the right team?
Expansion means more people to serve, and more people are serving. You’ll want to build your expanded team, from front desk operators to additional dental practitioners. Additionally, you’d also want to have a financial adviser to help you out with the money-making and managing aspect of your operations as well as a legal expert to guide you through any legal issues that may arise.
4. Do you have a location?
Another challenge in the expansion is finding the right place to expand to. If you’re lucky, or if you’ve already planned it out beforehand, your current building may be able to accommodate your expansion, which would be a lot more convenient for you and your existing clients. There would be less cost and effort in marketing your new location if you didn’t have to move. If you are expanding your operations in another location, you’d want to notify current clients through email or SMS. But one advantage of expanding in a different site is that you get to continue your current practice while the new clinic is being renovated.
5. Do you have the right suppliers and service providers?
Part of the expansion would be upgrading or at least adding dental equipment and technology, as well as furniture and fixtures. Before you decide to expand, you’ll want to meet up with potential suppliers to find the ones that could meet the needs of your new clinic. Lastly, you mustn’t hire just any interior designer but one that specialises in clinics; that said, you’d want to hire a dental and medical interior design specialist for your new clinic in Sydney.
Conclusion
The decision to expand your dental clinic shouldn’t be something to be taken lightly. There are things you’d want to consider to minimise any errors, losses, and problems upon expansion. So, make sure to ask these five vital questions before you even think of scouting for your new location.
