Paddi Lund in Durham personal thoughts

Just a quick follow up to my last blog post.


Chris and I had a Great day with the North East Private Dentists group in Chester -le- Street, Durham at the Durham County Cricket Club. Having stayed over the night before at the reputedly haunted Lumley Castle Hotel. An exceptional experience in itself even though our stay was short and there were no apparent apparitions.


Paddi Lund delivered an excellent though shortened version of his story and the extreme customer service and added value has provided for over 20 years in his Brisbane suburb dental practice.
At the tea break Chris and I had a chance to meet him and I mentioned that I had heard of him many years ago and now finally had a chance to hear him speak, oh and by the way we were celebrating our 33rd wedding anniversary today too.
He called me Roger, I gave him my card, he called me Richard and made his way to the podium for the next session. Towards the end of that session,Paddi gave Chris & I a special mention from the stage for attending on our wedding Anniversary, which was unexpected but very nice.


When he finally gave his curtain call he left the room as we prepared to queue for lunch. He sloped off out of the room but 20 mins later he re-appeared to hand Chris a bunch of flowers by way of thanks to her for giving up a special day to come and hear him speak. Now that's what I call a real wow. Practicing what he preaches. Extreme customer service. A super CNE (Critical non-essential)!

A big Thanks to Paddi Lund, his PA Fletcher Potanin, Richard Fretwell and Prem Sehmi of Walrus Dental Seminars.

We have taken away much and intend to implement as much as we can. Watch out for some new Critical Non-Essentials and some Paddi touches in the months ahead with me Richard Charon at Newbury Smilemakers

Paddi Lund in Durham

Paddi Lund had become probably the world's best known dental practitioner. An Australian dentist with a remarkable story , he is a one-man marketing phenomenon listened to and admired by dentists and non-dentists around the world. He has written several books and many articles on his unique brand of customer-service driven, dental practice and much more than that, on a template for running a "happiness centred practice/business" . He is currently touring the UK with Chris Barrow , a dental business and personal development coach and mentor of mine and one time dental business coach, who my wife, Chris and I first worked with about 11 years ago. So next week, we will be flying up to Newcastle-on-Tyne and thence to Durham County Cricket Club to listen to Paddi Lund. A first for us. We like to think that we have taken on board many of his lessons but I know we dont' yet implement all of his ideas to the full.

I first heard about Paddi Lund roughly 19 years ago. One of the big four UK banks, of which I was a customer at the time, hosted a full day seminar on business marketing held at Reading University. The day was presented by an Australian marketing company looking to expand into the UK market.

Amongst the many fascinating anecdotes they told, of a variety of their clients who had benefitted from their marketing system, was a "mad australian dentist"- you guessed it - Paddi Lund. Paddi had done amazing things in his small town dental practice. Long before Seth Godin's deliberations in Purple Cow and The Big Moo, on becoming remarkable to succeed in business,Paddi Lund had done just that. He introduced a series of " critical non-essentials" to pamper his clients. An amazing and flamboyant coffee machine with beautiful china cups, "Dental Buns" were baked on the premises and offered in the client's lounge.

Guess what people talked about when they finished their dental visit? Painless fillings or beautiful crowns ? No, it was the customer service and totally unexpected free extras that Paddi and his small team provided.

Pretty soon he had people queuing up. He cancelled his yellow pages ads, took down signage and became exclusive, to the point of requiring people to request acceptance to his practice. He thus built a business around people who liked him, liked the service he provided, were happy to pay for it and to refer friends and relatives by word of mouth.

Well that is just a small part of his remarkable story and we look forward to bringing the best of Paddi Lund's ideas to our practice in Newbury after we have had a chance to hear him up close and personal, as it were.

Amazing Bach Duo

This post has nothing to do with teeth or Dentistry but I would just love to share this with you. Apologies if you have seen it before. It was passed on to me by a close friend. Enjoy.

Mark Oborn,Testimonials & Dental Fear Stories

Hello and thanks for finding your way to my blog.

Our SEO project with Mark Oborn is gathering pace. We have recently had 2 new patients as a result of our higher profile on line. More to come soon methinks!

One lady I saw yesterday from the Newbury area said, I have been researching all over the world on-line for my problems, only to find the dentist I want is right here in Newbury!

Perhaps we can hep you too. Have a look a some of our testimonials and some detailed stories in the patients own words. I hope you find some inspiration here.

Another very unusual Blog post

Do you or anyone you know, need a reliable and capable decorator/ tiler, preferably in the West Berkshire/ South Oxfordshire area?

Will consider travelling further afield for larger jobs - otherwise, you guessed it, no job too small and at very reasonable rates. My son Marc, has just been laid off, so is looking for work, naturally. If this is of interest to you or you can pass on the request, that would be great.
References are available. What Dad wouldn't do this for his son!

Newbury Corn Exchange – A Pamper Evening!

Your invitation to a charity event at Newbury Corn Exchange – A Pamper Evening!

I am delighted to have been invited to Newbury’s Corn Exchange on Tuesday 13th October for the “Pamper Evening”, at the invitation of Liz Chandler of Nature’s Corner. Nature's Corner is Newbury's only independent health food store and is one of the two organisers of the event. Entry to the event is by donation which, will go towards the Rainbow Rooms, part of West Berkshire Hospital and offer comfortable accommodation for patients and their relatives”
Details of the Pamper Evening . It will be followed by The Hot Dots for an evening's entertainment.

I will be demonstrating Invisalign®, a very hi-tech system of smile re-alignment, accomplished without any wires or train-track braces. I will be accompanied by my wife Chris, our Practice manager and Treatment Coordinator. Invisalign® has been the runaway success for us in 2009.”

Here is what one of his delighted patients said after his smile was corrected with Invisalign®.
http://newburydentist.blogspot.com/2009/05/invisalign-testmonial.html
Find out more here http://www.newburydentist.co.uk/38.html & http://www.invisalign.com/

Visitors to Pamper Evening can also use the opportunity to discuss dental fears and phobias and our success in helping people overcome them. For your Free Guide to Fear Free Dentistry see http://www.dentalphobianewbury.co.uk/

Sand Lizard in Newbury

I always fancied myself as a naturalist. As a youngster brought up in Central London my favorite places were London Zoo and The Natural History Museum. Both were just short bus or tube train rides away. On a wet Saturday I could be found sketching whales or dinosaurs in the N.H.M. Sad I know, but the joy of the natural world and biology drew me at first to Medicine
(aged 11) and I knew I was aiming for dentistry by the time I was 16.

So I was so excited this afternoon when my wife called out from the garden where she had been sweeping the patio. He eagle eyes had spotted a small lizard. I recognised it as a Sand Lizard but even as I write this blog post I am unsure how rare it is in the wilds of this corner of West Berkshire. Here is a description on the Wild England website where it says they "can only be found in Dorset and Surrey in undisturbed heathland with thick vegetation and bare patches of sand". Now there are two areas of heathland that I know of locally ( possibly others too). These are the commons at Greenham and Bucklebury both of which are several miles away. One on the far side of Newbury town , the other across clay woodlands, farmland and village gardens.
Time to contact BBONT

So here are the pics taken with excited shaking hands and a Fujifilm 10 mega pixel camera with macro selected.

Would you like to know what the dentist is doing?

Our new business cards and referral cards have arrived at last. Their message is aimed at those who are normally too anxious about the idea of a visit to the dentist to pick up the phone until some dental disaster strikes.

However often we chant the “prevention is better than cure “or “the stitch in time” mantras, for many folk this just doesn’t make sense. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is what every dentist will have heard from time to time. The trouble is that “broke” may mean big trouble. So what may seem like a smart idea (”Leave well alone”) may not be!

21st century dentistry with all its hi-tech gizmos, help detect problems way before pain begins or disaster strikes. That is the way to go.

We use an intra-oral camera or “tooth –cam” to highlight minor problem areas or discover small cracks. We show you the issues so you will know exactly what we are talking about and why. Here's an example. Using the tooth cam I can show each stage of what we are doing from beginning to end.

This is a faulty silver filling with cracks in the tooth.

Here the filling has been removed and the new white filling is being built up.

Here is the finished rebuild as we show it to our patients

Please sign up to this blog to receive updates and find out what else we can offer you in terms of 21st century dentistry!

If you would like to be sure all is well and if this technology interests you, then why not call us on 01635 47757

Embarrassed to visit the Dentist?

Are you just too embarrassed

to visit a dentist?

Richard Charon at Newbury Smile-Makers

in Newbury, Bershire, has the anwer.

Sometimes we hear from people who have neglected their smiles. Perhaps it’s their teeth, perhaps their gums or both. It’s just so long since they have seen a dentist that they are just plain embarrassed.

Sometimes, as happened this week, it is not a question of fearfulness or phobia or concern over fees- it can be just a question of embarrassment.

Life takes over. Family problems, health problems, job problems; the list is a long one – reasons – excuses and so on. Here at Richard Charon at Newbury Smile-Makers you can be assured of a sympathetic hearing, we are never judgemental but we are professional.

Perhaps the problems you are worrying about are nowhere near as bad as you fear. Perhaps they are and you just don’t know what can be done.

We will look at all of the options and give you a written treatment plan based on the conversation we have already had about your options. We proceed at your own pace and tailor the plan according to your wishes. We never undertake any treatment that you are not fully aware of and that you have agreed to.

If this is the type of approach that you or someone you know would like, then pick up the phone for friendly and knowledgeable advice and speak to Chris Charon our practice manager and Treatment Coordinator. Call 01635 47757.

Why not come along to meet us and discuss your concerns over tea or coffee? This is a free consultation and will be different from your previous experience of dentists- Guaranteed. Call now 0n 01635 47757 or e-mail chris@newburydentist.co.uk

PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG AND LOOK OUT FOR OUR

FREE GUIDE TO FEAR FREE DENTISTRY COMING SOON !

Diagnodent - Laser tooth decay detector

Follow this link to an older blog post to see how this works

http://mydentistatstmaryshousenewbury.blogspot.com/2007/06/invisible-tooth-mending-after-laser.html

Great Unsolicited Testimonial for our Teamwork

This wonderful testimonial was received today, addressed to our Dental Treatment Co-ordinator, Chris Charon. I'll use this tomorrow at the Jack O'Newbury BNI chapter meeting.

The background is that we used intravenous sedation for this lady's anxiety management and treatment. She needed a full morning with us. Here it is in her own words:


"Dear Chris, I am resting my gnashers at the moment but just want to say to you, Richard and those two lovely girls, a huge Thank You for yesterday.

Bearing in mind I had been dreading the day and when it finally arrived I just felt so helpless and anxious as I knew I had to go through with it but obviously didn’t want to!!!!


To my astonishment, you ALL made my day so calm, stress free and most importantly, pain free. I know Richard is just the best but don’t tell him ;-).

I am sooooo pleased with my new teeth I cant begin to tell you. They look perfect. Will talk to you soon.

Thank you again

Yve xx

The Flip Cam has arrived

So my new toy is the flip cam. Now I have worked out how to use it (its very simple in fact). I will need to sort out the wardrobe and make-up depts at Newburysmilemakers soon and face the camera and my public too !

I'm not an "am-dram" type, so this will be a challenge. The initial videos will be part of the e-marketing campaign. Who knows after that!

Thanks for taking an interest.

Richard Charon

Unusual Blog post

Phil Cory is an ex-patient of mine and an interesting and "genuine" man.
No, he didn't leave my practice through dissatisfaction, he moved to the North of England. We have kept in touch from time to time , more easily of late though Facebook.

Phil has just seen my website and this is his comment:


"The site looks snappy fella, it does justice to your brilliant dentistry, I can't recommend you highly enough..."


So Phil describes himself as a "veganist, gluten freeer, guitar looney, song writer, alternative lifestyler, video maker, astral voyager, tonal tune healing music maker, for my music checkout www.myspace.com/shipsofice email is sonicwarrior888@hotmail.com"

So on the face of we probably don't have a huge amount in common, yet I have great sympathy and respect for his chosen lifestyle, born, I believe out of deep conviction. He is a sometime graphic designer and all round genuinely great guy.

On his Facebook wall today he writes:

"Tomorrow I embark on my journey as a fully fledged offgrid traveling musician (songwriter-rock guitarist)/crystal bowls healer, I offer up my services to the cosmos with a fully open heart. If you know of a venue that would be correct for this - possibly a private address - then I offer to come and share my skills/ entertain you and yours there to the best of my abilities :) "

He is looking for small scale venues ( at extra low cost) . If this alternative lifestyler, Crystal bowls healer, singer songwriter's appeal interests you or someone you know, then why not get in touch with Phil. He knows the Newbury area well but I'm sure will travel wherever he is welcomed.

regards to all

Richard Charon

Transforming Dental Experiences

Today we cared for two very grateful, happy and relieved patients. Both benefited greatly from the very gentle "Happy Air" sedation technique which has transformed their dental experiences.

One of them, Adele, travels about 50 odd miles to visit us. She has already written us a lovely testimonial . Scroll down to find hers.

If you know someone like her, pick up the phone and call

Chris, our treatment co-ordinator

Call now on 01635 47757 or e-mail her

chris@newburydentist.co.uk

Great Progress in Marketing Materials

After our marketing business meeting tonight we feel we are at last making great progress towards a final re-vamp of our stationary and marketing materials. Itsbeen a long time in the development. Watch this space.