Referral Health Snapshot
Referral Trend — Previous 90 Days
254
▼ -29 referrals (-10.25%) vs. prior 90 days (283)
Referral Trend — YTD YoY
650
▲ +9 referrals (+1.4%) vs. last year (641)
Active Referring Providers — Previous 90 Days
77
▼ down from 93 vs. prior 90 days
Key Discussion Topics
- Staffing Strain And Team Bandwidth: Leslie shared that she's feeling major burnout from covering nearly every role in the office. One of the two new surgical assistants is stepping up despite being new to dentistry, while the other, more experienced hire hasn't taken on ordering or other office tasks. She's reassigned OSHA compliance to a hygienist to free up some of her own time.
- Decline In Active Referring Providers: A look at the last 180 days showed active referring providers dropped from 93 to 77. This tracks with the reduced marketing activity during Leslie's high-workload stretch, and is being logged as a marketing event in Referral Lab.
- ROI Data On Referral Touchpoints: Jayme shared a network-wide analysis showing small, consistent drop-offs and random touchpoints outperform sporting events and holiday-specific campaigns for ROI — useful context as the practice plans how to spend its remaining 2026 budget.
- April Doctor Appreciation Event Recap: The team revisited a disappointing April event where an entire RSVP'd referring team (13-14 people, including Dr. Capps' office) never showed. Given that outcome and the ROI data, the practice isn't planning to use its event budget again this year.
Marketing Initiatives Discussed
- Tips And Treats Cookie Drop-Offs: The team spent $100 on Tips & Treats passes and delivered a dozen cookies daily to referring offices, including a stop in Paris.
- Fourth Of July Gift Baskets: Larger baskets were delivered to referring offices in late June to mark the holiday.
- Fall Gift Basket Campaign: Rather than running a Christmas campaign, the practice will put its $2,600 August (Paris) and $2,600 October (Rockwall) marketing budget toward fall/Thanksgiving-themed gift baskets — potentially including small employee treats like movie gift cards. The Rockwall spend is being pushed to late September/early October.
- Jason Returning To Doctor Visits: Jason is stepping back from covering the Paris office and expects to resume in-person marketing visits within the next week or two, building on his past success connecting with referring offices.
Wins & Opportunities
Even with the recent dip, Northeast Texas Periodontics is still up +1.4% YTD YoY (650 vs. 641 referrals), and June and July were strong months with no referral decline. Jason's return to in-person marketing visits later this month is a clear opportunity to start rebuilding the active referring provider count, and the team's Tips & Treats and gift basket efforts show they can still execute high-impact, low-lift touchpoints even while short-staffed.
Action Items
| Action | Owner | Due |
|---|
| Move the $2,600 August Paris marketing budget out — Completed | Jayme Monroe | Completed |
| Shift the $2,600 Rockwall budget to late September/early October for the fall gift basket campaign | Jayme Monroe | TBD |
| Plan and order fall/Thanksgiving-themed gift baskets for referring offices using the reallocated marketing budget | Leslie Lowery | Late Sept / Early Oct 2026 |
| Resume in-person marketing visits to referring providers | Jason | August 31, 2026 |
| Follow up on Casey's marketing activity/support in the Paris location | Leslie Lowery | August 31, 2026 |
