Dental A Team W/ Kiera Dent And Dr Mark Costes

In this episode, Tiff and Nikki talk about a critical piece under the marketing umbrella: networking with people in your community across different "genres" of expertise. They discuss knowing your demographic, building a two-way street of referrals, leaning on your hobbies, and a ton more ways to get your business out there and being talked about. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are excited to be here. I say it every single time and we truly, truly mean it. I think you guys believe me and know that by now Nikki is here with me today. Nikki, thank you so much for being here. this is our podcasting morning and we block out the a morning, we do a couple hours and make sure that we get the best content we possibly can out to everyone. I'm actually really excited about this one. We just talked through it. for those of you who don't know, our marketing company, they   comb th

Artificial harmony is what happens when teams work alongside each other day in and day out, but never actually talk about what needs to be said. Kiera and Dana walk listeners through why getting to the root of problems in a practice is so critical — from not just a teamwork point of view, but for the business itself — as well as where to start to turn your practice into a place where honesty and trust happens regularly. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera and today's a lucky day. I have the one and only Dana on the podcast with me. I love this. Dana, you happen to fit right in my podcasting schedule at the perfect time. So I'm getting more Dana time. You guys are getting more Dana time. Dana, how are you? Welcome to the podcast.   Dana (00:16) excited to be here. I know it's rare. Like it's rare anymore that I get a ton of podcasting time, but especially podcasting

Re-releasing a Dental A-Team podcast fan favorite! Britt is fresh off visiting a ton of practices, many of which are part of dental support organizations (DSOs), and she's sharing her insight. With Kiera, she talks about the foundational pieces to set up DSOs for success — everything from training the leadership team, setting up KPIs, providing profit and loss statement education, and allowing culture and patient experience to grow in each practice while keeping an overall brand. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, l

Tiff and Nikki share how a hands-on operator can become a strategic owner, and at the same time set the team up for success. By sharing responsibilities and establishing clear systems, your practice's culture, business, and team can blossom in unexpected ways. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello Dental A Team listeners. We are back with you today and to share some really fun things. I have Nikki here with me today. I love nothing more than podcasting with the other consultants on our team. And Nikki is a favorite, a fan favorite, and a Dental A Team   Nikki Mack (00:17) Yeah.   Tiffanie (00:18) favorite. Nikki, thank you so much for being here this morning for us and whatever time of day the listeners are listening. How are you today, Nikki?   Nikki Mack (00:26) I am good. I'm excited to be back too. I this has become one of my favorite parts of Dental A Team. and especially when I hear from doctors an

Did you know: Today's dentists are waiting five years longer to buy a practice than they were a generation ago? Kiera is joined by Brian Hanks of Dental Buyer Advocates to talk about delayed ownership traps and why the future of private practice is an encouraging one (Brian shares numerous data points to back that up). They also touch on overcoming fears and all the information out there that makes everyone seem more prepared for business ownership than they actually are, and how to go about buying a practice while asking the right questions. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team Listeners, this is Kiera, and today is an awesome day. I am so excited to be podcasting with one of my favorite humans. He and I have spoken across the country together. We go to different things, we share clients together. I have Brian Hanks, the owner of Dental Dental Buyer Advocates. And today we're gonna talk ab

Do you prefer retaining the employees you have rather than constantly hunting for new ones? Kiera shares an example of a practice that evolved from high turnover to solid team retention, and how effective leadership played a critical role in keeping people long-term — plus how you can craft it for your own practice. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team Listeners. This is Kiera. And today I want to chat with you guys about hiring and staffing and retention. I think this is something that a lot of you are struggling with. I think it's just, I don't know, it's just annoying and it's obnoxious and it's just part of what we are dealing with now. But I think that there's a lot of solutions that we can do that I think a lot of people aren't thinking about. So with that, I want to give some tips of like what we can do to retain team members more than having to hunt for them.   So

This episode is all about eyes on fall/winter 2026. Tiff and Pam discuss what's top of mind for practices as they look to the final stretch of the year, including stepping up on re-care and reactivation, how to talk about it with patients, and how to make sure it's incorporated into your practice. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team Podcast Listeners. I am so excited to be here with you today. I always am. I literally love doing this with you guys. and I more than that, I love doing this with our consulting team. And I have very, very special women on as our consultant guest today. I have Miss Pam with us today, and you guys have actually not heard from her yet, even though she's been here with us behind the scenes for a little while.   Getting these podcasts like scheduled and in the system and all of those pieces takes a little bit of time sometimes. And Pam is a prized, prized possess

Kiera shares three approaches that will help you consistently and quickly fill your schedule on a daily basis: maximizing your current patients, creating the perfect handoff, and building consistent marketing. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we're gonna talk about what to do when you've got like holes in the schedule. I wanted to have a tactical one. I just came from a practice that is like an amazing same-day converter. but I want to just like talk about like it's very, very stressful when you're looking at your schedule and you just see holes, like holes everywhere. And so, what can we do to fill those holes? How can we make sure you have a very productive practice? and it's not always a marketing problem. It's not necessarily that we need more patience.   Let's just figure out how we can do like what are some simple things to he

How do you manage money more effectively? How can you stop being surprised by taxes? How do you turn your cashflow into something predictable? Kiera answers these questions and more, with three monthly habits you can build to create profitability. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today's topic is one of my favorite. It's money, taxes, and making a money-making machine. Yeah. Yay. Let's talk money and taxes. Because honestly, this is what everybody hates. And I'm not a CPA. I'm not a financial advisor. I'm none of those things. I'm just a girl who loves to help practices be more profitable. Help dentists like make and keep the money that they deserve, but doing it in an ethical way as a smart business owner. Because honestly, do you know how many people come to me and they're Kiera, I just want to become the CEO of my business because I do

So many offices out there think growth has to come from new patients. Tiff and Kristy share specific areas in your practice where you can increase what you're pulling in. This includes fee analyses, unscheduled patients, a finely tuned schedule, and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are so excited to be here with you today. We love podcasting. We love giving out so much great information. And more than anything, we really love sharing our journeys with you guys, us consultants here on the team. We get to be in office with you, a lot of you. we get to be on the road, we get to go to CE courses, we take a ton of CE courses. The gal who's podcasting with me today is a CE maniac. she's always just looking things up and   And learning and growing. So we get to learn and grow. We get to boots on the ground, test things out, and then we get to deliver those ideas and those

Re-releasing a Dental A-Team podcast favorite! Tiff is on the pod to chat with Kiera about an office she just visited which needed some attention on its collections and accounts receivable. To give an idea of where this practice sits at, its collections are at 80% and case acceptance is at 56%. Tiff shares three points she touched on with this office: Three tactics to put into place to raise collections Establish tracking methods Spun complaints in a positive direction Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have released thousands, lite

It's a common trajectory: Dental schools create great dentists, but they don't create good business owners. Kiera shares three critical (but attainable!) tips for creating a profitable, scalable, and enjoyable practice, so doctors can continue doing the work they love. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I'm excited to chat with practice owners, office managers, and to kind of just talk about like what every practice owner should know. But I think a lot of us learn that too late. Myself included, I feel like business owners, I feel like we are great at our craft, but at business we learn it a little too late. And so I think that like I looked at all of our students at Midwestern and they learned how to be great dentists, but they didn't.   learn how to become great business owners. And we hear this all the time. I'm not saying anything

Do things feel a little disconnected between team members in your practice? Tiff and Dana discuss the common signs that usually mean your practice could use a communication refresher, and then give advice on what can be done about improvement. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. We are back at you on the podcast slash video cast, which is still really weird to me. I think I spend more time getting prepped and ready for the podcast than I do for coaching calls, which is wildly, wildly annoying. And here we are. I secretly do   wish that we could just be off camera still, but I I know I enjoy watching the podcast and Aaron watches podcasts every morning. So here we are. Dana, you are my favorite podcaster on a Friday. I love ending my week with you. I love beginning my week with you as well. You are an amazing podcaster and just an incredible person. How are you today, Dana?   D

Kiera shares ways practices can make patients feel valued from that first visit to their final treatment, including tips for establishing consistency, intentionality, and the genuine connections between it all. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today I wanted to just talk about how to help people feel valued. Like, I know that seems so cliche. I know you're like, great, but patience to team members, like, what are some of those secret sauces that just really make people feel that extra ump to feel that extra peace? Because honestly, patients don't leave because of bad dentistry. Patients leave because they don't feel seen, known, or valued. And I don't think it's about being overly nice.   I just think it's about being intentional. And so today I want to just kind of dive into something that's going to impact your patients, your team, your leaders. of just li

Private practices — ever feel like you can't win against the DSOs? Kiera talks about what your practice can continue to produce that DSOs, with their multiple locations and bigger budgets, can't replicate. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and I am excited. Today's gonna be a fun rift of a podcast for you. It's gonna be like, can independent practices like private practice still beat DSOs if you want to? This isn't a rag on DSOs, it's not a rag on private practices. It's just can private practice, independent practices still win against the DSO? Because I think a lot of people are losing faith and confidence and feeling like if I'm not a part of a DSO, I can't win. So I wanna just tickle our brains today.   Think about it in a different way and let's have a fun rift because you remember this is the best place. Dental A Team is the place where

Tiff and Kristy address why the doctor (or the practice lead or the OM) always end up getting sucked back in to answer questions they shouldn't have to. The pair also gives solutions on how to curb this automatic approach, including establishing clarity, providing the right resources, and being patient when things go wrong. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review   Transcript: Tiffanie (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. I am back here with you on the podcast. I love being here. I love what we get to do, and I love more than any of that podcasting with Kristy. And I hope that you guys have taken the time to get to know Kristy, that you've seen her on other podcasts, but also that you maybe have chosen to work with her. She's got some incredible clients. Kristy is full right now in the in the the   recording of this podcast, but she is really awesome at sneaking in some room there too. We do take advantage of that sometimes. So Kristy, t

Marketing is different than it was five years ago, especially now that AI is firmly entrenched in so many communities. Kiera talks about how AI, online reviews, and local trust are more important than ever, and what you and your practice can do to keep patients coming your way. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and I hope you're having a great day. I am having a great day. I love being in office with offices. I love working with practices. I love being with our team. I love seeing my team elevate and grow. I love watching and seeing just wins. I love hearing how our clients are doing. I love to see the wins our clients are getting. Honestly, dentistry is so great and it's fun. It's fun to see the evolution of the Dental A Team. I remember when I started this, there is no way, shape, or form that I honestly thought.   That we would have this ma

For the CEOs out there, how are you planning out your weeks to keep your business humming for the short and long terms? Kiera talks about what it means to plan and delegate as the leader of your company, as well as three tips that CEOs of multi-million-dollar practices live by when it comes to success. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent- Dental A Team (00:01) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera, and I hope you are having an awesome day today. I hope that you're loving your life. I hope that you remember that we just are so lucky to live this life, that we are so lucky to work in dentistry, that we get to have our life calling. I am just so excited to podcast with you. I am coming in off the road. You guys know that when I've been on the road, it's a great time. I love seeing offices in person. I love working with teams. I love seeing how very simple.   pieces can actually help out a practice. And it was

Does your schedule seem to weaken during July, August, and even into September? Tiffanie and Kristy dive into both proactive and reactive measurements your practice can do to keep things chugging along. This includes creating a schedule template that works for everyone no matter the season, creating an ASAP list, working on recare before the schedule falls apart, and more. Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Tiffanie (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners, and welcome back to another episode. Today it is myself Tiffanie and Miss Kristy. I am always so happy to podcast with any of the ladies here at the Dental A Team. ⁓ but Kristy, you are a favorite. You bring a calm and a sense of peace to my life, and I appreciate you being here for us. It's fairly early in our day on a Monday morning, and ⁓ back.   From I'm just back from vacation. Kristy, you've barely had a couple days back from vacation. So we're really just jumping ri

DAT podcast listeners loved this episode, so we're re-releasing it! The Dental A-Team is hearing a lot about practices' struggles with communication. In this episode, Kiera and Brit discuss ways to enhance communication in a practice, and even reach a breakthrough point. They touch on the following: Establishing ground rules of communication in your office Stop assuming everyone knows how to communicate How to bring up that you want to have better communication practice-wide And more Episode resources: Subscribe to The Dental A-Team podcast Schedule a Practice Assessment Leave us a review Transcript: Kiera Dent (00:00) Hello, Dental A Team listeners. This is Kiera. And today we are bringing you something so special. I am so excited because this is one of our most popular episodes from the archives. Whether you're hearing this for the first time or catching it again, I am so excited because it's jam packed with a ton of takeaways that you can start using right now in your practice. We have release