Every dentist has one fear when starting aligners: “What if this goes wrong?” I remember my first case with rotations and black triangles. It didn’t go as planned. The patient expected perfection. I expected simplicity. We both left disappointed. Then I changed one thing: the way I set expectations. Now I use one simple script at every consult to align goals and avoid future surprises. Here’s the script: “We’re going to make a big difference in your smile — and sometimes, the plan needs to be...

It’s easy to look at DSOs and think: “They’ve got the team, the tech, the budget… I can’t compete with that.” But here’s what most don’t see: Solo docs have something DSOs don’t — time, trust, and the ability to implement fast. One of the docs I worked with started with 1 aligner case/month. Six months later, she was doing 6+ — no big team, no agency, no sales script. Just a simple workflow and a consistent message. Here’s how solo offices win at aligners: Scan every hygiene patient and flag...

Nothing kills momentum like back-to-back refinements. You think you’re done — and then another scan, another delay, another patient getting frustrated. I’ve been there. At one point, almost every case had a midcourse correction. I blamed the software… but it wasn’t that. It was me skipping steps upfront. Here’s how I reduced refinements by over 50%: Use attachments that actually do something — not just the auto-generated ones Set patient expectations: “This is a process. We’ll make...