How much should a dental practice budget for new patient growth?
A budget is not a percentage of revenue. It is the value of one new patient multiplied by how many you intend to earn each month. A percentage assumes every patient is worth the same, and they are not: a family that stays for years is worth more than a single checkup visit, and CDCP is now bringing more of those higher-value patients into the pool who can actually book. Work out what one patient is worth in your practice, decide how many you want each month, then fund that number in one neighbourhood long enough for it to compound.
Start with what one patient is worth
Before you pick a number, know what a new patient is worth to your practice over the years they stay with you. That figure, not a percentage of revenue, is what a growth budget should be measured against.
Multiply, do not take a cut
A percentage of revenue treats every patient as identical. They are not. A young family that stays for a decade of cleanings, kids' visits, and referrals is worth far more than a single one-off appointment, and a percentage cannot tell the difference. The better math is simple multiplication: what one patient is worth, times how many you intend to earn each month. That number is your budget. It moves with the patients you actually want, not with last year's revenue.
What CDCP changes
The Canadian Dental Care Plan is enlarging the pool of people who can now book a dentist, in neighbourhoods where cost used to keep them away. That shifts what a patient is worth in many areas, because more households nearby can say yes to care they were previously putting off. It is worth reading your own neighbourhood before assuming the math is the same as it was two years ago.
A simple way to set the number
Decide how many new patients your practice actually needs each month, multiply that by what one patient is worth, and commit to that figure long enough to see the neighbourhood respond. If the budget is tight, narrow the area rather than the frequency. When you are deciding where to focus a limited budget, start close to the practice.
The takeaway
A growth budget is not a percentage. It is the value of a patient, multiplied by how many you intend to earn, funded every month in an area you can own.
Common questions
Is there a percentage of revenue I should spend?+
No. A flat percentage assumes every patient is worth the same, and they are not. Multiply what one patient is worth by how many you intend to earn, and set your budget from that.
What if I can only afford a small budget?+
Keep the monthly cadence and shrink the area. A smaller neighbourhood you reach every month beats a larger one you reach once.