Contact with a Seller: What to Do and How to Make it Work for You

How you manage contact with a seller will be critical to your success in pursuing a dental practice acquisition.

This page offers advice that will help you gain insight into both your initial contact as well as follow-up meetings with a seller.

Initial Contact with a Seller: Making a Good Impression

There are two key goals to focus on when meeting with a seller for the first time:

Positioning yourself as a good fit to purchase the practice
Gathering information to support your own decision-making

Once you have identified a practice for sale that is performing at a desired volume level and is located near an area where you would like to live, get the initial offering package right away.

Then plan to attend the Open House or meet with the seller as quickly as possible.

Keep in mind that, when a practice is properly priced, there are typically multiple parties simultaneously investigating its purchase. However, there are things you can do to improve your chances of being selected over competitors to complete the acquisition.

In your first meeting, let the seller to get to know you as a person—not just as a professional. Approach this offering with the attitude that the seller is talking to other dentists. You want to foster a highly favorable impression.

Listen carefully to the seller, since he/she will be giving you clues on what they are seeking in a successor. Zero in on any “hot buttons” the seller mentions. Listen intently to their practice story. Keep in mind that a seller does not have to sell their practice to anyone willing to pay the asking price.

It is extremely important that they believe their patients and staff shall be well taken care of by their successor. When you are meeting the seller for the first time, understand that he/she is already assessing whether you are an appropriate candidate to buy the business.

Be polite, and interact. Remember, you made the appointment to investigate this opportunity. Do not be mute! Express an interest in learning about the seller’s story.

Show that you are confident in your ability as a professional, but be careful not to appear arrogant. Share things about your life, along with how your journey in acquiring a practice has brought you to this seller’s doorsteps.

Assure the dentist that you are committed to maintaining their good reputation in the community. Discus your thoughts regarding rework issues as this is an extremely sensitive area to any seller. And impress upon the seller that you will maintain confidentiality about the fact that they are selling their practice. Most important, be yourself!

If you create a favorable impression at this meeting, you will have succeeded in getting the seller’s attention.

Gathering Information for Your Own Decision-Making

Even while you focus on making a good impression at the first meeting, don’t forget the other main objective: getting information to support your own decision-making.

However the purpose of your initial meeting with a seller is not detailed due diligence—it is to form impressions. If you try to bore into minute detail when you should be focusing on creating rapport, you may damage your chances of being selected by the seller.

Here are some ideas of the impressions you will want to note. What are your feelings about:

The office?
the delivery systems?
The building housing the practice?
The location of the practice?
How compatible are you with the seller? Are your philosophies similar?
Are you comfortable with the asking price now that you have met the seller and seen the physical plant?

Keep your initial meeting time reasonable: 90 minutes is more than adequate. Stay relaxed and establish rapport. As you separate and give thought to what you saw and heard, you will then be able to determine if this opportunity warrants further investigation.

The Second Meeting: Now is the Time for Due Diligence

Assuming you wish to proceed with the practice you have visited, it is time to begin due diligence in earnest. Get the hard data on the practice, which includes things like:

Tax returns
Income statements
Production and collection summary reports
Accounts receivable aging
Patient flow data
Patient demographics
Procedure summaries
Breakdown of insurance revenues if the practice is a Premier-only provider with Delta
Premise lease
Personnel histories
Staff compensation/benefits data

You should deliver these to your advisor immediately. Proceed to schedule a second meeting with the seller. This meeting will be unlike the first meeting. Your questions shall be more probing, since you are now commencing your “due diligence” review of the practice.

Learn How to Find Dental Practices for Sale >>

See our current listings: Dental Practices for Sale California >>

Client Comments

I had to Move Quickly; I Found a Partner

“I charged Edna and Ray to sell our practice for a fair price in 3-months. I had a unique opportunity; it demanded a quick transition. We interviewed a larger firm but felt Edna and Ray would give us more personalized service and deliver on their promises. The other firm balked at our goals without excessively low-balling the price. With the other firm, we felt like a commodity. With Edna and Ray, we felt we had a partner. They helped us price the practice fairly and move swiftly. They found a dentist who excitedly bought my practice. It was truly a win-win transaction. My relationship with the dentist continues to be positive and collegial. My family continues to receive their care at his practice, supported by my original team. I recommend Edna and Ray who go the extra yard as they help dentists open new chapters in their lives.”

—David Lopes, D.D.S., El Dorado Hills

Transaction was Beneficial to All Parties

“I purchased a $1 Million/year practice through Ray Irving at PPS of The Great West several years ago. I found Ray to be honest in all of his dealings. His itemized reporting of the assets and the presentation of the practice was extremely accurate.

This was extremely important as I found other agents misrepresent the practice they were selling. Further, other agents did not consider if a buyer was appropriate for the practice as they simply wanted to close the deal. Ray was interested in the right fit from the start.

Further, he was able to conduct the transaction in an efficient manner that was beneficial to all parties concerned. I am very pleased with the practice I acquired from PPS of The Great West and Ray.”

—Lakshmy Sudeep, DDS, San Jose