The Hidden Profit Killer: How Poor Shade Communication Costs Practices Thousands in Remakes and Lost Chairtime

In this eye-opening episode of the Marketing 32 show, host Brett Allen welcomes Trish Jones, an accomplished dental hygienist turned technical account manager at Ivoclar, who reveals the shocking truth about one of dentistry's most overlooked profit drains: shade selection failures. With her unique perspective spanning clinical hygiene, dental laboratory work, and scanner training, Trish exposes how the industry's communication breakdown between practices and labs creates a lose-lose scenario where neither party charges for remakes, yet both absorb significant costs. Her revelation that 8-10% of males are colorblind highlights just one of many factors contributing to the epidemic of reshades and remakes that silently erode practice profitability. From the critical importance of timing shade selection at appointment start (not after 45 minutes of eye strain) to the transformative power of baseline shade tracking for whitening case acceptance, Trish delivers actionable strategies that bridge the gap between what patients value most—their smile's appearance—and what practices spend the least time on. This conversation transforms shade selection from a rushed afterthought into a strategic profit center and patient experience enhancer.

In this episode...

Trish Jones delivers a masterclass in the hidden economics of shade selection, exposing how this critical aspect of restorative dentistry has become both an overlooked profit drain and a missed patient experience opportunity. Her unique career path from clinical hygienist to dental laboratory trainer to technical account manager provides her with rare 360-degree visibility into the communication breakdowns that plague the industry. The core problem is simple yet profound: when shade selection fails, practices absorb the cost of additional appointments without charging patients, while laboratories remake cases without billing doctors, creating a double loss that neither party tracks systematically. This silent profit killer goes unaddressed because most practices lack awareness of how frequently reshades occur and what those failures truly cost.

The technical insights Trish provides transform shade selection from guesswork into a systematic science. The revelation that 8-10% of males (and some females) have colorblindness or visual deficiencies immediately disqualifies a significant portion of potential shade-takers, yet most practices never screen for this condition. The metamerism phenomenon—where identical shades appear different against varying backgrounds—explains why simply matching a shade tab isn't sufficient without considering the patient's complete aesthetic frame including hair, complexion, eye color, and even lipstick preferences. The timing factor proves equally critical: taking shades after 30-45 minutes of preparation work with magnification loupes guarantees compromised visual acuity, yet this backwards sequence remains standard practice in many offices.

Perhaps most transformative is Trish's hygienist-driven baseline shade tracking system, which converts routine cleanings into whitening case generation opportunities. By documenting shade at each hygiene visit, practices create objective evidence of natural darkening over time, allowing patients to self-identify the problem rather than feeling attacked by suggestions their teeth are yellowing. This approach simultaneously elevates the patient experience (making them feel valued through detailed attention), increases whitening revenue without aggressive sales tactics, and builds the foundational skills teams need for complex restorative shade matching. The paradigm shift from treating shade selection as a rushed afterthought to recognizing it as the aspect patients care about most represents a profound opportunity for practices willing to invest in education and systematic implementation.