The Tooth Sleuth Podcast

The marketing didn't fail. The lead management did. That's the conversation most full arch practices never have - because it's easier to blame the ad spend than to look at what happens after the lead comes in. Tim Hines is the founder and president of Brightline Dental Lead Management and a four-time entrepreneur. His company sits in the gap between lead capture and consultation booked - providing...

Most dental practice owners only sell once. That's exactly why they lose.   The information gap between a prepared buyer and an unprepared seller is where practice value disappears — and it's a gap most brokers have zero incentive to close.   Ben Ellis is a former investment banker, M&A executive, and founder of Ellis & Associates, a sell-side advisory firm focused on helping dental practice owner...

When a dental practice sells, the numbers get handled. The people don't. That gap — between what brokers and lawyers manage and what actually determines whether a transition succeeds — is exactly where Christine Diehl works. Christine Diehl is a dental hygienist of over 30 years, published author of The Heart of the Handoff, podcaster, and founder of Dynamic Team Transitions. In this episode, she...

Some doctors build empires on paper while everything behind the scenes is falling apart -- Dr. Richard Low lived it and chose to talk about it.   What happens when the biggest opportunity of your life becomes the thing that's destroying you.   Dr. Richard Low went from podcasting in his closet to CEO of 35 denture and implant offices -- not by ambition, but by circumstance. In this episode, he sit...

Why Full-Arch Fails Without Human Connection (Lead → Close Systems) | Sarah Bogard & Naiara Wireman | TTS #160   Most practices don't have a lead problem. They have a conversion system problem. In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with two of the core operators inside GnA Consulting: Naiara Wireman – Lead Call & Conversion Systems Sarah Bogard – Case Acceptance & Closing Strategy This i...

Marketing in dentistry is not just about leads. It is about mindset, patient connection, trust, and what happens inside the practice after the lead comes in. In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with Matt Brown, co-founder of Energize Group Dental Marketing, for a conversation on abundance mindset, emotional connection, case acceptance, and why the best growth strategies go far beyond c...

Full-arch growth is not just about implants. It's about patient selection, workflow efficiency, clinical judgment, and knowing when not to push a case into a fixed solution. In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with Dr. Steven Nelson, board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon and founder of Fusion Implant Center, to talk through the real-world dynamics of modern full-arch practice....

Show Notes + Video Description Title Grit, Leadership, and Human Connection in Dentistry | Danielle Kramer | Tooth Sleuth Podcast #157 Description Success in dentistry is not built on systems alone. It is built on grit, leadership, human connection, and the willingness to keep moving when things get hard. In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with Danielle Kramer to talk about what it re...

  Why Most Dentists Stay Stuck (And How to Fix It) | EP. 156 | Dr. Alan G. Stern  Most dentists don't struggle because of clinical skill. They struggle because of misalignment, poor guidance, and lack of real systems. In this episode, Dr. Alan G. Stern breaks down the realities behind building a successful dental career—from early rejection and financial setbacks to long-term growth and fulfillmen...

How should dental practices approach patient financing without creating compliance risk or damaging trust? In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Nancy Kay Coy, healthcare finance strategist, author, and founder of Finance Rx®, to discuss the realities of patient financing in dentistry and why the financial conversation has become one of the most important parts of case a...

Should dentists join a DSO, private dental group, or stay independent? In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Rick Cromar, growth strategist at Valeri Group and leader at Peak Dental Studio, to discuss the evolving landscape of dental practice consolidation, private equity partnerships, and building enterprise value in dentistry. They explore how private groups differ fro...

Are you truly tracking where your dental patients come from — or are you guessing? In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Harsh Bansal, Co-Founder of Remedo and ConvertLens, to discuss end-to-end marketing visibility for dental practices. They break down why most lead attribution in dentistry is flawed, how disconnected CRMs and practice management systems create blind sp...

Buy Back Time w/Dr. Rehan Shahid What does it take to move from busy clinician to confident CEO? In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with Dr. Rehan Shahid — practicing dentist, MBA, and multi-location dental practice owner — to discuss dental practice management, leadership, and the systems required for scaling a profitable dental business. Dr. Shahid shares how he helped build an $8M...

Building a personal brand in dentistry isn't about posting more — it's about positioning with purpose. In this episode of Tooth Sleuth, Greg sits down with Marissa Gonzales, Sparkle Success Manager at Our Thrive Tribe, to talk about authentic branding, social media strategy, and what dental professionals get wrong about visibility. If you've ever struggled with what to post, how to stand out on Li...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with wealth strategist and family office advisor Tim McNeely for a candid, eye-opening conversation about money, complexity, and why building wealth without protecting it often creates more problems than solutions. Tim shares how many high-performing dental entrepreneurs unknowingly lose 20–30% of their net worth over time due...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Dr. Julia L. Jackson — better known as "Extraction Jackson" — for a powerful, deeply human conversation about passion, purpose, grit, and what it truly means to love the work you do. As a board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon, educator, and founder of the International Implant Institute, Dr. Jackson shares her jo...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Dicky Ball, co-founder of Summit Handpiece Express, for a refreshingly real conversation about dentistry's most overlooked "tool"—and why systems, maintenance, and team communication matter more than most practices realize. What starts as a discussion about dental handpiece repair quickly evolves into a deeper conversatio...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with entrepreneur, hygienist-turned-broker, and co-CEO of Dental Pitch Brokerage, Elijah Desmond, for a candid conversation about business, failure, partnerships, and preparing dental practices—especially implant and full-arch practices—for successful exits. From Elijah's early days in dentistry to building (and failing) multi...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher welcomes back Dr. Martin Mendelson for a powerful second conversation—one that dives deep into mindset, leadership, and the thoughts that quietly shape our lives and practices. Dr. Mendelson, a dentist-turned-coach and author of One Move Makes All the Difference, breaks down why happiness leads to success (not the other way around), how...

In this powerful episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with cosmetic dentist and educator Dr. Farokh Jiveh for a deeply honest conversation about personal transformation, leadership, and what truly drives patient connection and case acceptance. Dr. J shares his journey from outward success and inner burnout to alignment, clarity, and purpose—and how that shift changed eve...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Gabriel Hofmann, CEO of ConsultHaus and longtime leader in the dental and health services industries, for a deep conversation on human capital, culture, and the mindset required to build organizations that truly last. Gabriel brings more than 20 years of experience leading high-performance teams, and in this episode, he b...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Leah Roling, culture strategist, leadership coach, and founder of The Habit Hackers, for a conversation that goes deep into the mindset, clarity, and intentional habits that shape high-performing teams. They unpack the real drivers of culture—beyond slogans, beyond surface-level motivation—and explore how self-leadership,...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg sits down with Ian Miller—entrepreneur, apparel expert, and GTM operator—to explore the unexpected overlap between men's fashion and building a market strategy that actually works. What starts as a conversation about fit, fabric, and confidence quickly shifts into a masterclass on positioning, clarity, and the discipline behind a clean go-to-market...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Addison Freeman, founder of Incisive.  We explore how Inicisive helps dental practices modernize in a way that truly improves workflows, team efficiency, and patient outcomes. 🎧 Listen to TTS-141 Dentistry from Diapers – Addison Freeman to hear how purpose, mentorship, and early engagement can shape a stronger future for...

In this episode of The Tooth Sleuth Podcast, Greg Essenmacher sits down with Janet Hagerman—hygienist, speaker, consultant, and author—to explore the philosophy, communication frameworks, and leadership mindset that elevate the hygiene experience for both patients and dental teams. Janet shares her decades of experience helping practices strengthen their hygiene departments, enhance case acceptanc...