Selling Air, Health, & Hope

You're selling AHH. Yeah, that's an acronym I just made up for "Air, Health, & Hope." Feel free to use that to make millions.

Selling AHH is the job of a dental sleep treatment coordinator: to help people breathe. Sure, a deep understanding insurance and oral appliance therapy is useful. And sales skills help. But the most essential quality is this: a genuine desire to help people live better lives.

Each patient visit is a chance to educate, connect, and empower. The sleep coordinator's goal? Make apnea real for patients, showing how it's impacting their sleep, their health, and their relationships. That means using visuals, humor, empathy, and lots of plain-speak.

Before meeting with patients, familiarize yourself with their sleep tests and intake forms. These should tell you everything you need to know about what problem the patient wants to solve: “I don’t want to die,” “My doctor made me,” or “I’m trying to save my marriage.” That last one is common—and telling.

From there, make sleep science simple. Explain apneic events using hand gestures and analogies (coffee straws, fight-or-flight responses, even jokingly referring to secondhand snoring as “domestic abuse”). Patients need to get it—to truly understand that apnea isn’t just about snoring. It’s about oxygen, cortisol, brain fog, memory loss, hormone disruption, and even Alzheimer’s.

And when the lightbulb comes on, something clicks, and everything changes.

Break down treatment options, explain financials clearly, and let patients choose what feels right; building trust every step of the way.

This job isn’t for robots. It takes heart. Great treatment coordinators don't just lay out the options, they connect the dots. They balance empathy with structure. They R.E.A.D. the room, adjust on the fly, and guide people through a decision that improves their life.

4 Key Takeaways for Dental Sleep Practices:

1. Hire (or train) for empathy and charisma—not just credentials. Your treatment coordinator is your frontline closer. Sales skills matter, but empathy, warmth, and humor are the real differentiators. Look for people who can read others, think on their feet, and connect personally.

2. Use plain language to explain complex concepts. Stop bombarding patients with medical jargon. Break it down using hand gestures, analogies, and stories. You’re not dumbing it down, my friend, you’re connecting in a meaningful manner.

3. Build a structured, repeatable consultation process. From pre-visit prep to financial discussions, your team should follow a clear repeatable framework. Patients crave clarity, not chaos. Structure and predictability build confidence...for the team and for patients.

4. Let patients choose their path. Present treatment options transparently, including comfort, cost, and insurance. Then let them decide. Empowered patients say “yes” more often—and feel better about it.

Dental sleep treatment isn’t about selling a device. It’s about helping people breathe, sleep, and live better. That starts with connection—and that’s something every great treatment coordinator must master.

Want to take advantage of all the resources available to close even more OAT cases?

Then do NOT miss this unique learning opportunity. On Thursday, January 29th, 2026—the day BEFORE the Transform Dental Sleep Symposium kicks off, Ryan Towe , Lane Rizzardini , & Jeff Byers of Sleep Apnea Leads will lead a deep dive workshop focused on driving new patients to your practice AND getting them to say YES to treatment.

It's limited to only 35 attendees, so secure your spot today at tdsSymposium.com