Advances in web-based software and services, and their integration with advanced communication and mobile devices, have been the catalyst to a profound evolution in practice management tools. While practice management software is nothing new, integrated web-based services that help manage all aspects of a practice through the entire patient lifecycle are new. And, they are the equivalent of several extra sets of hands -expert hands at that.
This report discusses common issues and challenges surrounding market-ing and practice growth faced by den-tal and orthodontic practices of all sizes. Research clearly shows a need for a solution to these challenges that doesn’t require a shift in resources away from other important practice objectives. A new breed of engagement technology is quickly proving to be a viable option for many practices.
A recent survey of over 9,000 dentists and orthodontists from across the U.S. highlights common issues and challeng-es being faced by practices of all sizes. This paper shares the findings of the research and how advanced web-based practice management tools help bring new levels of business performance and patient satisfaction.
A challenge that many dentists and orthodontists face is that they are experts at dentistry or orthodontics, not marketing -and definitely not market- ing in the evolved world of digital and social media. However, the TeleVox research shows that almost 50 percent of dentists and orthodontists are tak- ing on the marketing responsibility of their practices. It also shows that almost three quarters of the staff responsible for marketing the practice have no qual- ifications or experience in the field.
Imagine being able to reduce appoint- ment no-shows by having an informed insight into patient trends and the means to send ‘just-in-time’reminders. The Tel- eVox research shows that there are some very clear trends around appointment no-shows. Over 50 percent of respon- dents confirmed that Mondays are the worst days for missed appointments, over three quarters of appointments are missed by men, and nearly half of missed appointments are in the 14-25 age group. With this knowledge and insight, practices can take proactive steps to minimize missed appointments by, for example, booking more appointments for women on a Monday than men or increasing the number of reminders. In the case of the 14-25 age group, engag- ing with them via text messaging might be most effective.
Considering that accurate data is such an asset to practices, it is odd that nearly half of the practices surveyed only capture and update patient data once a year. It is also interesting that while practices invest much time and resources into capturing patient mailing addresses, very few actually use them for appointment reminders. Similarly, while most respondents of the survey rank text messaging as one of the most successful means of reminding patients of appointment times, only 40% of practices are currently collecting infor- mation to send text messages.
Practice Success is Dependent Upon Quality Data
In Spring 2011, will high-light more findings from the TeleVox Research Report.
All materials reprinted with permis-sion, TeleVox Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Visit www.televox.com
