When it comes to offering dental patient financing, there are several options available. You want to ensure that you choose a payment platform that will be efficient from a revenue collection standpoint and will boost your patients’ satisfaction.
Streamlined Process
Offering dental care financing options can make dental procedures more affordable for patients and increase your overall treatment acceptance rate. With transparent terms, low monthly payments, and a quick approval process, you can offer your patients the financing options they want and need.
Starting slowly is a good idea if you are new to dental financing. You can offer it only for specific operations to see how the process works for your practice and fine-tune it over time.
For example, you could partner with a third-party lender, allowing healthcare practices to offer their patients dental care financing options at the point of sale using a streamlined online application process. These platforms enable patients to apply in-office, receive near-instant pre-approval decisions, and select from flexible repayment plans that suit their budgets and needs. By partnering with these lenders, your dental practice can enhance the patient experience, position itself as a patient-centered care provider, and boost revenue collections and patient satisfaction.
Convenience
Financing is essential for dental practices, as patients frequently decide not to seek treatment or return for procedures due to the cost. Research suggests that more than 80% of people who delay getting necessary care due to cost do so because they can’t afford it. As such, offering convenient and affordable payment options is essential to your patient’s satisfaction and the overall health of your practice.
You can connect your patients with several types of dental financing, including third-party patient financing providers, healthcare credit cards, and in-house dental financing. Third-party patient financing providers offer fixed-rate loans for various purposes, including dental treatments.
Research shows that patients who have their finances arranged ahead of time are less likely to cancel or skip their appointments, which saves the practice valuable chair time and money. Patients are already more committed to their appointments when their financing is sorted, and the practice knows they will pay their bills. This helps reduce stress for the patient and the staff, creating a more trusting relationship between the patient and the dentist. In addition, it allows the patient to feel like their needs are a priority for the practice, which builds a positive and lasting impression.
Flexible Payment Options
Patients need to be able to get the dental care they need when they need it. Unexpected dental emergencies, like chipping a tooth or breaking a braces wire, aren’t planned and often come at the most inconvenient times. These occurrences require immediate treatment and are often costly. Whether they are paying for a procedure without insurance or picking up the remainder of what their dental insurance won’t cover, they need a payment option to help them afford it.
Many traditional financing options are restrictive, requiring high credit history minimums, collateral requirements, and more. They can be time-consuming to apply for and process, leaving little room in a patient’s schedule. This can lead to patients postponing or avoiding essential treatment. Fortunately, dental practice-assisted financing offers can help overcome these barriers and increase the number of patients who can receive the care they need.
With a point-of-sale financing platform that includes in-house and third-party solutions, you can offer your patients various flexible payment options. These plans can include no-interest payments, extended repayment periods, and custom plans that vary by treatment costs. This helps to make your dental care more accessible to a broader range of patients and can help you boost your revenue.
In-house dental finance solutions offer you the ability to act as your lender, offering patients a fixed-rate loan for their treatment. This type of financing is typically less restrictive than third-party loans, allowing your patients to be approved quickly and easily.
Customer Support
Most dentists, especially those specializing in cosmetic dental procedures, offer payment plan options. These may be offered in-house by the dentist or through a lender with whom they have partnered. They understand how the financing platform you choose works and what rates, terms, and services are provided.
A good financing software provider should offer robust tools to help you manage your payments. This includes online applications, account management, reporting, and analytics. In addition, they should be able to handle sensitive financial data with the highest levels of security.
Additionally, it would help if you chose a financing partner offering live training on using their platform. This ensures you can quickly handle a new system and get up to speed. Having a dedicated customer support team on call is also a benefit. Support reps are expected to answer questions promptly and resolve issues as soon as possible. Choosing the right patient financing platform can help you increase your patient satisfaction and boost dental practice revenue.