7 Criteria that patients use to choose dental clinics

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There are a multitude of criteria that patients use when choosing the dental clinic. Some of them are stronger than others, and when the dentist understands this, their dental marketing actions will be much more effective when it comes to capturing patients.

The fact is: the dental market is very competitive. Twenty years ago, the patient had some “difficulty” finding a dentist. Nowadays there is a dental office around every corner. And, in a way, this favors the patient, as the supply of dentists is very reasonable. This high market demand makes the patient more demanding by simply having more options than in the past. If he doesn't like something in a particular office, he has several other options.

In this article, I assume that there is already a technical qualification of the dentist, which is not a differential when choosing the dental clinic. However, dentists who know how to exploit these criteria will go ahead and begin to understand how the patient recruitment process takes place and what they take into account when choosing the dental clinic. Come on?

  1. Referrals from friends and relatives count a lot when choosing a dental clinic

 If we were to rank, surely this criterion would be at the top. The other associated factors would be in the background or even irrelevant. I went to a doctor who made me wait hours, but he was referred by a friend to solve a problem. In this situation, the delay in care disturbed, but not to the point of getting up and leaving or even leaving me to see the doctor until today. In the end, the overriding problem was solving the problem. End.

Another important aspect is the indication by strangers. For example, a dentist published his case and there were several comments. This time the famous herd effect works. People tend to do what most do. It is easy to understand when we are in a place where there are only two restaurants: one full and one empty. Of course, people will tend to go full. This is part of human behavior. In this case, there is no time and distance to prevent the patient from going to a dentist, especially if it is a problem of greater complexity.

  1. Proximity of residence

There is nothing better than solving things close to home. School, work, medical appointment etc. If the patient can, they will choose a dentist near his or her home just for convenience. If the professional did not satisfy him, only then does he put this criterion in the second option. This point is important when making dental advertising, especially via social networks, where you can choose the radius of distance that dental advertising will reach.

  1. The point of the dental office x the site structure

Who doesn't like a nice, beautiful, safe and convenient place? Everyone, check? And people are willing to pay for it, for example, many people would rather pay outrageous amounts for secure parking than leave their car on the street, especially when we experience a serious public safety problem. Also, people love comfort. Who prefers to stand in a warm place rather than sitting in a comfortable chair and in a climate-controlled environment?

  1. High quality answering from phone call answering

The patient's first contact with the dental office is through the telephone call. If your secretary / attendant is prepared to provide high quality care, the chance of the patient choosing the dental clinic is very high. The same is true for on-site service. If patient care is not cordial, responsive, and effective, among many other things, the patient is likely to choose to have treatment in competition.

  1. Price vs. Payment Terms

Although less than 10% of non-closure treatments are price-related, it is important to mention this point. There are people who just want low prices and nothing more. Also, it is important to know that the patient even wants to choose the dental clinic, but he wants a more favorable payment condition, such as: installment more often and without interest. Remember that for many, what matters is not the final value, but whether that portion will fit in his pocket.

  1. The dental marketing that is used to publicize the clinic

There is a sentence that says: what is not seen is not remembered.

Coca cola, for example, even though it is at the top of the most remembered soda brand, still invests in marketing because it increasingly increases the perception of presence and authority. And that counts a lot when choosing the soda that will be consumed. The same thing happens with the dental clinic. Imagine that in each neighborhood there are 5 dental clinics, however, only one does proper and effective dental marketing. You can be sure that this clinic will have a larger flow of circulating people, simply because it is in evidence.

  1. Flexible business hours

The more hours a dental clinic makes available to patients, the more likely that time is appropriate. This is not just business hours here. Night or weekend appointments (Saturday) may make the patient choose to choose the dental clinic because he has only those hours available. In addition, these nobler hours have a very low rate of office absences.

Source: Empreenda Dentista. Available at: https://empreendadentista.com.br/2017/11/02/criterio-escolher-a-clinica-odontologica/. Access on: 11/208/2019.