Get More Time Back in Your Day

Like other practices across the country, you may be doing more with less these days. Staffing shortages and overbooked schedules have many assuming more responsibilities and with less time to accomplish them.

While Alphaeon Credit can't solve these particular issues, there are many ways that you can streamline the patient financing process to save time and get more hours back in your day.

1 - Reduce follow-up calls and emails attempting to schedule procedures or treatments by offering financing to all

Studies show that patients who have been informed about financing options or have financing secured at their initial appointment are more likely to schedule at their consultation. These patients don't need to "check with my spouse" or "think about it"; they are ready to move forward when there is no cost barrier.

Patients want to know about financing, but are often uncomfortable asking about it, and you can't read minds. If you can get in the habit of presenting financing to all patients versus only those who ask, you can help more patients move forward faster.

The conversation doesn't have to be difficult either: "The cost is X, and many of our patients take advantage of our financing options that allow you to pay over time." This way, not only have you informed them of your financing options, but by mentioning that "many patients take advantage of it," you have also destigmatized financing.

Remember that a recent Alphaeon Credit cardholder survey showed:

• 52% of patients don't know how they will pay for a procedure or treatment before their initial appointment

• 50% of patients are surprised to find out the cost was more than they anticipated

• 65% of patients would have delayed or not moved forward if financing wasn't available

With those numbers in mind, imagine what's going through your patients’ minds when they cancel or, even worse, ghost your practice. They may not have told you, but frequently, it's about their ability or willingness to pay.

Promoting patient financing and presenting it as a payment option alongside traditional credit cards and cash will allow more of your patients to move forward and schedule immediately, reducing or eliminating any follow-up calls and emails.

2 - Eliminate the financing conversation by encouraging patients to pre-qualify BEFORE their appointment

If patients pre-qualify before they come into your practice, you won't even have to discuss financing at their initial appointment, saving even more time.

The Alphaeon Credit cardholder survey showed that most patients learned about financing from someone at the practice. What if you could educate them before their initial appointment?

To begin, make sure financing options are prominent on your website. The second most popular page on most practice websites is the "financing" or "affordability" page. Since most new patients (and many existing) visit your website before scheduling an appointment, they may learn about their options and pre-qualify before their initial visit if you make financing highly visible.

You can download banners for your website here.

Every week, multiple patients reach out to Alphaeon Credit, asking specific practices to enroll. Sometimes those practices are already enrolled and the information just isn’t on their website’s financing page.

Also, encourage patients to apply before their appointment by texting or emailing a pre-qualification link with the patient's appointment reminder. If you are sending these appointment reminders through an automated system, add the following language to your message:

Click here to get these text messages as plain text to copy for your own use.

Do you send pre-appointment paperwork? This is another opportunity to have the patient learn about and secure financing before coming to your practice.

And while patients are in your office, display signs, table tents, and brochures with QR codes so patients can pre-qualify in your waiting room and exam lanes while they wait.

Click here to download printable QR code flyers.

Pre-qualification doesn't hurt a patient's credit score, so there's no reason not to encourage patients to find out if they are likely to be approved and their credit limit.

3 - Get Immediate Answers by Using Alphaeon Credit's Practice Hotline

Please don't spend more than a minute of your time figuring out any issues regarding Alphaeon Credit on your own. If something is unclear or you have a problem, simply pick up the phone and call the Alphaeon Credit Practice Hotline.

There are no phone trees, no call centers, just an Alphaeon Credit team member who will pick up the phone day or night, weekday or weekend.

Today, Alphaeon Credit answers 99% of calls with a live team member in the first 60 seconds, and on the rare occasion when a practice has to leave a message, rest assured that 100% of callers receive a call back, usually within a minute or two.

So anytime you have an issue, call (920) 306-1794, and someone will be ready to help immediately!

Joanne Miles, the Practice Facilitator at Kiene Dental, shared: "On the occasion when we have needed some phone support, they have been there with little to no hold time. They always get us the solutions we need, and they are so friendly!"

And coming soon...

Keep an eye on your email over the next month regarding some exciting new upgrades to our patient financing platform that may save you even more time!

As always, if you need absolutely anything or have any suggestions on how to improve Alphaeon Credit, please share them! Call our practice hotline at (920) 306-1794 or email teamcredit@alphaeon.com.