Top 5 Differences between DIY and SmileSnap
With virtual consultations gaining traction and growing in popularity within the dental industry, we applaud those practices who are forward thinking and have decided to implement this idea! While SmileSnap is SaaS company that provides dental providers an official platform to place onto their website, there are some practices who have opted to try it on their own, without the assistance of an official software. While it is great that these early adopters within the industry are realizing the need and demand of providing this sort of convenience to their online consumers, there are some key differences when you take the Do-it-Yourself approach versus integrating SmileSnap onto your practice’s website.
Check out the top five differences.
1. Organized & Guided Process
When you take the DIY approach, you must lay out the instructions in a list format on your single virtual consultation landing page. Consumers like simplicity and processes that are easy for them to understand and follow. SmileSnap is a guided process that does not overwhelm potential patients. We take it step-by-step and provide videos along the way. They do not have to go back and forth from instructions written out on a landing page back to their phones for taking photos.
2. Accessibility
When you integrate SmileSnap into your website, it is present of ALL your landing pages. With the click of a button, any potential or existing patient can get started right away, no matter what page they are on. When you take the DIY approach, there is no guarantee that those who land on your website will ever make their way onto your smile assessment landing page. If not done properly, many online consumers may never know your practice is offering this service and you have missed out on capturing their information and forming that pre-visit patient-doctor relationship.
3. Automation
SmileSnap provides a lot of automation that a DIY alternative cannot compete with. First, the photos submitted are automatically uploaded into our secure platform where they are stored. Our software also sends out automated emails to patients that register, automated text SMS notifications to the patient, and automated team member notifications. The patient and your internal team are always in the loop. When a practice is providing virtual smile assessments on their own, they are receiving photos randomly — either to their personal cell phone or email. The steps taken to provide an initial treatment plan are more of a manual process and who knows what happens to those photos submitted.
4. HIPAA Compliance
Staying HIPAA compliant is a necessity when you are treating patients and in the medical industry. These codes were put into place to protect patients and must be honored. The patient photos submitted through SmileSnap are done so through a secure, compliant platform. Having patients submit photos randomly to a personal cell phone or email address doesn’t live up to the standards of staying compliant and can pose as a risk.
5. Communication
We want your practice to use SmileSnap as a marketing tool that gets patients in your chair! Which is why we are continuously optimizing the ways and means of communicating with the patient leads that are coming through the platform. Our process captures potential patient’s name, phone #, and email — all of valuable contact information needed to follow up. One of our most popular features is the ability to SMS text message with contacts. This is a great followup tool and a great way to get appointments scheduled after the initial treatment plan is sent. SmileSnap is also working hard to integrate video responses from the doctor to the patients, that feature is launching soon so keep a lookout. When you have a DIY landing page, you can technically do all these things — it just requires a lot more effort and there isn’t a unified, structured team platform for these actions to take place.
When your practice decides it is time to offer virtual consultations, keep these points in mind! If you have any other questions as to how SmileSnap works, we’d love to hear from you.
