In the dynamic landscape of medical practices (dental, optical, etc), driving consistent business growth is a must for any practice, or group of practices. That success will come in many shapes and sizes but creating a system that delivers consistent productivity gains will only help the bottom line.
However, not many practices see patient finance as being a significant driver of the productivity. They see it as an add-on service. A means to pay, rather than it’s true function. To help practices ‘sell’ and grow their business.
Productivity that hits the bottom line
Treatment finance can increase the number of treatments carried out, give practices the confidence they can recommend more comprehensive treatment safe in the knowledge patients will be able (and willing) to afford them. Finance speeds up the ‘sales’ cycle and eliminates the impact of bad debt for practices offering split payment through things such as Direct Debit schemes.
But more than that, it can reduce the time your staff will spend convincing patients to take up a treatment.
All these will hit the bottom line of a business and impact the efficient flow from assessment through to ‘yes’ on a treatment plan.
The opportunity cost from most patient finance options
When considering finance, most businesses think about the subsidy rate of finance as the most significant factor. However, that is a misunderstand the purpose of patient finance. It is there to facilitate treatment take up, to grow your overall bottom line, not to increase your costs.
That is why the the key number dentists and dental groups should be looking out for is approval rate. This is the one that will make the biggest difference to your business, because the more people you approve, the more people you treat. The more people you treat, the more revenue is brought in.
And the less time your staff spend on applications that are rejected, then the more time they can spend focusing on great patient service to boost loyalty.
The opportunity cost of lost opportunities due to patient finance rejection is something that very few practices and groups ever consider. There are literally thousands of pounds of potential revenue being allowed to walk out of the door due to having the wrong finance partner.
It’s the diference between “Go ahead” and “Go elsewhere” from a patient perspective.
Patient finance with growth in mind
For patient finance to really work it needs to simplify processes and bring more business in.
That’s what we specialise in. At Snowbird Finance, our practices are experiencing approval rates above 80% for treatment finance. Our partners are doing more business than ever with a simple process whereby more patients and more practices win through more treatments being carried out.
Our application can be filled at the practice or at home by patients, a decision is made instantly and payment to the practice is quick and effortless.
We also keep an eye on applications and follow up on any applications that need attention, saving precious time for your staff.
A more productive partnership
If you want to get more out of patient finance, get in touch.