Orthotown September 2016 - 41

company name \\ corporate profile Most orthodontists know that word-of-mouth advertising is the most effective kind, but how do you encourage patients to recommend their friends to you without straight-up asking them to do so? (Which likely wouldn't be very effective, anyway.) Progressive practices understand that while word-of-mouth advertising is an organic process, there are still plenty of ways to foster and encourage it. Today's orthodontic patients are tech-savvy and social. They keep their entire world at their fingertips via smartphone apps and services. Communicating with patients on the platforms they're comfortable with is the most direct means of getting their attention, and also impressing them. It all comes down to a simple equation: If they think you're cool, they'll tell their friends. The following six examples, provided by the team at Dolphin Imaging & Management Solutions, illustrate great ways that orthodontists and their staffs have been using mobile technology and social media to connect with current and potential patients, encourage better patient compliance and market themselves. 1. Personally follow up with patients during off-hours. When orthodontists are at the office, they're busy treating patients, with little if any time to make the personal calls that make someone feel special. Dr. Andre Ferreira of Advanced Orthodontics in Anniston, Alabama, uses his practice management system's mobile app to follow up with patients on his way into the office. "I have a 30- to 45-minute commute every day, so I use that time to make 'care calls,' " he said. "If they've just had their braces put on, I call to ask how they're doing. Often, I follow up on personal things they've told me while in the chair, such as attending band camp or acting in a school play. It really impresses them that the doctor called them." Dr. Andre Ferreira Ferreira's Dolphin Mobile app, for example, gives him complete access to his database, which allows him to make the call directly from a patient's chart. 2. Streamline scheduling with patient-facing mobile apps. Mobile apps are great tools for inserting orthodontic treatment into the center of your patients' lifestyles. Most don't remember a time before mobile phones, and have learned to access information and services via their phone's apps. Dr. Blair Barnett of Avery Orthodontics in Cedar Park, Texas, said the ease of appointment-making is one of the features he values most on his MyOrthodontist app. "Patients can just scan their generated QR code at the time the next appointment is made, and it enters the info into their MyOrthodontist app on their phone," he explained. "They really love the feature that lets them program the app to remind them about the upcoming appointment as many times as they want, leading up to the appointment itself." Dr. Blair Barnett orthotown.com \\ SEPTEMBER 2016 41 http://www.orthotown.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Orthotown September 2016