4 Different Types of Dental Software You Need

With the help of dental practice software tools and features, you can provide your patients with a positive experience, ensure your front desk is efficient, and improve your practice’s sales and revenue.  

But with all the different kinds of dental software out there, what are the essentials that will help your practice succeed in the long run? ‍

4 Essential Types of Dental Software for a Successful Practice

1. Patient Communication Software

Patient communication software aims to help you connect with your patients easily and in the most efficient way possible.  

It automates communication tasks such as appointment reminders, follow-up reminders, and confirmations.  

Here are some other features your patient communication software needs:

An Efficient SMS and Email System

Did you know that 82% of patients read texts from their dentists within 5 minutes? 55% of people also prefer to be reminded of their dental appointments via SMS, while 35% want it through email.  

This data shows that you can reduce your no-show rate by texting and sending email reminders to communicate with your patients.  

A study also revealed that implementing an effective texting communication system with patients can boost revenue by up to 25%.

Aside from appointment reminders, you can also use this communication tool to build a stronger relationship with your patients.  

By sending happy birthday texts and anniversary emails with promo codes, you can keep them happy, satisfied, and loyal to your practice.  

Remember, the easier it is for patients to communicate with you, the more likely they are to set an appointment with you and return.  

Investing in dental communication software that includes a streamlined texting system and email can minimize your no-shows, boost engagement, and increase your overall revenue.  

Aside from email and texting, here are the other tools a good patient communication software should have:

Marketing Communications to Attract Prospective Patients

Your patient communication dental software should also allow you to reach out to prospective patients.  

• It should enable you to manage prospective patients who reach out to you via your website.  
• You should also be able to oversee your listings on Google My Business and other listings online. Reply to reviews, comments, and messages without having to individually log in to various platforms.  
• It’s also important that it has social media communications integrated into it. You want to be able to respond to inquiries on social as promptly as possible, respond to user-generated posts, and engage with your audience on social.  

A Robust Reviews Management System

A survey reveals that 86% of patients choose a dentist based on their online reviews.  

This proves that you shouldn’t ignore what people have to say about you online. Reviews are the modern version of word-of-mouth.  

The more positive reviews you have, the more likely you are to attract potential patients.  

Choose a patient communication dental software that allows you to manage reviews and encourage your patients to leave them.  

Potential patients read your reviews and you want to use this to build trust, establish credibility, and increase your online presence.  

It's also a great way to gain insight into how to improve your services, interactions, and what your best practices are that patients appreciate.  

2. Dental Electronic Health Records and Dental Management Software

A dental office management software is used to keep track of patient electronic dental health records as well as financials.  

It also provides tools for dentists and their staff to ensure the front desk is running as smoothly and as efficiently as possible.

Most dental management software systems offer the following features:

• Appointment management
• Patient records management
• Medical billing
• Patient treatment plan documentation

• Insurance and claims management
• Payment processing

Here are some essential tools and features your dental management software and electronic health records should have:

Provides the Right Kind of Training

To be able to maximize your dental software, you and your staff need to understand how it works.  

This is why training is very important. Choose a dental management software that provides good training – one that fits your specific needs.  

Many dental software providers offer one-on-one training, live or on-demand webinars, and training video tutorials.  

Easy-to-Use Online Booking and Scheduling Tool

Good dental software helps streamline your processes and allows you to become more efficient with scheduling.  

Having a good scheduling tool makes it incredibly easy for a patient to register and book an appointment. It also enables you to customize templates to your liking.  

This saves time and allows you to generate all the essential information you’d like to collect from your patients.  

We all know information plays a crucial role in helping you customize dental marketing campaigns, messaging, and personalizing each of your patient's overall experiences with your practice.  

On top of all of this, having an electronic booking and scheduling system also allows you to keep track of your patients' treatments, and no-shows, and maximize your schedule.  

This feature is also great for keeping you and your team organized, making important notes, and writing details regarding your patients' treatments.  

Easy Payment Processing and Dental Accounting Features

Once you've automated your scheduling, you can easily predict incoming cash flow based on the number of appointments you have for the week.  

Good dental accounting software will automatically reflect the remaining insurance benefits for each of your patients in the payment ledgers.  

It will also adjust your cash flow estimates as insurance plans and scheduled procedures change.  

It’s also important that your ledger accurately accounts for payments made towards a specific treatment and completed charges.  

Your patients should be able to understand where their balance is coming from, so having a breakdown of their fees is crucial.  

You can also generate and organize reports, making it easy to monitor the financial health of your practice regularly.  

3. Processing Dental Claims

To make your practice more efficient you need to work with a dental clearinghouse to make processing dental claims easier.  

A dental clearinghouse is like a middleman between you and insurance payers. They make sure that whatever you send from your dental software is correct and forward it to the right insurance company.  

A good processing dental claims software has the following features:

Integrated Claims and Claim Attachment Services

This feature enables you to securely submit and efficiently collect insurance claims.  

Electronic claim attachment features also save you time and reduce submission errors.  

Real-Time Updates Online

To be more efficient, you need to stay updated about your patients' eligibility status.  

Through this feature, you can access insurance information directly from your dental office management system in real time.

You can now give an accurate estimate of insurance coverage payments whenever a patient in need of a new treatment comes in to check it out and the insurance benefits they have left.  

Integrated Credentialing Services

Credentialing services get rid of all the manual labor required to process claims, run through insurance information, and submit via traditional methods.  

Every practitioner in your office must have proper dental credentialing because if one of them doesn’t, claim processing will be delayed. As a result, the lead time to getting paid will even be longer.  

4. Electronic Prescription Writing Services and Electronic Statements

Many people complain about how they don’t understand most doctors’ handwriting.  

Thanks to e-prescription, your patients don’t have to wonder what you’ve written on paper and access prescriptions whenever they need them.  

Using an e-prescription writing service can also save you a lot of time. Here’s how:

• Create a template for issuing standard prescriptions.  
• Communicate and regulate the number of refills with pharmacies.  
• Establish and keep track of prescription expiration dates.  
• Present multiple prescriptions quickly.  
• Issue prescriptions right away.  

• Adds transparency toon how each of your patients is treated.  
• Allows you to iIssue prescriptions during after-hour emergencies.  

E-statements, on the other hand, can save you a lot of money. Instead of spending money on expensive postage and using your staff's time to mail envelopes, your patients can simply view their billing online.  

Through an integrated e-statement feature in your dental software, you can send statements directly to your patients' emails securely.  

What’s Next After Investing in Dental Software?

Now that you know the essential types of dental software every practice needs to succeed, you can start searching for the best ones that fit your needs!

Once you've invested in the right tools, make sure to give marketing priority. It's the next step to making sure your dental practice thrives in today's highly competitive market.  

By partnering with Digital Resource, you can expect your business to generate a regular flow of new patients monthly and stay ahead of the competition.  

Don’t believe us? Check out our client testimonials to know what our clients have to say about our work and the results we generate!

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