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From Mom’s Point of View by Charlene White

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Most times, decisions for a child to move forward with orthodontic treatment are made by the mother. Therefore it is essential that the marketing strategy revolves around "what makes the mom happy." Moms are better informed today than ever before. They do their homework in advance of their appointments and they often invest the time in going to two or more practices prior to making a final decision. Many times we do not consider the fact that the orthodontic investment is in the top four" investments a parent makes in their child. Their college education, a car, a wedding and orthodontic treatment are the top four investments in a child for many families.

In this article, a real mom has outlined her real experience, thoughts, and feelings of six different orthodontic practice interactions. This segment focuses on the "pre-visit" experience. I believe you will find her detailed comments interesting and beneficial in pinpointing what motivated her.

Practice Interactions

Office #1

Initially called on August 24 at 10:18 a.m. The line was busy. Immediately called back at 10:19 and a receptionist named Amy answered. She did not transfer me and scheduled the appointment herself. She was very pleasant and helpful. She told me they had a cancellation on the 28th at 1:15 p.m. and informed me they also had a pediatric dentist after I told her we were in between dentists and had yet to find one we liked. Amy asked a lot of questions about Abby, my daughter, and seemed genuinely interested, which was endearing. She said she would send out a welcome letter, which she did, postmarked that same day. The forms to fill out are available on the website, so they didn't send forms, we just printed them off. They have a very nice website that looks well maintained with the exception of the non-working charity button.

Rating - Good
Pros:
  • Pleasant and helpful scheduling coordinator who asked questions
  • Welcome packet sent, postmarked same day as phone conversation
  • Forms on website
Cons:
  • Busy signal received on first call

Office #2

Initially called on August 24 at 10:51 a.m. and spoke with Molly. She scheduled the appointment but seemed supremely annoyed. Based on this phone call alone I would have probably crossed this office off of my list as she really rubbed me the wrong way, as well as the fact that it is out West and I know really busy. Molly asked for zero information about Abby. She only told me they were scheduling three weeks out, only to then schedule us for the next Thursday, the 30th at 10 a.m. This was really a very unpleasant experience as a mom. The girl didn't seem to care about Abby, her problems or why I wanted to inquire into the doctor's services. The office sent out forms in the mail to be filled out prior to our appointment.

Rating - Poor
Pros:
  • Forms mailed
Cons:
  • Scheduling person seemed annoyed, was unpleasant and didn't ask any questions
  • No website interaction

Office #3

If I had to make a choice based on initial phone call alone, I would have chosen this office. I called at 10:32 a.m. and was asked by a young lady named Nicole if I would hold on for a moment. After she came back on, Nicole asked all sorts of questions about Abby, was very nice and even asked for my insurance information so that the office could talk to my insurance company for me to see if anything would be covered. They were the only office to do so. Dr. Three has an East and West location and I chose the West location. They sent out forms for me to fill out and included an envelope for me to mail them back prior to my appointment so that they could get all our information put in the system before we got there. I didn't open the envelope to fill out the paperwork until the day of our appointment so I didn't see that I was supposed to mail them back. The practice also has forms on its website you can print off. Also enclosed in the envelope was a welcome letter explaining what would happen during the initial appointment. Dr. Three is open five days a week with two orthodontists so we would never have to wait for an appointment. It is very appealing to have multiple doctors available.

Rating - Excellent
Pros:
  • Very best of the six on the initial phone call
  • Only office to ask for my insurance information
  • Scheduling coordinator showed a lot of interest in my daughter
  • Welcome letter was mailed
  • Forms were on the website
  • Open five days a week
  • Two doctors available
  • Never have to wait for an appointment

Office #4

Initial phone call August 24 at 10:48 a.m. Office closed for vacation to return next Tuesday. Would have crossed them off my list. Called second time on September 10 at 9:43 a.m., and my call was answered by Patrice. She was very nice but did not ask anything about Abby or her problems. She scheduled the appointment for the next day and said they usually mail forms but since the appointment was the next day I will fill them out at the office. Patrice said to plan about an hour for the appointment and said there would be a $25 consultation fee but that was waived by Ashley at the appointment. Patrice asked how I heard about their office and I indicated it was via the Internet. They had an automated appointment reminder service that called that afternoon.

Rating - Needs Improvement
Pros:
  • Got appointment for next day
  • Automated appointment reminder
Cons:
  • Called (first time) and got an "out of office" message
  • No questions asked about patient by scheduling coordinator
  • Consultation fee

Office #5

Initial phone call on August 24 at 10:45 a.m. I got a recorded message and no option to be transferred. The message stated that Friday was by appointment only. My second call was September 10 at 9:42 a.m. answered by Kristen. She asked for my phone number and my address, and then made the appointment for the next day. She asked for no other information, seemed disinterested and the phone call lasted less than a minute. Dr. Five himself called that afternoon to tell Abby that nothing would hurt and to see if she had any questions.

Rating - Needs Improvement
Pros:
  • Appointed us for the next day
  • Doctor called to reassure and see if patient had any questions
Cons:
  • Called (first time) and got a recorded message
  • Asked for very little information and seemed disinterested
  • Call lasted less than one minute

Office #6

Initial call on August 24 at 11:03 a.m. I got a recording that said they were not open, gave office hours and asked to leave a message. Dr. Six is not open at all on Fridays and his website is pretty bad. Second call on September 10 at 9:45 a.m. answered by Claire. They have three reserved new patient appointment times: 8:30 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:15 p.m. I chose 1 p.m. She said they would mail documents and that was it. No questions about me, Abby or issues for needing a consultation.

Rating - Poor
Pros:
  • Forms were mailed
Cons:
  • Got a recording on the first call, left a message
  • Not open on Fridays
  • Website is bad
  • Scheduling coordinator didn't ask questions
  • Only three new patient appointment times available

What an excellent opportunity to learn from this mother's perspective. It was surprising to hear that she only reached two of the six offices on the first call and only one was impressive. From this we can learn a few things. Here are a list of things you can implement in your practice to improve your new patient conversion rate:
  1. Train, test and evaluate staff members who are answering the office telephone.
  2. Open up phone lines 40+ hours per week including lunch hours. The more hours the better.
  3. Offer incentives to staff to motivate high performance.
  4. Routinely record some of the calls and review them.
  5. Hire people who sound energetic over the phone.
  6. Hire people who care.
  7. Ask questions of interest about the patient.
  8. Be insurance-friendly.
  9. Offer flexible appointment times.
  10. Track results of all incoming calls and evaluate.
  11. Offer to e-mail the welcome package.
  12. Make sure your forms are on your website.
  13. Your website must stand out among the competitors.
  14. The website must be current.

Over the years I have worked with many practices that did not open up their phone lines 40+ hours per week. This is a mistake you cannot afford in this competitive environment. Neither can a practice afford to have unenthusiastic team members taking those calls.

Patients want convenient appointment times. Aggressive offices are offering exam times that patients desire. You must evaluate what works for your community: early mornings, late afternoons, Saturday or even Sundays in Jewish communities.

Ask yourself: Do you appear to be high tech? Do you offer to e-mail forms and text reminders? Does your website set you ahead of the pack or set you back?

You never have a second chance to make a good first impression. Five out of six did not meet the mark!

Author's Bio
Charlene White focuses primarily on in-office consultation and off-site management. Visit her website at www.charlenewhite.com, e-mail at Charlene@charlenewhite.com or call the office at 757-456-0555.
Orthotown Magazine
September 2025
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