How to Choose the Best Live Chat Provider

Are They Live Chat Experts?
Don’t just google “online chat.” Look into live chat providers with dental knowledge and expertise. They’ll have the features and services you need. Also, make sure they have several years of experience in dental live chat, and ask for case studies.

What’s the Response Time?
No one wants to wait, either on the phone or online. So to keep patients happy, choose a live chat provider that responds to them within seconds, not minutes. It’s also good to be able to have a custom message set up before the chat begins, like “Hi! Welcome to our practice. To help you get started, may I have your name please?” That way, patients don’t feel like they’re waiting on you.

Do Agents Represent Your Practice the Way You Want?
How a live chat agent communicates with a current patient of record or potential new patients makes all the difference. When researching a live chat service, consider one that trains agents to respond the way you want with customized messaging to your specifications, including knowledgeable responses about insurance and procedures.

Can They Respond in Multiple Languages?
Live chat should be accessible to everyone. An option that supports multiple languages will make your practice available to a wider patient base.

Is it HIPAA-Compliant?
This is a big one. If you want to maximize what you can do with live chat, it must be HIPAA-compliant and encrypted from end-to-end. Taking patient health information of any kind via chat must be confidential and handled cautiously to avoid significant penalties. A secure portal is the answer.

Is it Easy to Implement?
You don’t need a whole new system. There are choices that can be seamlessly integrated into your existing practice management system and customized to fit your needs. And it doesn’t have to take weeks or even days. It can be installed in minutes.

How Does it Handle Scheduling?
Depending on your practice, you may want the chat service to have the ability to schedule directly into your practice management system or simply forward the appointment request information for your team to follow up. It’s preferable to find a service that can handle either scenario.

Does it Have a Dashboard to Track Results?
Choosing a live chat option that comes with a built-in dashboard will allow you to analyze your current traffic and conversion metrics. From there, you can easily calculate your website marketing return on investment (ROI).