Loyalty programs feel like something for coffee shops, not dental clinics. People don’t visit the dentist for fun, and nobody books a filling to collect points. So why do more clinics run them every year?
Because a dental clinic’s real growth problem isn’t the first visit. It’s the second, third and tenth. A patient who comes back for check-ups, brings their children and sends their colleague is worth many times a patient who comes once for an emergency. A well-designed loyalty program is one of the cheapest ways to nudge people toward being the first kind.
What a loyalty program can and can’t do
A points program won’t fix a bad experience. If the waiting time is long, the bill is a surprise or the dentist is rushed, no discount will bring that patient back.
What it can do is tip the balance for patients who were already reasonably happy:
- The patient who’s due for a check-up and keeps putting it off.
- The family choosing between your clinic and one closer to home.
- The patient who would happily recommend you if they were asked.
Think of points as a reason to act now, not a reason to choose you.
What to reward
Reward behaviour that’s good for the clinic and easy for the patient. Three work especially well:
Paying. Points each time the patient pays. It rewards coming back and settling the balance, and it’s simple to understand.
Leaving a review. A small number of points when the patient rates their visit in the app. You get honest feedback, and the patient gets something for their time.
Referring someone new. The most valuable thing a patient can do for you. Give it the biggest reward.
BeClarified’s points system has exactly these three: points per payment, per review and per referral. Each can be set to zero to turn it off.
Setting the rate without hurting your margin
The second number to set is how many points make one unit of discount. This is your exchange rate, and it decides what the program really costs.
Work backwards from what you’re willing to give. For example:
- You’re happy to give back about 2% of what a regular patient pays you.
- A regular patient pays about 5,000 EGP a year over several visits.
- That’s a budget of roughly 100 EGP a year per regular patient.
If each payment earns 50 points and a typical regular patient pays four times a year, they earn 200 points. Setting 2 points = 1 EGP makes those 200 points worth 100 EGP, which is your budget. Add a bit for reviews and referrals and you have a program you can afford.
Whatever numbers you choose, run them through a year of a typical patient before you switch it on.
Make points visible
Points nobody sees don’t change behaviour. The patient needs to see their balance, what it’s worth and how close they are to the next reward, ideally on their phone, not on a printed card they’ll lose.
In the BeClarified patient app, patients see their wallet and points after every visit and redeem them as a discount at the clinic.
Tell your team
A loyalty program reception doesn’t mention is a loyalty program that doesn’t exist. Give the front desk one sentence to say at checkout: “You earned points today. They’re in the app, and you can use them as a discount next time.”
And make sure they know how to apply a redemption at payment, so the first patient who asks doesn’t get “I’ll check with the doctor”.
Measure whether it works
After three months, look at:
- How many patients have the app and points (and how many have redeemed).
- Returning patients: the share of visits from people who’d been before. BeClarified’s patient report splits new and returning patients for any period.
- Referrals recorded, and how many of those referred patients booked.
- Ratings: are more patients leaving feedback?
If returning patients and referrals don’t move, don’t add more points. Look at the experience first.
Frequently asked questions
Isn’t a discount just lost revenue? Only if the patient would have come back anyway. Points are worth it when they bring forward a visit that would otherwise have been delayed or lost. Set the rate low enough that the cost is small compared with one extra visit.
Can patients redeem points on any treatment? In BeClarified, points become a discount on what the patient pays at the clinic. If you want to exclude certain treatments, make that a clear rule at the desk and in the app description.
Should we give points for the first visit? It’s usually better to reward the second. Points on the first payment give the patient a reason to come back to use them.
Do patients need the app to collect points? The app is where patients see and use their points, so it’s worth inviting every patient to install it. It’s free on Android, with iOS in public beta. See patient engagement.