And why should you care about them?

Customer financing solutions are simply a way for customers to spread their payments when they buy goods or services. Whilst you may associate customer finance more immediately with retailers, it has direct benefits in the world of dental and medical services, which we investigate here.

What is customer financing?

Customer financing is the term used for offering customers the option of payment plans, allowing them to spread the cost of a purchase over a period of time in equal payments. It gives the customer the opportunity to incorporate the payments into their regular budget, and it makes the sale easier for the goods or service provider.

It’s not new to us – you may remember your parents paying for Christmas presents from the catalogue over 20 weeks, and it’s long been available in the form of credit agreements from retailers of big ticket items, such as furniture or cars. Now, it’s being used by dentists and medical clinics in a simple to administer and extremely flexible format from us here at Chrysalis FInance.

But, why would you need to offer it, what exactly should you offer, and how does it all work?

Why offer customer financing solutions?

It’s clear why you patients might welcome it. Dental treatments and private medical treatments can be – just like cars and furniture – big priced items. What’s more, they are often not budgeted for. Being able to pay for them monthly can be a great weight off people’s minds, and allows them to get treatment immediately.

But what about the benefits for you? Here are just a few of the main ones:

It can increase your patient uptake

If a patient knows they can spread the cost of a treatment, you have swept away their biggest objection – they can’t, or don’t want to pay in one lump sum. This makes them more likely to go ahead with the treatment, and it means your profits increase and your patient

Some of our partners have seen their profits increase by as much as 60% simply by offering payment plans.

It can increase the value of treatments

If you can spread the payments, you are more likely to opt for the full works rather than the budget options. Our research shows that the average treatment cost with a payment plan is 15% higher than without. Patients feel as though their budget is increased with their bespoke monthly plans, and they can plan this around their budget, and how much they would like to spend monthly.

It improves customer loyalty

With the option of pay monthly, you give your patients the option to create a bespoke plan that works for them. This will help to create patient loyalty as they feel as though the payment options are on their terms – with their own options.

It can attract new customers

The ability to pay monthly is a great benefit for many people – you just need to make sure they know you provide it.

What customer financing solutions should you offer?

At Chrysalis Finance, we are fully authorised by the FCA, and we can make you an appointed representative of Chrysalis. This saves you the complexities and costs of being licensed yourself, but it gives you the freedom to offer the tailored payment plans that your different patients need.

This could differ from person-to person – if they have a small amount of treatment, but would like to spread the cost over 6 months, or if they have a large amount of treatment and would like to spread if over 36 months. It is totally dependent on each of your patients, and it’s always good to have a variety – whatever you’re comfortable with in practice.

How will the financing solutions work?

We have a process for patients – which starts with your team offering the customer a payment plan for their treatment, dependent on the cost of their treatment. They can apply, either at the clinic with your help (dependent on your FCA status), or via an email link you can send to them. If you also have your webpage added to your website, they can apply through this. The application is then assessed, and a decision is given, usually within 24 hours. We will pay you in full and the patient pays us in monthly instalments.

We are specialists. As the only finance provides who work exclusively in the medical and dental sectors, we know your world, and we develop our systems and customer support entirely around you. This means that you can trust us to get it right and be can be confident that we will always listen to you and continue to develop our solutions around your needs.