These software packages, such as Demand Force, Solution Reach, and others, are highly recommended by me to my clients. They can automate everything and fill up the schedules. Software like this can have some hidden issues, such as patient reviews.
1) They are invisible to new patients.
Software bundles reviews on a separate page that can be linked to your website or their platform. Although it looks great, patients will need to search for them on your site. This assumes that they will be able to locate them on your website once and then leave. They have just a few seconds to find what they are looking for. They are already on your website.
Google reviews are the only way to make sure that a new patient is able to find a dentist. You don’t give the potential new patient enough motivation to click on your website if you don’t have enough Google Reviews. You have to fight for every patient’s “action” in the New Economy.
2) They are not trusted as much because they are not public facing.
These software packages often want to please the dentist. Although it looks great to have 3,000 5-star reviews on your Demand Force page. However, new patients might not trust this. This is especially true if every dentist has a profile similar to yours and it’s on the website that you control.
Google reviews are trusted by people because they have a reputation for being trustworthy. They are also public and can be written by anyone. They are more psychologically weighted. The 39 star Google review with a 4.8 star rating might be more popular than the 14,450 5-star review on your site (if they can find it).
3) Automated Google Review Collection:
This issue could result in negative Google reviews.
These software packages can be used to automate sending people to Google to leave reviews. The problem is that some people find writing bad reviews a cathartic experience. Some people might be having a bad day, and they want to let it go so that they can “yell at someone” without actually yelling at anyone.
Even though you may not have one now, they will keep it for at least a year. It’s in their email. Then you get pissed off and they’ll write it. Bad news spreads 7x faster than good news and is more trusted than the former.
This creates a problem in which a lot of negative reviews are listed as “most recent”, and this is the first impression that a new patient has when they look through their Google reviews. Negative reviews can be difficult to remove, even if they’re libelous.
These are the pages where reviews can be helpful – it’s better to leave a negative review there than on your publicly visible new patient profile review page (Google). Don’t allow them to leave a Google review. Instead, direct them to this page.
