Patients should visit the dentist twice per year at minimum, though parents may skip the appointments if they have a child who suffers from dental anxiety. To combat this practice, the team at SmileMakers has compiled some tips and tricks to help you connect with your younger patients and get them to look forward to every return visit. Our goal is to help you turn every first-time visitor into a loyal, lifelong patient!

Giveaways to Make Oral Care More Fun

It can be hard for children to remember why good oral hygiene is necessary, or even how to look after their teeth if they’re not supervised. Providing giveaways like Jungle Friends 2-Minute Brushing Timers will encourage proper brushing techniques long after pediatric patients leave your office. Keeping up with a positive oral care routine at home will always make return visits more enjoyable for everyone involved.

Offer Tiers of Prizes

This is a simple premise that can be used to great effect. For every successful visit, the pediatric patient is allowed to choose from a higher tier of prizes. For younger or first-time patients, focusing their attention on the toys rather than the treatment decreases the chance of dental anxiety or a poor experience. It gives them something to look forward to and a reason to behave well. At their first visit, they might not have been able to get the RoboTruck, but you can explain that they’ll be able to earn it with good dental hygiene over time. You don’t need to break the bank for this, and the reward tiers don’t have to grow excessively. The difference between a princess sticker and a heart necklace might be all the incentive that they need.

Prize Collections

Giving away ‘exclusive’ prizes, like backpack pulls that come in different designs or stickers that can only be collected at subsequent visits, gives a positive incentive to children who may need a lot of dental work. Rather than seeing their dental visits as something to dread, they will look forward to them and having a chance to complete their collection. This will soften the experience for them and give you a chance to build the relationship by showing their progress through their sticker book or lanyard. If the visits are a series of especially tough treatments, reward their commitment to their oral health with a plush toy and you’ll have a patient for life!

Encourage Return Visits with SmileMakers

If you’re looking for ways to encourage first-time visitors to become loyal patients at your practice, SmileMakers offers great products to enhance patient satisfaction during every appointment! We feel honored to be a part of your growing practice, and our team can’t wait to help bolster your success!