Digital transformation is disrupting many industries, from hotels losing business to Airbnb, video rental companies losing business to streaming businesses like Netflix, taxi service losing business to Uber and many other similar examples. However, SmileDirectClub, Inc. (NASDAQ: SDC), is the first orthodontia company to innovate the dental care industry. As the first oral care company to develop a successful telehealth platform for orthodontia, the company has created a new option for consumers to improve their dental health and appearance.
A recent development has partnered SmileDirectClub with dental support organization Unified Smiles. Unified Smiles has several hundred affiliated dental practices across the country, so the new partnership will improve customer access to begin the SmileDirectClub process in-office at United Smiles. By forming this partnership, SmileDirectClub and Unified Smiles can provide consumers with significant additional access to affordable dental care while driving new patients to independent dentists across the country, creating a win-win situation for both patients and dentists to form lasting professional relationships.
In the past, SmileDirectClub customers not near a SmileDirectClub location, would have to take a mold remotely, a process that may not be best for every customer. To solve for this,, SmileDirectClub began reaching out to networks that could provide in-office dental treatment and technology while still retaining its dedication to providing orthodontia at an affordable rate. As the networks it has partnered with have grown, the number of customers who are able to afford previously out-of-budget dental solutions is growing exponentially.
The partnership that was formed between Tennessee-based, SmileDirectClub and Michigan-based, Unified Smiles provides the option for new SmileDirectClub patients to start their treatment journey at participating Unified Smiles dental offices. This, in turn, increases the exposure Unified Smiles dentists have to new patients in the SmileDirectClub customer base.
This process was started in January, 2020, at which time SmileDirectClub announced the formation of its Smile Direct Club Partner Network. This network has grown across the United States to include over 1,000 participating partner locations that offer remote clear aligner treatment through the digital platform. The partnerships allow patients to see local dentists for expanded care access, while SmileDirectClub provides access to its innovative clear aligners. The aligners are manufactured at SmileDirectClub’s FDA-certified and registered Tennessee facility, keeping the process within the United States for quality production and customization.
While the recent advent of the platform technology and digital transformation is incredibly new, the entire process of the SmileDirectClub’s clear aligner journey is monitored and directed by affiliated state-licensed orthodontists and dentists through SmileDirectClub’s telehealth platform from beginning to end. This process provides accountability and oversight of the entire process to ensure good patient outcomes and care.
Chris Thompson, Vice President of the Professional Channel at SmileDirectClub, recently stated-
“Unified Smiles is the latest major dental support organization to join Smile Direct Club on its mission to provide everyone with access to a healthier, straighter, and brighter smile through our pioneering telehealth solution for orthodontia. We are excited to partner with Unified Smiles and their network of dental professionals, and we look forward to working together to bring a new segment of consumers access to a straighter smile that they can afford, starting at their dentist’s office.”
Adding Unified Smiles to the SmileDirectClub Partner Network will drastically increase the size of the network and the availability of and access to this revolutionary dental technology, making it much easier for families to afford orthodontia for their dental needs.
Unified Smiles is proud to join SmileDirectClub’s existing network consisting of hundreds of affiliated orthodontists and dentists in order to provide safe, effective and convenient dental alignment options at more affordable costs than traditional braces. The safe, convenient care delivered remotely through the digital platform, including the recently updated treatment monitoring app, improves access to dental care for many Americans at a time when budgets are tightening due to economic constraints.
Kevin Burniston, Vice President of Sales at Unified Smiles, amplified United Smiles support by adding-
“Unified Smiles and our affiliated dental practices are proud to partner with SmileDirectClub, enabling us to offer an innovative way for patients to get a smile that they’ll love through teledentistry. Unified Smiles has spent decades forming partnerships with independent dentistry and orthodontic offices in order to help empower and strengthen these vital businesses, helping them focus on gaining strong, organic growth to keep the dental offices operational and profitable. We’ve grown as an organization based on our extensive knowledge of dentistry and by offering products and services proven to ensure dentists and their patients thrive, and we’re pleased to add clear aligner therapy with Smile Direct Club as a service that will help bring new patients to our affiliated dental practices.”
By offering the additional products and services from SmileDirectClub, the clear aligner treatment can be expanded to existing patients of these dentists while bringing new patients to the dentist’s office who may also remain for other services.
As one of the fastest-growing health technology companies, SmileDirectClub was launched in 2014 and has served over one million customers worldwide since through offices throughout the international community. Unified Smiles has focused on delivering vendor savings, practice solutions and professional support to help independent dentists succeed without losing their independence. This partnership will bring a new set of vendor savings and professional products to the lineup that independent dentists partnered with Unified Smiles can offer their customers, improving their market share and position while expanding customer access to high-quality orthodontia at affordable prices.