Dentist Offices: Playing the Waiting Game

“The waiting, is the hardest part…”

-Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers

You don’t need to appreciate classic rock to agree that waiting rooms take their toll on more than just time. We’ve all been there, the rows of padded chairs with wooden armrests, the piles of magazines, the TV, and the plant in the corner that may or may not be plastic. It’s these elements, and more, that make up the traditionally dull waiting room experience we know so well.

But does it have to be dull?

Sure enough, plenty of businesses and offices work hard figuring out how to make a waiting room more inviting, and put forth a lot of effort into improving their lobbies for their clients. But no matter where you go, whenever you end up having to wait for more than a few minutes you’ll likely see a TV.

And there’s a reason for that. TVs are an effective distraction. TVs draw people’s attention, and they’re a familiar element that we’re used to looking at on a daily basis – providing a quiet atmosphere with the comfort and white noise of what’s on. While televisions are great in that respect, there are many reasons that cable and satellite TV are not the best options for your office.

When you’re waiting to be seen by someone, you aren’t necessarily invested in a long program when you’re expecting to miss some, or most of it, as soon as you’re called away. And in the case of having the TV turned to any one station or giving visitors control over the remote, with a waiting room full of people it’s impossible to cater to them all and it’s likely that someone is going to get alienated.

So what’s a business owner to do about that?

It’s Relevant TV for Dentists and It’s Relevant TV for Medical Offices work to address those issues and more. Each custom TV network airs original content pulled from a vast library of categories tailored specifically for the practice it’s in. The segments run for two and a half minutes on average – meaning they’re brief enough to cater to an audience with limited focus, and the categories are varied enough that everyone is bound to see something that interests them on some level.

IRTV compliments an atmosphere in which people are looking for a distraction and aren’t there to be entertained. Going beyond aired content, the service can also be used to reach out to those people in waiting. Posts, photos, and even videos from your social media can be uploaded and played for visitors to see.

Whether you’re introducing your staff, highlighting local events, or even showcasing other services your business provides; it’s worth taking a look at: It’s Relevant TV.

Dental Education Through TV: Brushing Up on Hygiene

“Brush your teeth twice a day, for two minutes. Once in the morning, and again before bedtime. And don’t forget to floss…”

– Every Dentist & Mother

The words every kid grows up hearing a thousand times. The very same words people often seem to forget despite the constant reminders. How is it that kids, and even some adults, throw oral hygiene out the window and neglect this most basic routine?

It all comes down to delivery. Good oral hygiene starts at home, and extends to the dentist’s office. From parents passing on good habits to their kids to dentists educating them on proper dental care. But how do you do it? How do you get the message across and stress the importance of taking care of your teeth? Aside from the words we all know, dentists use a number of aids to educate patients.

Post-visit, your dentist might sit with you one-on-one and go over the proper ways to brush your teeth. They might ask what kind of toothbrush, or brand of toothpaste you’re using, if you’re flossing, etc; maybe they even pull out that big pair of plastic teeth. Some dentists even hand out brochures on dental care or have them available in the lobby for all to see. And in this age of technology, you might even find blogs written by the dentists you visit.

But how effective is that in the long run?
Are patients seeing your content?

Reaching the patients is the key

Without being able to reach patients effectively you can’t pass on whatever it is you’re trying to say. It’s Relevant TV provides a unique and alternative solution to this problem…

Offices, waiting rooms, and even operatories, are often equipped with a television. Dentists’ TVs are usually tuned into something like the news, weather, or a talk show for white noise or casual comfort. In short, a custom Dental TV can run those same kinds of programs for less than it costs to run basic cable – and do more for your practice at the same time. With It’s Relevant, you can not only air those key channels, you can run original content you yourself produced and show it to the world.

Have a video introducing your doctors, or staff? A lovely office tour of the practice featured on your website? You could have that aired on your waiting room’s television – as well as any promotions or events you want to share with your patients. Connect with them, and present a more welcoming experience through a dental television network.

So going back to oral hygiene and getting the message across, how is TV a better platform for this? The answer is pretty straightforward, people watch TV. They watch it, and they pay attention to it – sometimes moreso than face to face.

TV has a lasting impact

Speaking from my own personal experiences, I recall a time years ago when I was young and my mother was bringing me to a new dentist. And in her motherly attempt to relieve me of anxiety, she casually mentioned that the dentist I was going to see “Has a TV in his office, so you can watch it during the visit.”

The comfort and distraction that the TV provided turned an otherwise dreadful experience into something less so, which is precisely why it was there in the first place, and are often found in waiting rooms and operatories today.

As a kid, or even an adult, that period of time in which you are at the dentist, you are always looking for something to take your mind off of what’s going on. The patient is invested, and focused – and can be entertained and informed with the programs you choose to put on the TV.

If you’d like to create a better environment for your patients, and connect with them more, it can be as simple as changing the channel on your TV. Schedule a free consultation with one of our TV experts to help reach your goals. You can call 203-588-0994 or email: sales{at}itsrelevant.com to set up a conversation.

Feeling Loopy? Repetitive Slideshows Leave Customers More Anxious

What is it about an environment that makes you feel bored? What makes you feel like time is moving slowly, or that you have been waiting a long time? It probably wouldn’t surprise you to hear that many people cite repetitive (or looping) television programs to be a major factor.

Repetition can be seen everywhere

Repeating over and over

Have you ever been at a medical office and seen the same “medical facts” flash on the screen a number of times before seeing your doctor?

How about the gas station where the screen plays the same advertisement or weather forecast multiple times in 3 minutes?

Have you ever been at a restaurant and seen the same news stories played every 15 minutes?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you are not alone! Businesses often turn to television content providers with limited libraries of content to show “relevant” content to their customers. Unfortunately, most of these providers don’t take into consideration the amount of time customers wait, or the average frequency of visits the same customer makes in any given week or month.

Showing the same content over and over is boring

Bored Man When people are bored they feel like their time is being wasted. Business owners don’t want to waste customers’ time. Happy customers make greater purchases and come back again in the future.

The It’s Relevant TV custom TV platform takes all of this into consideration.

The 5 Main Differentiators of It’s Relevant TV

1. There is no loop. The programs shown on the custom TV networks do not repeat over and over again in the same sequence.

2. The content library is gigantic. It’s Relevant TV licenses television programs from top TV producers and short-film makers around the world. As a result, the company constantly changes the content they deliver to each of the partner televisions.

3. It’s Relevant TV constantly updates the content. Some other services “refresh” the content on custom networks once or twice a month. It’s Relevant TV releases new content to partners almost hourly, expanding the library and creating new experiences all the time.

4. It’s Relevant TV makes custom TV easy to control. Some other solutions require that the business owners have to go in and select specific videos that they want played, and then have to go back and change their selections anytime they want the programming on their TV to change. It’s Relevant TV changes the programming for you, while keeping within your preferences and parameters. Instead of picking specific videos, you simply choose from a list of 50 categories of content. The service then continues to deliver videos in only the categories you select.

5. They take care of the licensing. This is a big deal, and will become an even bigger deal in the years to come. Some services allow business owners to display YouTube videos on their TVs. Simply put: THAT IS ILLEGAL. YouTube’s terms of use prohibit broadcasting content publicly. Users who upload videos to YouTube give YouTube limited rights to display their content only on certain monetized online platforms. Since taking the content off the platform is essentially stealing it, the owner of the content could come after your business if you use it that way.

For more information and to explore creating your own non-looping custom channel contact It’s Relevant TV via phone at: 855-ITS-RELE or via email at: support@itsrelevant.com