Booking and enquiry usability checklist for dental websites

A website earns its cost at the moment someone decides to get in touch. These checks cover that moment. Run them on your current site before you buy a new one, and again before you sign off a new site.

Calling

The phone number is visible at the top of every page on a phone, without scrolling.
Tapping it starts a call.
Opening hours are next to it, so people know whether anyone will answer.
Someone calls back missed calls the same working day.

Forms

The form asks only what you need to call back: name, phone or email, and what it is about.
It never asks for symptoms or medical history.
Errors are explained next to the field, in plain words.
After sending, the page confirms it worked and says when you will reply.
A test enquiry reaches the right person within minutes.

Online booking

Booking works on a phone without zooming or switching apps.
Appointment types use patients' words, not internal codes.
The patient gets a confirmation by email or text.
If online booking is not offered for a treatment, the page says how to book instead.

Treatment pages

Each treatment you want to grow has its own page.
The page explains who it suits, what happens at a first appointment, and fees or a fee range if you publish them.
There is a way to call or enquire on the page itself, not only on a contact page.
The page notes that suitability depends on an assessment.

Test it yourself, monthly

On your own phone, from a treatment page: call, send a form, try to book.
Time how long the reply takes.
Ask a friend who has never used the site to do the same, and watch without helping.

The regulatory content every practice website must carry is listed in the buying guide.