Build or Buy? Choosing Between an In-House Dental Membership Plan or a Partner Solution
How you participate with dental coverage impacts everything important to your practice, from how your patients access and afford care to how you get paid.
Dental membership plans provide practices of all sizes with the power to offer patients an affordable alternative to insurance. But there's an important decision to make before implementing one: Do you build it yourself or partner with a solution like Kleer and Membersy to do the heavy lifting?
Let’s dive into the pros and cons of both so you can determine what’s best for your patients, your team, and your bottom line.
What is a DIY in-house dental membership plan?
A DIY membership plan is created and managed entirely by your practice. Patients pay a monthly or annual fee for access to care, and your team oversees everything, from benefits tracking to renewals and payments.
Benefits of going DIY
- Focused Patient Care: Custom plans tailored to your practice and patients can reduce your dependency on high-volume care and increase quality time with patients.
- Better Margins: You’re no longer at the mercy of declining insurance reimbursement rates. You set the fees and keep what you earn.
- Direct Relationships: No more go-betweens. You control treatments, benefits, and payments while offering an affordable solution to uninsured or inactive patients.
But let’s talk trade-offs
Managing an in-house plan sounds empowering but comes with heavy administrative burdens. Tracking patient benefits, handling renewals, reconciling payments, and maintaining compliance can quickly become a full-time job for your front office. Without automation, growth can stagnate.
Common misconceptions about DIY plans
- "It won’t take that much time to manage." Think again. Manual tracking and lack of reporting tools can slow down your team as enrollment grows.
- "My team won’t need support." Without dedicated help, patient inquiries and plan-related issues fall entirely on your staff.
- "I’ll lose control if I work with a partner." Trusted partners like Kleer and Membersy put control in your hands while handling the backend complexity.
A real-world example: SkyRidge Dental
SkyRidge Dental managed its own membership plan for years with minimal growth and significant administrative burden. After transitioning to Kleer and Membersy, they saw:
- 8X increase in member enrollment
- $142K boost in recurring revenue
- Greater operational efficiency and treatment acceptance
What should your practice do?
Your decision reallydepends on your goals. If you're looking for full control, have extra team capacity, and a tolerance for complexity, a DIY plan could work. But if you want scale, simplicity, and expert support—a platform partner may be the smarter path.
Ready to compare? Chat with one of our plan experts to evaluate your options and see which solution fits your needs best.
Related resources
Blog
Knockout! Debunking 5 Common Myths About Dental Membership Plans
Discover 5 myths holding practices back and how to overcome them for growth and loyalty.
20 May 2025
Read more
Get started, today.
Our experts will show you how our advanced, cloud-based membership plan platform—coupled with resources, tools and support from the experts at Kleer, can bring your practice phenomenal results.
+
more visits
+
more treatment accepted
+
more production
+
more collections