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Missed call text service
for dental practices
Most dental practices already have someone on reception, so this is not about replacing them. It is about the calls that reach nobody: the ones that arrive at lunchtime, at ten past six, on a Saturday, or while both lines are already busy with the patient standing at the desk. Those calls currently go to an answerphone, and patients ringing about a toothache do not leave messages.
Why practices lose calls even with a reception team
Reception is a single point that everything funnels through. Someone is checking a patient in, taking a payment, or on hold to a lab, and the second line rings out. Then the practice closes and calls keep coming — evenings and Sunday nights are when toothache tends to become unbearable and when people start looking for a dentist who can see them.
The maths
What one missed patient call is worth
A new NHS registration is worth years of routine appointments. A private new-patient enquiry, or someone ringing about implants, orthodontics or a whitening treatment, is worth substantially more than that in a single treatment plan. Emergency callers are also how practices pick up patients who then stay — if somebody else sees them first, that relationship goes with them.
TextTheCaller is £6.49 a month. Set against the value of the work above, it only has to keep one caller from ringing the next name on the list to have paid for itself several times over.
What to write in your text
You write the message once and it goes out on every missed call. Here's one that works for dental practices:
Thanks for calling Meadow Dental. We can't answer right now. Book online: meadowdental.co.uk/book. Dental emergency out of hours? Call NHS 111.
It sends from your business name
The caller sees your business name, not a phone number — so there's nothing for them to reply to. Give them something they can act on instead: a booking link, an email address, or a time you'll ring back.
160 characters
One SMS segment. The example above fits with room to spare, and we'll show you the count as you write so nothing gets cut off.
How it works
No app, no new number, no contract.
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1
Sign up with your mobile number
Enter your number, pick your network and set your business name. No password — we email you a magic link.
About 30 seconds
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2
Dial one code from your phone
We give you the exact code for your network. It tells your network to send unanswered calls to us.
One time only
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3
Write your text-back
Use the example above or write your own. Next time a call rings out, the caller gets it within seconds.
Change it any time
It works on your existing number on every compatible UK network, and only ever triggers on calls you don't answer. Pick up as normal and nothing happens at all.
Questions from dental practices
Because it covers what reception cannot: lunch cover, evenings, weekends and the moments when every line is already engaged. It is not an alternative to your reception team, it is a net under the calls that currently reach an answerphone.
It should never be the only thing an emergency caller gets, which is why the example above points them to NHS 111 out of hours. Used that way it is more helpful than an answerphone message most people will not listen to.
There is no integration — the text simply carries a link, so you can point patients at whatever online booking you already use. Nothing needs to be connected or configured on your system.
Also built for
Every missed call is a job someone else gets
Keep your number. Two minutes to set up. Cancel whenever you like.
7 days free, then £6.49/mo. Cancel any time.