10 Questions: Evident lab management software [VIDEO]

01. What was it you were hearing from the lab industry that led to the development of Evident software?

Having worked with desktop software for many years, the Evident directors were ready to get into the cloud. Dental lab employees should not have to be computer technicians. With Evident, lab staff do not need to install, update or back up. Our technical support staff can see the lab software and data files, making problem solving infinitely easier. The other thing we wanted was paperless production management. With Evident, lab staff have access to everything they need, all of the time.

02. What have you seen in terms of adoption of the cloud model among dental labs? 

When we started out, we had to sell the cloud. Now people understand the benefit of letting us spend the money on big hardware so they don’t have to. They know they don’t have to worry about mixed computer hardware and operating systems, they enjoy access through tablets and smart phones, and they appreciate being able to access their system from absolutely anywhere there’s Internet. People used to worry about us being down but most now realize that a desktop system is down a lot more-we’re up better than 99.9 percent of the time.

03. What do you see as Evident’s greatest strength?

Evident is comprised of a group of people who are passionate about what they do. As a result, our code is rock solid, we get rave reviews for our customer support and we consistently provide the features customers need now and in the future. We’re a group of people who enjoy what we do and sincerely want to help.

04. Who is your target customer at Evident, and how do you feel you best meet their needs?

Evident is designed to centralize information. Our target is labs that want to use our features to automate as much as they can. We have the feature set large labs require, but we love to work with small- and mid-sized labs that embrace this concept.

05. Why should labs that aren’t currently using cloud-based software consider an option like Evident?

To be competitive, labs need to focus their energy on their customers, their products, their staff and their business. By passing a lot of technical responsibility to us they can focus on their own operations. Our billing model is subscription-based with no contract. That means we have to keep labs happy to keep them as customers. Desktop systems require a big upfront investment before the lab really knows if they’ve made the right choice.

06. What differentiates Evident from other cloud-based offerings?

Three things stand out: 1. Evident is the fastest cloud-based system out there. Speed is surprisingly important-waiting for a second here or there may not seem like a big deal but over time, it adds up. 2. Billing is consistent, which makes budgeting easier. Evident bills a fixed amount each month-it is not based on the lab’s revenue. 3. Evident has the feature set big labs need-many of the small and mid-sized labs understand that those features can help them either now or in the future. Why not start with a system you can grow into?

07. What advice do you offer to labs in terms of making sure their data is secure?

Do your homework. The Evident servers have a three-tiered system that prevents loss of data and security. When moving to cloud-based systems, don’t be afraid to ask how the data is stored and what systems are used.

08. How is Evident helping labs of all sizes-from small, one- to two-person labs to much bigger labs?

For small labs, the challenge is maximizing time at the bench and reducing administrative tasks. Evident makes case tracking, billing and payments easy and documents are clear and professional. Large labs want to provide the quality and customer service of a boutique lab while managing many more people and much more information. Evident also has built-in compliance and legislation features that reassure all labs that they can handle whatever requirements arise.

09. What about labs that are nervous about not having their data or financial information “on-site”?

“On-site” data is the most easily stolen. In most labs, an employee takes a copy of the data file home every night to provide an off-site backup. That is about the least secure data imaginable. Theft, fire and computer hardware failure are all threats to on-site data. Many labs do not test their backups and when they do need to restore, find out that backups haven’t been working for months. Evident is redundant and always accessible to the lab. They can log-in to a backup any time they want to be assured it is working and accessible.

10. What can we expect from Evident in 2013 and beyond?

Evident is known for its powerful features-our next step is to transform the interface to make it even easier to use. We love talking to our customers but strive to make setup easier and easier so we can spend more time talking to them about how to translate their management goals into reality.