Candid Company Overview

We have all become au fait with the concept of telemedicine, and how it works in the modern world:

1. Supply your medical history via a questionnaire and relevant photos
2. An online medical practitioner will review your history and conduct an online consultation to decide if you are suitable for treatment
3. If you are suitable for treatment, the online medical practitioner will make a diagnosis and provide the patient with a prescription
4. The patient will then have the option to either have the prescription filled at the local pharmacy or via the online dispensary, who usually offer ship it right to the patient’s door

Based on how popular modern-day telemedicine has become, it’s no surprise that more specialized fields of medicine and health have followed suit and adopted the format. 

You may be asking yourself how you could possibly have a tooth filled over the internet. And the answer is – you can’t. While technology has progressed quite rapidly, we are not yet at the point where you can sit back in the comfort of your home while a dentist reconstructs your tooth from their offices. However, there is a certain branch of dentistry that lends itself to the telemedicine format – orthodontics. Orthodontics, or as it should be called in this case – teleorthodontics, is the straightening of teeth.

Today we will be looking at Candid Co., one of the most popular names in this category.

About Candid

As the story goes – one day a group of 5 friends were chatting and the topic of wanting straighter teeth came up. They wanted the perfect smile, but they weren’t too keen on the unsightly traditional treatment of wire braces and the many negatives that they bring, which include:

• High cost (approx. $5,000)
• Limit what the wearer eats and drinks
• Monthly visits to the orthodontist
• Make it much harder to maintain an acceptable level of oral hygiene
• Treatment period can stretch anywhere between 12 - 24 months

After a little research uncovered the option of clear teeth aligners, the team partnered with DR C. Lynn Hurst, a highly regarded orthodontist, built up a team of 300 employees and has since given tens of thousands of customers a reason to smile.

Over the last few years, clear aligners have increased in popularity thanks to being less aesthetically invasive than braces as well as straightening teeth faster than the traditional method.

Is Candid right for you?

Before you get started, Candid Co. recommends completing their short survey to find out if you are suitable. The survey asks which dental concerns you would like corrected (gaps, crowding, etc) if you have had braces or retainers in the past, etc. It is actually refreshing for a brand to not recommend their product or service to everyone. 

There are three main reasons why a Candid Co. may not be suitable for every candidate

1. Your dental imperfections are more serious than the mild to moderate cases that Candid Co. is best suited towards
2. You haven’t been to the dentist in the last few months and had your gums and teeth checked or treated for decay and cavities
3. You are already using a permanent retainer

If you are a candidate for Candid Co., the first step is sending them accurate impressions of your teeth that their orthodontists can use to custom design your aligners. For $95 you will receive the Candid Co. starter kit that contains everything you need to make the impressions. Using the supplied cheek stretcher, you will also need to supply Candid Co. with 8 photographs of your teeth. 

The Candid Co. Starter Kit contains:

• Cheek stretcher
• Gloves
• Putty catalyst and base
• Bite guide
• Lower trays (2)
• Upper Trays (3)
• Return shipping box
• Instruction manual

Those who prefer to have their impressions taken by a professional can visit of the 25 Candid Co. Studios found across the country at no additional cost. The Candid Co. orthodontist will use an optical laser to scan the inside of your mouth and create a digital model of your teeth. Whether you choose to take the impressions yourself or have them done at a Candid Co. Studio, the entire process should take around 30 minutes in total.

Once the Candid Co. orthodontist has received the impressions and photos, they will decide if you are a Candid Co. candidate. If Candid Co. is not right for you, you will receive a full refund.

Once Candid Co. have received your impressions, you will receive a physical 3D model showing you how your teeth will align and correct themselves over time.

In the final phase, you will receive a box containing your complete set of aligners, delivered straight to your door. On average, you will switch from one set of aligners to the next every two weeks. Candid Co. also includes a whitening system, free of charge, to boost your self-confidence even further.

How much does Candid cost? 

Aligner Starter Kits - $95 per kit (includes 2 sets of impressions)

Invisible Aligners - $1,900 

Monthly payment plans - $88 per month via Affirm, a 3rd party financing company

Retainers – first set is free, with each set thereafter costing $99 

We know that compared to traditional braces, the Candid Co. is significantly cheaper but how do they compare to a more direct competitor, who also offer clear teeth aligners? Perhaps the most established and well-known name in the aligner market is Invisalign. While the cost of the aligners at Candid Co. is just under $2,000. Over at Invisalign however, the cost of the aligners starts at $3,000 and can rise to as much as $8,000.

How is Candid Different?

• Firstly, while the competition may be happy to use dentists and dental practitioners, Candid Co. only employ orthodontists, specialists in teeth straightening, with over 20 years’ experience. 

• Candid Co. strongly recommends that all patients book a video call with one of their orthodontists while the starter kit is en route. This video call allows their expertise to get an actual look at the current state of your teeth and gums to ensure your aligners are as accurate as possible. It also allows them to determine how long your particular process will take.

• Candid Co. send their patients all of their aligners at once, rather than one by one, eliminating extra time and costs.

• Once you have completed your alignment program, Candid Co. supply you with a free set of retainers. These should be worn for 22 hours per day for the first 2 weeks and during the night thereafter.

• Candid Co. donates $25 from each aligner kit sold to Smile Train, an NGO that provides free cleft palate treatments to children around the world.

• Candid Co. offers a comprehensive support structure that is available every day of the week, at a time suitable to you, even if that happens to be outside of normal working hours.

• As proven by their extensive questionnaire that outlines your medical and dental history and requiring 8 photographs compared to the 3 most of the competition require, Candid Co. takes a deeper and more detailed look to provide you with the highest level of service and support.

Candid PROS

• Aligners are less noticeable than braces
• Candid offer one of the most transparent aligners in the market
• Can be removed when eating, flossing, and brushing 
• Candid provide you with a premium tooth whitening kit for free
• At just $1,900 + $95 for the starter kit, Candid Co. invisible teeth aligners are significantly cheaper than traditional metal braces, which cost around $5,000 - $6,000
• Alignment treatment can be anywhere from 3-10 months where treatment using traditional metal braces can be anywhere from 1 to 2 years
• The entire process can be done from the comfort of your home
• From start to finish, your program will be supervised by a qualified orthodontist, with a minimum of 20 years of practical experience
• Candid Co. donate $25 from each alignment set to Smile Train, a charity that provides safe and effective cleft palate treatment to underprivileged kids around the world

Candid CONS

• Transparent aligners are not suitable for everyone
• Aligners can be lost or misplaced
• There is no opportunity to update the moulds if the teeth do not align exactly as expected

What do we think about Candid?

If we look at all of the above, it’s clear that teeth aligning is the best way a person can get a perfect smile. Transparent teeth aligners are far superior to traditional metal braces in every regard, and we think it is only a matter of time before they become the standard teeth straightening treatment.

The only choice that a patient needs to make then is where do they get their aligners from. With competitive pricing, a team of experienced orthodontists, a willingness to go the extra step for their patients and contributing a portion of their profits to a worthy charity, it would be hard for us not to recommend Candid Co.