The average dental practice loses an estimated $100,000 or more annually from missed calls, with 40% of patient inquiries occurring outside business hours. As practices seek solutions to capture this lost revenue, many consider integrating AI receptionist technology with their existing phone systems like GoTo Connect. However, dental practices face critical considerations around HIPAA compliance, practice management system integration, and industry-specific workflows that generic AI solutions may not address. For practices specifically seeking an AI receptionist built for dentistry, Arini's AI Receptionist Platform offers seamless integration with dental workflows, native PMS connectivity, and full HIPAA compliance.

Key Takeaways

• GoTo Connect AI Receptionist requires existing GoTo phone system subscription and lacks standalone flexibility
• Critical HIPAA compliance gap - GoTo does not explicitly offer Business Associate Agreements for dental practices handling patient health information
• Limited dental PMS integrations - Only supports Curve Dental natively, not OpenDental, EagleSoft, or Denticon used by most dental practices
• Arini offers superior dental-specific features including insurance verification, appointment scheduling directly into major PMS systems, and proven ROI with 30% schedule utilization improvement
• Hidden costs can double budgets - AI add-on pricing undisclosed, CRM integrations require higher-tier plans, overage charges apply for SMS/toll-free minutes
• Platform lock-in limits flexibility - AI Receptionist only works within GoTo ecosystem, unlike standalone solutions
• Dental practices should prioritize HIPAA-compliant, industry-specific solutions over generic business AI receptionists

Understanding the Power of an AI Receptionist for Your Dental Practice

AI receptionists have transformed how dental practices manage patient communications, offering 24/7 call answering, automated appointment scheduling, and intelligent FAQ handling. The right AI solution can convert missed calls into booked appointments, reduce front-desk burden, and drive significant revenue growth. For dental practices specifically, an AI receptionist should understand dental terminology, integrate with practice management systems, handle insurance inquiries, and maintain strict HIPAA compliance.

However, not all AI receptionists are created equal. Generic business-focused solutions like GoTo Connect's AI Receptionist may lack the dental-specific workflows and compliance requirements essential for healthcare environments. Practices lose $850-1,300 in first-year patient revenue per missed call, making the choice of AI receptionist a critical business decision that impacts both patient experience and practice profitability.

Why GoTo Connect is a Smart Choice for Dental Practice Phone Systems

GoTo Connect offers a comprehensive cloud-based VoIP platform with unified communications capabilities, making it a viable option for businesses seeking integrated phone, video, and messaging solutions. The platform provides reliable call routing, scalability for multi-location practices, and remote access capabilities that support modern dental practice operations.

However, dental practices must consider that GoTo Connect is primarily designed as a general business communication platform, not a healthcare-specific solution. While it offers solid VoIP functionality, the platform's healthcare compliance credentials and dental industry integrations are limited compared to purpose-built dental technology solutions.

Seamless Integration: Connecting Arini AI with Your GoTo Phone System

While GoTo Connect offers its own AI Receptionist add-on, dental practices should understand the integration limitations. GoTo's AI Receptionist is not a standalone solution—it requires an existing GoTo Connect Phone System subscription (starting at $26/user/month) plus an undisclosed add-on fee for the AI functionality.

The integration process involves

• Setting up knowledge base articles with practice information
• Configuring call routing rules through the visual Dial Plan Editor
• Creating information capture forms for patient data collection
• Integrating with CRM systems (requires higher-tier Connect CX plan)

However, a critical limitation emerges for dental practices: GoTo Connect only offers native integration with Curve Dental among dental practice management systems. Practices using OpenDental, EagleSoft, or Denticon—the most common PMS platforms in dentistry—face significant integration challenges requiring third-party workarounds like Zapier.

In contrast, Arini's Integration & Workflow Customization offers native, one-click integrations with OpenDental, Dentrix, EagleSoft, and Denticon, enabling seamless appointment scheduling and patient data synchronization without complex middleware solutions.

24/7 Patient Engagement: How AI Handles Every Call

GoTo Connect AI Receptionist promises 24/7 call answering with natural-sounding voices in multiple languages. The system can greet callers, answer basic questions from a knowledge base, and route calls based on predefined rules. This capability addresses the 40% of patient calls that occur outside business hours, potentially capturing revenue that would otherwise be lost to voicemail.

However, dental practices must consider the patient experience quality. Generic AI receptionists may struggle with dental-specific terminology and patient concerns. More critically, GoTo Connect does not explicitly advertise HIPAA compliance or offer Business Associate Agreements, creating significant compliance risk when handling patient health information during calls.

Arini's Call Answering & Scheduling is specifically designed for dental practices, with HIPAA-compliant voice AI that understands dental workflows and handles sensitive patient information securely. The system answers 100% of inbound calls 24/7, converting missed calls into booked appointments while maintaining full compliance with healthcare privacy regulations.

Automated Appointments: AI-Powered Scheduling with Phone Calls

Appointment scheduling represents one of the highest-value functions for dental AI receptionists. GoTo Connect AI Receptionist can capture patient information and transfer calls to staff, but its appointment scheduling capabilities are limited without CRM integration. Even with CRM integration, the system lacks direct synchronization with most dental practice management systems.

This creates workflow inefficiencies where staff must manually transfer appointment information from the CRM to the PMS, increasing error rates and administrative burden. For practices using OpenDental, EagleSoft, or Denticon, this limitation is particularly problematic.

Arini's platform books appointments directly into practice management systems, eliminating manual data entry and ensuring real-time schedule accuracy. The system supports block scheduling, custom scheduling rules, and provider availability constraints, converting missed calls into confirmed appointments automatically. This direct PMS integration has helped practices achieve 30% improvement in schedule utilization and 68% reduction in no-shows through automated confirmation workflows.

Enhancing Patient Communication with AI-Driven FAQs

Both GoTo Connect and Arini offer knowledge base capabilities for handling common patient questions. GoTo's system allows practices to create FAQ articles covering office hours, services, and basic information. However, the generic nature of the platform means it lacks dental-specific question handling and insurance verification capabilities.

Arini's Patient FAQ & Communication goes beyond basic FAQs to handle complex dental inquiries including insurance verification, billing questions, treatment explanations, and emergency protocols. The system accesses real-time insurance databases to verify coverage and benefits, providing accurate information that reduces patient confusion and staff interruptions.

This dental-specific knowledge base has proven effective at reducing call volume escalated to human staff while ensuring consistent, accurate information delivery across all patient interactions. The system learns over time, adapting to practice-specific workflows and common patient concerns.

Boosting Revenue and Efficiency: The Business Impact of AI & Phone Systems

The business case for AI receptionists in dental practices is compelling. With $100,000+ in annual revenue lost from missed calls, even partial call capture can deliver significant ROI. Practices implementing AI receptionists report 12% revenue increases and 24% profit growth through improved appointment conversion and operational efficiency.

However, the total cost of ownership must be considered. GoTo Connect's pricing structure includes hidden costs

• Undisclosed AI Receptionist add-on pricing
• Higher-tier Connect CX plan required for CRM integrations (approximately $34/user/month vs. $26/user/month for base plan)
• SMS/MMS overage charges with undisclosed rates
• Toll-free minute overages beyond 1,000 pooled minutes
• Additional fees for advanced analytics and reporting

Arini's Analytics & Notifications provides transparent ROI tracking with dashboards showing call volume, answered calls, missed calls, and booked appointments. The system calculates revenue impact metrics by tracking appointments booked and their production value, giving practices clear visibility into AI receptionist performance without hidden fees or tier upgrades.

Monitoring Performance: Analytics from Your AI Receptionist

GoTo Connect offers real-time analytics and call reporting, but access to comprehensive metrics requires upgrading to higher pricing tiers. The base Phone System plan lacks call transcripts, AI summaries, and detailed conversion analytics that are essential for optimizing AI performance.

Arini provides comprehensive analytics from day one, with dashboards tracking

• Call volume and answered/missed call rates
• Appointment booking conversion rates
• Revenue impact metrics
• Patient satisfaction scores
• Staff notification effectiveness

The system sends real-time notifications for every booked appointment and provides weekly/monthly reporting on key performance indicators. This transparent analytics approach enables practices to measure ROI immediately and optimize AI workflows based on actual performance data, not guesswork.

Critical Compliance Considerations for Dental Practices

The most significant concern for dental practices considering GoTo Connect AI Receptionist is HIPAA compliance. GoTo Connect does not explicitly advertise HIPAA compliance or offer Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) for healthcare providers. Call recordings and AI transcripts containing patient names, treatment details, or insurance information constitute Protected Health Information (PHI) under HIPAA regulations.

Using a non-HIPAA-compliant solution for patient communications creates serious compliance risk and potential legal liability. Dental practices must obtain written confirmation of HIPAA compliance and signed BAAs before implementing any AI receptionist solution that handles patient information.

Arini is explicitly HIPAA compliant with secure PMS integrations, role-based access controls, and data privacy safeguards aligned with healthcare standards. The platform's Trust Center provides transparency into data handling practices, and the company is actively pursuing SOC 2 and ISO 27001 certifications to further validate its security posture.

Making the Right Choice for Your Dental Practice

While GoTo Connect offers a capable general business AI receptionist, dental practices have unique requirements that demand specialized solutions. The combination of limited dental PMS integrations, unclear HIPAA compliance status, hidden costs, and lack of dental-specific workflows makes GoTo Connect AI Receptionist a suboptimal choice for most dental practices.

Arini represents the superior choice for dental practices 

If you are seeking an AI receptionist technology that truly understands dental workflows, built specifically for dentistry, Arini offers:

• Native integration with OpenDental, Dentrix, EagleSoft, and Denticon
• Full HIPAA compliance with Business Associate Agreements
• Dental-specific workflows including insurance verification and emergency protocols
• Transparent pricing without hidden fees or tier upgrades
• Proven ROI with case studies showing $56K+ in new revenue in 30 days and $100K+/month uplift

For dental practices serious about capturing missed call revenue while maintaining compliance and operational efficiency, purpose-built solutions like Arini deliver significantly better outcomes than generic business AI receptionists adapted for healthcare use.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the Arini AI Receptionist integrate with GoTo Connect?

Arini operates as a standalone AI receptionist platform that can work alongside any phone system, including GoTo Connect. Unlike GoTo's native AI Receptionist (which requires a GoTo Connect subscription), Arini uses call forwarding to intercept calls before they reach your phone system. This provides greater flexibility and avoids platform lock-in while delivering superior dental-specific functionality and HIPAA compliance.

What are the main benefits of using Arini over GoTo Connect AI Receptionist for dental practices?

Arini offers three critical advantages: (1) Native integration with all major dental PMS systems (OpenDental, EagleSoft, Denticon, Dentrix) versus GoTo's limited Curve Dental support; (2) Explicit HIPAA compliance with Business Associate Agreements, addressing GoTo's compliance gap; and (3) Dental-specific workflows including real-time insurance verification, emergency call triage, and treatment-specific scheduling that generic business AI cannot match.

Can Arini handle emergency dental calls after hours?

Yes, Arini's platform includes specific emergency call handling protocols that can triage urgent situations and route calls appropriately. The system can identify emergency keywords, collect essential patient information, and either connect patients directly to on-call dentists or provide appropriate guidance based on practice protocols. This capability is built into Arini's dental-specific workflows, unlike generic AI receptionists that lack emergency dental protocols.

What implementation timeline should dental practices expect with Arini?

Arini typically implements within 1-2 hours for most dental practices, significantly faster than the 2-4 hours required for complex GoTo Connect AI Receptionist configuration. The streamlined setup includes PMS integration, custom call flow configuration, and knowledge base setup. Arini handles the technical integration work, requiring minimal practice staff involvement compared to the DIY approach needed for GoTo's system.

How does Arini's pricing compare to GoTo Connect AI Receptionist?

While GoTo Connect requires a base phone system subscription ($26/user/month) plus undisclosed AI add-on fees and potential tier upgrades for CRM integrations, Arini offers transparent, all-inclusive pricing. Arini's solution includes PMS integration, HIPAA compliance, dental-specific workflows, and comprehensive analytics without hidden fees or required upgrades. Most practices find Arini delivers better value through superior dental functionality and eliminates compliance risk.