{This post is sponsored by SmileDirectClub and contains affiliate links. All opinions are 100% my own. Read our disclosure policy here.}
I didn’t have braces as a child or teen. My parents looked into it, but the orthodontist had wanted to do pretty invasive jaw surgery and we decided against it because my teeth just weren’t bad enough for me to want to go through all of that.
But, in recent years, as my teeth have gotten a little more crooked, I’ve wanted to look into possibly getting braces. Jesse and I had talked about it multiple times, but the costs involved plus the time required to go to all the appointments and experience all of the discomfort — especially since I usually am on live video every single day! — just didn’t feel worth it.
Then, a number of months ago, I saw an ad for a company called SmileDirectClub. They seemed like the perfect fit for me:
- It is done almost entirely remotely (saving the time and hassle going in for appointments).
- Most treatment plans take 6 months or less.
- And it’s lot less of a financial investment (as low as $1800 for the total process! And you can use coupon code MSMDEAL to save an additional $100!)
I did a lot of research into it and was excited to find that there was actually a SmileShop right near where we live — which I felt better about since it scared me a little to do the entire process remotely.
Now here’s where I get completely honest: I had put it on my calendar to set up an appointment with the local SmileDirectClub shop… but then life happened and months went by and I didn’t do it.
But when SmileDirectClub contacted me about possibly advertising on my site, it was the kick in my pants I needed to actually go do the initial appointment.
I wanted to share my experiences and thoughts here with this initial appointment for those of you who might be considering SmileDirectClub (or for those who have never heard of it but are intrigued now that I’ve mentioned it!)
If you have a local SmileDirectClub shop in your area, I’d highly recommend going in to the shop. (They have locations all over the US — click here to see if there’s one in your area.)
It’s free to get your smile scan — and it only takes 30 minutes!
After I set up my appointment (which you can do online in just a minute!), I was super impressed with the followup that I received.
They sent me a few reminders of my appointment, a video to let me know what I could expect when I went in, and a text reminder the day of with detailed directions on where the shop was and a photo to the outside so I could see what to look for when I got there.
I was greeted at the door by two very friendly staff members who went out of their way to make me feel welcome and answer my questions. For a place that advertises helping you improve your smile, they certainly know how to hire fun and warmly-smiling staff!
They explained the process of how SmileDirectClub works and then answered a lot of questions I had (plus, graciously let me take a lot of photos — and even offered to take photos of me, which you’ll see a little later in the post!)
If you’re wondering, here’s how the process works:
- You go to a SmileShop to get a 3D scan of your smile (it’s FREE!) OR you use an at-home impression kit (use coupon code MSMDEAL to get 50% off the price) to make an impression so they can build a 3D impression of your smile. (You can see what the at-home impression kit is below.)
- Your 3D smile is reviewed by a duly licensed dentist or orthodontist, who will guide your new smile from beginning to end.
- They send you a preview of your new smile showing how your smile will transform and begin production of your invisible aligners, as unique to you as a fingerprint. (You can see mine below.)
- They send you aligners in the mail that you wear 24/7 (except for when you eat) during a 6-month process. You change these out every week or every other week during the process. (They send you texts to remind you when you need to change the aligners). (Be sure use coupon code MSMDEAL to save an additional $100 off the cost of your aligners!)
- You work with a licensed dentist or orthodontist the entire time and they ask you to send periodic photos to help them make sure you are on track.
- At the end of 6 months, you can purchase a set of retainers for $99 to help maintain your smile. You just wear them at night to keep your new smile in place.
After they explained how SmileDirectClub works, they then took photos of my smile and then did a 3D scan of the inside of my mouth.
They were super informative the entire time — explaining what they were doing, telling me what to expect next, and making sure nothing felt uncomfortable.
The whole scan only took maybe 8-10 minutes and was very painless and simple.
When they are finished, it’s pretty cool to see exactly what your mouth looks like in a 3D model on the computer screen!
They sent me home with a bag of free goodies — including a free whitening kit that you connect to your phone to whiten your teeth (I can’t wait to try it out!)
A few days later, I got an email with my new smile available to view. It was super cool because you could see the progression of what the aligners would do to my teeth over a 6-month period. It was exciting to see how much better they could look!
(Note: Because the aligners are only going on your teeth and they aren’t doing anything with your jaw, they cannot correct overbites or other really misaligned teeth issues. You can take a 30-second quiz on their site to see if you are a candidate for their services based upon how your teeth are. I’d recommend getting a second opinion from a local orthodontist if you aren’t sure. I also would highly, highly recommend going into a local shop — that way you can get a scan and make sure you feel comfortable with going through this process and that the end results will be worth the investment.)
If you can’t go into a local SmileShop to get a 3D Scan done, you can order an at-home Impression Kit (shown above). Again, I would personally recommend going into a SmileShop as it’s completely FREE to do so and they do such a great job of giving you such a high-quality scan.
But you if you do end up ordering an at-home Impression Kit, use coupon code MSMDEAL to get 50% off the price.
And if you decide to sign up with SmileDirectClub, you can also use coupon code MSMDEAL at checkout to get $100 off the price of your Invisible Aligners.
Have you used SmileDirectClub before? If so, I’d love to hear your honest opinions and experience with it. And if you have any questions about the process, leave them in the comments and I’ll do my best to answer them for you or find out an answer for you!
