CareCredit, a provider of patient financing, and Zwivel, an online cosmetic consultation platform that enables cosmetic patients and doctors to interact prior to an in-office consultation, signed a marketing agreement enabling consumers to apply for a CareCredit health, wellness, and beauty credit card through a link embedded in Zwivel’s free, online-consultation platform and app.

Founded in 2012, Zwivel was developed by board-certified plastic surgeon, Dr. Gary Breslow, when he recognized inefficiencies in the traditional cosmetic consultation process for both patients and physicians. The Zwivel free online consultation streamlines the information-gathering process to securely collect a patient’s procedural inquiries, medical profile and timeframe for scheduling an aesthetic procedure, enabling virtual “mini consults” from the comfort of one’s home. Zwivel has seen rapid adoption by the cosmetic industry and patients seeking information online.

“The purpose of Zwivel is to help consumers research and quickly choose cash-pay cosmetic services and doctors online before an in-office consultation, and the availability of financing options plays an integral role in their decision-making process to move forward with an in-person consultation,” said Scott Kera, chief operating officer, Zwivel.

According to a 2014 CareCredit study on how consumers approach their healthcare decisions, consumers took more time researching and visiting providers who perform treatments such as cosmetic procedures before making their final selection. In fact, only 25 percent of cosmetic patients said they used a provider with which they already had a relationship.

The same study shows that consumers are researching financing at nearly the same rate as the procedure itself. This is especially true in the cosmetic industry, where 92 percent of consumers researched the procedure and 86 percent considered or researched financing.

“Zwivel delivers value to both providers and patients by simplifying the consultation process, and we know from our research the availability of financing options is important to busy consumers,” said Greg Pierce, senior vice president, CareCredit. “We look forward to working with Zwivel to deliver options for their patients and providers.”