A friendly note is always left beside the fresh flowers from our house cleaner. The note includes a reminder of the next date she will be here. She also sends a text message reminder 24 hours prior to her arrival. This got me thinking about appointment reminders in general, including that of my son’s dentist.

Fresh-cut flowers and an appointment reminder note from OCD Cleaning.

He recently had a dental cleaning appointment. I knew it was coming because I am a total lover of schedules and put every single appointment into my Google Calendar with alerts and reminders that ding on my phone. When I set the appointment, months ago, they handed me a card with the next appointment date on it. A few hours later I also received a text message stating the date and time of the next appointment. In the days leading up to this appointment I received a phone call and multiple text messages reminding. By the time I got the last of the messages I started thinking “Geeze, all these reminders are a bit overkill. Do people really need this many reminders?”

I shared this with a dental hygienist friend, who was riding in the car with me, when my voicemail reminder came. She informed me that people just simply don’t show up to their appointments all-the-time. I was blown away by this for multiple reasons. Yes, life happens and emergencies get in the way at the very last minute. But I immediately thought of it from a business owner standpoint. If someone doesn’t show up to an appointment that means that entire hour, or sometimes way more, is lost business and lots of lost income. Sure, some businesses charge a $25 or so no-show fee but that hardly covers the overhead cost or even the cost of the employee who is still there and being paid whether the client shows or not.

Do you have a or are starting an appointment based business? Here are a few ways to increase the odd of people showing up to their appointments.

USE MULTIPLE CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION

Everyone is different in regards to what means of communication they pay attention to the most. For example, I am absolutely terrible at listening to my voicemail. I always forget they are there and hardly ever pay attention to the voicemail notification on my phone. On the other hand, I check my email and my text messages multiple times a day. If you send reminder notifications using multiple means of communication you increase your likelihood of someone actually reading/hearing the reminder.

Here are a few different ways you can send reminders:
Text Messages (From you personally or from services like Appointfix)
Reminder Cards (Given at prior appointment or sent in the mail)
Email
Phone Call

TWO WAYS TO LEAD AND CLOSE CONFIDENTLY (2).png

You can also ask your client/customer/patient what means of reminder communication they prefer. This will save time on your end because you won’t be wasting time, which is money, on correspondence that is going unread, unheard, or unseen.

INCLUDE APPOINTMENT DETAILS IN REMINDER

People are busy and want information readily available. Include all the details of the appointment in your reminder so they just have to look in one place.
Date
Time
Location
Who the Appointment is With

ALLOW FOR CONFIRMATION

Many automated phone message services allow for confirmation by pressing a button. You can also request a response in a text message or email. Having more than one platform to send reminders allows for the ability to use multiple, if you don’t get a response via one channel. For example, if someone doesn’t respond via a text reminder you can then make a phone call or visa versa. Asking for a confirmation and receiving the confirmation holds the customer/client/patient more accountable, increasing the likelihood of them showing up because they feel a sense of commitment to the appointment.

Providing reminders, as an added service, will position you as more professional in your clients’ eyes. As a results your added touch will be appreciated, taken more seriously, and increase the chances of people holding to their commitment.

Old School Modern Mama,