Recently, a colleague called me to see if I knew a vet that could assist her. I gave her one of the businesses in my network.
Several weeks later, she called me to let me know that she had tried to follow up with the gentleman I referred to her both by phone and email. She even went to his website to see if she could schedule an appointment online. After numerous attempts to try to connect, she simply had to move on to a different vendor.
In a second scenario, I received a post card notice to schedule my dental appointment. A few weeks later, I received a phone call reminder and then a text the following week. With each message, they gave me the option of scheduling my appointment online. At my convenience, I was able to book an appointment and get on the calendar.
Simple. Convenient. Handled.
In the first case, a business owner lost business. In the second case, he retained my business.
What was the difference? Systems.
Not just any system but systems that made for a convenient customer experience. A system that created both leverage for the business owner and efficiencies for the customer.
You may be busy, but you also may be losing clients or customers because you don’t make it easy for them to schedule an appointment with you. It’s time to ask: Are you losing business or falling behind in scheduling because you’re running your business old school?
If the answer is yes, you’ll want to get your systems tightened up before you go out of business. Something as simple as a scheduling software, like TimeTrade, can empower your customers to schedule appointments with you through the phone, email and website.
Once scheduled, the system then automatically sends reminders. This frees up your team to focus on the meaningful parts of providing service rather than making reminder calls.
Simple. Convenient. Handled.
If you’re wondering how to avoid stress and save time and money, consider what systems you need for your business. When you automate your business functions and create customer touch points in a timely and professional manner, you make it easy for others to do business with you.