Appointment reminders are crucial in eliminating no-shows for your business. 62% of no-shows occur because customers simply forget about their booking. By sending a quick SMS reminder businesses can radically reduce the number of no-shows they receive.
Appointment-based businesses lose between 5-10% of their time because of no-shows. Missed appointments cost the NHS more than £700 million a year. Customer no-shows are a serious hindrance for such businesses, affecting both large and small businesses. Meaning that this is a real issue for those in these industries.
Phone calls are the traditional form of reminding customers or patients of upcoming appointments, but these are time-consuming and can be expensive to maintain. SMS messaging is quick, efficient, and inexpensive. The reality is that text messaging offers an unparalleled opportunity for businesses in these industries, with an open rate of 98% and patients or customers rarely having their phones out of their reach.
Texting has become the preferred method for receiving appointment reminders. A study by the Internet Journal of Healthcare administration found that healthcare providers who text their patients ahead of appointments reported a 36% drop in no-shows.
Benefits
- Schedule appointment reminders with little effort.
- Prompt customers to rearrange their appointment if they had forgotten about it or could no longer make it.
- Appointment information can be saved to the customer or patient’s phone.
- By sending reminders you can save both the business and the customer time and money.
- A quick text message can instantly remind someone of an upcoming appointment reminder.
- Considerably more cost effective than utilizing a staff member whose resources could be better spent on other aspects of the business.
Finding ways to reduce no-shows is of key importance for many businesses. The lost revenue and impact on other customer’s due to no-shows can be significant. Using existing customer or patient data, get up and running in no time.
