Posts tagged physician marketing

If your practice is struggling to acquire new patients and retain existing ones, it may be time to take a closer look at the quality of customer service your staff is providing. One of the keys to running a successful practice is providing exceptional customer service. You need to go the extra mile to really make your practice stand apart from other practices in your area. Knowing how to take care of your patients from that very first point of contact – whether it’s by phone, by email, or even as a walk-in inquiry – sets the stage for either a positive or negative relationship.

Here are ten great rules for customer service and acquiring new patients.

1. Answer calls within the first few rings. It’s imperative that you have a trained staff member to handle all incoming calls during office hours. Prospective patients who can talk to a live person may be more likely to book an appointment for a consultation or proceed with a treatment.

2. Consider a call tracking program. PracticeDock Call Tracking makes it simple to track which advertising and marketing methods are working, and also monitor calls regularly for quality assurance. It’s a valuable tool for any practice struggling with acquiring new patients.

3. Confirm appointments. Show the patient that you take them seriously and look forward to seeing them by calling them the day before an appointment to confirm the visit, and also to encourage them to ask you any questions they may still have. Opening up communications with the patient in this way can increase their comfort level.

4. Listen – really listen. Don’t overwhelm your patients with sales talk or be pushy about booking a treatment or service. Let your patient talk about what they need and what they want, then provide them with suggestions and ways you can help.

5. Have a plan to handle complaints. No practice runs without any complaints, no matter how skilled and experienced the doctor and staff may be. Even though you won’t like to hear complaints, you need someone to address the complaint with professionalism and do whatever you can to ensure the patient is satisfied.

6. Train your staff to be professional. Making sure your staff undergoes a structured training program will help to ensure consistency every time a patient comes into contact with your practice. Train staff to be helpful, knowledgeable, and professional at all times.

7. Take extra steps to ensure your patients are treated well. Encourage patients to ask questions, have a conversation with you, and learn as much as you can about what they need. Don’t encourage staff members to stick with any type of script. A script may be appropriate for the initial point of contact, but after that, the patient needs to feel like they can talk to someone they trust. Following a script too tightly can come across as too “salesy” and may turn patients away.

8. Offer a freebie or discount. Encourage patients to come back or even book a treatment they are still on the fence about by offering a discount, free product, or other benefit. Timing this offer is crucial, as you want your patients to feel like this would be the deciding factor to work with you.

9. Follow up at every opportunity. If you can sense that the patient is still undecided or apprehensive about a certain treatment, don’t be afraid to send them an email or call them to tell them you’re here to address any concerns they have. Having surgery or undergoing any type of elective procedure can be nerve-wracking for some people and they may just need some encouragement or guidance to make a good decision.

10. Offer options. Make it clear to the patient that you are not just trying to book another appointment, but are here to provide as many options as possible. This pulls you out of a salesperson role and allows the patient to see you as someone they can trust and guide them through the decision-making process.

Don?t miss our upcoming webinar on February 13, “How to Train Your Staff on Patient Experience & Customer Service to Generate More Sales”, led by our Director of Sales Greg Brewer.

Need more help marketing your practice? Talk to one of our PracticeDock online marketing specialists today!

More content you may be interested in:

• LocateADoc.com Announces New Medical Advisory Board Members
• Need Help Marketing Your Practice Online?
• Converting Patient Leads into Booked Treatments – Part 1
• Converting Patient Leads into Booked Treatments – Part 2
• The Best and Worst Times to Post on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIN, Google+ and Pinterest Infographic