Each new patient, assuming they join your plan and have just a little bit of treatment, could bring in up to £5,000 over a decade. That can make a big difference to your practice but, how do you make sure that they become a new patient in the first place?
Often, it all starts with that first phone call from a prospective new patient enquiring about your practice. Bearing in mind the potential value of each enquiry, it’s vital that that call is the best it can be to ensure it results in a booked appointment. Below are some quick tips you can put into place straight away to transform your calls and win new patients:
Answer enthusiastically within four rings…after this time people start getting impatient and may well hang up. This is your first chance to make an impression so it needs to be good; the patient wants to hear a friendly, upbeat voice. Whoever is answering the call should state the name of the practice, offer a statement on how they can help and give their own name – which begins building rapport straight away.
Ask for the caller’s name and use it…which will begin building a personal connection straight away. It’s much easier to ask for the patient’s name if you have already given your own. Instantly it becomes a conversation between two people, rather than two nameless voices, and the seeds of a relationship are already being planted.
Find out how they know about the practice…so that you can know what marketing activity is working and what’s worth re-investing in. If the caller says they saw your website, dig a little deeper and find out what it was in particular they liked about it. This will tell you which pages are working well and which may not be. Or, if you find out it’s a referral, this tips you off that this caller has even more potential to become a new patient as they already have a positive recommendation for you. It also means you can send a thank-you note/gift to the patient who advocated for you, which will enhance your relationship with them and encourage them to send even more new patients your way.
Ask how you can help…and what aspects of treatment they’re interested in. You only need to ask three or four open questions, which will show you are genuinely interested in helping the caller and make you stand out from the competition, who may well just be asking the standard ‘how can I help?’ – some may not even be asking that. Questions that can get the patient talking more about their needs are, ‘what results are you looking to achieve?’, ‘have you done any research into the type of treatment you want?’, and ‘what is it about that treatment that you’re interested in?’
Make sure you fully understand their needs…as only then can you accurately explain how you can help them. This is arguably the most important part of the call, as it will reassure the patient that they have been listened to and that you are able to help them. It’s important to keep the explanation brief and simple and invite them for an appointment to discuss it in more depth. Booking an appointment is ultimately the goal of the call; it’s important to bear that in mind and to avoid going into too much technical detail about procedures, it’s not necessary at this stage and can be overwhelming.
Reduce the risk of distractions while on the call…by answering enquiries away from the front desk. This will allow the front desk team to focus solely on the potential new patient, and can only improve the quality of the conversation and the information gleaned from it.
If the caller asks about fees…explain that it’s difficult to give an accurate price without a full examination (but give them a guideline if you need to). You can then promote the benefits of the appointment which will allow them to explore treatment plans and prices.
Many of the above steps can also be put into place for face-to-face enquiries as well. In either setting, by following these simple steps you can begin building relationships with prospective patients from the get-go and ensure each enquiry converts into that valuable new patient!
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