Today, when we talk about online appointments, we generally refer to online forms on websites. These forms typically collect name, surname, phone number, and message (if any).
When patients fill out these forms, they usually go to an email address like info@klinikadı.com or [email protected], and it's mostly expected that someone from the reception team will manage this process.
The online form process generally works as follows:
The patient typically receives a response within 3-4 hours, usually within a day. Best wishes...
The Online Appointment Process
The concept of an online appointment is a tool that allows the patient to handle their own appointments according to their preferences. In other words, it enables the clinic to offer patients the right to:
24/7 accessibility, the ability to choose the desired doctor, treatment, and a time that suits them.
You can experience something similar using the link below:
https://bit.ly/simpledent-onlinerandevu
The A+ Experience for the Patient:
During this process, the patient is freed from the need to answer calls again and has their appointment confirmed quickly.
Being able to complete the "appointment" process, which is the initial contact in the Patient - Clinic / Patient - Doctor relationship, within 5 minutes without the need for a phone call, minimizes the effort potential patients put into contacting the clinic.
Throughout the online appointment process, the personalized messages the patient receives will continuously signal that your clinic operates systematically, is automated, efficient, and professional.
Once a proper online appointment flow is established, the reception team can manage around 10% - 20% of the calendar simply by pressing the "✅ Approve" button.
Additionally, reaching out to lost patients whose last appointment was cancelled or missed with an SMS containing an online appointment link, like the one below, will effortlessly fill the clinic’s calendar.
In addition to a lost patient flow as seen in the screenshot above, since potential patients can choose a time that suits both the doctor and themselves, and are continuously informed with automated SMS messages until the appointment is fulfilled, the cancellation/no-show rates decrease.
When you switch from an online form to an online appointment, the online appointment link becomes usable on the following channels:
Patients can now make requests from any active platform they interact with the clinic.
💡 A patient following the clinic on Instagram can easily access your calendar from a link in a story highlighted as "online appointment".
Patients who have experienced online appointments with you at least once will know that they can easily make another appointment with your clinic through the online appointment link, reducing the need to search for a new clinic.
