What to look for when reviewing online appointment booking software?

What to look for when reviewing online appointment booking software?

Here are 10 features to consider when reviewing online appointment booking software for your business:

1. Real-time scheduling. Clients don't want to wait to find out if their booking request went through they want instant confirmation. Does the software confirm the appointment as soon as it's made?

2. Mobile apps. Can you access the appointment booking software from your smartphone or tablet?

3. Calendar synchronisation. Can you feed the appointment booking details into other calendars you use, such as iCal, Google Calendar or Outlook?

4. Automatic appointment reminders. Will the online appointment booking software automatically remind clients they have a booking? Does it support e-mail and SMS text messages?

5. Connection to social media. Can clients make bookings  from your Facebook page ?

6. Instant promotions. If you've identified a period or service that's under-booked, can you send out an email of SMS text message promotion or limited-time deal from within the appointment booking software?

7. Multiple log-in: Can several staff members log in to view and manage appointments at the same time? Can you limit access by role, so that, for example, a Driving Instructor can see his appointments only but not see other instructors appointments?

8. Database. Can it export client contact details and booking history?

9. Portability: Does the service let you export all the data to load into other applications such as  email marketing mailchimp program or accounting software Zero ?

10. Ease of use. It's no fun to struggle with a counter-intuitive interface. Does the booking interface make it easy to find the next availability and make an appointment booking?

Buyer's Guide for Patient Appointment Management Software

Buyer's Guide for Patient appointment management software

 

 The patient appointment management software market is surprisingly complex for such a straightforward application. Most software providers offer some degree of medical appointment management functionality, resulting in a fragmented market with hundreds of options for just about every medical specialty and size of organisation. This guide helps buyers understand the medical appointment management software market and know where to begin their research.

What is Patient appointment management Software?

Electronic patient appointment management systems are designed to help alleviate the burden of no-shows and last-minute calls to reschedule appointments. These systems help practices manage the process of setting patient appointment bookings and follow-ups. At the individual level, systems help practice managers and receptionists record patient contact information and demographics, appointment times, reasons for visits and notes, and billing or insurance information. The primary goals are to help practices automate the appointment booking process, minimise no-shows and cancellations and maximise the number of patient visits.

More advanced Patient appointment management systems will provide automated email and SMS text message reminders to patients, and allow patients to book a confirmed appointment times and complete forms online.

Implementation Strategies

Medical appointment management software buyers will have the option to purchase a standalone system or a full suite of integrated appointment management and billing modules. The right deployment option will depend on the buyers' requirements and budget. In general, most companies that offer medical appointment management software require buyers to purchase multiple modules in a suite.

However, standalone medical appointment management software can be more affordable than complete suites.

Another viable option for buyers looking for an affordable deployment option is to consider software as a service (SaaS), or online Patient appointment management Software. In addition to being a cost-effective way to get a Patient appointment management system up and running, web-based solutions can be easier to host and maintain because the system is installed off-premise and supported by the vendor rather than internal IT staff.

What Type of Buyer Are You?

Before you can evaluate appointment management systems, you’ll want to know what buyer category you belong to. We believe 90%+ of buyers fall into one of these categories:

 Standalone buyers. These buyers are looking for a straightforward solution without lots of bells and whistles, but something robust enough to support their primary needs.

 Complete suite buyers. These buyers work for practices that are looking for appointment functionality integrated with billing modules.

Cost-conscious buyers. These buyers have the most basic needs and are typically looking for an affordable option. They may be open to a online software, but due to their budget they will likely implement an on-premise system.

 Multi-location buyers. These buyers work for practices that need to access appointment data from multiple locations, including satellite offices, hospitals, or home. They often prefer online deployment due to ease of implementation and sharing of data. 

The Patient appointment management Software Markets

These market trends should be considered as you select a system.

SaaS. SaaS solutions have become very popular and comprise a large portion of appointment booking implementations. Web-based deployment makes it easy for smaller practices to implement a system without IT staff, and it also helps large practices share data across multiple locations.  

Patient portal. More and more vendors are offering patient portals that allow patients to request appointment times online. These portals are typically integrated with systems that offer electronic medical records and/or billing. 

Online services.  Online appointment management software is a combination of both a SaaS solution and a Patient portal and allows patients to make their own confirmed appointments online and automates the appointment reminders.

Appointment management software should benefit the providers, front reception staff and the Patient.

Buyers should expect to realise the following benefits when implementing online Appointment booking systems:

Organisation and efficiency. Reception staff should be able to see quickly when providers are available. They should be able to gather patient information and finish the call quickly, allowing them to focus on providing quality service to their patients

Improved provider-patient communication. By receiving automated appointment reminders via SMS text message and email, patients are much more likely to confirm and show up for their scheduled appointment times.

Improved patient experience. By streamlining the appointment booking process, patients face fewer of the annoyances they can face when calling to book an appointments - long hold times, back-and-forth determination of suitable appointments, and lengthy explanations of chief complaints and contact information.

Reduced no-shows. One of the biggest challenges for outpatient health care providers is reducing the number of patients that simply fail to show up for their appointments. This results in wasted time and money. Online appointment management software can help staff track and analyse no-show trends within their practice. In addition, the system can assist in determining the most effective method for managing and sending appointment reminders.

Walk up appointments. Online appointment management software could also permit doctors to offer walk up appointments. While this would require additional staff support to continuously monitor and evaluate appointments, no-shows, and waitlisted patients, it could lead to greater patient satisfaction and revenue.

For more information about online patient appointment management software features.

Appointment booking requirements differ across business sectors

Appointment booking requirements differ across business sectors

bookitlive an expert in online appointment booking software solutions has announced the findings of a recently-released analysis that shows over 20 different time slot durations utilised by its client base. This fact demonstrates the complexity of booking appointments and affirms the need for service providers to adopt a configurable appointment booking software  solution that lets them determine their own booking time-slot increments, not just select them from a small offering of pre-determined times.

bookitlive analysed the following business sectors to determine their booking time slots requirements:

Accountants,  Acupuncturists,  Astrology Readings, Barista Training Course  Beauty Salons,    Bicycle Servicing Workshops,  Bowling Clubs, Car Servicing, Car wash,  Career Coaching, Charities, Children Entertainers, Chiropractors  Day Spas, Dentists,  Dive Instructors, Doctors, Driving Schools, Environmental Auditors, First Aid Training, Fishing Charters, Fitness Centres, Jet Flight Simulators,    Go Karting Centres, Golf Instructors, Gyms, Beauty Salons, Hypnotists, Language  Classes Laser Clinics, Lawn and Garden Maintenance,  Makeup Artists, Maintenance Services, Massage Therapists, Myotherapists, Nail Salons, Naturopaths, Osteopaths, Paintball Centres, Personnel Trainers, Photographer, Physiotherapists, Pilot Training Podiatrists, Real Estate Agents, Recording Studios, Reflexologists, Restaurants,  Surfing School, Tanning Salons, Tattoo Studios,  Tax Agents, Teeth Whitening Clinics, Trampoline Centres Tour Operators, Tutoring Services, Vaccination Services, Uniform Fitting, Veterinarian, Waxing Salon, Weight Loss Centres

“Not every business schedules 15-minute or 30-minute appointments,” says David Godbold, CTO of bookitlive. “Some may schedule two-minute appointments, while others may have a need to schedule 90-minute blocks of time.

The findings show that 15-minute time slots are utilised the most, followed by 30-minute, 60-minute, 10-minute and five-minute. The length of time slots utilised by bookitlive’s clients ranges from one minute all the way up to 360 minutes, showcasing the need businesses and organisations have for appointment booking software.

“The ‘One-Size-Fits-All’ model simply does not work when it comes to appointment booking, as these stats clearly show.”

bookitlive online appointment booking software gives service providers the ability to tailor the perfect booking solution by enabling them to select the exact, specific booking time-slot interval for their appointments bookings. This option allows them to keep existing appointment booking procedures in place without having to change or comprise them when implementing an online appointment booking solution.

Additionally, service providers benefit from the software’s instant accessibility from any Internet-connected smartphone, tablet, laptop or other device, which enables them to view and manage their appointment bookings while “on the go”, on-site with their clients, or from any other locations outside their business.

As a leading online appointment booking software supplier for all-sized businesses from retail to enterprise, bookitlive provides the appointment booking industry’s most proven and dependable features and functionality to automate, streamline and simplify the entire appointment booking process from start to finish. This includes online self-booking, whereby clients can book their own appointment bookings from any Internet connection—including mobile booking on smartphones and tablets such as the iPad, Android—at any hour of the day; automated e-mail and SMS text message reminders sent 24 hours prior to a scheduled appointment time.

Especially well-suited for enterprises, franchises, corporations and large and medium-sized businesses, bookitlive offers the most advanced suite of services designed to enhance the unique online appointment booking needs of these groups. Service offerings include:

• Setup Services
• Training Services
• Premium Support
• Customisation Services

Learn how bookitlive online appointment booking software can work for your business.

About bookitlive: bookitlive provides easy and efficient online appointment booking software for small medium  and enterprise businesses. 

book, booking, booked.

Automated SMS & email appointment reminders for healthcare practices

Automated SMS & email appointment reminders

Use automated SMS & email reminders to reduce “no-shows” and keep your appointment slots full.

Much has changed in healthcare practices over the years, as technological advancements have improved and automated even the simplest of tasks.

From payment processing and managing employee data, to scheduling appointments and storing client information, administrators at practices around the world now have an array of affordable, easy-to-use software tools to help make their jobs easier. This, in turn, can transform practices into well-run and inviting places for both clients and staff.

As with most technologies, some standard functions are sometimes left at the wayside in favour of new options.

In some instances, this is for the better. In others, however, it can be a mistake with unexpected consequences. A good example of this is client appointment reminders.

Appointment reminders are the norm at any service-oriented healthcare practice, business, or organisation whether in the form of a phone call from the receptionist or an appointment card in the mail, these friendly reminders serve two purposes: they are a courtesy to the client and they reduce the number of “no-shows” who miss a scheduled session. They work, as shown by the number of years this process has been around.

While contacting clients to remind them of their upcoming appointments is a simple matter, it can require significant time and expense, depending on the type of reminder sent. The most common manner of reminding clients is by phone, which may at first glance seem to be efficient. However, depending on the size of the practice and number of daily clients, this method can be anything but.

The time spent on making reminder phone calls could be focused on more pressing office needs. In instances where a receptionist is unable to adequately handle this task due to his or her workload, the office may need to hire another receptionist or administrative staffer, thereby increasing salary expense.

Sending a appointment card by mail is another common method for reminding clients of their upcoming appointments. But considering the time and costs that can go into sending customer appointment reminders, it’s no wonder that some healthcare providers have let this tedious — yet important — process go quietly into the night. But they may not realise just how much of an impact reminders can have on the success of a practice.

In fact, numerous studies show that reminders of any kind can help reduce a business’s no-show rate by more than 50 percent. With that figure in mind, practices should look for ways to continue this important task in the most efficient manner possible.

Online booking software to the rescue

The Internet and wireless technology now play an important role in life, and this is key to transforming the appointment-reminder task from a burden to a completely automated and streamlined process. And, unlike older, more traditional computer software programs used by offices on the administrative end, the new online appointment booking software  are interactive and offer services to clients already accustomed to conducting transactions over the Web.

Email is one solution that fits perfectly in a reminder process, given the number of people who now use it as a primary means of communication. The rising number of smartphone users reinforces this option, as many clients can now view their reminders while “on the go” and away from their home or office computer.

iPhone & Android smartphone users are also perfect candidates for automated SMS reminders. These can be even more effective than email, as they are available to clients through their smartphones.

Besides being easier to manage than phone reminders and appointment cards, online and wireless communications are typically more appreciated by clients. They usually prefer to receive an email or SMS text message reminding them of tomorrow’s appointment instead of a phone call or a appointment card in the mail a week or more before their scheduled visit. This is especially true among the younger generation, who’ve always received appointment reminders in this fashion and expect them to be sent this way.

Automating the process

Email and SMS text message reminders are a surefire way to improve your appointment-reminder processes, but there’s one factor missing in this equation: the process by which your practice sends them out.

Although it will decrease the number of no-shows, manually sending email or SMS text message reminders can be just as tedious as contacting clients by phone or through the mail.

This is why many practices turn to online appointment booking software and services that take the hassle out of contacting clients. They will automatically send out an email or SMS text message — or both — 24 hours prior to the scheduled appointment time. All that’s required is the client’s email or mobile number, along with the day and time of his or her appointment.

As with any kind of software, there’s a variety of client-contact programs available, from the very simple to advanced packages that offer additional functionality to the user.

For example: Online appointment booking software that allows clients to schedule their appointments online can automatically schedule their appointment reminder at the same time.

This kind of software can become an integral part of your practice’s processes, so it’s important to do your homework and research numerous programs before selecting one. A growing trend is toward cloud-based services that only require an Internet connection — no downloads or installations required. These generally mesh well with email and SMS  text message reminders. As a bonus, they’re usually affordable, too.

A little effort can go a long way in finding a solution that benefits both your clients and your practice. With regard to automated appointment reminders, you now have the tools to simplify and automate this tedious and time- consuming task.

Find out more about automated SMS Text message & email reminders at bookitlive.