Are You Unintentionally Turning Away New Patients?

If I were to call your practice today around noon what would happen? If I were a potential new patient inquiring about your services, would I get to speak to someone who will answer my questions and invite me in for a consultation? Or will I get a message saying that your office is closed for lunch and inviting me to leave a message?

This is a question with bigger implications than most practices realize, for a few reasons. For one thing, the customary lunch hour is a common time for a lot of people to catch up on personal errands, such as finding a dentist. So they might leave a message if there is nobody answering at your office, or they might not, because they have to get back to work soon and don’t want to have deal with the telephone tag game. Also, because nowadays they are likely to be making that call with a web search results screen open in front of them, often the easiest thing for them to do is to just hang up and move to the next name on the list. These are the ghosts of patients not seen—the missed opportunities you never even knew you had.

This is why I think it is important to stagger breaks at the front desk so that there is always someone available to answer the phones. Naturally in smaller practices, and in certain situations, that isn’t always possible—in those situations I recommend that your outgoing message make it clear that you welcome new patients and that when the staff returns any new inquires are dealt with as a priority.

Then there is the question of what kind of response a caller gets when they do get through to a person. I think we have all had the experience of making inquires at a professional office and finding ourselves talking with someone whose tone and demeanor make it clear that they consider your call an interruption of their busy duties. Or even if they seem welcoming and friendly, their interaction with you is swift and efficient, and they don’t take the time to learn more about you, what you need, and how they can help.

This is why I say it is absolutely imperative that anyone who answers the phone in your practice is trained and skilled at handling new patient inquires—that they know not just the right answers to give, but the right questions to ask, that they can set the right expectations for the patient and get them committed to a consultation appointment.

How to handle that crucial initial contact is Number One on my list of the eight steps of an ideal new patient experience, which you can find outlined in these online courses.  If you have any doubt about the way your team is prepared to deal with these calls, I urge you to watch these together.