When you answer the phone you need to be listening carefully and asking key questions so that you can make an appointment for the caller.

Now, how good is your memory?

If you are listening and asking questions you also need to be recording the information that the caller is sharing with you.

The information you record on the call is needed to make the correct appointment, to give enough appointment time and is so important for the Dentist to know prior to the appointment.

The best way to record the information from a phone call is to write it down.

There is the option to type information but the sound of your keyboard will be distracting to the caller.

The easiest way to record information on a call is to write it down with a pen and paper.

I know it is a bit old fashioned but there are certain situations when it is still the best and most efficient way to record information and this is one of them.

It is amazing how much more information you will record if you do it at the time of the call rather than trying to remember at the end of the call.

In a court of law a recording and transcripts are used to record the proceedings so no information is missed. The same should be happening in a Dental Office.

Why would you want to miss out on remembering important information that helps you help your patients?

During the call you will ask the caller’s name, write it down and say the name back during the call. No forgetting the caller’s name.

Writing down during the call also gives you the opportunity to repeat information back to the caller showing that you are attentive and a good listener.

If you are writing everything down during the call you are more likely to ask more questions and also build more urgency and concern with the caller.

If your phone is being answered and no one is writing down and recording each call you are never going to be getting all the information you need and it is very likely you are not making as many appointments.

Not recording the calls also means you have absolutely no record of those calls that come into the Dental Office that do not result in an appointment being made. Having a record of those calls that make no appointment means that you now know how many calls are not being converted into appointments.

And you can easily find out why from the call information you record and with this data you are then more able to fix this!

Recording each call and writing down the information at the time of the call is a very natural thing to do.

I recommend a large notebook, or phone logbook, to be kept beside the phone.

If your office isn’t making a record of its phone calls, then it needs to start doing so.

What gets recorded gets improved upon.

There is so much data and useful information that we are failing to gather.

And without that information, we really are simply guessing and supposing.

And what sort of a way is that to run our business?

What sort of a way is that to help our patients?

 

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On Friday August 19 and Saturday August 20 I will be co-presenting Dental Phone Excellence in London England at Dr. David Moffet’s Ultimate Patient Experience Workshop.
Click here for details and Early Bird Registration.
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This blog will feature simple practical ideas that are easy to implement tomorrow in your Dental Office, impacting immediately on your Patients’ Dental  Phone Experiences, and ultimately, improving your practice profitability.

At present I have availability for four new private clients. For more information on how I can improve your Dental Office’s Phone Numbers contact me, Jayne Bandy at  jayne@theDPE.com