Dentists can provide better customer service with the help of a virtual receptionist. Find out all the reasons why in our article.
How Dentists Can Provide Better Customer Service
Customer service is one of the most important aspects of dentistry. If your patients aren’t comfortable with you and your office, they won’t want to keep coming back. It’s an absolute necessity if you want to build long-term relationships with patients and earn their trust and loyalty. What’s more, excellent customer experiences are one of the best ways to get more patients for your dental practice.We previously shared some helpful dental practice management tips. In this post, we’ll show you how dentists can provide better customer service.
Maximize Comfort
A dentist office is a place where many people feel naturally uncomfortable. Some have phobias about going to the dentist, and others are scared of potential pain or bad news. You can combat this by elevating comfort levels as much as possible – both in the waiting room and in the actual dental office. For example, here are some ways you can make the waiting room and office more comfortable:
- Add luxurious chairs
- Have a mini-fridge with bottles of water
- Add a flat screen TV
- Relaxing music
- Comfortable dental chairs
Then, when patients are actually in the dental chair, you can make them a bit more comfortable by building rapport. By asking simple questions like “How have you been?” and getting a short conversation going, you can make your patients feel a little more at ease.In general, when interacting with patients, aim to show empathy. You want them to feel like you understand their concerns and questions – not like you’re just going through the motions and treating another patient.
Add More Services
Nowadays, people rely on dentists to do more than just cleanings and fillings. So, if you want to stay relevant and top-of-mind to patients, you should add more services. Whitening options, veneer applications, cosmetic dentistry, and root canals are some of the services you can add to your arsenal. That way, patients will be comfortable knowing they can come to you for all of their dental needs (and won’t have to visit several dentists!).
Maintain a Quality Website
Your website is your home base. When you have a quality site, you make it easy for patients and prospective patients to contact you, ask for help, and learn more about your services. It’s also great for search engine optimization and can help you get more exposure and patients. Plus, you can list events, testimonials, informational resources, and other helpful content.
Ask For Feedback – And Implement It
How do your customers feel about your customer service? This is the great thing about feedback – you can get their thoughts and then implement their feedback and improve. When you ask for feedback, you show your patients that you care, and also that you are constantly trying to improve. To ask, you can do something as simple as send a post-appointment email with a survey, feedback form, or questionnaire. Look at the trends in the feedback, and consider what you can implement to improve the experience for your patients.
Hire a Virtual Receptionist
At any given time, you might have a big influx of patient calls. Those are tough to handle on your own. Luckily you don’t have to…With the help of a virtual receptionist, you can make sure someone is always there to answer those patient calls, so your patients never feel abandoned. Here are just a few ways a virtual receptionist can help your dental business:
- Book and confirm appointments
- Provide directions or other information about the office
- Provide information about your dental services
- They can give you 24/7 coverage, which allows patients to get the info they need at any time, day or night
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The best part is you can get a virtual receptionist for a tiny fraction of the cost of a full-time in-office receptionist. To learn more about how virtual receptionists and dental answering service can help your business, check out this page.
Conclusion
When you provide great customer service, you’ll get more dental patients and build loyalty with your current dental patients. What other ways have you improved the customer service for your dental practice? Let us know in the comments below!
