One of the fastest ways to improve your bottom line is to fix your plastic surgery practice phones.
I oftentimes consult with plastic surgeons who have one or several receptionists handling their cosmetic practice calls. Usually, one of these receptionists is excellent and the others are ok but need help because they are losing callers.
No matter how many times you tell them what to say, they will often say something random and lose the caller.
Or you hear them say something like this: “We don’t have any openings this Friday”…and then click! They hang up!
If the staff is properly trained, they would offer another Friday or suggest the caller be added to your wait list. Then ask for the caller’s cell phone in case there were any last-minute openings.
But instead, they didn’t get the caller’s information so they are lost forever.
Your Practice Phones Are the Key to Your Success
Remember, all of your marketing strategies are for naught and new patients are NEVER going to meet you if your receptionist can’t successfully convert these callers into appointments.
Frankly, your receptionist may be unknowingly sabotaging your best practice promotional efforts, as well as your word-of-mouth referrals, simply because they don’t have the skill they need to promote YOU professionally.
Every call into your practice not only affects your bottom line; but it also enhances or destroys your image. Your staff can represent you as a true professional or not – but the choice is up to you.
During my staff training sessions, I often hear, “But I don’t know what to say when the patient says that.” Or, “What else could I have said that would have made a difference?” My answer is – plenty!
Prepare your receptionist for success.
Every plastic surgery practice has experienced “bad phones” that cost them
patients and thousands of dollars in lost revenues.
Here’s the good news: The solution to Fix Your Plastic Surgery Phones is simple but not easy.
There are 3 essential elements needed to turn your front desk into a profit center:
First, you need the right person in that position. Someone who has a cheerful disposition, a friendly and upbeat voice, and a great customer service attitude. They also have to be open to learning and growing. Constructive criticism is fine with them, since they want to do the best job for you they can. They also look the part and come to work with a professional image.
Second, give them proper training to include scripts and strategies so they no longer “wing it”. They are confident because they know what is expected of them and how they are to handle the frequently asked questions so they get to their objective and that is to book callers to appointments. They are now more relaxed because they can concentrate on what the caller is saying rather than what they are going to say next.
Third, you need to hold them accountable so they consistently perform well for you and BOOK appointments. They must be on their game 100% of the time and not just when you’re watching. It’s human nature to fall back into bad habits so your receptionist needs regular training and feedback, as well as accountability so they know you expect them to be on their game on every call.
That’s how you turn your receptionist into a professional ambassador for your cosmetic practice who fills up your schedule.
You equip them with effective responses, phrases and questions to help them not only bond with and educate your patients, but actually close the caller to a booked appointment. Or, at least follow up on those callers who not ready to book.
With the right words to say, your staff will be so comfortable with the process and so prepared that they’ll look forward to phone calls and patient interactions because they’re confident, trained and ready to convert appointments!
Enroll your front desk staff in The Converting Club for Receptionists and I’ll train them for you. Using training videos, quizzes, scripts and mystery shopping, your staff will become professionally-trained rock stars.
