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Solutions for Small Businesses

Nathan Rowe — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:39:48 +0000

Managing the day-to-day operations of a small business can be extremely challenging! Small business owners must meet with clients, communicate with suppliers, and tend to their daily business operations, all while maintaining excellent customer service and providing personal attention to each and every person they come into contact with.

Juggling all those tasks while keeping everyone happy can really be tough sometimes, and in some cases, small business owners may even miss out on a potential opportunity because they spread themselves too thin.

For instance, think of a small one-person photography firm. If the business owner goes to a morning photo shoot, meets with her landlord over lunch to discuss rent on a new office space, then has to spend the afternoon in the darkroom developing the morning’s pictures, she has, by necessity, spent an entire day away from her office phone.

When she finally gets back to the desk at 6:00 p.m., she finds she has a message from a potential new client who was referred to her by an existing client. She is excited to hear from a new person, but that excitement quickly turns to dismay when she realizes the new client wanted to schedule a photo shoot for that weekend, and needed to confirm a time by 3:00 p.m. Our photographer has missed out on a golden opportunity to work with a client who was referred to her by another satisfied customer.

Now imagine this scenario – what if client could schedule appointments online rather than on the phone?

The new client calls the photographer who was referred to him. He listens to her voicemail, which directs him to go to her website and access her online appointment scheduler, since she is unavailable to take the call personally.

The new client goes to the photographer’s company website and clicks on the “schedule appointment” button that is prominently featured on her website. An appointment software program allows the client to schedule a time to meet with the photographer, at his convenience. The online booking software shows available times for the weekend and the client picks one.

When the photographer checks her email at 6:00 that evening, she is thrilled to learn she has an appointment for Saturday afternoon, and that it’s from a referral!

Having the ability for clients and business owners to schedule appointments online is a huge benefit. And you can do it today. So why wait?

AppointITOnline.com offers a 100% online appointment scheduler solution for all industries. Our software allows companies to accept appointments online. AppointIT is an ideal solution for all businesses from health care to salons and more.

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Providing Excellent Services in an Efficient Way

Nathan Rowe — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:39:05 +0000

In today’s fast-paced society, it can be a challenge for someone to get everything done in one day that needs to get done – the dry-cleaning picked up, movies returned to the store, graduation presents bought.

These people are happy to pay a concierge service to take care of some of these mundane tasks. Those that use concierge services are typically very busy clients who value time and customer service.

It’s easy to see that any sort of hassle in scheduling a concierge service would not be appealing to these types of people. If a concierge service is a smaller business, then most of the employees would be busy during the day assisting other clients. They might not have much time to man the phones or schedule additional appointments, at least not until after their existing work is complete.

Luckily, there is a way that clients can schedule concierge services quickly – by using online booking software.

A concierge service can link appointment software to their website, which will allow the client to schedule appointments online, directly from the concierge website.

The process is simple:

Customers log on to the concierge website and access the online scheduler. They specify the type of service they need, when they need it, and at what time.

The concierge service receives an auto-generated notification informing them of the appointment. They can either accept or reject it, or suggest a new time.

The customer receives another reply with the company’s response. If the suggested appointment time was agreeable, this will simply be a confirmation.

The appointment software sends a reminder email to the client.

Using online appointment scheduling software will allow concierge services to present a professional image to clients, it can help improve productivity by cutting down on phone calls, it will enhance your online presence, and can allow you to easily fill gaps in your schedule. You can accept appointments at any time – not just during work hours. Your customers will appreciate the high level of customer service a feature like this provides.

Clients will appreciate online booking software because they can schedule services at their convenience, they can book services at any time – not just during business hours. Clients will receive a confirmation email once the appointment time is confirmed, and they’ll receive a reminder email prior to the service. They can even download appointments to their calendar!

Another great service – provided in an efficient way. That’s something both the concierge service and the client will appreciate!

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Seamless Appointment Setting

Nathan Rowe — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 03:38:07 +0000

How helpful would it be for customers to be able to set their own appointments online by simply visiting a company or business website? Extremely. How much time could a business save by using appointment software instead of spending time on the phone setting appointments? Plenty.

Think of a doctor’s office where patients go online and set their own appointments themselves…they could pick and choose from a plethora of available times rather than having to go back and forth with an office manager. And the office manager could spend her time updating patient records or filing insurance claims instead of negotiating with a customer.

Conversations like this would be a thing of the past:

“Does 9:00 on Monday work for you?”

“No, I am always in a staff meeting at work at that time.”

“OK, then how about 2:00 on Wednesday?”

“That won’t work either – my little girl’s school play is Wednesday.”

“Then how about Friday at 11:00?”

“That could work. I have a lunch date at noon. Can you guarantee I’d be done by 11:45?”

“Well…not really. I guess we’re into next week.”

Is this irritating? Definitely – for both the customer and the office worker. Yet some people would say it’s a necessary evil of doing business. These days, that’s absolutely not true!

Think about this process instead, using an online appointment scheduler:

Customers go to a business/company/office website and book their own appointment, following easy, intuitive steps in an online booking software program. The customer selects the location (perfect for health care offices that have multiple locations); they choose their preferred date and time; and then they answer any customized questions the business may have in order to pre-screen the appointment. For instance, a doctor’s office may want to know if the customer is having any problems, or if this is a routine wellness visit.

The business receives an automatic notification that an appointment has been set.

The business representative (office manager, etc.) may accept or decline the appointment, or they may request a change to the appointment. However, if the business works diligently to keep their online scheduling book up-to-date, most of the time changes would not need to occur.

The customer receives a message about the status of their appointment – if no changes were made, it is simply a confirmation. If the business does need to make changes, the customer will receive a counter-offer, giving them alternate times to meet.

Once the business and the customer agree on a time, the appointment is officially set. The customer receives an e-mail reminder prior to the appointment.
Voila! Appointment setting made easy!

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Helping Stylists Be Savvier

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 02:24:43 +0000

Massage therapists, hairstylist, manicurists, pedicurists and anyone else that works in the multi-million dollar health and beauty industry are among some of the hardest-working people around.

They are on their feet most of the day, they are constantly bending over and reaching up, they have to maintain their tools and equipment, set appointments for future customers and make everyone happy – all with a smile on their face.

Being able to do these special skills takes training and practice, and each individual person has unique talents that make them good at what they do.

There is one area that could be improved…appointment scheduling. It’s almost guaranteed that if someone runs her own shop or is responsible for setting her own appointments, she will almost never be able to actually answer the phone when it rings. Clients who desperately need their roots covered up, or brides-to-be who are frantically trying to schedule a picture-perfect manicure are left at the mercy of voicemail.

By the end of the day, the stylist is so tired the last thing he or she wants to do is return phone calls, but return them they must in order to ensure continued business success. So the stylist calls the client, only to hear, “We’re eating dinner. Can I call you back?” Sigh.

The good news is that there IS an easier way.

Clients can simply visit a salon’s website to set appointments online using appointment software that is built-in to the salon’s own website.
It’s simple and effective online booking software that allows the client to set appointments exactly when they need them, at the time they prefer, and they are able to do it instantly, without waiting for a call back from the stylist. Clients are also able to relay any important information the stylist needs to know.

Then, the stylist simply receives a notification that an appointment has been set. They can be cutting someone’s hair and simply look over at their smart phone and see they now have an appointment for the Monday afternoon gap they’d been trying to fill. Or, if schedules have changes, the stylist can send a message back to the client suggesting a new time.

Once the time is set, the software program will even send a confirmation email to the client to remind them of their appointment.

Removing the stress of appointment setting will be great for everyone. The client doesn’t have to wait for a return call and the stylist has more time to do their job.

Since the online appointment scheduler does all the work for the stylist and the client, everyone has more time to look beautiful!

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Increase Number of Appointments – Increase Your Sales!

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 02:24:12 +0000

A typical insurance agent’s day might go something like this:

Todd, our agent, begins his day with breakfast with a client at 7:00 a.m.

At breakfast, Todd’s cell phone rings but he ignores it since he’s meeting with a customer. The caller leaves a message, but Todd doesn’t get a chance to listen to it because on his way out of the restaurant, the owner stops Todd to ask him about group insurance for his 30 employees.

After explaining the basics of group insurance to the restaurant owner and promising to come back later that day with some sales literature, Todd finally leaves the restaurant at 8:45. He has to hurry to make a 9:00 sales meeting back at the office.

During the meeting, Todd’s cell phone rings again. He has another message, but can’t listen to it until after the meeting is over.

As soon as the meeting ends at 10:00, Todd picks up his two voicemails. They are from Lisa and David, both of whom are new potential clients. Todd immediately calls Lisa back. He gets her voicemail, so he leaves her a message. David’s message said he would be unavailable from 10:00 – 2:00, so Todd plans to call David later in the day.

Todd has another appointment at lunch, and on his way back to the office his phone rings again. This time, the caller is Marla – an existing client who wants to meet with Todd. She wants to know Todd’s schedule so she can compare times with her and her husband’s schedule.

Todd has an appointment with another client at 1:30. At 2:30, he calls David back on his way to drop off the brochures to the restaurant owner, but gets his voicemail. Todd leaves a message, and quickly runs into the restaurant to drop off the brochures. He ends up being inside for about five minutes – long enough to miss David’s return phone call.

He calls David back and the two plan a time to meet – nearly eight hours after David’s initial phone call.

Todd isn’t able to connect with Lisa until much later that evening – nearly 10 hours after her initial phone call.

When he gets to work the next day, he has a message from Marla asking him to call her to finalize an appointment time.

So, Todd finally has been able to schedule his three appointments, after many voicemails and return phone calls.

Imagine how much easier Todd’s life would be if he were able to use online booking software.

Instead of calling him and leaving voicemails and waiting on return phone calls, Todd’s new clients could schedule their appointments online, directly from Todd’s already-established business website.

Appointment software exists that can be integrated into a company’s or agents existing page to allow the customer to schedule appointments online – making everyone’s life easier.

It’s easy to see from Todd’s hectic schedule that an integrated online appointment scheduler would be a great solution for busy salespeople throughout the country.

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Helping to Provide a Whole New Level of Care

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 02:23:39 +0000

Therapists and counselors are caring people. Their job demands they are compassionate, understanding and empathetic.

In recent years, the trend has been toward therapists being more self-sufficient than they ever have been before. In order to protect privacy and maintain their clients’ confidentiality, most therapists are responsible for keeping their own appointment book.

As a result, many times their patients will call to schedule appointments with them while they are in session. Patients must leave a voicemail, and the counselor may only have a few minutes in between appointments to call people back. If the client is in a meeting or has gone to lunch, another opportunity to connect has been missed. Then the counselor leaves a voicemail, but of course when the client calls back the counselor is probably in session again.

Going back and forth is no doubt frustrating for the counselor and his patient. And if the patient is suffering from serious mental health problems, then getting in touch with their counselor quickly is very important.

Luckily, there is a solution that can help everyone – appointment software. The counselor can integrate this online booking software directly into his website for seamless appointment setting.

The process is easy:

The client visits her counselor’s website and accesses the user-friendly online appointment scheduler. The client picks a date and time to meet with her counselor that is convenient for her, and types in any issues that may be important for her counselor to know ahead of time. Only available dates and times will show, so that clients won’t be able to double-book times with the counselor.

When the counselor next has an opportunity to check his e-mail, he sees that an appointment has been scheduled by one of his clients. He can either accept or decline the appointment. Or, if there is a conflict that recently came up, he can suggest a new time. He makes the appropriate entry in the online scheduler.

The client then automatically receives a message about the status of her appointment – the counselor doesn’t have to actually type out an email or call her back, which is a very important time-saving step.

Once the appointment has been formally set, the client then receives an e-mail reminder prior to the appointment. The counselor may also choose to add the appointment to their calendar automatically if they are using programs that support each other.

Setting appointments online will no doubt add to the level of care a health care provider can give his patients, and it will put the patients at ease because they know they can easily schedule a time to meet with their doctor.

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Alleviating Tax Season Headaches

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:05:20 +0000

“Tax season” is everyone’s least favorite season. Sure, people like football season. They like the holiday season. And of course the summertime season is everyone’s favorite!

But the phrase “tax season” is a bad word to those accountants that must work 20-hour days just to get everything done by Uncle Sam’s deadline of April 15.

Every year, accountants work until midnight, rushing to the post office at 11:59, just so their procrastinating clients’ taxes will be filed on-time.

So think about the hard-working accountant who, on top of doing all this number-crunching, actually has to answer the phone and set appointments for those clients who waited until March or early April to start the arduous process of filing their taxes. Just when a CPA finally has all the receipts entered for his client’s small business expenses, and he’s ready to really get down to work, the phone rings – interrupting his concentration and perhaps even causing a paperwork avalanche as he reaches across the desk to answer the infernal thing.

So what if this accounting firm had a website where clients could actually set their own appointments online? Wouldn’t that be marvelous?

Good news, weary bean counters. Online appointment software does exist, and it can be imbedded directly into a company’s website.

Here’s how it works:

Clients visit a firm’s website and utilize the online scheduler to set an appointment. The firm will list available times, and the client simply picks the location (if your firm has multiple branches), the day and time they prefer, and in some cases, will even answer a few questions so they will be matched with the person who can best help them. For instance, it might make sense to ask if they are an individual, a married couple, or a business owner, or if they’ve recently moved from another state.

The firm receives an automatic notification that an appointment has been set.

The business representative (office manager, etc.) has several options. She may choose to accept the appointment, decline it, or suggest a different time.

After the business enters their data, then an automatic notification is sent back to the customer. If no changes were made, they will receive a confirmation. Or if the business suggested a different time, the customer can accept or reject the alternate time.

Eventually, the appointment will be officially set at a time that the customer and business are both happy with. And as the finishing touch, the customer receives an e-mail reminder.

Tax season might not be so brutal anymore!

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Great Smiles Made Easy!

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:04:52 +0000

Chances are no one has ever said, “I have a dentist appointment tomorrow and I am so excited about it!” Phrases like that are rarely spoken, unless you’re 15 and getting your braces taken off.

Most of the time, when we receive a reminder call about an upcoming dental visit, the response is a cross between a groan and a sigh.

Then when you get to the dentist’s office, you find out you have work that needs to be done – a filling may need to be replaced, or you might have some gum recession the dentist wants to keep an eye on.

Either way, you don’t get to leave quite yet. First you have to stop by the front desk and have a conversation that goes something like this:

“OK, so Dr. Evans wants to see you back to take care of that filling. What about tomorrow at 7:30?”

No one in their right mind wants to go to the dentist two days in a row, so you politely decline via a little white lie. “Sorry, that won’t work. I have a meeting at 8:30.”

“What about Friday afternoon?”

“No, that won’t work either. My son has a t-ball game at 3:00 and I am the snack Mom.”

“Well, the next week Dr. Evans is on vacation, so now we’re looking at the third week in November.”

“OK. That will be fine.” Then you think – Thanksgiving week? Will I be able to eat pumpkin pie if I have a filling replaced?

You leave, but you’re planning to call back and re-schedule the appointment just to be on the safe side. When you do, you’ll have a variation of the same discussion.

Now imagine how much easier it would be if you could just say, “Oh, I’ll set my appointment later.”

Then when you get home that evening, you can go to Dr. Evans’ website and use the online appointment scheduler feature.

You can set your own appointments online, at the time and day you prefer, and get feedback from other family members about any big events that may be coming up. For instance, you may not want to have a root canal on the same day your daughter is in a dance recital.

The appointment software that is in use today is user-friendly, fast and efficient for both the client and the business.

The client simply schedules their appointment, the office receives notification, the office accepts or suggests a new time for the appointment, and the customer receives confirmation. The customer will even get a reminder email that is automatically generated by the online booking software.

Pumpkin pie AND a great smile? That’s something to be thankful for!

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Helping Personal Trainers Be More Personable

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:04:15 +0000

Many people in the workforce today work in an office environment – they are near a computer or a phone, and are relatively easy to get in touch with.

Personal trainers are entirely different. While many of us are sitting at our desks while we work, personal trainers are out in the gym, at the pool, in the park or on the jogging track sweating right along with their client.

This high level of activity obviously doesn’t lend itself well to the trainer being able to talk on the phone or check his email for messages.

So – how in the world do people ever get in touch with a personal trainer to make an appointment? With a lot of pain and very little gain. In other words, with a lot of phone calls and voicemails and messages.

There is a way to help personal trainers be more personable by being easier to reach, and simpler to do business with. The answer is online booking software.

Let’s say a trainer works at a large national chain gym. These gyms are almost always packed, so the trainer is almost always busy the whole time he or she is at work. Obviously, they aren’t walking around with a cell phone in their pocket – workout wear typically doesn’t offer much in the way of cell phone cargo space.

So, if you are a client and you are trying to reach your trainer, you are at the mercy of the front desk clerks. They may give your trainer a message, they may not. So if you don’t hear anything in a few hours, you call back. By the time your trainer picks up your frantic message that you need to lose five pounds by Saturday, it may be too late that day to even fit in a workout.
Yet what if this large national gym chain had a website that featured built-in online booking software? What if you could schedule appointments online instead of waiting to speak to your trainer?

There is a type of appointment software companies can use that will integrate with their company website. Clients can set their own appointments, at the location they prefer, with the trainer they want, at the time and day of their choice (based on trainer availability).

The trainer and/or gym will receive an automatic notification that a client has scheduled an appointment through the online appointment scheduler feature. They accept the appointment if the time works for them, then another message is generated for the customer confirming the appointment time. The client even receives a reminder notice.

Now there’s a way to get rid of pesky pounds faster!

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Easing the Back to School Grind

Nathan Rowe — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:03:41 +0000

The end of August and the first of September are exciting times. Football season has started, Fall is in the air, and students all across America are preparing to return to school. Everyone is feeling energetic and excited…everyone except the college and university staff members who are responsible for scheduling classes.

For them, the one or two-week period before school starts is full of unhappy students who just couldn’t make their class schedule work. These students have to trudge down to the administration offices and wait to see a scheduling counselor. And they wait. And they wait. Some of them may be upcoming seniors who just realized they somehow missed taking Probability and Statistics, and now those classes are full of incoming freshmen. Others are sophomores who waited a little bit too late to fix their course schedule, and now they are stuck with back-to-back Biology and Chemistry labs on Friday afternoon. Yuck.

Because the counselors are busy with students all day, they don’t have time to answer the phone to set appointments in order to meet with future students. They barely have time to eat lunch. And the students who have been waiting for hours in the hallway are no doubt wishing they had a more exciting afternoon planned.

So how great would it be if the students could easily pick a time to come see the counselor? And the counselor could schedule a 30-minute break to go check out the new football stadium? Great news – they can!

Software that is designed specifically for setting appointments online is becoming more and more prevalent, and it’s a perfect tool for colleges and universities.

This appointment software allows visitors to a website to set their own appointments directly from the college’s website.

So if a student needed to see a counselor about their class schedule, he would simply to the university’s website and click on the online appointment scheduler link. He could then pick what counselor he wanted to see, the date and time he wanted to see the counselor, and he’d have the option to give any pertinent information the counselor might want to know ahead of time, such as “If I don’t get into the Global Economics course I can’t graduate.”

This online booking software has a multitude of applications in the educational environment. Potential students could use it to set up a time to tour the campus. Existing students could use it to meet with their academic advisor.

The possibilities are endless, and the appointment software is easy to use and easy to integrate with any existing website.

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