Michael from RJK Optometry, Coffs Harbour, made the switch from sending letter recalls to all patients to sending EasyRecall SMS through MyHealth1st. Jodie Green from MyHealth1st sat down with Michael and asked him a few questions about the decision to change up his recall delivery method and how that change increased his recall success rate by over 200%.
Why did you decide to switch from letter recalls to EasyRecall SMS?
We were using online bookings for some time and when EasyRecalls came around I was asked to try it out. It wasn’t a huge decision. We knew that we wanted to differentiate ourselves and so decided to just give it a go. Once we made the switch, it went gangbusters! There was no going back. People sit on letters so much, there is a big delay in getting a response whereas with EasyRecalls, the response is instant!
Tell me about the transition process from letters to EasyRecalls
There was none. We just ran with it and tracked the results. My recall success went from 25% success within a three-month period to a whopping 60% success rate when I used EasyRecalls.
My patients were already receiving SMS’s from us for appointment reminders and notifications for glasses or contact lens collections so the concept of communication via SMS was not foreign to my patients.
Can you tell me 3 key benefits of using EasyRecalls in your opinion?
- Cost! It is much lower than the $1.30 I was spending on letters.
- Immediacy of the recall. I know I will see a spike in phone calls and online bookings when I send out the EasyRecall campaign.
- Increased response rate. My recall success went from 25% to over 60%.
For those people who are considering switching from letters to EasyRecall SMS, what advice would you give them?
It's time to modernise!
We constantly need to look at things to differentiate us from the corporates and offer increased convenience to our patients. Interestingly, the average age of patients booking online at my practice is over 60 years of age. This even surprised me! Many people think that the offering of online bookings is to target the younger ones, but that has been disproven in my practice. Everyone, regardless of age, appreciates the convenience.
EasyRecalls is available as a complimentary upgrade for all Provision members already using MyHealth1st Online Bookings. Contact MyHealth1st to learn more.
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