As businesses try to cope with the resurgence of COVID cases, many veterinary practices are, once again, implementing a curbside-service approach. As Maya Angelou says, “When you know better, you do better,” and practices can use this as an opportunity to take their curbside game to the next level.
Whether you’re using a hybrid model or offering full curbside appointments for clients, these five tips will help you and your team turn your parking lot into a waiting room, and improve client and team experiences.
1: Allow clients to easily check in from their car
Vet2Pet’s Visit Tracker feature allows clients to safely and conveniently check in for appointments from the comfort of their vehicle.
How it works:
- Clients with the app installed on their device can check in when they arrive by clicking a button in the app or by clicking on the automatic notification they receive prior to their appointment.
- Clients without the mobile app installed can scan a QR code placed on your curbside sign (just like restaurants use to view the menu), or click on the link in their automatic email confirmation.
2: Keep clients informed about their pet’s status
Give clients peace of mind with updates on their pet’s status throughout their journey in your practice. With Visit Tracker, a specific team member can be assigned to each visit, the status of the appointment can be updated and displayed for visibility to the entire team through the Vet2Pet dashboard, and updates can be sent to the pet owner through your veterinary hospital’s app.
3: Encourage 2-Way Texting for more efficient communication
Stop the insanity of heavy phone volume by encouraging your clients to message you digitally. Using 2-Way Texting, practices can send and receive text messages directly through the Vet2Pet dashboard. This means one person can handle multiple messages at the same time so the rest of your team can focus on helping the clients and patients at your practice.
4: Designate a digital coordinator
When a team member has to isolate from COVID exposure, have them run the digital communications—from appointment requests to two-way communications—remotely from home. It’s easy to do with this step-by-step guide to get started with a digital coordinator.
5: Remain calm and protect the workload
If you are getting hammered with overflow urgent and same-day cases, consider turning some of your day, or certain days of the week, into walk-in hours. Don’t try to keep up with your preventative wellness care visits and procedures if your team is getting slammed with add-ons. And, don’t forget to prioritize your team’s wellbeing. Do not schedule more than the staff you have can mentally—or physically—handle, and never tolerate any type of bullying or verbal abuse.
Curbside services are here to stay, folks—COVID or not—and Vet2Pet platform features, like Visit Tracker, will make seeing appointments a more efficient process while elevating the client experience! If you are already a Vet2Pet customer, reach out to your success coach if you have questions about using Visit Tracker. Don’t have the Vet2Pet platform? Schedule a demo to find out how it can help your veterinary practice with curbside services and much more!
