No one wants to sit on hold anymore. They don’t want to call your business, they don’t want you to call them, they want to text.
We’ve written before, about how to send appointment reminders and confirmation via text. Its one of our most well-known blog posts.
Now we’re going to discuss how to set those appointments to begin with.
Why Texting?
In a recent study, more than 89% of consumers said they would prefer for a business to engage with them via text, rather than a phone call. The reason: simplicity. It is far simpler to send a text message and set an appointment than it is a phone call.
Recently I needed to set an appointment for a service with a car dealership. The dealership did not offer texting. So, I had to call the main number, push 2 to talk to service, talk to the service operator, and then wait until a service advisor got on the call.
Two straight times I was either disconnected or went to voicemail.
The entire interaction took over 20 minutes. This was 20 minutes I didn’t have.
If I could have sent a text message, the entire interaction could have (and should have) taken 20 seconds.
That’s why texting is an important tool.
Step-by-Step Guide to Set Appointments Via Text
1) Provide texting as an option. Make sure you have a ‘Text Us’ button on your website and ensure that your phone number is text enabled. The first and most important step to setting text appointments is to provide it.
Your customers want to text you, let them.
2) Proper menu structure - Once you’ve provided texting as an option, make sure that the conversation is simple and easy to navigate.
For instance, when someone clicks on the ‘Text Us’ button on your website, you can customize the menu structure. One of those options should be ‘Set an Appointment’
3) Routing – When someone clicks ‘Set an Appointment’ what happens? We strongly recommend that two things happen simultaneously
a. An automatic text is sent to the person who sent the text that thanks them for their text.
b. A REAL PERSON is automatically placed into the conversation within seconds. This is vital. A real person can vet the appointment and ensure that the person is real and is serious.
4) Clear scheduling – Be super clear about the date and time of the appointment. Too often conversations about appointments are left vague and frustrating.
Once the appointment is scheduled make sure you follow the proper steps here to confirm them.
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