These days we are bombarded by information every day. People have numerous ways of communicating with you and we all have too many messages to comfortably deal with. An empty in-box is a near impossible dream. As a business it is not always a good idea to be a significant part of all this “noise”.
A recent incident with my opticians practice brought this home to me recently.
I took my children some while ago for an eye test. About 2 months ago the practice wrote to me to say it was time they came in for another. Unlike myself when I last took my two, they had near prefect vision. So, I decided to not make an appointment just yet. A bit more time passed and then a computer somewhere must have been triggered and numerous texts and e-mail came in to try and persuade me to make an appointment. When that didn’t work the phone calls started with messages left on my mobile. I started ignoring anything with their name on.
Now I go regularly to the opticians and showed up for an eye test. I needed a referral for a small skin tag removing. The optician, who is new to the area, was going to find out the options and get back to me. I didn’t hear anything from her so mentioned it the next time I was in.
I then had a message from the optician the next day on my phone. She had tried several times to get me. You guessed it I had assumed the messages were more pushy sales calls! I sheepishly told the receptionist to pass on my apologies.
So yes, if you are thinking of coming to our practice you can e mail me or send me a Facebook message etc. In my humble opinion though, the best communication is still a face to face conversation. So, pick up the phone and book in and let’s have an old-fashioned chat!
If you are already a patient, I hope we don’t overdo the more modern types of communication and I look forward to speaking to you soon.