LAS VEGAS – You might not equate your waiting room with patient satisfaction, but marketing expert Risa Goldman Luksa says there may no greater reflection of your practice.
"Your waiting room is really an extension of you," Mrs. Luksa said at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Cosmetic Surgery. "Patients spend a lot of time in your waiting room, so make sure it conveys the impression you want to give. You want to keep it clean and professional. It’s a good idea for someone on your staff to walk through the waiting room every 30 minutes to make sure it is tidy. Pick up cups if someone left them, as well as any trash, newspapers, or magazines left behind."
If you are running behind schedule, that person can remind patients that you haven’t forgotten about them. "It’s also a good idea to provide coffee, water, and other light refreshments," said Mrs. Luksa. "If you do that, make sure your front office staff asks patients if they can get them something to drink or eat. These are nice touches."
Mrs. Luksa, founder and president of Los Angeles-based Goldman Marketing Group, offered the following strategies to enhance the waiting room experience for patients:
• Ditch the magazines. "You’re not a nail salon," she said. "You’re selling high-end procedures, so I would get rid of all the magazines and display your own marketing materials instead. Your waiting room is your golden marketing opportunity, so don’t let it advertise for other people."
• Ditch the clocks. Just like the casino operators in Las Vegas prefer that you not keep track of time, "You don’t want people to be watching the clock and keeping track how late you might be running," Mrs. Luksa said.
Courtesy Risa Goldman Luksa
Displaying the cosmetic products you sell is one practical way to enhance the appearance of your waiting room.
• Create a peaceful atmosphere. Having a television show or radio station blaring, or allowing patients to talk on their cell phones while they wait can be distracting. "Move your practice telephones away from the front desk, especially if they’re loud and the phones ring off the hook," Mrs. Luksa advised. "When you do this, it allows people at the front desk to give their full attention to people in the waiting room. This is important. You want them to have that full attention. Equally, it allows whoever is answering the phones to give their full attention to people calling in."
• Offer amenities that showcase your practice. Branded water bottles are a nice touch, as are flash drives, containers of hand sanitizer, and tubes of Chap Stick. "These are all cost-effective solutions," Mrs. Luksa said. "Most of them you can order for $1 or $2 apiece." She also recommends investing in a custom entrance rug that sports your practice logo.
• Offer free Wi-Fi. Since most practices are likely to have a wireless Internet network, "why not let your patients know about that and give them a password? While they’re waiting, it’s really nice if they can log on and surf the Web on their iPhones."
• Use clean-looking intake and consent forms. "You would be surprised at how many offices I have walked into and they are using blotchy photocopies [of these forms]," Mrs. Luksa said. "Over the years, they get messy looking and they’re hard to read. Make your intake forms and your consent forms are clean looking and professional. Make sure they contain your branding and make the forms as short as possible."
Risa Goldman Luksa
• Ask patients to fill out a brief cosmetic questionnaire. This contains a checklist of services offered by your practice, along with a statement at the top of the page inviting the patient to please check any procedure below you are interested in learning about. "This is a great opportunity to cross market your services without a strong sales approach," said Mrs. Luksa. "Make sure to use these forms in your patient consultation and to record the results in your electronic health records for future targeted marketing efforts."
• Printed newsletters have a place. While some may view this means of communication as old-fashioned, a printed newsletter "is another great source of unique and relevant reading material for patients," Mrs. Luksa said. "You can repurpose the blogs on your website so you’re not re-creating something from scratch. It’s also a good way to advertise your promotions. Plus, you can easily spin it into an e-newsletter to e-mail to your patient database, which is great for patient retention."