The Value of Reminder Calls for Service Providers

With all the other chores I have in life, giving clients reminder calls is one of my least favorite tasks. However I’ve found that a reminder all or text 24 hours before an appointment has drastically cut down on “no shows”. The clients who are most likely not to show up are first timers. If I must leave a voicemail the wording isrnsomething like this. “This is Denise Williams, of Much Kneaded Massage calling to confirm our appointment for tomorrow Tuesday Jan 29 at 11:00am. Kindly arrive by 10:45 to receive the full treatment time.” I also leave contact information, which is usually my telephone number. The text message reminder is shorter but similar “Much Kneaded Massage Reminder: arrive by 10:45am. Kindly confirm”.

Other Benefits of Reminder Calls:

The call sets a professional tone, especially with new clients. You are subtly reinforcing that your time is as valuable as theirs. For this reason, in the example message above I deliberately say “our appointment” rather than “your
appointment”.

Your reminder call may also remind your client to tell a friend about you or it may remind them that they had wanted to purchase a gift certificate for someone else. In the event your client needs to cancel their upcoming appointment, you may be able to re-schedule for some other time in the future. By having the advance notice you may be able to fill the vacated appointment with a different client. I have 3-4 clients on my last minute call up list who I contact when I get a next day appointment cancellation. I call immediately to let the “on-call” person know that an opening has just became available and that I am giving them the first shot at it. This serves to let the person know I’m thinking about their needs and secondly, I impress upon them that they should respond quickly or someone else may get the slot.

Even the most responsible client will forget an appointment from time to time, especially if the day and time of their regular appointment changes. For these reasons, I continue to give reminder calls to all of my clients; the thought of not knowing about a “no-show” until the appointment time is past, is a lost opportunity to fill the time slot.

For the super low cost of a phone call or text message, you will keep your income coming in!