Our calendar is full of meetings. Sometimes our brain is mixed up and we might forget or schedule conflicting appointments. Companies have to deal with this on a regular basis. And that is unfortunate. Every meeting requires preparation, it costs time to schedule one and also it also has a negative effect for waitlists some companies have to deal with. But there is a solution to overcome this hassle: WhatsApp event reminders. It offers a quick fix with a huge impact.

No Show
Being stood up at a meeting, it happens. The obvious no-show. Everyone is familiar with these situations. For an excuse you’ll hear: “Oh, I forgot”, or an excuse is even left behind, leaving you with a big hole in your calendar. They seem innocent, but no-shows cost money. We took a deep dive and we explored why calendar reminders are necessary and worth the investment for a company to prevent no-shows.

1) Prep tim
Almost every meeting requires some preparation time. When someone doesn’t show, all the work has been for nothing. Scheduling a new appointment will probably again require some prep time. Valuable time that has gone to waste, is something you want to prevent from happening.

2) Empty time
If someone doesn’t show, this time is gone to waste. Hospitals often need to deal with this. If a patient is delayed or if someone doesn’t cancel his or her appointment, the doctor is expecting the patient on the scheduled hour. But unfortunately he waits for nothing. The patient doesn’t show up and it takes some time for the next patient to arrive. This means the doctor has to deal with lost time. If the patient had rescheduled or canceled his or her meeting in time, then another patient could have filled this gap.

3) New time
When someone doesn’t show, a new meeting will be scheduled. While you might think this is an easy task, it is possible it will take you a lot more time. Especially when you can’t reach that person or if you keep calling past each other. It might feel like something small, but it easily turns into a time consuming burden. And the waitlist doesn’t get shorter from no-shows, it only adds up. The doctor is left with wasted time, unless he is now able to enjoy the sun for a bit.

No-shows are costly, unuseful and are a waste of time. On top of that, the hourly rate of the specialist turns out to be even more precious in this way.

Reduce no-shows with WhatsApp event reminders
This is why no-shows are a big headache for companies. We need to find out how we can prevent this from happening. WhatsApp developed an easy fix to send out event reminders from WhatsApp. If your client scheduled a meeting with the dentist, a restaurant, for a car service or maybe has signed up to participate in a market research, then WhatsApp will remind the person of that meeting with a simple chat message in WhatsApp. This is what will help reduce no-shows drastically.

Not only that, but WhatsApp is known for its informal engagement with friends and family, but is also perfect to connect with clients. Most people own a smartphone and it is almost certain they will not miss your event reminder. Especially since WhatsApp has a high open-rate: 80 percent of all messages are opened within 5 minutes.

Five pros of sending WhatsApp event reminders
Sending appointment reminders via WhatsApp has five benefits, we list them for you below:

#1 It saves time and money
By reducing the no-show to a minimum, companies can save a lot of money. No double prep-time, no wasted time and it saves time for scheduling yet another new appointment.

#2 Keep a high occupancy rate
If companies are able to check if the client indicated he will show up at the given time, it will keep the occupancy rate high. It will prevent sudden holes in the calendar and if it does happen that a person is unable to come, when knowing in time, it is possible to refill the gap.

#3 Shorten waitlist
With less no-shows, it also means less people to stand in line again. Companies and consumers both benefit from shorter waitlists and it also reduces work pressure.

#4 No more extra admin
With less no-shows, there is also less administration to get done.

#5 It’s cheaper
WhatsApp is much less expensive compared to letters, phone calls and emails. Its much more efficient, the threshold for sending an app is much less and the attention value is also higher.

How does sending a WhatsApp event reminder work?
Of course, everything in WhatsApp doesn’t require a math magician to figure it out. But it’s still worth explaining how it works, so you know it is fairly simple.

1) Connect WhatsApp Business API
Make sure of all your meeting details; contacts and planning are registered in an overhead system and connect this with your WhatsApp Business account.

2) Collect active opt-ins
If you want your clients to receive a reminder of their appointment, you will need their consent. The privacy law does not allow you to send one without. A consumer needs to give their approval and to opt-in.

3) Decide on when to send reminders
When does your client need to receive a reminder? How many days or hours before you want to send out a reminder. If you send a friendly reminder fairly before the meeting takes place, it will give your client enough time to respond and maybe cancel or reschedule the appointment. It will prevent you from an empty slot and will keep the occupancy rate high. Try to find out what time works the best for you to send out a reminder. Also create rules for sending out automatic reminders.

4) Create personal reminders
If you send a more personalised WhatsApp reminder, it will encourage your client to respond when necessary. Create a WhatsApp message template that will be automatically sent beforehand. Make sure the personal touch is in there.

Less no-shows with WhatsApp event reminders
Simple but effective. That is what a simple templated message can do in reducing the amount of no-shows companies have to deal with. It’s a simple solution that will help you prevent unnecessary costs, time and long waitlists.

Getting Started
If you want to know more about sending WhatsApp event reminders then schedule a free demo via the link below.