Digital appointments in the medical supply store
Guide
The coronavirus continues to affect our society in many different ways. The top priority is still to protect the risk group. Many medical supply stores are currently forgoing personal external appointments in favour of their customers.
Fortunately, however, we have long since arrived in 2020. An age in which "house arrest" is no longer necessary without external contact.
We at Saljol have therefore changed our sales work at short notice and offer virus-free customer appointments via video conference. In the last few weeks we have learned a lot and developed a small guide for digital customer appointments, which you are welcome to use for your own needs in discussions with nursing homes or hospitals.
Table of contents
Can aids be explained digitally?
We say yes and no. Nothing is more important for a specialist dealer than to convince himself of the benefits of an aid. Products must not only be seen on a screen. You want to try them out, check their stability and turn the screws. You want to try out the functionality. One does not exclude the other: We send you the desired products in advance to the medical supply store and discuss them together in the appointment. So you can try everything out live.
Digital customer appointments can be carried out with any request. Technical training (e.g. for maintenance or replacement of a spare part) and complaint handling are also possible and even better, because you get an immediate solution: You can schedule the appointment flexibly and spontaneously and directly with the technical/ R&D or customer service department.
Topics for a video conference
- Impulse meeting: We will give you tips on marketing over-the-counter products.
- Product training: We explain our products to you.
- Strategy meeting: We calculate common market potentials.
- Complaint processing: You show us the problem - we solve it.
- Technical training: We train you.
Advantages of digital customer appointments for the medical supply store
- No risk of infection
- More comfortable
- Free demo product for viewing
- Spontaneously possible
- Less time required
- Climate Neutral
- If required, contact to direct contact persons from technology, R&D, customer service, marketing
- Video can be sent if permission to record is granted. Useful e.g. for technical training
- No more forgotten appointments: Confirmed appointment via Outlook in the calendar
Tips for scheduling appointments
Digital appointments look slightly different from on-site meetings. Therefore you should keep a few points in mind when planning an appointment.
Allow an additional 20 minutes to correct any technical problems that may arise, for example, if the picture or the micofron does not work. Try to find a realistic time frame for the appointment. Allow for additional time for negotiation, questions or general discussions.
Find a quiet place so that you are not distracted by your surroundings. If necessary, inform other colleagues in the office about the video conference so that they are quiet during this time.
Prepare yourself and your interviewer for the appointment: What is the objective of the appointment? Which products can we send to you in advance for a demo? Try to develop a short agenda together.
Scheduling in Outlook with Microsoft Teams
At Saljol we use Microsoft teams for video conferences. The advantage for you is that you do not need to download and install any software, just click on the invitation link and get started.
Open a new meeting in Outlook. Enter all relevant information (date, participants, invitation text, agenda). The link in the meeting invitation appears for all participants - even if you do not have your own team account.
Tips: Before and during the appointment
- Let us know in good time whether the goods have arrived and take them with you to the appointment.
- Familiarize yourself with the agenda before the appointment.
- Would you like to show a file or website at the appointment? Open them before. In this way you save yourself and your conversation partner the unnecessary view of your desktop.
- Sit in a quiet room for the appointment or ask your colleagues in the office to keep quiet during the appointment.
- Turn off your notifications in your laptop (e.g. Teams, Outlook or Whatsapp) for a while so that you don't pop up and distract you during the appointment.
- Be online at least 10 minutes in advance, so you have enough time to react to your own technical challenges.
- If you have a bad Internet connection, you can expect that what you say will be received by the person you are talking to with a delay. In the beginning it is unusual to have a conversation at a snail's pace, but you will quickly get used to it.
- Ask more frequently during the appointment: Can the interviewer understand you well?
- If you share your screen: Make sure you know which windows and tabs are currently open, and close any private or corporate tabs, windows, calendars and email beforehand.
do's and don'ts in video conferencing
Similar to a personal conversation, there are a few things you should consider for a good appearance in digital appointments. Since body language in a digital appointment is limited to what is seen and heard, it is important to present it as optimally as possible. This is how you make a positive overall impression.
Lighting
Watch out for shadows and glare, otherwise your face will be hard to see. Make sure the light is evenly distributed from above and in front. This way you will not have any shadows cast on your face.
Camera position
Try to align the camera at eye level. Think, for example, of a failed selfie. The face can look very disconcerting when the camera is tilted. Try to take a picture of a part of the upper body to make the body language understandable.
Body language
Pay attention to a calm and clear body language. If you stay relaxed and smile friendly into the camera, you will make a positive impression immediately.
Speeches
Talk much slower than you are used to. Speak loudly and clearly and ask questions regularly to check whether the right information has reached your counterpart. Try to avoid mumbling and rushing to give a presentation. Your counterpart will notice that you are not on the point!
Activate the soft focus
Even though we are all very curious, Germany had enough insights into the living rooms of Germany. Activate the blur to hide your background. This way you create a calmer atmosphere for your counterpart without distractions.
Mobile phone and notifications
Turn off your phone to avoid noise and distractions. The same applies to notifications on your PC. The Windows Notification Wizard allows you to temporarily mute all email, appointments and other notifications.
Your browser during a digital appointment
Amazon orders for kitchen appliances, your favourite Spotify playlist or your online banking have no place in a digital appointment. Close all tabs and clean up before your appointment. Open only the files you need during the appointment.
Recommendations for a group conference
In a video conference with more than five people, things can easily get messy. How often does it happen that a loud whirring of a colleague's computer or an unpleasant feedback becomes the exciting main event of the appointment. Therefore: If an appointment with more than five people is scheduled, all participants, except the one who is speaking, should switch their microphones to mute.
Video instructions: Log-in for the Saljol video conference on MS teams
You can log into the joint digital appointment so easily.
