There is no perfect solution when it comes to clinic software, as each clinic has its unique set of requirements and challenges. Your goal should be to find the software that best fits your specific needs rather than the one that simply offers the most features or the lowest price.
Don’t just ask about price and features
The most common first questions are “How much is it?” and “Do you have this feature?”. Whilst these are important questions, they are just the tip of the iceberg. Focusing solely on these aspects can lead to overlooking other critical factors that ensure the software aligns with your clinic’s needs and workflows. Many practitioners find themselves captivated by a particular feature or swayed by a lower price tag, only to discover later that the software doesn’t fully support their day-to-day operations or long-term goals.
Pricing
With a large number of providers comes a wide range of prices. Especially when starting out, it is very tempting to go for the cheapest offer until you start growing. However, your data is the heart of your business and where much of the value of it lies. Moving this data to a new software provider is a big task and may well reduce its quality - you should plan to do this as few times as possible!
The UK clinic software market is very cheap compared with the rest of the world, with mixed results. Good quality, secure & robust software with good support is not cheap, and, as with most things in life, you get what you pay for. In aesthetics, a single appointment could result in a sale worth hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds. A patient missing an appointment because a reminder failed to be sent or their appointment didn’t save correctly can be very costly for your business, both in terms of income and reputation. What might seem like a saving of £50 per month could, in fact, cost you much more.
Hidden charges
There are several different ways to pay for software, the most obvious of which is a monthly or annual payment. But make sure you ask about other charges that you may not expect, such as fees to take bookings online that might be described as “deposits,” fees for extra features, or even for storing data such as photos or sending emails.
It might be that one day, you decide to move providers. Check if you will be charged for this—some companies charge up to £450 + VAT to provide your data! Also, check if they will provide this on an agreed date and how long it will take. If it could take up to a week to send you your data, this will be a week when it will be difficult to run your business and potentially cost you thousands of pounds.
Features
Depending on who you believe, 50 - 80% of software features are never or rarely used! The features that you think are must-haves might not be so important after all. If you know there are must-haves, ensure that they work in the way that you expect - don’t just rely on a yes or no from a salesperson. Remember to have important questions answered in writing.
Training
Regardless of how software literate you are, you will not know the details of how your new software works. If you have a small practice with no other staff and time on your hands, you may well be able to work your way through it.
Most software has help centres with articles or videos—make sure that you go through these. Using a complex piece of kit without reading the instructions is rarely the best way to get the most out of it.
For larger and more complex businesses, seriously consider bespoke training if it is offered. Although it will usually be charged for, it is often an excellent investment and vital to ensure that not only do all staff know how to use the software but that the system is set up correctly in the first place. An incorrect or poor set-up may have implications on the user journeys and/or financial data that will be vital for your accounting.
Support
Even with the best training, there will be times when things go wrong, or you need advice on how to get the best from your software. When this happens, how long will it take to get an answer to your questions? Will they be answered by people who use and know the software well? Will they be conversing in their first language?
Having slow or unhelpful support will really slow you and your business down, often when you need it the most.
While we investigate what to look for in clinic software, it’s also important we identify what we don’t want in clinic software. A growing clinic does not want to deal with an unresponsive software provider. Technology fails sometimes, but trust is developed in knowing that if there are any technical issues, there is always someone to help me as quickly as possible.
