More helpful info coming soon.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Friday, January 22, 2010
Texting: The Future of Appointment Reminders
By: Elizabeth Miller
I recently received a text message from my dentist’s office reminding me of my upcoming appointment the following Monday.
Brilliant, I thought. Not only is my dentist super savvy for exploiting America’s texting addiction, but he’s also very in-tune to my needs as a patient. I lead a busy life, and texting is often the best way to get my attention. Unlike the common phone call reminder to the family answering machine—which will probably be heard two days after said appointment—the text message is a sure-fire way to make sure that reminder gets noticed.
This level of “in-tuneness” to patients’ needs shows that you (the healthcare provider) are not only concerned for their health (because, as a healthcare provider, that’s your job), but that you also want to make their lives easier. When it comes to patient service, it’s the little things that make a difference: that complimentary coffee bar (with the good creamer!) in your waiting area, a WiiTM station for the kids, online appointment scheduling, a new toothbrush upon departure. And, in the age of digital communication, text message appointment reminders certainly add that little something extra.
Texting used to be somewhat of a “covert” form of communication—to be used when verbal communication wasn’t convenient or appropriate. Like during church, at work, or in the middle of your niece’s ballet recital. But now that texting has become a primary form of communication for many people (particularly high school and college-aged kids), it’s opened doors for effective and efficient communication between healthcare practices and patients.
Back to my dentist. If I hadn’t gotten that text message, would I have missed my appointment? Maybe, maybe not. After all, we do lead busy lives. And sometimes that scheduled trip to the dentist falls to the wayside of kids’ soccer practice, work deadlines, and The View. But since most of us consider our cell phones/BlackBerrys®/iPhone a vital appendage, the text message reminder is a noticeable nudge.
Bottom line: using text messages to remind patients of upcoming appointments is a win-win-win scenario. You convey a much-needed message through an effective medium, the patient senses that you’re going the proverbial extra mile for their benefit, and, most importantly, the patient will actually show up for the appointment.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Help us help you
By Elizabeth Miller
There's that classic scene in Jerry McGuire when the slick-speaking sports agent (Tom Cruise) tells the all-star football client (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), "Help me help you." Here at Advent Media Group, we might not be sports agents, but we do seek to create the best advertising products possible for our clients. As a client, here's some ways you can help us help you:
1. Let us know if you anticipate roadblocks for meeting your deadlines. We'll discuss options for the most efficient and effective ways to produce a project you love, without feeling rushed.
2. Going on vacation? Congrats! But let us know well in advance if you won't be readily available by email or phone. Providing the contact info of your assistant, or another office helper, is key in keeping your project rolling during your absence. It also helps to provide your cell phone number in case of emergencies.
3. Photos: If you don't have professional, hi-res images on-hand, let us know right away. We'll help you determine if you need to hire a photographer, and we can even recommend shots that look best on a page. If you aren't familiar with the techie lingo for high quality artwork (i.e., vector art, dpi, hi-res, Photoshop), we'd love to explain it.
4. We see this situation often: you're overwhelmed with a million other projects and can't find time to squeeze in this one. We'll work with your busy schedule. Tell us the best times and methods to reach you. (A cell phone call at 8 pm on a Tuesday night? Done!)
5. If your project will need the nod of approval from multiple people (i.e., legal/marketing departments, president, etc.), that's best to know up front. We'll budget plenty of time to meet the approval of all authorizing bodies.
6. Don't be afraid to tell us what you want. Color preferences, design ideas, style vibes? We want to hear them. But also don't be afraid to give us creative license. We're pros, and you can trust us to deliver something spectacular.
Remember, like Jerry, we're here for you. And the best way to help us help you is good communication.
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Live Matter Area Demystified (or “Why can’t you make my logo bigger? You have so much white space on the top of that page that you are not using.”)
By Tony Pesavento, Art Director, Advent Media Group
It happens a lot.
The client is sent a proof and sees clear, wide-open margins surrounding their logo.
Their eyes begin to burn. Followed quickly by an itch in the throat that induces nausea, mild diarrhea, dizziness, disorientation, and the inevitable loss of manners.
“I paid $50 for my logo, why isn’t it bigger on the page?” the client asks. “Are you an idiot?”
“Perhaps,” I answer. “But please let me explain why you are seeing those margins on the page. It has to do with something called the Live Matter Area.
“Live Matter is a boundary that is set by the magazine publishers to ensure all of your pertinent information gets printed. Because we are submitting your ad to multiple magazines with different page sizes, the Live Matter Area is imperative. All ‘live’ content–images, text, and logos–should be within this area. Anything outside of this runs a risk of getting cropped out during the production of the magazines.
“Visualize this: the Live Matter Area is a 7” x 9.5” bounding box. It begins 0.875” from the top edge of the page and ends 0.5” from the bottom of the page. Its left and right margins are 0.625” from the edges of the page.”
“Oh, okay,” says the relieved client, “that makes perfect sense now. One last question, can we make our logo bigger?”
Friday, July 17, 2009
AMG Storytellers
By Vanessa Barber
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about my experiences here at Advent—how they have shaped me for challenges outside of the office, the many things I have learned about design and print, and the people I have met. In a fit of nostalgia, I’ve got the urge to blog about some of my favorite stories from working here at AMG. I’ll keep it up over the next few blogs, so stay tuned! Perhaps Jackie and Tony will share some of theirs as well.
And now, I invite you into our world…
The best “first day” story: Over the many years I have been here, there’s been a few first days for new salespeople. Usually, as they meet new people and discover the lay of the land, it’s a pretty quiet event…business as usual, some would say. But Shannon G’s first day was a bit more eventful.
Most mornings, I arrive at quarter of nine, and begin to comb through my emails from the night before. This particular morning, I was sitting in my office and I saw something dart across my shirt—from my left hip to my right shoulder--out of the corner of my eye. I looked down and it was a HUGE spider—it was a solid inch or two. So naturally, I dart up from my desk and start screaming and running out into the office space. I run up to Joe, thinking “he’s a football player, he’ll protect me.” Heads are popping up over cubicle walls like whack-a-moles and Jim, father first, comes tearing out of his office. All the while I’m screaming “get it off! GET IT OFF!” which Joe successfully does and stomps on it. Spider guts are embedded into the carpet. The excitement fizzled, and Jim was kind enough to temper my hysterics by agreeing with me that “that was one huge spider.”
But the story is not over. Because not five minutes later, now ten ‘til nine, Shannon G comes in for her first day at AMG. Shannon has a bold, boisterous personality that’s instantly charming. She’s not shy, and she’s not quiet. All the while that I am having my own spidey-drama, Shannon’s mom has been calling and looking for Shannon—because her son, Maverick, had been bitten by a dog. Mother of two, and a darn good one, Shannon immediately gets on the phone and starts screaming. Hysterics. Her son is in the hospital, and she’s reacting as we all would. But no one in the office knows what’s going on, and more so, no one knows who this person is. So Shannon entered our world screaming, literally—and left about two minutes later. Of course, she rejoined our happy family the next day. But it was a particularly strange, and loud, morning here at Advent.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Speak up, Slow down, and Smile
Jackie Delk
Creative Director
My husband missed an unexpected call this morning from his internist's office, a medium-size practice with several staff members who interact with patients on-site and on the phone. The caller left a message, which he attempted to return immediately. The challenge: he couldn't make out the name of the person who called or why she had called. He brought the phone to me to listen to the VM, and all I could make out was that it was a message on behalf of his doctor with the ending words "and ask for me." The gal had talked too softly and far too fast. The words ended up in a blur. We are new to this practice, so the staff names are still unfamiliar to us. This put my husband in the awkward position of having to call back and say, "Someone just called me, but I don't know who it was or why they called." Well, of course, neither did the person who answered the phone.
Phone etiquette is so critical to good patient and public relations that the obvious bears repeating: A receptionist, or anyone else who helps answer the phones or makes calls to patients, should adhere to quality standards that reflect well on the practice. If you are the practice manager or the doctor, call your own main number once in a while and see if the way the phone is answered meets your expectations. If a patient says, "I can never understand Nurse Jean when she calls," take note and follow up.
I interact with many medical practices on a weekly basis, and I am always duly impressed by a pleasant, clear, and professional voice, one I can understand and immediately feel comfortable with. Too often, though, I find myself saying, "I'm sorry, who is this, please?" Either no name was offered (not a very friendly approach) or the name was offered too quickly and came across garbled. Worse, I have had many calls where I wasn't even sure I had reached the correct number because the practice name was not audible. Having to ask, "Is this Dr. Name-goes-here's office?" is not a good start, especially for a potential patient.
Every interaction on the phone is a chance to make a practice sound welcoming, smart, and patient-focused. When the practice representative sounds rushed, unfriendly, or unhelpful, it gives the appearance that the overall practice culture is like that. And that may not be the case at all.
Remind everyone on staff that every call matters. Speak up, slow down, and smile.
End of story: Caller located. Prescription changed. The nurse knows she prompted my blog today, and she took it good-naturedly.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
9 Sites for Designers
Below is a list of 9 of my favorite graphic design resources on the web. Enjoy.
Typography is not a science, it is an art.
http://www.noupe.com/design/101-css-techniques-of-all-time-part-1.html
You’ll have to look for Part 2 on your own.
Textures, brushes, tutorials and more.
Ever wonder how do they do that? Here’s how.
http://www.webdesignerwall.com/
Tutorials and stuff. I just really like this guy’s aesthetic.
Website that publishes advertising from around the world. Cool stuff.
Save all of your bookmarks online and share them with other people.
Blog whose purpose is to inspire.
Illustration and cartooning blog. This is my favorite blog on the web.
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