March 31, 2024

6 Ways Appointment Scheduling Tools Have Helped with COVID Vaccination

6 ways appointment scheduling tools have helped with COVID vaccination

What's in this post?

After a year and half long battle with the deadly COVID Virus, vaccination came to us like the sight of water in the desert. However, it brought along a lot of chaos and confusion with it in the form of limited availability, corrupted queuing channels, disrupted procedures, and much more. A lot of these challenges were gracefully resolved by some very effective and proficient Covid-19 vaccine scheduling tools and softwares. These tools, the need of the hour, used technology to connect centers and make vaccination a smoother process and the vaccine more accessible.

However, you must be wondering if these tools are genuinely helpful. Let's find that out in what ways.

To get vaccinated in a smooth and hassle-free way several people have opted for online appointments and scheduling for the Covid vaccinations. This saves a lot of time and pain as these tools help to set up a booking schedule based on the availability of slots and the type of vaccine available. Most of these tools are also designed to smartly arrange for last-minute rescheduling of appointments by customers, in case of unavoidable circumstances.

Here are some of the most talked-about benefits of online Appointment Scheduling Tools :

1. Ease of Access

While the online Appointment Scheduling Tools for Covid vaccination have been largely appreciated by the users, there are still many who aren’t fully aware of the Vaccination process and appointment scheduling procedure. These tools operating through websites and web applications effectively design their apps to communicate the stepwise process of scheduling the appointment along with all the required guidelines and the details of the vaccination procedure. Moreover, the whole procedure for slot booking is structured in the simplest way possible with minimum clicks and inputs required from the user. Each step is designed to ensure that all users can avail of the service irrespective of their educational background or technical competence. Statistics suggest that around 42% of patients prefer to book appointments online.  As a matter of fact, in 2021, Appointo facilitated over 15000 bookings for covid testing and vaccination and notably, one of our clients generated a revenue of $10.6 million between Jun-Nov 2021 with the help of Appointo.

2. No Additional Costs

The demand-supply disparity in the availability of vaccine doses leads to the growth of several corrupt channels charging unfair and illegitimate amounts for the vaccine and its lineup. This further affects the accessibility of the vaccine as it becomes expensive and in fact, unaffordable for several people. The slot booking process usually begins with the registration of the user on the government-supported portal using the Aadhar Card followed by slot booking and other proceedings. However, in some places, these government-supported free services were being charged for. With simple, easy-to-use, and convenient online appointment booking platforms the process becomes transparent, and charges( if any) are for disclosed price for vaccine only. Other services such as alerts of slot availability, signing up for the desired vaccine dose, booking the slot on a suitable date, time, and location, confirmation of the booking, and setting a reminder for the same on the due date are completely free. The tools also lay down the set of guidelines for a new user and also the set of rules and regulations that need to be abided by.

3. No-contact dealings

The Covid-19 safety guidelines promote and enforce social distancing to limit public gathering or congestion at any place. The appointment scheduling tools have been functional in furthering this idea as it facilitates the booking of vaccination slots online so that candidates do not have to visit the location in-person for booking a slot. They can comfortably sit at home and schedule their slots based on availability at their preferred location and time. In some cases, the payment can also be carried out online. Once the appointment is confirmed the customers are redirected to the payment page to opt for their preferred source of payment. Appointo is one such exceptionally helpful app that is integrated with various online payment platforms, where the users can complete the transaction in a secured manner. The everyday slots availability is structured in a way to ensure that there is a limit to the gathering of people inside a premise at a time. So, people are provided with timely vaccinations all while ensuring their safety.

4. Automated Reminders

Amidst the everyday hustle, people tend to miss their slots and due dates for vaccination. In the case of a second dose, this might even lead to health complications. To avoid such situations, adept apps like Appointo are customized to set automated reminders one day before the scheduled appointment for Covid vaccination. Once the booking is confirmed, it gets synced with the calendar of the website and to the user’s ID. This is one of the finest and most beneficial features of online appointment booking tools and software. Owing to such customer-oriented features, a lot of users rightfully depend on these apps and also recommend the app to others to make the vaccination process faster and more efficient.

5. Ease of Appointment Modification and Cancellation

Every missed appointment is actually a loss because when a lined up candidate misses their appointment, somebody who could have been rightfully present to get vaccinated instead of him/her also misses their chance. However, with online booking tools that have complete visibility of all the scheduled appointments, booking history, canceled and rescheduled vaccination appointments, it’s easier. Users can conveniently cancel their appointment beforehand so that somebody else can take up the slot. The online booking apps also simplify the rescheduling process by providing additional options besides the already scheduled appointment for modification or cancellation of the appointment. Few tools also have a linked option to call the concerned person regarding the same. These apps also send a confirmation SMS to authenticate the successful rescheduling or cancellation of the appointment in the registered mobile number.

Appointo is structured to enable the process of booking modification by sending automated emails ensuring the alterations were done and confirmations of the booking of the new appointment.

6.    Helpline & Support

Despite immense effort and support from the Government, vaccination continues to be a confusing bubble for a lot of people. Mistakes and misguidance have made the process 10x tough for people with limited knowledge and awareness. This is when the Helpline and Support facilities of online appointment scheduling tools come to use. Even though the tools usually have a well-explained step-by-step guided procedure for scheduling the appointment, there’s a chance for people to lose their way or not feel confident to proceed with the slot booking. The helpline or support facilities offered by these tools make things easier by offering help and guidance over call or email. Human support over call also makes users more confident and helps them proceed without doubts and ambiguities.

Wrapping Up

Business sites usually receive a huge acceptance and positive response for their online appointment scheduling apps because of the convenience they offer. Online appointment booking tools aren’t a single straightforward solution, rather it’s a multi-layered solution that can assist customers in multiple ways. The global online booking software market is all set to grow at a CAGR of 13.1% to reach $546.31 million by 2026 from $205.85 million in 2018.

Moreover, when users receive the facility to directly schedule their vaccination slots during these times of Covid, with disrupted manual procedures, they can be a blessing to many. With several options in appointment scheduling apps, the catch for users is to select the best, select the one that serves the purpose.

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