Technological innovations have at times been criticized for destroying old jobs just as they create new ones. But at Screenpush, we operate from the viewpoint that technology is a tool that can ultimately improve the way people live and work.
In the digital age, technological breakthroughs have unlocked enormous potential in terms of enhancing the ways in which we communicate. This, in turn, has led to any number of advances in the workplace; including increased worker productivity and even impressive increases concerning employee morale.
These are just some of the things that great technological innovations of the past have accomplished: the PC, the tablet, the iPhone – all these are prime examples of innovative technological products that have improved the ways in which we live and work.
In developing Notifly, we sought to create something like that – a new technology that would have a positive effect on the way people live and work. We first conceived of Notifly because we recognized a genuine need in the marketplace.
The problem with “no-shows”
Missed appointments or “no-shows” cost businesses everywhere millions of dollars in lost revenue every year. Consider a medical practice for instance. A single no-show can potentially result in anywhere between $100-$500 in lost revenue. One no-show a day for a week could add up to as much as $2,500 in lost revenue. In a month, that’s ten grand. In one year, that’s over $100 thousand dollars.
The idea behind Notifly was to create a platform that could help small-to-medium businesses like doctors, dentists, personal trainers, and salons – anyone who relies on appointments for their business – to mitigate, or even eliminate such losses.
With Notifly we carefully considered the ways in which people use technology to communicate. These days there are so many different lines of communication open to us – telephone, text, email, and social media messaging – all are viable options.
Searching for the most reliable option
But when it comes to confirming appointments with clients and patients we perceived that business owners still lacked a truly reliable means of communicating. Social media messaging is great for making plans with friends on the weekend, but you can’t always be sure someone will receive a message sent over Facebook in a timely manner.
Telephone calls are generally more reliable. However people who are in meetings or busily engaged throughout the day may or may not have the availability to handle a phone call.
That left us with text messaging. After all, most people will check and respond to a text when they receive one. In fact, our research surprised us, revealing that up to 90% of text messages are read and generally responded to.
A simple platform for automatic messaging
That was when we experienced the proverbial light bulb about Notifly. Our idea was actually quite simple: to devise a platform that would send automatic reminders to patients and clients, reminding them about their appointments. As the idea was actually a simple one, we wanted to make the platform itself simple to use and understand. Using Notifly, patients and clients are able to confirm, cancel or reschedule their appointments easily with the simple swipe or click of a smartphone.
With Notifly we wanted to create a platform that would be intuitive while also making it easier for people to run their businesses. Through automating the process of appointment reminders, Notifly enables small-to-medium business owners to concentrate on important things like finding new business leads and providing their existing customers with the best service possible.
Simplicity held to the highest standard
Ultimately with Notifly we sought to create a simple platform but to execute it to the highest possible standard. We worked with our own in-house developers but sought far and wide to find the best available talent, even working with people as far away as Utah so that we could ensure we were going to market with the best product possible. In the end, we were able to retain the simplicity and usability we had envisioned and to create a powerful platform that allows businesses to stay in touch with their clientele in an effective but non-intrusive manner.
Personally I’m enormously proud of the work accomplished by our team. We created a new technology platform that has the potential to be incredibly transformative in regard to the way businesses operate. By using our platform to automate the appointment reminder process, businesses everywhere can now free up valuable financial and personnel resources, devoting them to the things that really matter, like serving their customers.
Joshua Otten is the co-founder of Notif.ly and a partner with SCREENPUSH.COM, a fully integrated, global digital marketing agency.