How to Evaluate Appointment Scheduling Software in 6 Steps
In a nutshell đ„„ Software evaluations at banks and credit unions often drag on longer than expected. And itâs not because of red tape. Itâs because of poor planning. By understanding the âplanning fallacyâ and setting the right foundation upfront (i.e. clarifying goals, slimming down the decision team, anticipating key questions, and engaging vendors early), banks can dramatically speed up their evaluation processes. With a clear plan and a dedicated project manager steering the effort, your FI can make faster, smarter software decisions that drive better customer experiences and stronger results. Why Your Software Evaluation Keeps Stalling (and How to Speed it Up) Want to run a faster software evaluation at your bank or credit union? Well first, you have to know why things tend to take longer than expected. Yes, there are large buying committees to deal with. And yes, thereâs compliance and security protocols. But the top reason (thatâs within your control) is the so-called âplanning fallacy,â which most of us fall prey to. According to the fallacy, people expect things to take less time than they actually do because they donât yet know all the steps involved. They also often donât know what information theyâll need to make good decisions. So, they lose a lot of time on information gathering and discussions. So, in the spirit of streamlining the (sometimes painful) software evaluation process, here are six things to know before you begin that will help you and your team make the smartest choice faster. Read our full Appointment Software Buyer Guide here 1. Figure Out Precisely What the Software Will Contribute to an Existing Initiative Evaluations sometimes stall out near the finish line because the team hasnât completed their business case. Once budget holders begin asking questions, everyone has to scramble to do more research. Begin that research early. Youâll need to know what you hope the software will do for each department. (See Section 5 in our Buying Guide for a handy list of ideas.) Chances are, you can tie your solution to an existing initiative or goal. Also, try diagramming on a whiteboard how that new customer or member or staff journey will go. If you canât quite make sense of it, or you find yourself leaving gaps or big red question marks, keep asking questions until itâs clear. For example: Booking an Appointment With a Loan Specialist In-Branch Today Touchpoint Activity Feelings Opportunity Step 1. Visits website. Searches website and only finds a phone number. Doesnât use directory. Anticipation; Impatience Add direct booking links to website, with appointment type laid out. Step 2. Calls contact center. Waits on hold. Then told to visit a branch as agents canât access calendars. Annoyance; Fatigue Give agents access to calendar booking systems so anyone can book. Step 3. Revisits branch. Waits in line. Learns the loan specialist isnât in. Anger; Frustration; Defeat Have client pre-book appointment and save a trip. Booking an Appointment With a Loan Specialist In-Branch Using Appointment Software Touchpoint Activity Feelings Opportunity Step 1. Visits website. Visits âfind a branchâ page, selects âappointmentâ option, and books time. Anticipation; Surprise; Delight Encourage them to do this within mobile app and other web pages. Step 2. Gets email reminder. Receives reminder day before appointment with date, time, and location. Impatience; Satisfaction Attempt to convert in-person appointment to phone or video option, if preferred. Step 3. Visits branch. Checks in, skips the line, and sees specialist. Signs loan agreement that day. Helped; Cared-for, Wowed Help agents track follow-up tasks or cross-sell opportunities in CRM.  2. Shrink the Selection Committee to a Lean Team of Five Decisions by committees tend to be slow. And even when institutions make a decision with a really big group, and weigh everyone’s opinions carefully, 34% still end up regretting their purchase. Which is to say, adding more people doesnât necessarily guarantee a better decisionâjust a slower one. For speed, consider using a role assignment model like RACI, short for âresponsible, accountable, contributor, informed.â Use that to organize the few people who are involved, and designate only five spaces on the âresponsibleâ team who will be the active deciders. Those five people should represent: Retail Commercial Operations / CX / support Lending IT/Security 3. Run Through a List of Hypotheticals Sometimes people get hung up on last-minute concerns that could have been discussed earlier. Like, how much training and implementation support theyâll need. Or whether or not they should (or can) sync with the Microsoft Active Directory. Stimulate everyoneâs thinking earlier with questions that drive the research forward faster. For example, you could ask your committee some of the following: Letâs say we suddenly purchased the software and are about to install it. What worries you most? Letâs say we buy it and itâs missing one important thing. What is that thing for you? If this is a smashing success, one year from now what will have happened? Letâs say it had a huge impact on client satisfaction. How will clients describe the difference? What are your absolute must-have items? What would be a non-starter for you? How much time can you commit to this evaluation, realistically? You can also survey customers or members, or add a question to your annual survey: âIf you could book appointments directly on our teamâs calendars from any connected device, would you?â This will help suss out customer concerns to be addressed. (And prevent your committee from making assumptions.) 4. Gather Reviews, Feedback, and Questions early Most people buying software spend 27% of their time evaluating on their own, much of it near the end, as they try to verify facts. But the earlier you conduct this detective work, the easier you make things, because youâll be able to rule some vendors out. For example, does a vendor not currently work with any financial institutions? You can rule it out. Does a vendor not have SOC 2 compliance, and your IT team needs that? You can rule them out. And because good information is