This past spring we were in the market for an orthodontist for my daughter.  There is one orthodontist that is HIGHLY recommended and it seems that every single student at my daughter’s elementary school goes there.  I called for an appointment and received one 6 weeks out.  EVERY. SINGLE. STUDENT. 

This place is in demand I thought and they were highly recommended so that made sense.

I then called the other orthodontist, which I learned about from an article in a community magazine in which she was discussing the common overuse of expanders in today’s orthodontic treatments.  This piqued my interest as expanders weren’t something that we had many moons ago when I had my braces, and quite frankly, hearing how my friends had to turn the crank to expand the expander in their child’s mouth every day sounded downright dreadful.  So, I thought…let’s talk to this place too.

I called and they were super nice on the phone, but then this happened….

Them:  “Would you like me to schedule you for a consult?”

Me:  “Yes, please.  That would be great.  When do you have availability?”

Them:  “Well, when is it convenient for you?  We have openings on Thursday and Friday this week.”

Mind you it was Tuesday.  Red flags started screaming at me.  Why do they have so much availability?  How is there an opening THIS WEEK when the other practice I have to wait 6 weeks?  No one must go here!  I don’t have any recommendations for this practice.  

Maybe I shouldn’t even go in for the consult.

That's right.  I almost scratched it all together, but I did schedule a consult for the following week.  However, even driving to the appointment I was thinking that we probably aren’t going to use them. 

I was still too freaked out by their open calendar! 

Long story short….we did use them.  Only because they redeemed their open schedule by amazing customer service, a much more gentle treatment plan, and the doctor herself calling us back to discuss questions that we had about the differences in recommended treatment from both practices. 

The moral of the story for you? 

Even if your schedule is WIDE open….do NOT let your client know.  They will wonder why your schedule is so open. 

I offer prospective clients 2-3 dates….at least 3 weeks in the future…or more if it’s busy season.  The ONLY time I ever squeeze in a last minute appointment is when someone calls with a sick pet.  I know it can be tempting to try to squeeze some last minute sessions in when your calendar is bare, but it can have unintended consequences.