Appointment reminder
Updated
An appointment reminder is an outbound message, usually a text, email or call, sent before a booked visit to confirm the details and give the client a simple way to change them.
For a vet clinic, reminders do two jobs. They help clients remember, which protects the schedule, and they surface changes early, so a client who can no longer come says so while the slot can still be offered to someone else. A reminder that only says "see you tomorrow" does the first job. One that invites a reply to confirm, move or cancel does both.
What a good reminder contains
Keep it short and specific: the clinic's name, the pet's name, the date and time, the location if you have more than one, and anything the client needs to bring or do before the visit that the team has set as standard wording. Then give one clear action, such as replying to confirm or to ask for a different time.
Timing and channel
Many clinics send one reminder a few days ahead and another the day before, adjusting for appointment type. Text messages are read quickly; email suits longer preparation notes; a call can work for clients who prefer the phone. Whatever the channel, the client should be able to respond the same way they were contacted.
Consent and opting out
Reminders by text or messaging app should go only to clients who have agreed to receive them on that channel, and every client must be able to stop them easily, for example by replying STOP. Your practice software usually records these preferences, and they should be kept current.
An example
At a two-vet clinic, a client receives a text two days before her rabbit's check-up with the time and a request to reply to confirm or change it. She replies that she has a work conflict. The team offers two other times, she picks one, and the original slot goes to a client on the waitlist that afternoon.
How Tilly handles it
Tilly sends appointment reminders only to clients with recorded consent for that channel, and honours opt-outs. Clients can reply to confirm, move or cancel, and Tilly updates supported practice software directly.
Reminders are one lever covered in the no-shows guide. Related: no-show rate and two-way texting.