Welcome to the Liine Playbook!
What is Liine?
Liine is an AI-powered call recording and automation platform for growth-focused healthcare and dental practices.
By capturing and analyzing 100% of your practice’s new lead phone calls, form submissions and online bookings, Liine provides full visibility into your patient acquisition efforts. This includes marketing attribution, lead count, phone answer rates, appointment conversion rates, staff performance, and much more! Additionally, Liine simplifies the process of following up with web leads so your practice can more quickly and efficiently convert them into new patients.
Best of all, Liine requires no manual data entry from your staff and is super easy to use!
What is this “Playbook”?
How long will this take?
We know you are super busy so this playbook is purpose-built to maximize insights while minimizing the time it takes you to find them! Although we suggest scheduling an hour your first few times, once you are familiar with the steps, it could take you as little as 20 minutes to go through all six objectives (depending on how many calls you decide to listen to).
How often should I go through these steps?
We suggest establishing either a weekly or (at a minimum) monthly review cadence.
What should I do if I need help?
We are here for you! If you have any questions about the playbook, please reach out to your dedicated Customer Success Manager or support@liine.com.
How do I use the Playbook?
This is a step-by-step guide for how to use the analytics portion of Liine to get the most out of your data and your team! It is broken into six distinct objectives (or seven if marketing is your responsibility) with instructions and examples for each:
TABLE OF CONTENTS (Click here to open in new tab)
*Disregard this Objective unless you help manage marketing strategy/spend.*
📞 OBJECTIVE 1: Assess Inbound Call Conversion Rate
Step 1: Navigate to the “Leads and Conversion Rate” tab within “New Patient Analytics”. Add a filter for “Interaction Type = Calls” by clicking on the blue “+ Add Filter” button at the top of the screen, select the “Interaction Type” filter and choose “Call”.
If you are reviewing last week’s data, the Date Range should be set to “Last 8 Weeks” (the default setting). If you are reviewing monthly data, change “Display Data from” to “Last 8 Months”. Properly setting these date ranges will allow you to compare the current period to historic performance.
Step 2 (optional): If you want to filter out certain “Reasons Not Booked” (for example, if you want to exclude “Medicaid” leads), see Exhibit A in the Appendix for instructions.
Step 3: In the top left graph (“New Patient Leads and Booked Appointments”), look at last week’s or last month’s conversion rate % (the gray line). Is it higher or lower relative to previous periods?
Note the red box in the screenshot below. To evaluate data for last week or last month, you will want to look at the second farthest bars to the right. This is because the bars to the farthest right will represent the then-current week or month.
Step 4: Is your conversion rate above or below the goal for your practice?
If at or above, great job 🎉! While there is always room for improvement, we know your time is precious so feel free to skip to Objective 4.
If below, it’s definitely not the end of the world 😀. However, take some time to identify areas for improvement in Objective 2.
📈OBJECTIVE 2: Find Areas for Conversion Rate Improvement
Step 1: Leaving the same filters in place that you had for Objective 1, navigate to the “Reasons Not Booked” tab . Note we abbreviate reasons not booked as “RNB”
In the top left graph (“New Patient Lead Outcomes”), the gray segment of each bar represents new patients that booked. The colorful sections represent leads that didn’t book and the specific “reasons not booked”.
The data can be viewed on a count (#) or percentage (%) basis. % is particularly helpful for comparing across periods when your lead count varies from period to period.
See Exhibit B in the Appendix for definitions of the RNB categories. If you would like to add a custom reason not booked to your data, please reach out to support@liine.com.
Step 2: Use your mouse to hover over each RNB for the period you are reviewing. This will “highlight” that RNB category across all periods to make it easier to identify trends.
If you are new to Liine, you can use the following questions to determine which RNBs to further investigate:
What are the 2 or 3 most frequent RNBs over the past few weeks or months?
Which RNBs do you feel can be improved upon?
Below are a few RNB categories are often directly related to how your staff handles the phones:
Caller Procrastination - Someone on your team may be waiting for the caller to schedule themselves rather than purposefully inviting them to schedule.
Took a Message - Someone on your team may require training on typical questions that are often asked by new patient leads (this is often the case for new hires).
Scheduling Issue - Someone on your team could be more pleasantly persistent about finding a time/date that fits their schedule for an appointment.
If you have been using Liine for awhile, you can use the following questions to determine which RNBs to further investigate:
What are the 2 or 3 most frequent RNBs over the past few weeks or months?
Are the RNBs you have been focused on improving/becoming less frequent?
Have any RNBs significantly increased since your last review?
Step 3: After you have identified the RNBs you would like to investigate further, listen to a handful of the underlying calls. This is super simple to do in Liine.
First, click on that RNB’s specific segment in the bar chart.
This will take you to the Interaction Log that is already pre-filtered for new lead calls that failed to book because of that specific RNB (in that particular time period).
If you would like to expand the date range to see more calls with the same RNB, just toggle the date picker next to “Display Data from” in the far left side of the filter bar.
The Interaction Log will show a number of data points about each call. To listen to any of the recordings / read the transcripts, click on the purple play button (boxed in green in the above screenshot).
*Note you can easily skip around in the call recording. Just click on the text and playback will start from there.
Step 4: Based on what you have learned investigating this period’s RNBs, write down one or two high impact categories you would like to work on between now and your next review.
Note these can remain the same ones you were already working on. Some practices spend a year or more working on the same RNBs!
🔎OBJECTIVE 3: Determine Conversion Rates and Reasons Not Booked by Team Member
Step 1: Navigate to the “Graph X by Y” tab on the far right of your screen.
This tab can be used to graph any “X variable” by any “Y variable”.
Step 2: Graph “Reasons Not Booked” by “Team Member”.
Like we did on the “Reasons Not Booked” tab, we are going to look at the data on a percentage (%) basis by selecting that option next to the X and Y drop downs (both boxed in red in the screenshot below).
The “%” toggle makes it easier to compare across team members with varying new lead call volumes
This view allows you to compare call outcomes (including RNBs) across team members and is a fantastic way to identify relative strengths and weaknesses.
The gray section of the bar chart represents booked appointments, so the more gray, the better.
In the above screenshot, Marsha has the highest conversion rate.
Hover over the gray bar to see the exact number of booked appointments and the associated conversion rate for each team member.
As before, the colorful sections of the bar chart represent non-booked leads and the “reasons not booked”.
In the above screenshot, you can see that Marsha has a very low percentage of leads that fail to book because of “Caller Procrastination”. This is because she is likely doing a great good job proactively guiding callers towards an appointment.
However, she has the highest percentage of “Pricing Objection” calls relative to her peers and likely struggles when asked about the cost of high dollar treatments.
Step 3: Determine which RNBs require individual improvement vs. group improvement.
Situation 1: If one or two of your staff members accounts for significantly more instances of an RNB you want to work on, working directly with those individuals (listening to calls, discussing situations, etc.) likely is the best approach.
In the example below, Sarah is the only team member with greater than 10% of her calls ending in “Caller Procrastination”. If “Caller Procrastination” was a focus area, team training shouldn't be necessary.
As a reminder, clicking on the hovered-over section in the above screenshot would hyperlink to the interaction log pre-filtered for all Sarah’s “Caller Procrastination” calls. This functionality makes it super simple to find and share her calls for individual coaching.
Situation 2: If most of your team has a similar (or just generally high) percentage of calls related to one of your RNB focus areas, we suggest discussing it as a group.
In the example below, “Scheduling Issue” is a sizable RNB for nearly everyone but Marsha. If “Scheduling Issue” was a focus area, it should be a group priority.
*** Note a high RNB across the board could be indicative of an operations related issue outside the control of your team. In the example below, “Scheduling Issue” could be high due a lack of staffing or a provider requesting unpopular hours.
A few IMPORTANT notes on RNBs:Note 1: While finding missed opportunities is important, it is equally important to find opportunities to praise your team (both for already doing things well and for areas in which they have improved overtime). The goal is to build a culture of great phone performance, not create what feels like burdensome oversight.
Note 2: Some Reasons Not Booked may not be a direct result of how the phones are being handled! For example, there isn’t much your scheduling team can do about “Out of Network Insurance” unless your office offers a cash pay or financing option (in which case you should investigate how those alternative options are being discussed on those calls… see Step 3 above).
Another example of a potentially “uncontrollable” RNB might be “Need/Waiting for Records”. If a prospective patient must send in their existing medical records to book an appointment, even the best phone handler isn't going to schedule that appointment.
Note 3: While you can filter out these types of RNBs (see Exhibit B for instructions), we suggest briefly looking at your data without an RNB filter every review cycle. This is because unusually large spikes in any RNB category (regardless of whether it is likely phone related), should be investigated and those calls listened to (again, see Step 3). We often find spikes occur when new hires are confused about a particular protocol or a change has been made to an office’s booking procedures. For example, we found that a new team member at an orthopedic practice was telling patients they couldn’t book a physical therapy appointment without a referral (which wasn't the case). By identifying/correcting that, her conversion rate jumped 16% the next week!
Note 4: Potentially “uncontrollable” RNBs are especially important for operations and marketing teams to monitor/be made aware of. Remember, these are still new patient leads that are failing to book!
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👋Objective 4: Assess Answer Rate for Inbound Calls
The previous objectives were related to how your team handles new lead calls once they are speaking with a prospective patient. This objective relates to how frequently new lead calls are being answered in the first place.
Step 1: Navigate to the “Voicemails” tab.
We mark a call as “Voicemail” if the caller reaches your voicemail recording regardless of whether a message is left. This is meant to indicate how often new lead calls are failing to be answered and likely won’t match the number of voicemails shown in your phone system.
Of note, most new lead callers do NOT leave a voicemail message when their call isn’t answered (especially during business hours!) and are more likely to call another practice instead.
By default, this data is set to display voicemail stats during business hours (i.e. how often are calls not answered while the office is open).
Step 2: In the top left graph (“Total Voicemails and Voicemails as a % of Total Calls”), identify last week’s or month’s percentage of new patient calls that hit your voicemail system (the gray line). Is it higher or lower relative to previous periods?
We have found that top practices have less than a 10% voicemail (or not answered) rate during business hours.
Step 3: Is your voicemail rate above or below the goal for your practice for this period?
If at or above, great job 🎉! While there is always room for improvement, we know your time is precious so feel free to skip to Objective 5.
If below, it’s definitely not the end of the world 😀. Continue to Step 4 to determine what days/times your voicemail rate is the highest.
Step 4: In the top right chart (“Number of Voicemails by Day and Hour”) use the heatmap to identify “hot spots” when your team typically struggles to answer new lead calls during the week.
The darker the orange, the higher the number of voicemails. We suggest changing the date range for this analysis to the “Last 30 Days” to capture recent trends but still get enough data to be meaningful (see below).
In the example below, 9-10AM most days and 2-5PM Wednesday through Friday are the “hot spots”.
Step 5: Make a plan to get more phone coverage during your hot spot times, if possible.
Just one more person for a few hours a week can often cut your voicemail rate by more than 30%!
📨 Objective 5: Evaluate Performance Following Up with Form Leads
The previous objectives were related to inbound phone calls. This section is related to how form leads from your website or landing pages are handled in FormFlow. In case you haven't seen it, here is an overview/training video for FormFlow.
Step 1: Navigate to the “FormFlow Analytics” section of the platform.
Step 2: Take a look at the top left graph (“FormFlow Trends”).
% of Forms Called (orange line) represents the percentage of total form leads that are called at least once. You want this line trending up.
This should essentially be 100%. Everyone should at least be called once.
Speed to Lead (green line) represents the average time between a form submission and the first call attempt. You want this line trending down.
This should be at or below the goal for your practice and is directly influenced by:
The offices auto-call acceptance rate (more on this below); AND
How quickly forms submitted after hours are followed up with the next morning (note that “clock” doesn’t start until the beginning of the next business day)
% of Forms Reached (dotted gray line) represents the percentage of total form leads that are actually spoken to. You want this line trending up.
Like the example shows above, as Speed to Lead improves (you are calling leads faster), more leads will be reached.
This metric is critical for maximizing your conversion rate because form leads can’t book if you never talk to them!
Step 3: Take a look at the top right graph (“Percentage of Auto-calls Accepted”)
As a reminder, an auto-call (which allows your team to contact a lead in seconds) is generated every time a form is submitted during business hours.
% of Forms with Auto-Calls Accepted (dark gray line) represents the percentage of total auto-calls answered/accepted by the office. You want this line trending up.
This should be at or above the goal for your practice.
The benefits of a high auto-call acceptance rate are significant:
Increases conversion rate. The faster you contact a lead, the more likely they are to answer and subsequently book an appointment.
Saves staff time. The faster you contact a lead, the more likely they are to answer and not require multiple follow up calls.
Elevates the patient experience. The faster you contact a lead, the better first impression your office makes.
In the near future, Liine will be combining the auto-call functionality with a smart text message cadence to further maximize your form conversion rate 😀.
Marketing Note: If your Speed to Lead and Auto-Call stats are good but your “% of Forms Reached” rate is lower than expected, that could be an indication of a poor lead quality.
🍾 OBJECTIVE 6: Find Reasons to Praise Your Team!
This objective is critical for building a culture of high performance. In addition to finding areas for improvement, it is important to use Liine to praise your team.
Here are a few ideas:Are they doing a great job with FormFlow?
Is their call conversion rate above target or improving?
Is a particular Reason Not Booked consistently becoming less frequent?
Did you hear a call that was handled with excellent customer service?
Did a new team member have their highest conversion rate since starting?
Top-performing practices celebrate or reward their staff when certain benchmarks or targets are met over the course of a quarter or year.
📢 OBJECTIVE 7: Assess Marketing Channel Effectiveness [VIDEO COMING SOON!]
The previous objectives were related to inbound calls and form submissions. This objective looks at both from the perspective of marketing attribution (i.e. which channels are driving the most leads… both calls and forms… and which are generating the most new patient appointments).
Step 1: Navigate to the “Marketing Channels” tab within “New Patient Analytics”.
Unless you are trying to analyze a specific, short term campaign, we suggest looking at the last 30 days of data for this exercise. Use the “Data from” date picker in the filter bar to adjust the time frame accordingly.
Make sure the filter “Interaction Type = Calls” is not active (unlike the first four objectives).Otherwise, this data will not reflect leads whose initial interaction with the practice was a form submission.
Step 2: Using the top right chart (“Stats by Marketing Channel”), answer the following questions about lead volumes.
Which channels are driving the most lead volume?
Note the “Direct” channel is for leads that call your main phone number or visit your website directly without interacting with any other channel.
Which paid channels are driving the most new lead volume?
Are there any paid channels that are generating a higher or lower number of leads than you would have expected?
Step 3: Also using the top right chart, answer the following questions about new patient appointment volumes.
Which channels are driving the most new patient appointments?
Which paid channels are driving the most new patient appointments?
Are there any paid channels with a lower or higher conversion rate than you would expect?
Step 4: If one or more marketing channels has a notably lower conversion rate than the others, use the “Graph X by Y” tab to understand “Reasons Not Booked” by “Marketing Channel”. Look back at Objective 3 for more detailed instructions on using the “Graph X by Y” functionality.
In the example below, you would want to ask why so many more Facebook leads fail to book an appointment because of “Scheduling Issues”.
To further investigate, you could click on that part of the graph to listen to the underlying “Facebook - Scheduling Issues” calls in the interaction log.
APPENDIX
Exhibit A - Filter Out One or More Reasons Not Booked [VIDEO COMING SOON!]
You may want to filter out certain RNBs that are outside your team’s control when assessing team performance (although you should also look at your overall conversion without the filter too).
For the instructions below, we will use the example of filtering out the RNB “Treatment Not Offered”.
Step 1: Find the filter bar at the top of the page and select “+ Add Filter”.
Step 2: Select the “Reason Not Booked” filter.
Step 3: Before excluding a certain RNB, you first have to activate the rest. Do this by clicking the “Select All” option.
Step 4: Deselect (or “uncheck”) the RNB you would like to filter out (“Treatment Not Booked” in this example) and click “Done”.
Note you can deselect one or multiple RNBs.
Step 5: Now, whatever analytics you are looking at will show all leads EXCEPT those with the excluded RNB(s).
Exhibit B - Reasons Not Booked (“RNB”) Definitions
Note these are Liine’s default Reason Not Booked categories. If custom RNBs have been added to your account, they won’t be included on this list.
Caller Procrastination - One of the most common reasons not booked, caller procrastination is any time a caller doesn't book without providing a specific reason. They may say they have to look at their schedule and/or they will call you back later.
OON/Insurance - The caller's insurance is not accepted at your office, if applicable.
Scheduling Issue - Any time the caller is unable to find the time he or she needs for the appointment or consultation.
Left Message / Answering Service - When the caller connects to a staff member but then ends up leaving a message, or the staff member indicates that he or she will have to call the caller back at a later time.
Treatment Not Offered - Any time the caller has a specific service that he or she is looking for, but the office does not offer that service.
Scheduling Issue - The caller cannot book because an agreeable date/time can’t be found. This is often either because the office is booking too far out or the phone team isn't focused enough on helping callers find a workable time slot.
Referral / Records Needed - The caller cannot book because your office has not received the caller's referral and/or records.
Dropped Call / Hang Up - The caller has already indicated that he or she is interested in potentially booking an appointment or consultation, but the call is dropped, or someone hangs up, before a yes/no decision is made regarding booking.
Getting Info for Someone Else - A 3rd party caller looking to gather info for someone else and has no intention of booking an appointment.
Price Objection - Any time the caller indicates that he or she feels the price of a service is too high and does not book.
Not a Candidate - Any time a patient does not qualify for the treatment they are interested in getting.
Location Proximity - Distance from the office(s) prevents the caller from booking.
Walk-In Inquiry - Asking if walk-ins are accepted and/or "scheduling" a walk-in without booking an appointment or consultation.
Provider Not Available - The specific provider the caller is looking for is unavailable.