A prospective patient submits an enquiry through your website on a Sunday evening. What happens next can make all the difference.
Without a clear process for managing enquiries and following them up promptly, it’s easy for opportunities to be missed.
As part of Patient Pulse 2025, we analysed 4,121 private healthcare websites to see how many appeared to use a customer relationship management (CRM) system. We found that only 5.3% showed any evidence of one. The remaining 94.7% had no detectable CRM in place.
What we found
Among the small proportion of clinics using a CRM, the most common platforms were:
- Salesforce — 1.4%
- HubSpot — 1.0%
- Epic MyChart — 0.8%
- Mailchimp — 0.5%
- Zoho — 0.4%
Overall, only around one in 20 clinics appeared to have a structured system for managing enquiries. Many others are likely to be relying on email inboxes or manual processes instead.
Why it matters
Generating enquiries is only part of the process. What happens after a prospective patient gets in touch is just as important.
Without a CRM, clinics may experience challenges such as:
- Slower response times – enquiries can sit in an inbox while staff focus on patients and day-to-day priorities.
- Missed follow-ups – prospective patients who don’t book immediately may not receive further contact.
- Limited visibility – without a central system, it’s harder to understand where enquiries come from, how they’re managed and how many become appointments.
Our research suggests that many clinics are successfully attracting interest through referrals, online search and their websites, but the process of managing enquiries is often less structured.
Improving website performance and AI visibility can help more prospective patients find your clinic, but turning those enquiries into appointments depends on having the right systems and follow-up processes in place.
The opportunity
A CRM isn’t just for large organisations. For a private clinic, it can provide a simple and effective way to manage patient enquiries by:
- Bringing enquiries from web forms, phone calls, live chat and email into one place.
- Helping staff follow up enquiries promptly and consistently.
- Providing insight into which services, marketing channels and campaigns generate the most enquiries and appointments.
When combined with simple marketing automation, such as a follow-up email explaining what happens next, a CRM can help more enquiries become booked consultations without increasing your marketing budget.
Where to start
You don’t need a complex CRM. For many clinics, a system that’s properly set up and connected to your booking and enquiry tools can help you manage enquiries more efficiently and make it easier to follow up with prospective patients.
If you’re unsure which CRM is right for your clinic, book a call and we’ll help you identify the best option for your needs.
This article draws on Patient Pulse 2025, Figment’s original research into marketing in UK private healthcare. Read the full report.
More from Patient Pulse 2025
- 85% have no live chat, 45% no booking
- Why site speed costs you patients
- Getting found in AI search
- Read the full Patient Pulse 2025 report »
Book a free, no-obligation review of your clinic’s online presence »
