Humans need to connect to one other human to feel comfortable enough to spend money.
The flu is a terrible thang. Today, after 14 days in the house, I got out and visited the world.
I went to see my doctor, because I have a cough that won’t go away and a few other lingering symptoms.
The receptionist had me fill out the usual 3-4 sheets of paper, but as I handed them back to her, she mentioned that I owed $77.12. I told her that I always pay my bill as soon as the insurance company does their part and they, at the doctors office, send me the final bill.
She mentioned that they had gone thru a period where “their billing wasn’t done properly” and I may have never received a bill. Yet, they may have referred my account to a medical collection agency, even though I have years of visual proof in their files of paying as soon as the invoice is received.
Where was the one person who could call and ask if I knew I owed them for a visit ?
Where was the one person who could have called me, before they send my account out to a medical collection agency for a measly $77.12 ?
Where was the one person who could say, we had a problem, let’s not cause any for the people who pay our salaries ?
For that office, that one person didn’t exist, so now I have ill feelings in more ways than one.
After seeing the doctor, I head out to get my prescriptions filled. They informed me that they had faxed my prescriptions to one of our local Wal-Mart Pharmacies, because they’re the cheapest in town.
If they’d asked, I’d had told them I abhor cheap drugs.
I drove the 10 minutes to the Wal-Mart Pharmacy and the young lady told me she had personally just taken my prescriptions out of the fax machine and they’d get right on them.
I was the only human on my side of the counter.
65 minutes later, I finally got my prescriptions.
What took so long ?
There wasn’t that one person around who could put my prescription in front of all the ones that were called in, faxed in or electronically transmitted to them.
Sure, all of those needed to be filled, but 95% to 99%, according to the technician, wouldn’t be picked up for several days. “But we have to fill them in the order we receive them“, even though I’m standing there and the other people may not come in for several days.
If they had that one person, I would not have taken a sworn oath to never let a prescription of mine ever be filled at a Wal-Mart Pharmacy ever again.
I left, feeling bad and now starting to get angry at the world for not having that one person I needed. There’s a strip-mall across the street with a Quizno’s that I’d been wanting to try. Soup and salad or 1/2 a sandwich sounded so good, especially after a frustrating morning.
It was 10:56 on the clock in the dashboard of my Camry and I was the only car parked in front of Quizno’s. I could envision the personal service I was gonna get, since I’m the first one there.
I walked up and got slapped again, because they didn’t have that one person who could unlock the door, even though their OPEN sign was lit.
I walked back across the parking lot and as I started my car, a young woman unlocked the door and waved. I waved back, but I was waving goodbye and so were my dollars.
Not having that one person who can unlock the door cost them an untold number of lunches, because I’ll never give them another chance.
I drove 10 whole minutes to the only place in town that could give me one person to fill my order and my soul.
Panera Bread had someone waiting for me. He took my order, offered me a cookie and/or a USA Today, which I took and then he personally filled my drink order, iced green tea, before he took another order.
I love the fact that they filled my order before they took another 1,2 or 5 orders, like some of the fast food places do.
That $10.21 was the best part of my day, until I made it home.
Thanks, Panera Bread, for taking my money, giving me what I paid for and doing it all with that one person I was looking for all day.
Take this with you when you leave:
Walk into your business, call yourself on the phone and answer this question – Do we have that one person who can make the day of whoever comes into our life ?
Do we have that one person who will do whatever it takes to start and finish the job ?
If not, I can tell you where you won’t find them, but I’ll struggle telling you where to find ‘em.
If you know how to convert employees into that one person, use the Contact page and let’s talk about it.
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Mike,
Your wife must hate hanging out with you as much as mine hates shopping with me.
There is NOTHING I despise more than people who are incapable of using common sense.
I don’t think that you need to be a genius. Most of good customer service should be self-evident,but there is a huge cross-section of sales/csr people out the don’t get it or don’t care. And the people who continue to pay them a salary are the real culprits.
Once again…right on the mark.
Hey Jamie,
My wife hates bas CSR’s worse than I do and she spots ‘em even faster. I’ve grown callused and expect poor service and she still believes in people … or tries to anyway.
Thanks for stopping by !
Mike,
It’s the elephant in every room I walk into, personally and professionally. So many businesses would rather spend tens of thousands on their decor or their web presence rather than take a hard look at who they have manning the door or the site. It’s a real aha! moment when they realize it all goes together.
I’m working on a print job right now where I’ve gotten personal telephone calls telling me all is well AND emails from an unrelated rep telling me everything’s screwed up and on hold within the same half-hour. One is the soul of kindness and “let’s make it happen” and the other, when I pointed out that somebody’s got to be getting the wrong message, got entirely … um… cranky, still insists everything’s on hold, and blamed me. On the SAME job!
Watch your people, people! One answer that’s true but fairly useless in my profession is that their mamas raised those two differently. Professionally, I can’t back up and help clients with their staff’s childhoods.
Or can I?
Hire people with good mamas. Who said “I can train them to do what I want but I can’t train them to be nice?”
Regards,
Kelly
P.S. Try Quizno’s again when you’re feeling more tolerant. I won’t claim the staff is fine–some are, but they seem to vary greatly from store to store. The sandwiches are worth it, if you’re in the land of chain food.
Hey Kelly,
As usual, you make great points and I appreciate all you add to the conversation every time you stop by.
I had not thought it thru far enough to get all the way back to Mama, but you’re right.
When I’m alone in a line, in a place of business, if a lady walks up, I insist she go before me. If she say’s anything except ‘Thanks’, I say my Mama would be mad if I didn’t let her go before me.
Mama’s make the man or woman.
Sounds like another ebook or special report we need to write !