Customer retention involves over delivering great service, it impacts the bottom line. According to an article in MedServ Medical News,a new coalition of patients, attorneys, doctors and hospital administrators across the nation have come up with an idea to keep liability costs and medical errors down simultaneously. The idea is working so well that it is reducing the number of lawsuits. What’s their great idea? It is basically an apology.
The group is called the Sorry Works! Coalition. Its members report the idea like this:
-Hospitals and physicians review every adverse incident.
-Hospital administrators and physicians sit down with patients and families to describe what happened.
-The hospital and doctor apologize if a mistake was made and offer the patient or relatives fair compensation if the inquiry finds that there was a medical error.
They also describe how the issue will be corrected.
When it comes to medical errors, patients think about some circumstances more forgivable than others. According to a survey in the January issue of The American Journal of Managed Care, here is what 958 people had to say about how likely they were to forgive a physician under these circumstances:
Physician was worn out or distracted:
-6% Would forgive
-27% Might forgive
-68% Would not forgive
Physician wasn’t thorough in the examination or in speaking with the patient:
-3% Would forgive
-22% Might forgive
-76% Would not forgive
Apologizing to customers for mistakes is important and necessary, but apologies are not free passes for providing bad service. A business needs to recognize when it does deliver poor customer support and be able to correct issues when they occur. Apologizing is part of this recovery technique. However, in order to retain customers, a company has to show it can provide nice service on a regular basis, with mistakes being the exception than the standard operating procedure. Having to apologize much is a sign that there's larger issues that need correcting.
You can actually increase customer loyalty even with annoyed customers. Here’s what to do when a customer complains:
- Make no excuses while you are listening to a customer complaint. Listen to them out and accept that their perception of the event is actual.
-Address each and every issue and concern raised by your customers. Don’t ignore a complaint because you don’t think it’s important or you think the customer is wrong.
-Don’t make amends by providing the original product or service. Exceed customer expectations by offering them more. Starbucks has a policyowner that if a customer is dissatisfied with their coffee or has to wait long, they receive a certificate for a free drink on their next visit.
-If your e mail or voice mail says you will get back to your customer within 24 hours, do it, or alter your message. When you make a promise—keep it.
-Don’t try to economize by arguing with a customer. You’ll save the company considerably more by focusing on keeping existing customers and building positive, long-term relationships with them.
Customers are fragile. Let one drop and you break a profitable relationship. Great customer support starts with you. Don’t preach it to others—live it. Do what it takes to get your customers to need to continue doing business together with your company. Apologies are simple when you recognize their lasting value to your customer, your company and your job stability.
The group is called the Sorry Works! Coalition. Its members report the idea like this:
-Hospitals and physicians review every adverse incident.
-Hospital administrators and physicians sit down with patients and families to describe what happened.
-The hospital and doctor apologize if a mistake was made and offer the patient or relatives fair compensation if the inquiry finds that there was a medical error.
They also describe how the issue will be corrected.
When it comes to medical errors, patients think about some circumstances more forgivable than others. According to a survey in the January issue of The American Journal of Managed Care, here is what 958 people had to say about how likely they were to forgive a physician under these circumstances:
Physician was worn out or distracted:
-6% Would forgive
-27% Might forgive
-68% Would not forgive
Physician wasn’t thorough in the examination or in speaking with the patient:
-3% Would forgive
-22% Might forgive
-76% Would not forgive
Apologizing to customers for mistakes is important and necessary, but apologies are not free passes for providing bad service. A business needs to recognize when it does deliver poor customer support and be able to correct issues when they occur. Apologizing is part of this recovery technique. However, in order to retain customers, a company has to show it can provide nice service on a regular basis, with mistakes being the exception than the standard operating procedure. Having to apologize much is a sign that there's larger issues that need correcting.
You can actually increase customer loyalty even with annoyed customers. Here’s what to do when a customer complains:
- Make no excuses while you are listening to a customer complaint. Listen to them out and accept that their perception of the event is actual.
-Address each and every issue and concern raised by your customers. Don’t ignore a complaint because you don’t think it’s important or you think the customer is wrong.
-Don’t make amends by providing the original product or service. Exceed customer expectations by offering them more. Starbucks has a policyowner that if a customer is dissatisfied with their coffee or has to wait long, they receive a certificate for a free drink on their next visit.
-If your e mail or voice mail says you will get back to your customer within 24 hours, do it, or alter your message. When you make a promise—keep it.
-Don’t try to economize by arguing with a customer. You’ll save the company considerably more by focusing on keeping existing customers and building positive, long-term relationships with them.
Customers are fragile. Let one drop and you break a profitable relationship. Great customer support starts with you. Don’t preach it to others—live it. Do what it takes to get your customers to need to continue doing business together with your company. Apologies are simple when you recognize their lasting value to your customer, your company and your job stability.
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