Creating an exceptional customer experience.

I have said this before, but it is so worth reiterating, especially as the world becomes less connected. And by that, I mean person to person connection. With many companies automating and removing the customer service contact, it may appear to the aspiring business that this is the way to go.
I would strongly disagree, especially in the service-based industry for which chiropractic sits in.

And people really don’t want it. Can you remember the last time you tried to sort something as a customer but ran up against automated ‘chat bots’ and online forms. The whole notion is so far removed from the human experience. Chiropractic in its essence is about improving the human experience and therefore the running of your business and how we work with our customers should be very focused on human-to-human customer service and experience.

So how do we make that possible?

Here are 3 steps to help you elevate your customer experience.

1.       Find your patient’s needs and goals.
I cover this heavily in the New Patient training I do, but the main gist of it is to simply ask your patients one question; “why now have you come to see me?”
By adding the ‘now’ into that sentence, it gives them permission to tell you’re their needs, goals, pains and frustrations.
Know this is far more valuable to their experience and outcomes that understanding the mechanism of injury.

2.       Make decisions for the customer with your product as the solution.
Now this may on the face of it sound the opposite of a customer experience with you leading them, however, let’s break it down and see why it is so important.
Patients want to see an expert and they want to be led. Certainty in your proposition will show confidence and competence, this is something that builds trust and buy in from the patient.
Many will have already been to another ‘therapist’ or doctor for their problem and with no clear plan, the care provided failed.
Knowing that what you do will help them (heavy wight here on integrity), then you stating your proposition as the solution is key.
However, doing this in practice, it is important to use Socratic questioning in your Report of Findings and structuring it in a way that they lead themselves to the conclusion that you are the help they need, before you present them with the solution.
Again something I go through heavily in the Day 1 / Day 2 training.

3.       You must be enthusiastic.
People get excited when you are excited. No one likes a drab and boring customer experience. Imagine the last time you were in Starbucks and the que was long, the server who eventually gave you your coffee lacked all enthusiasm and passion, you left angry and bitter before you even tried the coffee. Think then of the same scenario but this time the waiter is enthusiastic, passionate about the coffee and despite the busyness, sent you off with a smile. Totally different.
You need to resonate passion and enthusiasm before your patients do. Make this the norm for your team and the customer experience will instantly be elevated.

Bonus. Take responsibility for their continued excitement and engagement.
Have you ever brought a new car? You were excited, it was fun, and you loved driving it. However, the longer you had it, the less pride you took and the more ‘normal’ the driving experience became.
You see time will always reduce the memory of a great experience.
Therefore, you need to remind them of the experience and create new ones. The importance of a nurture process can not be understated. This could be birthday cards, celebrating milestones such as 50th visits and phone call out of the blue to check in and listen to them.

The opportunity and potential for your business to thrive is huge, as the rest of the world sleeps and automates, it is time for you to step up and show how great human connection can be.

With love,

Tom