How Customer Service Affects Your Bottom Line

It’s not new that customer service is important. But most private practice owners don’t know how to improve it and are missing out on the great rewards.

So how much is it really costing you?

According to leading business research conducted by the Harvard Business Review, it’s costing you a lot more than you know.

Improving the customer service level by just 5% can increase profits by 125%.

Here’s more,

• Businesses who make customer service a priority can make 60% higher profits than rivals
• It can be 7 times more expensive to get a new customer than it is to keep a current one.
• Negative interactions spread to 2 times as many people as positive interactions.
• 91% who are not satisfied will simply never return.
• 96% of unhappy customers will not complain.
• With the power of social media and the internet, a customer who is dissatisfied will tell 9-15 people about their bad experience.
• 52% of consumers trust online reviews just as much as personal recommendations.

So how does a private practice start making “customer service” a priority and enjoy the rewards?

Customer service for private practices can be broken down into 5 distinct categories. They are:

1. Communication Convenience
2. Pricing Transparency
3. Clinical Clarity
4. The Patient Experience
5. Complaint Resolution

But the essence of customer service can be boiled down into this one important principle. . . “It’s how you make the patient feel that matters most.”

Here are some quick tips you can use immediately to start improving your clinic’s customer service level.

Respect Them and Their Time

• See them at the time of their appointment. If their appointment is at 9am, get them started at 8:55 or 9:00 am. Not 9:05. And definitely not at 9:10.
• Avoid staring at a computer screen during the exam while they are sitting right next to you.
• Get new patients in based on medical urgency. Don’t make someone suffering wait too long to get in.

Remove Financial Ambiguity

• Let the patient know what the cost-of-care is going to be on their first visit.
• Do not make them wait until EOB’s are in, or keep them coming in without knowing how many more sessions they are going to need, etc.

Recognize Their Individuality

• Not every patients wants to come in two times per week for 4-weeks (or do they need to). Tailoring a program that fits their schedule goes a long way in enhancing customer satisfaction.
• Some may want more self-care and things they can do on their own while others may want to come in more often and receive care in the clinic. Learning what the patient might be wanting and designing a plan that meets their expectations is important to elevating your customer satisfaction.

Your staff play a large role in making the patient feel important, listened to, and cared for. Installing an efficient and effective training system that translates into actual performance improvements can reap huge rewards for your private practice.

Whether you are a 2 or a 40 person team, customer service should be made a top priority if you want to enjoy the rewards of a more loyal following, higher revenue and more referred family and friends.

If you want to improve your clinic’s customer service system, click below to learn more about the TRANSCEND ClinicalEX Bootcamp coming July 7-9. Doors are now open for the Early-Bird registration discount.

“Not Your Ordinary CEU Course”