Jarrod Shapiro, DPM
Practice Perfect Editor
Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Podiatric Medicine,
Surgery & Biomechanics
College of Podiatric Medicine
Western University of
Health Sciences,
St, Pomona, CA

Loyalty

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote an editorial about my trials and tribulations related to the poorly made air conditioning in my new home. I derided the shoddy workmanship of my AC unit and compared it to some poor work in podiatric medicine. My unfortunate situation luckily has a bright side which also illuminates an important concept: loyalty.

You might recall the AC person estimated the costs to replace my incorrectly installed ductwork at $4000. Unfortunately, the "bright side" doesn't include an error in the potential cost. The following weekend, my family and I visited Phoenix for a family event. Upon our return home to Southern California, we found a house that was 87 degrees. We'd expected a high temperature because we had deliberately turned off the AC while we were gone. Since we're not ready to drop $4000 on the repair, we've been trying to conserve the best we can. Frustratingly, though, after several hours of running the air, the temperature would not drop below 85 degrees. My first thought was, "This is it already? The air conditioner has failed? Get ready to pull out the checkbook."

Here's where my first observation on loyalty came to play. I called the AC company to have someone come out ASAP. I was worried at first that they wouldn't be able to come out on such short notice. Southern California, like much of the country, is undergoing a heat wave, and the demand for air conditioning services is very high. However, I needn't have worried. During the initial repair visit, I had purchased the company's loyalty plan. Normally, I wouldn't have done this, except their plan included a 15% discount to all future work within the plan's term as well as waiving their $89 "visit" fee. Figuring I would have the repairs done in the next few months, I would save about $689. The plan also included preferential treatment such that my service call now became the first in their queue. I wouldn't have to wait at all!

Tonight's Premier Lecture is
Total Joint Replacement
for Hallux Rigidus
Gary Feldman, DPM

The equivalent service in medicine is the concierge practice, where the patient pays a certain yearly dollar amount and receives certain preferential services by the doctor. This may be a challenging method for all medical practices, especially in our current healthcare insurance environment, but it is possible to adapt this concept – at least in part – to most practices. If more practices had a similar option, perhaps more patients would be able to keep insurance plans with much higher deductibles and route that extra money to their doctor.

But my future savings is not the bright side.

Wait for it….

Here it comes….

When the repairman came out, he gave us a second opinion on the ductwork – it did need to be replaced – but our AC unit was 2 pounds low on coolant. Lucky for us my wife was home at the time ,because she gave the guy a pouty face of some sort when he told her it would cost $315 to recharge the AC unit. Lucky because he gave us the air conditioner recharge as a courtesy. We now saved $89 on the free service call and $315 for the recharge, plus had them come out on the same day during a heat wave! A $404 savings. All together I'm looking at a total savings of $1093! That's pretty bright, don't you think?

This is the benefit of good service in creating loyalty. Everyone from the receptionist to the repairman was pleasant and polite. They were respectful and honest (to the best of my knowledge). They kept the appointments they made with us and were not late. They gave us a significant free service, despite their ability to charge us. How many doctor's appointments have you had where they failed to do these simple things? The combination of the high quality service and the compulsory use of their plan will keep me coming back for more service in the future.

We're now enjoying a cool house during these hot summer months, and it looks like I'll be able to wait perhaps a year or so before having to replace the ductwork in the house. When it comes time to do the actual job of replacing my ductwork, I'll most likely use this same company. The AC company provided basic good service while providing me a significant monetary savings, increasing my loyalty to this company while increasing the likelihood of future referrals. Do these simple things with your practice and you'll increase your patient loyalty. The future's so bright you'll have to wear shades!