Time: More Valuable Than Ever
by Jan Quintrall, President/CEO, BBB
jquintrall@spokane.bbb.orgfor the Spokesman Review, 6/21/09
If we could harness the “frustration energy” in today’s medical waiting rooms, as well as in our own kitchens and living rooms where we wait for skilled trades’ people, cable/satellite installers, etc. I am convinced many of our power bills would drop like a rock!
Every once in a while the response I get to a column comes as a bit of a shock. The June 7th article about missing appointments and/or arriving late to scheduled appointments on the part of the client sure prompted readers to share a bit of that energy with me. I did hear from a fair share of service providers who applauded my pointing out that when you disregard your responsibility in that scheduled meeting, it costs the provider, but the vast majority of response came from the near-angry customers.
Consider how our perception of time has changed in the last ten years:
• We expect Google searches to respond immediately
• A web page that takes more than three or four seconds to load raises our blood pressure
• If we email someone in business, we expect a response quickly, akin to a phone call
• At least two of our major hamburger chains expect their employees to have drive-through orders in customers’ hands within sixty seconds.
According to Savvis VP Varghese Thomas, in a New York Times article, “The time to communicate between servers is down to a millionth of a second. …a 100-millisecond delay reduces Amazon’s sales by 1percent.” Simply amazing. But translate that to sitting endlessly in the lobby at the doctor’s office and it is no wonder people are frustrated.
Why is it we will sit and wait 30-90 minutes past our appointment time and not say anything when we finally see the electrician or the doctor?
• We fear that the care or service will be impacted if we complain.
• At times we are so relieved to have the attention or services, we simply ignore the inconvenience.
• Emergencies happen and we make all sorts of excuses for the provider, and keep silent.
A number of years ago I brought up the repeated extended wait time to my doctor. It was not a once in a while thing; it happened every single time I went to see him. He was shocked and had no idea that the appointments were that backed up all the time. Nobody ever challenged him, so he was in the dark. He called me several weeks later and thanked me for being brave and kind enough to gently raise my concern. He had discovered that his scheduler simply couldn’t say no and just kept booking people. He apologized and admitted he should have seen it sooner.
Failure to honor the value of time on either side of a transaction or service is a great way to ruin a relationship. But if, as a provider, you allow someone to miss appointments over and over again, and do not hold them accountable, well, you deserve that kind of treatment. The other side of the story is the patient or customer who waits and waits and does not bring up the lack of respect for your time to the provider. As I said in my last column, spelling out clear expectations is the best way to begin or maintain a relationship.
To start off on the right foot-
• When scheduling, ask about how well the office or service holds to a timeline.
• Call ahead and see if they are running on time.
• When you check in, ask what the wait time should be. If it is too long, reschedule or change providers.
• Ask that the home repair provider call you 30 minutes before they arrive. If they refuse, call another provider.
However, if you are habitually late or miss appointments, you have absolutely no standing to ask any of these questions. Kind, open and accountable communication can solve almost everything.
There are ways to hold your customers accountable
by Jan Quintrall, President/CEO, BBB
jquintrall@spokane.bbb.orgfor the Spokesman Review, 6/7/09
Some months ago, thanks to a careless move on my part, I fell off a chair and landed on my head, wrenching my neck. My preferred method of health care – simply ignoring it – has proven to be just as successful as it usually does, and now I am beginning physical therapy.
When I completed all the paperwork at my initial appointment there was a very clear statement on one of the pages of paper about missing appointments, showing up late or continually canceling appointments. They went on to say that after a specific number of failures on the part of the patient, the clinic could and probably would “fire” the client. I wanted to stand up and applaud, but my neck was bothering me.
Any professional who generates income only when a client is receiving service faces the same challenge. For example, a barber who sets aside 30 minutes for each client, and books those slots weeks ahead, is simply stuck when someone does not show up. The barber receives no income and seldom has a walk-in fall into the chair just when he needs one. How inconsiderate on the part of the client. Likewise, when a customer turns up 10 minutes late, that event affects the rest of the schedule. I wonder if the latecomer knows or even cares?
Life happens, and everyone is late or misses an appointment once in a while, but as a business owner, you can and should set limits on this kind of behavior when it becomes a habit:
•After the second occurrence, talk to your client and let them know the effect of their irresponsibility.
•Let them know you will have to end the relationship if the behavior continues.
•Stick to your guns and do not let them walk all over you and disrupt your schedule and your income.
This is just another example of the customer not always being right, and talking about it should do the trick. If it doesn’t help, you don’t need that kind of client, do you?
There is great value in setting expectations up front in any relationship. My experience with the physical therapy provider shows clarity in expectations with the client.
How clear do you make your requirements to your customer? Most of us in business assume a whole lot when we start a relationship with a new client, and many of us outline just what a customer can expect from us but don’t give much thought to what you would want from a customer. What if you added just a few points like the following to your contract, initial customer handout or front door?
•Contact us immediately if you have a question or a problem as the project progresses.
•If you need to reschedule a meeting, please do so 24 hours in advance.
•Please direct changes and questions to the job foreman, not the tradesman.
•You have provided 555-1111 as a number where we can reach you quickly if necessary.
•We want this relationship to be favorable to all involved and know communication is key.
Knowing what is expected on both sides starts everyone off on the right foot. Just be sure you follow on your promises, too. Of course the other side of this issue involves concerns like those hour-long delays customers face in health care waiting rooms. But that is another column.
Jan Quintrall is president and CEO of the local Better Business Bureau. She can be reached at (509) 232-0530 or
jquintrall@spokane.bbb.org.