How to Lose a Client In 9 Months

(or 9 days… or 9 seconds)

Avoiding the Doctor at All Costs

I hate going to the doctor. I haven’t seen my regular doctor in 16 years. In fact, unless I’m facing something close to amputation, I’d rather just tough it out. However, recently, I needed to see my dermatologist because the medication I had been using since 2013 was starting to run out, and I couldn’t get a prescription refill without making an appointment.

The Long Wait for an Appointment

I called in February and was given an appointment for November 12. (This is not a typo.) The day of my appointment, my doctor’s office called to say that he had to cancel because he wasn’t in that day. They wanted to schedule me two days later, which was the day before my biggest and final seminar. I decided to wait until the following week; however, my doctor could not see me that day, so they assigned me to someone else. He turned out to be a much better doctor who solved my problem and had a good sense of humor. By the way, when I go back to the dermatologist again in another 12 years, I’m going to ask for him.

Delayed Care for a Painful Problem

I recently had a flare-up of gout in my right foot. I waited six days before I called my podiatrist to schedule an appointment. By that time, it felt like my foot was on fire. The scheduler made my appointment for nine days later. By the time I saw my foot doctor, my pain threshold was only at level 2. She prescribed a steroid, and by the next day, I was all better. The next time I have an issue, I’ll find someone who can see me a lot sooner.

The Appointment-Only Policy

Not long ago, I accompanied my wife to see her dermatologist. When she was done taking care of my wife, she asked if we had any questions. I wanted to ask her about a small white spot on my neck to find out if I needed to schedule an appointment to have it looked at. Before I could even get the words out of my mouth, she stopped me and said, “I’m sorry, if you’re going to ask me anything about yourself, you’re going to have to schedule an appointment.” She said it was the law. (So much for the Hippocratic oath.) I politely declined and went home and used some rubbing alcohol to open the whitehead on my neck, which went away in a couple of days.

A Lesson for Business Owners

I know some of you think I might be wrong, but my experiences with the medical profession have not been very positive. My point in sharing them with you is this: Perhaps doctors can get away with dismissing people and delaying them for unreasonable periods of time, but it’s unlikely that you can do the same in your business. If you want to gain customers instead of losing them; if you want to delight customers instead of aggravating them; and if you want to give customers a reason to praise you rather than leave nasty reviews about you, make their priority your priority.

Final Thoughts

“Responsibility finds a way. Irresponsibility makes excuses.” – Gene Bedley

Let me hear from you.

(This excerpt is taken from the seminar video Legendary Customer Service IV: Soothing the Savage Customer.) I encourage you to watch this video at www.courses.romeonetwork.com.