The patient is not the only audience

Article Outline

 

Many practices neglect to focus on another important target: the patient's escort.

One of Japan's largest gas retail chains has remodeled its service stations with a novel concept in mind: to make waiting an enjoyable experience. As a means to this end, the company opened cafes with good food, set up areas for kids to play, and offered tired motorists the comfort and relief of a good massage chair. Employees even provided entertainment by performing a ritual car wash dance. By making hanging around more fun, per-station sales increased 15%, traffic grew 22%, and profits went up a whopping 82%!

Written up as a case study in graduate business school textbooks, the company's experience should not be seen as limited to gas stations or even retail. The message is a universal one—we care about you—with the objective to give people a reason for coming back.

So, how can this philosophy be applied to an eye care practice? Just think how many patients are escorted to the office by someone—a spouse, friend, parent, child, or sibling. Just like at retail, the waiting experience for these individuals can also be greatly enhanced. Not only is it the right thing to do, but the investment spent in making sure the visit is a positive one will be paid back in dividends (whether it is in the case of a friend looking for a new doctor or a spouse with input in the family's medical decisions). After all, a positive experience by 2 people leaving the office—the patient and the escort—doubles the likelihood of generating additional traffic to the practice.

As much sense as this makes, it is an idea that seems foreign to many eye care practitioners. Practices, in general, place their emphasis solely on the patients—often all but ignoring their companions. Meanwhile, while the patient, hopefully, waits for only a brief time before being escorted to an examination room or a dispensary, the companion may end up spending anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour waiting. Just think how beneficial it would be if the companion's experience was as positive as that of a satisfied patient.

What can be done to accomplish this? It starts by putting one's self in the shoes of the companion. What would impress? Here are some thoughts:


1.Think how much nicer it is to sit in a bright, well-appointed office, rather than a dimly lit one with stained carpets, peeling wallpaper, and worn chairs. The patient might not as readily notice that the place looks like a private eye's office in a 1940s film noir drama, but someone spending 45 minutes forced to sit on uncomfortable chairs, sandwiched a foot-and-a-half between strangers, with the room either too hot or too cold, will certainly leave with that impression.


2.Keep a full assortment of current magazines available and well displayed. This is the easiest thing to do. Think of the impression left by a pile of disheveled news and sports magazines that are months old.


3.The availability of computers, televisions, automatic foot massagers, and massage chairs all drive home the key message to the patient's friend or family member that “we have not forgotten about you.” The airlines spend millions in keeping customers engaged during flight. There is a reason for that, and that same thinking should be applied to those waiting in the office.


4.In the same vein, let them know that water, soft drinks, or coffee are available. Again, these are the little niceties that make a big impression.


5.Children need to be kept busy, whether it means having a carefully planned kids' area or the use of video games or headphones (or even iPods). A patient who needs to bring kids wants to know they are safe and engaged.


6.The time spent waiting should be as pleasurable as possible, but it is also a common courtesy to update escorts on the status of the patient. For example, “Mrs. Smith, your husband should be finished in another 10 minutes or so.”


7.Yes, feel free to let any adults waiting know they are welcome to look at eyeglasses for themselves. Yet, do not push it. The experience of passing time trying on frames is more important than selling them at this time.



Finding a way to please those individuals sitting in your waiting room needs to be looked upon as important a challenge and as great an opportunity as pleasing the patients themselves. After all, they can have a huge effect on building a practice.