Habit 1: Be Proactive
By Rick Fromme
Photo Credit: rock.genius.com |
Read on, and learn more about what being proactive with customers really means.
As the esteemed, late Dr. Stephen
Covey pointed out in his landmark international best-seller, “The 7 Habits of
Highly Effectively People,” being proactive requires a paradigm shift in
mindset, behavior and for organizations, strategies. Being proactive means “that as human beings,
we are responsible for our own lives. Our
behavior is a function of our decision, not our conditions. We can subordinate feelings to values. We have the initiative and the responsibility
to make things happen.”
Photo Credit: n2growth.com |
Last summer, inContact issued a customer service
survey. The study, conducted online by
Harris Interactive, on behalf of inContact, surveyed 2,034 U.S. adults aged 18
years or older. Here’s a summary of its
main findings:
- 87% said they want to be contacted proactively by a company;
- However, one of the major hindrances to being more proactive in customer service is the initial pause or delay that can often occur when traditional legacy predictive dialers are used in call centers;
Photo Credit: jsainterinteractive.com |
- The most popular reasons for wanting to be contacted included: fraudulent activity on their account (65%); setting appointments or reminders (53%); and questions about an order they placed (51%);
- Nearly three quarters (73%) of those who had a pleasant surprise or positive experience with a proactive customer service call report they had a positive change in their perception of the business calling them; and
- 62% of those who had a pleasant surprise or positive experience with a proactive customer service call have taken an action as a result of that positive experience.
“Businesses, community groups,
organizations of every kind ― including families ― can be proactive,” Dr. Covey
states. “They can combine the creativity and resourcefulness of proactive
individuals to create a proactive culture within the organization.”
Let’s say you’re a medical device
salesperson. Imagine this scenario:
Photo Credit: msha.com |
- Upon closing the sale and procuring delivery arrangements, you would’ve sent your new client (note, they’re no longer a prospective customer) a “Thank You” note for making the purchase and reiterating that you (and the equipment’s manufacturer and/or distributor) will be there to answer any questions they may have.
- Call the client to ensure the delivery and set up went ok. Or, even better, you would’ve arranged to be at the facility when the equipment was actually arriving to assist with the delivery and set up. At least, monitor its progress on site.
Photo Credit: tambabay.com |
- Arrange an appointment for you and, if necessary, a customer service representative from the equipment manufacturer or distributor to be on-site to help train your new client’s staff, offering assistance as to how to properly operate, utilize in a clinical setting, care for, and maintain the equipment.
- Put your new client in touch with other facility’s key personnel who are more experienced in using the new piece of equipment to help them with any questions, issues, etc.
- Keep your new client updated on any new software, firmware, upgrades, changes and or developments pertaining to the equipment they purchased.
- Set up regularly scheduled conference calls to address any concerns, questions, or issues they may have.
Photo Credit: intuitivesurgical.com |
- If applicable, provide necessary information (photos, literature, PowerPoint presentations, boilerplate press releases, marketing points, etc.) to assist your new client in its efforts to advertise its acquisition of the new piece of equipment.
- Provide your new client with testimonials from clinical staff and patients who’ve had a positive experience with the piece of equipment (videos, handwritten letters, department heads’ comments, etc.)
- Keep the client informed about on any new products this manufacturer (or others) have developed that will also benefit their facility.
I’m certain if you thought about
it even further, you’d be able to generate even more ideas on how to offer proactive
customer services to your new client. Why not schedule a sales meeting/brainstorm session to come up with even more ideas?
Photo Credit: lifetothefullest.com |
As Dr. Covey points out,
individual human beings and organizational entities (businesses, community
groups, families, etc.) are capable of can change and can thereby alter the way
people think about us by what we do and how we do it. This change can take time and conscious
effort. But in the long run, its
dividends will be worth it. “Knowing
that we are responsible ― “response-able” ― is fundamental to effectiveness and
to every other habit of effectiveness …”
By helping your customers more,
they will appreciate you more, trust you more, talk positively about you more,
and buy from you more. How’s that for
being proactive?
MedMasters' Testimonial
Oriented towards providing expert customer service in the medical sales industry, in this article, I discussed Habit
1 from Dr. Stephen Covey’s “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” namely, Be Proactive. I talked about what being
proactive is and what it’s not, particularly when pertaining to sales. I also offered several different ways one
might be proactive after selling a piece of capital medical equipment to a
client. If you found it interesting and useful, please share it with your
colleagues and friends. As always, I’m
eager to read your comments and questions below.
Rick
Fromme combines entrepreneurial enthusiasm with an insider's knowledge of the
medical industry to co-found MedMasters.com. Both
his drive and perspective helps provide health care professionals with a
superior mechanism with which to communicate, network and market their strengths.
Prior to founding MedMasters.com, Rick
operated a highly successful medical device distributorship. Other milestones
in his 12-year career in the medical industry include a key position at a
medical device start-up company that was later sold to the Ethicon
Endo division of Johnson & Johnson. You may also reach Rick
by connecting with him on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn and YouTube.
Related Articles
Ten Commandments of Customer Service
What Does Excellent Service Mean?
What is Good Customer Service?
15 Customer Service Skills That Every Employee Needs
Stephen Covey's Website
The Difference Between Proactive and Reactive Sales
Book by Franklin/Covey: "Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play -- Transforming the Buyer/Seller Relationship"
Related Articles
Ten Commandments of Customer Service
What Does Excellent Service Mean?
What is Good Customer Service?
15 Customer Service Skills That Every Employee Needs
Stephen Covey's Website
The Difference Between Proactive and Reactive Sales
Book by Franklin/Covey: "Let's Get Real or Let's Not Play -- Transforming the Buyer/Seller Relationship"