Earlier in the year, my sister was in the hospital. She had a knee replacement, a procedure she was already familiar with. So, she knew what was in store and she was not looking forward to it. She wanted service to be something customers won’t forget.
One of her concerns was the level of service in the hospital (for good reason). When you’re undergoing major surgery and recovery, there’s a lot of room for mistakes. Even if the operation is fine medically, the aftercare can make all the difference in the world.
It’s only fair here to point out that my sister, wonderful as she is, happens to be one of the world’s most demanding customers. I should know because I am too. So any hospital she chose for this surgery was going to have to be on their “A” game to win her approval.
To our surprise, she found one that passed with flying colors. They did almost everything right from start to finish. Throughout the whole situation, My sister had nothing but good things to say about the hospital and staff.
Several things about this stand out.
One is the CEO/President of the hospital. He visited my mom three times while she was recovering from surgery. He even gave her his cell phone number in case she needed anything while she was there.
I almost fell down when she told me this.
ALMOST fell down.
She explained. Prior to choosing a hospital, she had told her surgeon about her concerns regarding good care. Her surgeon felt Lourdes Hospital was a good choice. So (apparently) he made a call.
I have no idea whom he called or what he said. All we know is she got extremely good care and special attention from the CEO of the hospital.
The second thing that stood out was the staff. They all seemed to be caring and very skilled at their work. As I said, my sister knows what good service is. These people really impressed her. That’s not an easy thing to do.
The third thing that stands out is that the care she received matches the current advertising campaign being done by the Lourdessystem.
As my wife and I were driving home from the hospital the first night, we noticed a billboard for Lourdes. It had a picture of a friendly-looking woman (a hospital employee). The copy on the sign read:
“I am the care I give.” “I am Lourdes”
(Or something like that.)
I hate most advertising because it’s not real. Most big corporate marketing campaigns are what the company wants us to think but not what the reality is.
This was different. Finally, I thought, a company got their marketing right. They actually seem to be delivering the same level of service and care their ad campaign suggests they are.
That is to say, consistency counts. And especially so do accuracy and honesty.
Don’t bother telling people how great you are unless you can back it up. The best marketing is what happens after you thrill someone (like having the CEO of a major hospital visit a patient).
That’s a memorable service. That’s a service that won’t be forgotten. And its what keeps your customers coming back.
Always remember:
Make sure the service you deliver is as good as or better than the service you advertise.
