To me client service is extremely important. In an economy like our current one it's difficult to drive business and succeed strictly on price. To truly win, you have to have excellent customer service. Though I'm far from perfect, I pride myself on creating this kind of environment in the practice I manage. And sometimes you do win.
Today I had a client pay me one of the biggest compliments I've received. She was friends with another one of our regular clients who apparently has had nothing but great things to say about us. The new client had come to us specifically because of her friend's recommendation. And the greatest part is that she drove an hour and passed numerous other vets to get to us. The word of mouth was so good, that she went out of her way to bring her pets to us.
You simply can't buy that kind of advertising. Good word-of-mouth is the best way to develop a business, as well as the most cost-effective. When you have people speaking well of you, word gets around. The same thing is true of complaints and bad word-of-mouth. If you're doing the right thing for the pets and clients, the former will outweigh the latter.
One of the most important parts of treating clients in the right way is the team you work with. As good as a vet might be, they can't to their job without their techs, receptionists, and other assistants. My team deserves the credit for such success at least as much as I do. Without them, I wouldn't be able to do my job and the clients and patients wouldn't get the treatment they need and deserve.
So yeah, it's time for a mild bit of bragging. Next challenge? Do even better!
