Is there a way of placing a value on service? I have spent many hours discussing its value with DME/HME providers.
The service that accompanies a transaction is taken for granted by customers when they obtain supplies and equipment from their local home care company. Service may never be completely reimbursed, especially if there is a competitive bid process in effect. But the ability to provide one-on-one personal service is a benefit that sets the role of the average provider above most competition.
Several providers with whom I have spoken recently indicated they may try to reduce much of the service that has been part of their normal business operation. They feel that since just the basics are all they are reimbursed for, then basics are all they will provide.
Don't do it! Do not reduce the level of service you provide to your customers. Maintain service at the highest possible levels you can. As more and more entities are entering into DME — Wal-Marts, pharmacies, so-called health care stores — your skill at providing service is what will help you keep your customer base.
How much is your service worth? The survival of your company, that is how much.
Marketing Matters
Don't wait for something to happen, make something happen!
One provider shared with me that, periodically, he and his wife visit other DME stores. They like to walk through other locations to see which products are on display, get an idea of the prices being charged and how other companies promote their wares. When I questioned him about checking prices, he told me that he checks out his competitors not to undercut them but rather to get an idea of the level of products they offer. He then added that he has been really impressed by seeing that most of the suppliers he visits promote top-of-the-line products, not “bargain basement”-priced items.
To add to your marketing arsenal, you will discover many ideas that you can utilize in your operation by reading in this magazine and other trade journals about what providers throughout the country are doing.
Also study with care what this industry's manufacturers are doing. Thoroughly peruse their advertisements, and consider what fits in best with your company's program. Use the manufacturers' representatives who call on you as a resource. They should be able to provide guidance and assist you in setting up some successful promotions. After all, equipment manufacturers want you to be successful, because when you are, so are they.
Alzheimer's Community
Alzheimer's disease, identified as a form of dementia, appears to be affecting more and more senior citizens. President Ronald Reagan, who died at age 93, was a victim of this debilitating disease. Several providers have asked me if there is a role for them in working with local Alzheimer's organizations.
Many prominent figures are working with these associations, and you can, too. Do some research and locate the association chapters and support groups in your community. Arrange to attend their meetings, and offer to provide the donuts and coffee in exchange for a bridge table in the back of the meeting room. There you can introduce your company and get to know the names of the patients, relatives and family caregivers.
Your company offers for sale all the comfort items that caregivers for Alzheimer's patients seek. Be sure they know where your location is and that you and the other members of your staff are always available to consult with them.
For more on Alzheimer's, visit the Alzheimer's Disease Education & Referral Center, a service of the National Institute on Aging, at www.alzheimers.org. To find a local chapter of the Alzheimer's Association in your area, visit www.alz.org.
Sheldon “Shelly” Prial is based in Melbourne, Fla., with Prial Consulting and also serves as the director of government relations for Atlanta-based Graham-Field Health Products. In 1987, he founded the Homecare Providers Co-Op, now part of The VGM Group. He can be reached by e-mail at shelly.prial@worldnet.att.net or by phone at 321/255-3885.
