Here's A Customer Service Idea Every Pharmacy Can Use

 A few years ago, I attended a pharmacy CE session that impressed me.  The unique thing was the speaker was not a pharmacist nor did he speak about pharmacy, he owned a small chain of hair salons. 

He espoused a customer service technique he called, the F.O.R.D program.  I think the ideas he shared were ingenious.  Indeed, I’d like to see some pharmacy management system find a way to build the capability of using it into their software. 

As you’d expect for a hair salon his business management system kept track of appointments, the salon’s pricing schedule and calculated the commissions to be paid to each stylist.  But in his business, he said, relationships where paramount, so he’d added the ability for the system to house other information that helped his staff build relationship. 

Here’s what they put in, under the acronym of F.O.R.D.:

1.      Family: names of spouse, children, pets, etc.

2.      Occupation: What kind of work do they do, what company, how long there, etc. 

3.      Recreation:  How do they like to spend their free time, skiing, bingo, reading, etc.

4.      Dreams:  What do they wish they could do, have kids, travel, get married, etc.

So, here’s an example: the receptionist gets a call from a customer, Mary Jones asking, “When is the soonest you can get me in to see Wanda?”  The receptionist says, “Let me check,” and then while checking casually asks Mary Jones, “What’s up, why the rush?”  Mary explains her mother passed and she needs to leave in two days for the funeral.  The receptionist tells her there are two times available tomorrow. Mary Jones selects one and the receptionist books the appointment.  But that is not all, she also adds a note about the funeral in the customer relationship module. 

When Mary Jones comes in, Wanda has reviewed the note, expresses her condolences and chats about Mary Jones’ mother.  A relationship is strengthened because the system captured and shared the information. 

Sally Smith comes in on her regular visit and while chatting mentions she is up for a promotion.  Wanda makes a note and when Mary comes in six weeks later, Wanda asks for an update.

Whenever a new person comes in the stylist is trained to ask how the new person heard about the salon.  The reply is entered into the system for management review.  If the new person indicates a current customer suggested the salon the stylist adds that into the customer relationship management module.  The next time the person who referred a friend comes in the stylist thanks the person.  she is also authorized to provide the customer with a small gift, a bottle of shampoo, or other item the salon features.    

You get the idea, get, capture and appropriately use all the information you can on your patients.  People rarely leave their stylist because a new salon opened down the street.  Independent community pharmacy, like the hair salon business, is a people business. Finding new, more and better ways to build relationships is a critical success factor.  

For more ideas on what other pharmacies are doing to be successful check out my podcast:  www.pharmacycrossroads.com