You Get What You Pay For

Cliches can be trite or annoying (or trite and annoying). There are those who think that cliche = truism, on the grounds that if something is said by so many so often, it must be true. I take very little at face value, and to be on the safe side, I always assume that if a lot of people are saying something, they're all wrong until proven otherwise to my satisfaction. A negative stance? Perhaps. But it's amazing -- and frightening -- how often I'm actually right.

I'm not one of the flock; I do my own thinking. It may make people unhappy with me, but the truth is that that doesn't really concern me. I'm the one who has to live in my skin, and I'm the one who has to live with what I see in the mirror. As long as I obey most of the rules of society, I feel free to set and live up to my own standards.

There's one cliche, however, that I know is a truism, and that's the title of this blog: You Get What You Pay For.

I'm talking about that cliche being appropriate for the things in life that matter, not about cheaper paper towels or buying a name-brand can of green beans versus the house brand.

I'm talking about staffing your businesses.

Too often minimum wage means minimum effort from your employee. Yet these are the very people who make the biggest impressions on your customers.

Hello, May I Help You?
I can't tell you the number of times I've called providers, only to be confronted with receptionists who are rude, disinterested, or (in some cases and) impatient.

"XYZ Medical Supplies, how may I direct your call?"

"I'm not sure. I need to talk to someone about X product."

And then there's dead silence (or awful music or an even worse voice loop that tells me about the company), because the receptionist has either put me on hold without telling me, or has transferred me without telling me who can best help me. A little information and some politeness would have been really nice. But that rarely happens. I don't want a long conversation, but I would like to come away with a much better impression.

Your receptionist is most often the first impression your company gives. Yes, we all have bad days, and it can be difficult to leave that at home, but it doesn't belong in your business and on your phone.

Here's another cliche for you: You never get a second chance to make a first impression. Yes, you can smooth over ruffled feathers with an apology when your receptionist has been rude. My point is that you should hire a professional to answer your phone so those apologies don't have to be made and so your company doesn't make a bad impression when she (or he) answers the phone.

Most receptionists are paid minimum wage (or close to it). In most cases, you're getting what you pay for. Hiring a better quality of employee may cost more, but the investment will pay off in the long run.

Here's another thing that makes a bad impression: Automated answering systems. They're awful. An automated system says to me that you can't be bothered to answer your own phone; in a lot of cases the option that I want or need isn't offered, and getting to an "operator" is almost impossible. On the occasions I am able to get a person with a pulse on the other end of the line, that person is rude.

These systems may seem ideal to business owners, but most people confronted with them hate them. You may, after the initial investment in the system, save money because you're not paying someone to sit and answer your phone, but the system isn't doing much for your image.

When someone calls your company, you want that person to feel good about it. I know that if I have a pleasant experience with a company, I tell others about it. We all know how important word-of-mouth advertising is, don't we?

Where Do You Want This?
So you have a new client, you've done all the necessary paperwork, and it's time to deliver the item(s).

Are you putting your best foot forward with your delivery person? Probably not.

DMEs typically pay the minimum amount they can get away with for delivery staff. They're only delivery guys, right?

Wrong!

Your customers may never meet any other person associated with your company. They might talk with other staff on the phone, but the only individual with whom they'll have in-person contact is your delivery guy.

What kind of impression are you making if you send a guy who barely speaks the language, or who looks intimidating, or who could stand to have taken a shower? I know that in some areas having a delivery driver who is bi-lingual is an advantage, but I don't consider a man who is barely functional in English to be bi-lingual. Frustrating and irritating yes, bi-lingual no. I accept that there are other languages spoken in this country, but if you're sending drivers out who can't communicate effectively in English, you're offending your American-born clients (you're also making it very difficult for them to understand your driver).

I know that when I go into a store and can't find anyone who speaks English, I take my commerce elsewhere.

I'm sure some of my readers will be offended because I'm rather militant about "foreigners" speaking English. I'm not sorry about it. Not at all.

I once saw a bumper sticker that said "Welcome to America Now Speak English." Several generations ago some of my ancestors came to this country, and didn't speak English. They did, however, make it their business to learn it and to use it as their working language.

Did they continue to use their native languages? Yes, among family and close friends. They wouldn't have dreamed of expecting the majority of the population (the majority being those who spoke and functioned in English) to accommodate them, the minority. Was it easy for them, as adults, to learn English? Of course not. But they did it and they did it well because they made a genuine effort.

I acknowledge that there are those out there who have no talent for languages. That's a true shame, but I'd rather not have them inflicted on me because their language deficiencies make them cheap labor. I suspect that many people feel the same way I do, but it's not politically correct to say so. People stay silent for fear of being vilified for expressing an opinion that others may jump on as discriminatory or xenophobic.

I am neither discriminatory nor am I xenophobic. What I am is tired of extremely poor service and abominable English.

There is another aspect to the language issue. What if your delivery guy's inability to communicate effectively has a negative impact on your customers? Are there potential liability issues involved?

Nothing inspires confidence and warmth like an individual who presents himself well, communicates clearly, and who is knowledgeable. If I'm a customer and I have questions about a product being delivered, I'd like to be welcoming someone into my home who can understand, and in some cases, answer my questions clearly and thoroughly.

Your delivery drivers, if chosen well and paid well, can serve many purposes; they're out there in front of your patients all the time. How many of your customers have met the owners and managers of your DME?

Say What?
I was once in a group of DME owners, and the conversation turned to delivery staff. The consensus was that hiring the guys at minimum wage was the way to go, even though the turnover rate was high. They're only delivery guys, after all, and anyone can do that job.

Excuse me?

You have time and money invested in training every single employee. Each time a member of staff leaves, you have to spend time and money finding a replacement, and spend time and money training the replacement.

Minimum wage = temporary employee.

Paying a delivery guy or a receptionist minimum wage might seem to be a good way to keep operating costs down, but the truth of the matter is that you're spending far more on those positions in the long run. If you look at those members of staff as the key ones they really are, then you'll see that a larger investment in them -- the people who are the public faces of your company -- will benefit all concerned.