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Bon Appétit
What surgeons can learn from the dining experience.
By Shareef Mahdavi
When Danny Meyer enters a restaurant, he knows in a matter of seconds whether the experience is going to be exceptional or not by observing two things: is the staff focused on their work, and are they having fun with each other?
Meyer knows what he's looking for. He is the founder and co-owner of eleven establishments in New York City, including the top Zagat-rated Union Square Café and Gramercy Tavern. The examples set by Meyer and his teams have helped them become wildly successful in an industry that is among the most competitive anywhere.
PUTTING THE CUSTOMER SECOND
In his book Setting the Table,1 Meyer explains how the concept of hospitality can transform any business. "Put the customer second" is one of his key principles, which flies in the face of conventional wisdom that dictates that the customer is king. Instead, Meyer has found that, if the staff enjoy what they do, customers will have a better dining experience. (In fact, Meyer puts investors at the bottom of his list, after the community and his suppliers.)
Why is this business approach important for refractive surgeons to recognize? Because, like in the restaurant industry, great service is not enough anymore. The restaurant customer has come to expect that the right food will be delivered to the right person, and the surgical patient expects individualized attention. As Meyer puts it, "Long after they ate the roasted chicken, they will remember how you made them feel."
EMOTION
Indeed, emotion is one of the key elements to delivering a great experience in any industry. Word-of-mouth referrals are a common thread between restaurants and refractive surgery clinics. For restaurants, the way customers are made to feel will determine whether or not they return. For refractive surgeons, the way your patients feel about their experience long after they leave your practice will determine the enthusiasm with which and rate at which they refer others to you.
MAKING COMPARISONS
The restaurant industry provides many great comparisons for the service aspect of refractive surgery. When we examine the best of the best in dining, such as the French Laundry restaurant and the boutique winery Jessup Cellars tasting room (both in Yountville, CA), we find many relevant lessons that can be applied to the world of refractive surgery. Here's a recounting of the typical customer's experience at the French Laundry, at which getting a reservation takes months. In parentheses, I will list the principles that apply to your practice.
The minute you walk through the restaurant's door, you're excited (anticipation) and are seated upon arrival (no waiting room). The host or hostess who seats you gently says, "Have a wonderful evening" (setting expectations, generating warmth, and making a great first impression). After offering you a cocktail or glass of wine, the waiter explains from memory the menu he has placed in front of you. What is even more remarkable about his detailed description of the items is that the French Laundry's menu changes daily (continuous staff training and product knowledge).
SERVICE LIKE A BALLET
As your courses arrive over the next several hours, you notice that you and your companions have been greeted by 10 different servers, all working in a well-synchronized manner (teamwork) that resembles a ballet. Items that were not on the menu appear in front of you, such as pre-appetizers, pre-dessert truffles, and wrapped cookies to take home (elements of pleasant surprise). One guest's request for a substitution is handled with grace and a smile (accommodating customers' requests and unique needs).
The pacing of the evening is perfect, and no one ever feels rushed (customer-centric approach). The insignia-labeled clothes pin that held your napkin gets quietly slipped into your pocket (memorabilia), and another guest's request to take home the menu is met and exceeded when the chef/owner signs the menu (more memorabilia).
"CHECK, PLEASE"
The check itself—designed after a retro-style laundry ticket (having a consistent theme)—becomes yet another piece of memorabilia from the restaurant (Figure 1). On the way out, your party is again bade farewell by everyone you encounter (individual attention). When you think your experience can't get any better, it does. You are invited into the kitchen to meet the chef and owner (privilege), where you observe that the entire kitchen is spotless despite the busy evening (great impression).
DEALING WITH MISTAKES
Not every business encounter will be as flawless as the one described previously. This fact is especially true in the restaurant industry, where mistakes occur with products (eg, wrong item) and their delivery (eg, served cold). Nevertheless, all business owners (including refractive surgeons) have control over how they respond to mistakes. In his book, Meyer devotes an entire chapter to the topic, stating "We do have the power to write one last episode so that at least the story ends the way we want." By empowering his team to respond well to the mistake, it becomes a positive and a memorable part of the story that the customer will share with others.
THE COMMON THREAD
As I reflect on the different companies this column has highlighted over the years, I notice a distinct unifying theme secondary to the customer's experience: how employees are treated. Employee satisfaction is evident at Starbucks (Seattle, WA), where the budget for employee training is larger than that for advertising. The same is true for Apple Inc. (Cupertino, CA), where store staff engage in discussions with customers. And employees' happiness is a cornerstone of Costco Wholesale Corporation's (Issaquah, WA) operating philosophy, where workers are paid far above comparable standards at similar stores.
The core issue here is one that affects all businesses, refractive surgery practices included: your success as a surgeon ultimately depends on the attitudes and behavior of other people. Great skill alone is no longer the key differentiator for surgeons, in the same way that Danny Meyer has demonstrated that great food (and even great service) is no longer enough to distinguish a restaurant.
Consumers are increasingly seeking out something different, and, in a culture where marketing is stuck in overdrive, that something is a great experience. Danny Meyer and his restaurants define hospitality as being present when something happens for you and is absent when something happens to you. That simple concept makes so much sense, especially in the delivery of elective medical procedures. In my view, focusing your energy and effort on making each customer's surgical experience unique and memorable is the ultimate form of hospitality.
Shareef Mahdavi works with leading medical device manufacturers and providers to increase demand for elective medical procedures. His columns on refractive marketing and his e-newsletter on improving the customer experience are available at www.SM2consulting.com.
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