You know the envelope.  It has “that” shape.  This Thank You card, arrived in the mail, complete with mass produced envelope with snazzy logo, and warm colors of ink on the return address.  Upon opening the card, there on the inside were four signatures.  One replete with it’s own smiley face :-).  These were from people that I never even met.  Why?   The minor surgical “procedure” that was done while under anesthesia made it so if I met these ladies, I was probably drugged into total vacancy.

Still the card arrived.  “What a nice gesture,” I thought.

In my new home state of Utah, the competition for customer satisfaction, and for amp’ing up the customer experience is highly competitive.  The University of Utah Medical Center started by making their doctors actually read customer comments.  When those doctors found out that those comments were going to be posted on-line for all the world to see, then the reading turned into improving.   Before only 1% of their doctors were in the top 1% of all doctors.  Afterward they had 25% of their doctors on the top 1% list.

Now to compete for the same customers, the other major provider of major medical work in the market has had to ramp up their efforts.  Hence my thank you card from the surgical support team, in a room where I was totally unaware of their work.  There on the card, their signatures, nothing more than “best wishes!” from complete strangers.

And yet I care!

Chad Hymas is a member of a the speaker Hall of Fame.  This buzz saw of a personality is one of the busiest presenters in the country.  For years he would make sure a picture was taken with him and the client.  Weeks after the client would get that picture framed and signed from Chad.   Customers care about that stuff.  We all care about that stuff.

Moral of story?

Thank the customer for their business.  Is it that hard?   It is one piece of the puzzle, but in a world of dread and dark, it is a pinpoint of light that will make you stand out like a lighthouse.