Customer, consumer, client, patient, resident. It’s all about service to me.

I tell you no lie. I was leading a strategic planning session and one hour later they were still going on about the label they would use to describe the people who they serve. “ I don’t like consumer”…. said one woman. My clients don’t “consume”. Another said…”customer is so commercial…the next thing we will be doing is selling personal care at a bargain price…” The conversation got heated (and long). Frankly, I was not surprised but I was getting bored. So I intervened…

“ What do you get when you go to the shop to buy your coffee….” What about when you call to arrange your mobile phone plan…? What do you get when you get information to buy your health insurance…? You are at dinner in a restaurant, what do you get...Is it just a meal…? You are on the phone, speaking to My Aged Care call centre…what do you want? You are in hospital waiting to hear the news about your mother’s operation…what do you want?

The answer is simple. Service. So stop thinking about what you will call the people that you serve and start thinking about what “service” looks like for them!