The Wrong Spot
My medical short cut wasn’t.
It’s risky to ditch a trusted supplier for a cheap unknown.
I just learned this the hard way.
And have a scar to prove it.
Free & Easy
I was across town, visiting Dad.
My sore ankle wasn’t improving, so he suggested I see his doctor.
He liked this doctor because he was:
- Close.
- Free.
- Malleable.
By contrast, my excellent doctor was:
- Far.
- Pricey.
- Firm.
Seduced by the lure of cheap, easy health care, I went.
Cutting Comment
The doctor had the blank, far-off look that comes from doing something ten years too long.
With languid, cursory movements, he pronounced my tendons intact.
Eager for even more value, I next pointed to the freckle I’d gained in Bali.
He immediately said it had to be cut out.
This surprised me, as the spot was very small. I asked if he could try freezing it with liquid nitrogen first.
He grunted and fetched the hissing vial. Holding a swab at arm’s length, he poked at my face like an impressionist blocking a landscape in fading light.
As the nitrogen froze everything it touched, I didn’t realise he was attacking the wrong spot – a birthmark two centimetres from the freckle I’d indicated.
Back in my car, the mark turned red and throbbed to twice its normal size.
Bitter Pill
With my savings of time, money and effort more than negated, I searched for the silver lining of this upsetting experience.
So far, this blog post has been the sole ‘plus’.
I have wonderful suppliers for IT, muesli and other essentials. These businesspeople have earned my trust with years of constant, superior service.
It was always going to take a mighty fine offer for me to dump them.
I now plan to keep them for life.
Bad Medicine
How do you feel about your suppliers?
Do you cherish them like family, or chop and change to save a few bucks?
Have you ever switched horses mid-race, only to fall at the first hurdle?
I’ve faced my demon.
Let’s see yours.
Paul Hassing, Founder & Senior Writer, The Feisty Empire
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.
As a niche supplier where our business is literally defined by our geographic location, we make a point of being reliable, honest and loyal to our local suppliers.
It is remarkable that a rare few of our trusted suppliers see so little in reciprocating this arrangement, and we have a clear “no XXXXheads policy”.
Simply put, if they are too difficult to deal with, and have inconsistent practices, it is best to chop and change regularly.
Thank you, CG. Given the many and varied inputs into your products, I’m not surprised you’ve drawn a line in the gourmet mustard sauce. Good for you!
G’Day Paul,
As I keep going on about: it’s quality that matters first in most things. Years ago, our car drove over a large rock on a country road. We were in the mountains about an hour from the nearest town. The car was stuck in top gear.
We managed to coax it to the local NRMA–RACV to you– rep who worked on it so that we could drive back to Sydney, some three hours away.
There was a large sign inside the workshop which said, as near as I can remember,”the bitterness of poor quality is remembered long after the sweet taste of low price has been forgotten”
Here’s the rub. The “running repairs” that mechanic made were still going strong up until we traded the car in some years later.
By the way, how’s your face?
Regards
Leon
That is a ripper story (and sign) Leon! I’ve not encountered that one before.
Good car-repair folk sure seem thin on the ground. Sounds like you hit the jackpot (pity about the rock).
Who was it that wrote, ‘Nothing lasts longer than a makeshift’ … Steinbeck?
My spot is still very angry and sore. I’m heading back to my doctor today.
With best regards and many thanks for your interest. P.
Paul
In the marketing game it has happened to me on many occassions. You switch printers to save a little and the job comes back with the wrong colour shade. Happened recently with our banners. Agency had a supplier that they used and managed the relationship but they were 20% more expensive than Marketing’s supplier. We had a difficult purple colour that was hard to match. Agency had selected it and knew how difficult it was to match. We chose to save some money by selecting Marketing’s supplier and the job returned with a mix match of purples. Not happy. No apologies they just blamed the digital process.
Now I have to look at these banners everyday and get reminded of the mistake.
Hi, MCB. I hear you. Some printers are even twitchier than car repairers! I’m very sorry to hear about your purple patch. We have antique white in our lounge and even that annoys the purist in me! How long till these banners wear out – or is that too depressing to contemplate?
Stuck with them for a while I am afraid.
Bugger!
What a horror story Paul! Great base for your post though. I can relate to the opposing mentalities of your doctors well with my own service provision – this may be bad to admit, but I know that my clients who pay well and don’t try and cut corners on cost will always get a better service than those who try and whittle you down for every last cent..
Hope the scar hasn’t had any negative effects on possible ambitions for a modelling career!
by the way – that sign was gold Leon: ”the bitterness of poor quality is remembered long after the sweet taste of low price has been forgotten”
Thanks, Daniel; I let my wife do all the modelling!
I get very frustrated by clients who penny pinch. It’s as far from expert, professional, high-end service as you can get.
Those who try to screw you down from the outset usually turn out to be more trouble than their limited money is worth.
At times like this, I DO recommend the Yellow Pages!
PAUL,
Greetings from rural Australia.
Because I choose suppliers carefully, I don’t change suppliers unless they close down and go out of business.
Loyalty does get repaid with loyalty. Most of the time.
And as a very small business which is a mere flea on the back of the large gorillas who have supplied me since 1994, they do notice when I say please and thank you and send warm wishes when I pay their accounts.
And they have moved mountains and walked on water for me when I needed miracles.
Cheapest price never compensates for the trust and the willingness to do more than the bare minimum, that loyalty brings to a working relationship when the chips are down.
I’ve been insured with the NRMA since 1974, when I purchased my first car in Australia. My partner, Victor, has no loyalty with insurers. But I absolutely refused to budge and insure with others when cheaper offers were waved in front of me. By Victor.
In 2007, I was travelling on one of my rural roads that was undergoing major roadworks. A police car travelling in the opposite direction threw a large rock underneath my car. I heard the thud. But thought nothing of it.
Until smoke came streaming out from under the bonnet and billowed all over my windscreen.
In a flash, I was out of the car, and like Houdini, unharnessed the dogsx3 from the back and dragged them off to the side of the road like a woman obsessed.
Which I was.
I thought the car was going to explode.
A tow truck confirmed the worst. The rock had put a massive hole in my radiator and blown my engine when all the water poured out.
My local garage said I had buckleys of getting the NRMA to cover the damage as it couldn’t be proven that it wasn’t my fault. If they did cover it, it would be the first time in his 30 years of experience in accident repairs.
Yes. The NRMA covered me for a new engine and radiator. Without question. And also provided a rental car until my car was repaired.
Why?
Because of history and continuity of loyalty.
My history with them goes back to 1974.
I made my first claim in 1980, when a stolen car chased by the police ran into my car and demolished it.
Along with me.
I know. I know. I should run for cover whenever I see a police car!
And this was my first claim since 1980.
The NRMA also queried the garage which was repairing my car. And who has serviced and maintained my cars on a regular basis since 1992.
Because of the angle of the hole in the radiator, it was their opinion that my story was true. And most importantly, because in the not too distant past, I pointed out to them that they made a mistake in their additions on a major repair to my car (all calculations are done by hand) and instead of owing them $200 I owed them $1,200, they vouched for my honesty as well.
After much discussion that didn’t involve me, my repairs were approved.
I had a new engine, new radiator, a rental car at my disposal when I needed it, and whatever else comes with those repairs, for the cost of my $450 deductible.
The NRMA graciously wrote to me thanking me for my 33 years of unbroken loyalty and cited it as a factor when making the decision about my claim.
My garage never stops telling the story about the spell I cast over the NRMA.
And Victor’s attitude towards insurers has done a back flip.
All that because I wouldn’t change insurers for a company marginally cheaper.
I absolutely believe it’s a rare occasion when loyalty doesn’t reap its own rewards.
But your doctor story is quite alarming. And is a tad more serious than simply being disappointed when changing a supplier.
Walking out looking quite different to when you went in must qualify for a different category. More along the lines of doctor incompetency.
I hope your boyish good looks haven’t been dealt an irreparable blow!
As ever, Paul, your posts are always grounded in real life experiences.
Best wishes and take care,
Carol
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
http://www.InterfaceAustralia.com
Ironing Diva’s stories are at http://bit.ly/TheIroningDiva
Well, Carol; with a comment like yours, I think this blog can look after itself for a few weeks!
What amazing adventures you have. And what a great storyteller you are. Thank you for telling them here.
How I wish my decades of telco loyalty cut as much iceberg as yours. It must be your approach.
I’m off to see my GP shortly. I’ll let you know if my dogs recognise me when I return. A bit like Ulysses (though his dog died after leaping into his arms). Cross that bridge when I come to it.
Thanks again, Carol!
I’m back!
The dogs recognised me no worries.
The freckle is benign and my ankle and birthmark should recover.
Now we can ALL get some sleep!
PAUL,
Greetings from rural Australia.
This is a relief.
Returned home as you left with no lingering scars or facial alterations.
If I’m not mistaken, you originally went to see about your ankle and wound up with your face being frozen and a birthmark mistaken for a suspicious freckle.
And you think I have interesting adventures!
Happy Easter. Hope those bunnies bring basketfuls of joy!
Best wishes and take care,
Carol ♥♥♥
Carol Jones
Director
Interface Pty Ltd
Designers of The Fitz Like A Glove™ Ironing Board Cover
http://www.InterfaceAustralia.com
Ironing Diva’s stories are at http://bit.ly/TheIroningDiva
Thank you, Carol. I hope you have a good one yourself.
Speaking of bunnies, I’m grateful to @WinstonMarsh for flagging this fine link this week:
http://www.animalsaustralia.org/features/easter/