Customer experience expert Dean Lindsay will present the opening keynote at the virtual Medicare Marketing & Sales Summit 2021 on Monday, Feb. 22, the first day of the main conference. In this exclusive Q & A, Lindsay answers questions about the common mistakes marketing professionals make when it comes to member engagement and what they can do to inspire loyalty.
Business author and thought leader Dean Lindsay will take the virtual stage at the RISE Medicare Marketing & Sales Summit 2021 on Feb. 22 to discuss how marketing and sales professionals can ramp up customer service and member engagement and revamp their approach to consumer interaction to ensure high retention rates. In this column, Lindsay answers questions about member engagement. Answers have been edited for clarity and length.
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What are the common mistakes marketing professionals make when it comes to engagement?
The number one mistake is being shortsighted about the benefits of providing outstanding services for the actual marketing member. Sometimes we don’t appreciate that in difficulty lies opportunity. A customer complaint is a gift. It really is an opportunity to make things better than before and to help the member be more loyal to you. With an issue or complaint, the member is also turning you on to things that other members or prospects probably need addressed. The challenge is to be keenly aware of the opportunity in that moment to strengthen your relationship to the member.
Can you provide an example of a way to inspire customer loyalty?
It takes a series of progress-based impressions to build trust. Trust is the promise of progress. So, it’s not one thing. It’s a series, a wave, a bunch of things…People have to know how much you care before they care about what you know. So, show them you care...In these challenging times, providing reliable information on COVID precautions and vaccinations is huge because you are providing peace of mind. Everybody needs information on COVID and needs to know where they can get the vaccine. That’s providing pain avoidance, one of the six P’s of progress that I will talk about in my presentation.
Any other advice?
The most important moment of customer or member engagement is the moment before you engage and what is going through your head. How relaxed you are. Some call it self-care but it’s really self-optimization. In those moments before you engage, think positive, take a couple of deep breaths, listen to some upbeat music… All that plays into it. It’s really optimizing the positive. The power is you get what you give. We progress as we help others progress.
Dean Lindsay will present the keynote address, “Rise to next level service in 2021,” at 9:50 a.m. Monday, Feb. 22 at the virtual RISE Medicare Marketing & Sales Summit. His presentation will include three powerful truths about members, the Six P’s of Progress, and how to develop an understanding of personal responsibility in responding to member needs. For more details about the presentation and conference, including the full agenda and roster of speakers, click here.