Sometime in the early 1980’s, I mopped floors, wiped tables, washed dishes and unpacked boxes at a local sub shop for months in order to squirrel away enough money to buy a used silver GT bike with blue Skyway wheels. Man, it was sweet. Sure, there were less expensive bike options out there, but this one had caught my eye, and I was convinced that I needed it regardless of the cost. My parents did not share my enthusiasm. They tried their best to “talk sense” into me, and to encourage me to consider other alternatives that wouldn’t drain my savings account. I used my sharpest early-teenager logic to explain why this was a real value.
If you ask someone to define value, you may hear answers like “a good deal” or “best bang for your buck”. The reality is that there are people out there willing to spend $70K for a car, or $100 for a pair of jeans, while others can’t fathom parting with that kind of money when there are “cheaper options”. When you look more closely at the question (What is value?), you realize that value, like happiness, is a perceived concept. What one person sees as a great value; the next person may find absurd. In the worlds of retail and healthcare, we are challenged to bring value to our clients. How, though, does a business offer something that each potential customer may have a different perception of? There are dozens of physical therapy providers and shoe store options for people to choose from. What sets anyone apart?
Millions of dollars are spent each year in marketing and advertising by businesses trying to crack that code. Rarely, however, do businesses take the time to ask prospective clients what they are looking for; not literally, but ultimately. What does the client want? What do they want to achieve, resolve, or improve? What is their motivation, and most importantly how committed are they to achieving it? In our businesses as physical therapists and shoe specialists, we are experts in identifying what we believe people need. What sets us apart is our willingness and desire to bring our customers value by listening to their story, identifying what they want to achieve, and working with them to provide solutions to make it happen.
So if you are looking to lace ‘em up to start a walking program for the first time in years, set a personal best in a marathon, or simply be able to play with the grand kids without constant aches and pains, come on in, and tell us your story. We’ve been at this for years. The likelihood is that we have had the opportunity to help people just like you. We’d love the chance to bring valuable solutions to you. Our businesses do not exist without people. We are here to serve people by:
- providing a personalized experience aimed at meeting each client’s needs
- providing compassionate client care & service (empathy coupled with action)
- acting daily with impeccable attention to detail.
Interested in moving better, feeling better, & living better? Come on in and ask for a hand. We welcome the opportunity to help you on your journey.
~Brian Cardin
Brian is an owner of Appalachian Running Company and Cardin & Miller Physical Therapy. He can be reached directly at bcardin@cardinmillerpt.com.
