Technological advances in power chairs and scooters and the increasing demand by customers for independence and product features can cloud the issue of finding the right mobility solution for each customer. For the HME supplier, marketing such products responsibly stands as the fine line between a customer’s newfound independence and a potential nightmare.

At my company—MEDIchair, an HME franchise based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada—we always take the high road to prevent the latter from happening. To help us in this process, we ask ourselves five key questions.

1. Who should sell the mobility products?

Each HME marketer’s resources are different. To succeed at selling power chairs and scooters, you need a salesperson who is caring, has great product knowledge, has strong problem-solving skills, and provides excellent customer service. At MEDIchair we call these people product consultants.

When matching a customer with a power chair or scooter, the product consultant has the responsibility, and challenge, to ensure that the product is right for the customer. The consultant needs to ask the right questions and monitor the clients’ abilities to handle the equipment during test-drive situations. The consultant must know where each client lives, how the client travels, where the client goes, and the current and potential future state of the client’s physical and cognitive capabilities. In other words, consultants must picture themselves in the clients’ shoes and try to “view” the equipment through the eyes of the clients.

2. How knowledgeable does the product consultant need to be?

At MEDIchair, we believe that qualified product consultants must be excellent problem solvers. They must be very knowledgeable about the mobility products they sell. They also must be creative and, if needed, be able to adapt a piece of equipment to fit the client’s requirements. They must be able to think outside of the box.

Product consultants should look professional, be well informed, and speak with authority to gain the client’s confidence. Typically, this product knowledge can be gained through trade shows, seminars, training schools, and professional accreditation courses such as those of the Rehabilitation Engineering Society of North America (RESNA). Product consultants can also supplement their knowledge base with basic anatomy courses. This will help them to communicate effectively with occupational and physical therapists, as well as other health care professionals.

The product consultant must be keenly aware that the primary purpose behind the purchase of a power chair or scooter is to allow people to function in a world that for the most part is not designed for people with mobility challenges. Ultimately, this equipment will improve the clients’ quality of life by allowing them to run errands, maintain a job, and keep an active social life.

It also can help to have your product consultant heavily involved in volunteer community activities through the donation of equipment, money, or time. This helps to build a solid reputation and goodwill while demonstrating your company’s level of commitment and care in the communities in which it operates.

3. What is the manufacturer’s role?

HME marketers need to develop strong relationships with the manufacturers of power chairs and scooters. HMEs need to have reassurances that if something goes wrong with a mobility product, the manufacturers will help in any way possible to resolve the problem and stand fully behind their products.

Ideally, as an HME marketer, you want to display the broadest array of mobility products possible. However, this can be costly. From the HME’s perspective, manufacturers need to be flexible in the area of supplying product to succeed. At MEDIchair, we have learned to divide manufacturers’ equipment costs into four categories.

• A demo. A fully loaded floor model to provide “hands on” customer demonstrations of a product’s features and benefits.
• A loaner. If something goes wrong with a piece of mobility equipment, the manufacturer allows the company to borrow one until the original is fixed or replaced.
• Consignment. The manufacturer is paid once the HME sells a power chair or scooter.
• Purchased equipment as inventory.

Also look for mobility manufacturers who are willing to assist you in promoting their products through co-op ads or other promotions and events that will help drive customer traffic to your store and position your company as the local expert in mobility products.

4. Who is the client?

Product consultants need to adjust to the various needs of a diverse client base. Each client is different physically, mentally, and socially. Most customers are extremely demanding, have high expectations, and typically possess very little product knowledge. This is where knowledgeable product consultants can shine. By tactfully using their broad-based experience, product knowledge, and problem-solving skills, they will be able to meet, and hopefully exceed, customer expectations. This relationship starts the minute the client enters your store.

Because not all clients come directly from a rehabilitation situation, HME marketers need to be prepared to assist walk-in clients who may have received little or no professional medical advice. That means that your store should be easily accessible and free from clutter, and have private fitting rooms. In addition to providing in-store trials, each store should offer to conduct in-home trials.

Product consultants need to be certain that the equipment they have recommended is suitable for the clients’ physical needs in a home or work environment. There is nothing worse than discovering that a power chair or scooter is too large to move efficiently and easily around a client’s surroundings. In addition, a product consultant must understand not only a client’s current health conditions but also how the client’s condition may change over time. Recommending mobility equipment that is not suitable for a client’s mental or physical abilities is not in the HME’s best interest or that of the client. In the end, you both lose.

5. How can we help the customer purchase the product?

Let us be frank. Power chairs and scooters are not cheap. Not everyone can afford to purchase a power chair on a credit card. Your clients come from different socioeconomic backgrounds. For the majority of those customers, it will be important that you offer flexible payment structures that allow them instant access to equipment that they otherwise would not be able to purchase.

You also need to be prepared to work with each client to determine eligibility for government or medical funding programs and insurance benefits. Many end users and caregivers might not be aware that such programs exist and would be very thankful for such information. Remember that you are their partner in this relationship.

Responsibly marketing power chairs and scooters is not easy. It takes a lot of time and hard work. It is a total team effort. To be successful, HMEs must do their homework from product knowledge to problem solving, product service, and fully understanding the needs and lifestyle expectations of the customers.

Allan Jones, ATS, is a manager, customer service, at MEDIchair, an HME franchise operation based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. To learn more about the company, visit www.medichair.com.