Business Connections by Adams

4 W I N T E R 2 0 1 8 Drop Doctor helps customers with one of life’s most aggravating challenges: a damaged phone. Repairs for broken screens, finicky charging ports, or waterlogged phones can often be completed in less than an hour. Evolving Services Owner Brad Martin started the company in 2014, and a year later hired his first employee. He notes, “I had never hired anyone before, but that’s when the business began to really take off.” Another change was rebuilding the store layout to include a break room, kitchen, and workspace, adding a new level of convenience for the shop’s “doctors.” Since the company started, it also added inventory systems, checklists, and expectations for employees. Martin says, “Our philosophy is to put great customer service and quality out for everyone to see. One thing we always try to do is give customers honest and straightforward advice as we would to a close friend.” Looking ahead, Martin expects to alter his business model. He observes, “We’ll have to adapt to phones becoming more expensive and harder to repair. As this happens, people may be using phone insurance more, enabling us to offer a data recovery option that involves pulling all the data off one phone and transferring it to a new one. Phones are being redesigned every couple of years, so we’ll continue to adapt to that as well.” People Make the Difference Nearly four years after starting Drop Doctor, Martin still has the first employee he hired as well as one other. They appreciate being able to help people solve their problems and make something work better than it did before. Martin says, “I also let them do what they want during down times. Who can complain about that?” Two facts speak volumes about the level of customer service provided: Customers sometimes drive from hours away from Quincy to do business with Drop Doctor, and the company doesn’t have to advertise. Martin remarks, “They come to us because we put quality and customer service first. In business, when a customer has a bad experience, it can snowball into Drop Doctor Delivering the right prescription for customers’ broken phones BUSINESS spotlight