“Fanatical Support.” This is the tagline of one of the companies that I choose to do business with. It’s all over their website, and marketing materials and it helps define who they are. The fact that they live up to their tagline is one of the main reasons that I continue to do business with them. “Fanatical Support” is not just their tagline, it is their competitive advantage. This got me thinking about our industry. Why aren’t more organizations “Fanatical” about securing their critical information? Surely this could be used as a competitive advantage, just like “Fanatical Support.”

Companies are always providing certain assurances, like SAS 70 or ISAE 3402, but these are often aimed at satisfying certain regulations or reassuring their stakeholders and board members that they are secure – it’s a checkbox on a list, more than a business focus. But what about showing a heightened level and commitment to data security to their customers and business partners?

Why not turn a strong data security practice into customer loyalty and trust? I think we can all agree that trust is an important criteria in choosing who we do business with. According to Charles Green (author of Trust-Based Selling), “The more credible, reliable, and intimate a company is, the more likely a customer will be to trust it… Intimacy relates to safety, security, or integrity. An intimate company is one that will keep important personal information secure and private, for instance.”

According to a recent survey, 80% of healthcare consumers do not believe their personal information is safe with healthcare organizations. With customer trust in data protection so low, it’s obvious that any organization that commits to being “Fanatical” about data security, and follows through with customers, will have a competitive advantage. Simply put, a vigilant commitment to data protection can move data security from a cost center to a profit center.

What if a medical practice advertised itself as fanatical about securing your patient information? We are fanatical about the security of patient information. We take extreme precautions with your critical information and we do everything we can to ensure that your information is safe and secure. Would that make you choose that practice? Surely it would compare favorably to another practice with a similar skill set, but just a standard HIPAA declaration.

It’s time to stop looking at data security as a checkbox and start making waves about it. Commit to being “Fanatical” about data security and you will see it move from a cost center to a profit center.

What steps do you need to take to become “Fanatical” about data security?