"Quality in a service or product is not what you put into
it. It is what the client or customer gets out of it." -
Peter Drucker, (1909-2005) Writer, Management Consultant,
University Professor
I recently had an experience with a local restaurant that
demonstrates the power, or lack thereof, of good customer
service.
My husband, Bill, and I enjoy going out for dinner on a
regular basis. Since we live in a small town, the number
of restaurant options is limited, unless we drive out of
the area. On this particular evening, we decided to "shop
local" and patronize a restaurant close to our home.
Having dined at this restaurant in the past, we knew that
the chef tends to use unusual spices. I made my selection,
but made sure to ask about any spices used that were not
listed on the menu. The waitress checked with the chef and
sure enough he added spices to the pork loin I selected
that were not on the menu. I took what I thought was the
safe route and ordered a plain old hamburger.
Bill ordered a pasta dish, assuming all of the ingredients
were listed on the menu. This was a wrong assumption...
When the pasta was served he discovered it had been made
with unidentified spices that were offensive to him. After
a few bites, he gave up and informed the waitress he could
not eat the meal. She immediately asked what he wanted
instead. This sounded like good customer service, and what
we expected. Bill decided to play it safe and also ordered
a plain old hamburger.
A few minutes later the waitress came back and asked us if
the pasta dish was OK, in other words did he just not like
it, or was it "bad". Bill replied that it didn't appear to
be contaminated or spoiled - he just didn't like the taste
of the dish. The waitress then informed us that the chef
would make Bill a hamburger, but he would also be charged
for the pasta dish.
Needless to say, we were appalled. We informed the
waitress that we would never patronize the restaurant
again, and we would tell everyone we knew about their
"customer service" policy. We then ate half of our plain
old hamburger, which had also been cooked in some strange
unidentified spices, paid our $50 bill, and left as quickly
as possible - never to return.
In the spirit of creating a customer focused, soul-based
business this restaurant owner could have:
1. Shown his concern about his customers by talking to us
personally to find out exactly what we did not like about
the food.
2. Talked to us about what he could have done differently
to avoid this situation in the future.
3. Expressed his point of view in a way that would not
leave us wanting to tell the world about our bad experience
at his establishment.
In spite of the irritation and frustration we felt, for our
own peace of mind we needed to look at this situation from
a different perspective - a higher point of view. When
you're living your life and building a business from a
caring and soul-based perspective, as we strive to do, you
step back and look at the situation exactly as it is - from
all points of view.
Here was a restaurant owner in a small town trying to make
a living in a very seasonal environment. Then along comes
a customer, like us, who doesn't care for the taste of the
chef's creative cuisine. Add to that the difficulty in
making a living and the long hours required to run a
restaurant, and his unwillingness to give us a new meal for
free becomes a little more understandable - maybe not the
wisest choice, but understandable.
I feel most successful, and at peace, when I treat my
customers as I want to be treated. I also know that my
reputation in the community can make or break my business,
so I choose to operate my business from a soul-based
perspective - from the values that are most important in my
life.
When you begin operating your business based not only on
what would appear to be best financially or on what society
says you should do, but on what feels right in your soul,
you will discover the secret to creating a soul-based
business and providing customer service extraordinaire.
----------------------------------------------------
Sandy Reed, Personal Coach, ex-corporate manager, and small
business owner is the Soulpreneur's Coach. Call her when
you're ready to create and follow through with your
corporate exit strategy. Visit her website at
http://www.innerclaritylifecoaching.com for tools and
resources.
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