Being in the “quick-service” industry (no longer politically correct to be called “fast-food”) for these past 3 years has definitely given me a different prospective on customer service. Not only do I expect more from restaurants, I appreciate more.
There is a McDonald’s right next to my office that I occasionally visit for breakfast. (Sausage Egg McMuffin’s are only 300 calories…less than my usual cereal, I’m sure!) Every time I visit, I’m always, ALWAYS, greeted with a smile, extremely fast/smooth service, and hot food that has been made to order. I always think after I drive away, “I really need to let the owner’s know that they are doing a good job.”
So I did. I went on to McDonald’s website, looked up the store, and sent a brief email explaining the awesome service I have received. Took me all of 3 minutes. Literally, within the hour, I get an email back from a customer service rep (an actual person, not auto-generated) thanking me for my kind words. She told me she would forward it on to the owners of the store. This was Monday.
Today, I go home at lunch and in my mailbox is a letter from the owner thanking me for my visit, etc. Enclosed were 2 coupons for a FREE meal and a FREE iced latte. Yum! Now THAT’S customer service. I am HIGHLY impressed!
That got me thinking about all the complaints Chaz receives on a daily basis and how emotionally draining that is for him. (I’m talking complaints that are out of this world! But that’s a whole other blog post in itself.) What if people were to reverse their thinking and compliment instead of complain? Both parties would be happier and you might even score some free food! In fact, I would be shocked if you DIDN’T get something free.
Why don’t you try it? Next time you get great service at a restaurant or an employee goes that extra mile for you, how about you send in a compliment? Instead of looking for the negative, look for the positive.
2 comments:
I totally agree- being in the hospitality industry myself... it's so important to get feedback from customers and reward them for their input (good or bad).
YEAH for great customer service!
Amen, I totally agree. Adam and I both waited tables forever and realize how stupid people can be and complain about the DUMBEST stuff. It must be like that in every industry too. I worked for a design showroom in their customer service dept when I was "staying at home" and oh my goodness....people need to get a hobby and stop obsessing over things that don't matter anyways. amazing.
Great post.
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