Giving Great Service One Customer at The Time

I honestly appreciate the importance of effectively quantifying customer service measurements, but I am very adamant lately to emphasize the other end of the service spectrum: at the end of the day, service success is attained one customer at the time. The simplicity of the stetament makes it easy to overlook its importance.

When a business gets bigger than ten or twelve employees, it can be easy to start thinking about customers as statical segments, or to see them as merely one more contribution to "average sales".

I honestly believe that businesses that loose sight of the reality that service is still given one customer at the time pretty soon start losing customers. At first they lose them one at the time. But before long the losses start expending geometrically as words spreads in the community. And pretty soon, ther're out of business.

So, please let me state the obvious. No matter what sort of organization you're in -big or small, shaky or successful, start up or established institution - great service is ultimately given by each of us one customer at the time. Which means, quite simply, that the seemingly small things like going the extra mile, or remembering customers' names or noticing a nice order and saying thanks, or taking time to show a new customer around your place of business...those simple, individual acts are exactly what make great service happens. and those acts of great service happen because your the staff members make individual decisions to do things for the customers that solidify bonds that last a lifetime.

How To Deal With A Difficult Customer

Dealing with difficult customers is a fact of restaurant life. These "negative" customers can lead to employee burnout, low staff morale, or be responsible for someone leaving the industry entirely. We've all heard that one disgruntled customer can lead to the loss of at least six others by word of mouth alone.

The good news is that this seemingly "lose-lose" situation can be turned around. If it's handled correctly, difficult customers can be turned into some the most loyal, long term customers you'll ever see. Here's seven basic steps that will help you turn these "service disconnects" into opportunities.

Step One: Assume the customer is telling the truth.
If you train your employees to always assume the customer is truthful, you have just taken away a major source of stress related to service careers. The employee is not having a confrontation, nor are they conducting an interrogation; They are not looking for the negative, but listening to what is being told to them without having to be a judge that must rule in favor of the company because of a misplaced loyalty.

Step Two: Let the customer talk.
Let them air out the whole situation. This accomplishes two things. It allows the customer to tell their story with all the details and emotion that they feel is necessary. This step is vital to let the customer drain some of their emotion and anger. Don't say anything, except to give body language that you are listening intently.

A good idea BEFORE you start the listening / information-gathering step is to delegate all interruptions to someone else so that your entire attention is devoted to the customer. You want an automatic jump in the level of anger and frustration for the customer? Then interrupt their story with "Excuse me", "Just a minute", or "What were you saying?" Always listen without interruption or comments. Also remember that listening is the beginning of the information gathering process for yourself, which is vital not only to rectifying the customer's problem, but to avoiding it in the future.

Step Three: Be empathetic.
This is the step to (finally) begin communicating. Express understanding with how they feel or were treated. You're not admitting guilt. You don't even have to agree with them.

You do have to communicate understanding. Your tone of voice and body language both go a long way to reinforce what you are say. (There's nothing worse then a manager coming over to a table with their hands on their hips, challenging, " Is there a problem here?") In fact, without the proper tone or body language, your words will sound hollow.

Step Four: Understanding.
This is the main step in reaching the customer; this is where you ask any questions that you need to have the complete picture of the negative experience. Ask relevant questions to clarify your understanding of the facts. Resist jumping to conclusions until you are satisfied that you understand the entire situation.

Step Five: Solution.
Solve the problem. Come to closure that you both feel good about. Remember the customer was telling you the truth. Tell the customer what you will do to rectify the situation. Make the customer feel good about the solution. Do not sound angry yourself or make the customer feel guilty.

A good guideline is to deliver more than you promised. For example, if you said you would refund the customer, add a gift certificate for another meal. That not only solves the original problem, it brings them back again.

Step Six: Follow-up.
If there is any way to follow-up with the customer after the fact, you need to do it. Whether by e-mail, letter or phone, this step is very impressive.

Step Seven: Take steps to fix the problem(s) that caused the problem in the first place.
A good idea to keep a log or journal of customer complaints to enable you to see any trends. Remember that the best managers prevent problems rather than just fix them.

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Keeping Yourself Motivated

As a manager you have to be motivated yourself in order to motivated others.
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con referencia a:

"As a manager you have to be motivated yourself in order to motivated others."
- Keeping Yourself Motivated « George's Blog (ver en Google Sidewiki)

Keeping Yourself Motivated

As a manager you have to be motivated yourself in order to motivated others.

1. Regularly review what you have achieved each day, month and year; set SMART goals for yourself.

(S pecific, M easurable, A greed, R ealistic, T ime specific)

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con referencia a:

"As a manager you have to be motivated yourself in order to motivated others. 1. Regularly review what you have achieved each day, month and year; set SMART goals for yourself. (S pecific, M easurable, A greed, R ealistic, T ime specific)"
- Service Excellence: Keeping Yourself Motivated (ver en Google Sidewiki)

Keeping Yourself Motivated

As a manager you have to be motivated yourself in order to motivated others.

1. Regularly review what you have achieved each day, month and year; set SMART goals for yourself.

(S pecific, M easurable, A greed, R ealistic, T ime specific)

2. Develop a personal reward system for small, medium, large and milestone success; contract with yourself that you will always give the best.

3. Regular review your personal goals and targets; go to everything you can.

4. Develop a mental picture of yourself doing and achieving what you aspire to; give everything you do total focus.

5. Keep a success file and record all your achievements; rejoice and celebrate success; keep learning from your experience (your successes as well as your failures)

6. Look after your health by eating, resting and exercising appropriately; look after your body so that you are fit, alert and healthy.

7. Ensure that you self-talk is positive; continually visualize success.

8. Keep a confidence file, a list of everything you like and admire about yourself.

9. Use positive affirmations and say them to yourself regularly.

10. Avoid making comparisons with others.

(from Motivational pocketbook by Max A. Eggert)

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Team Effort

The entire restaurant staff gets together once a week to discuss how they can improve customer service. That includes the chef, kitchen staff, busboys and waiters.

con referencia a:

"The entire restaurant staff gets together once a week to discuss how they can improve customer service. That includes the chef, kitchen staff, busboys and waiters."
- Service Excellence (ver en Google Sidewiki)

Team Effort

The entire restaurant staff gets together once a week to discuss how they can improve customer service. That includes the chef, kitchen staff, busboys and waiters.

The crew is briefed on new wine and menu selections as the chef describes each new dish. To help your staff learn to love food really helps in this business because customers can sense a feel and excitement for the selections when they are being described.

Hiring those with prior restaurant experience is much different, I’d talk with the applicant about wines and food and check the references and background and appearance.

Even then, I’d keep a close eye on the quality of service the wait staff provides. I remember one waiter who was leaning on a customer’s chair as he described the evening specials. In private, I asked him what he was doing? he laughed. I told him if he was that tired he should not come to work.

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