Through the Window | by Roy T. Bergold Jr.
The town I live in is in a slump like everywhere else in the country. The merchants here have been running a radio campaign asking the residents to please shop in Payson instead of running to Phoenix or Flagstaff for the lower prices. It costs money to get stuff up here. Frankly, I don’t understand why someone would drive 160 miles to save a few dollars, but Paysonites do it every day. To me, it’s the same thing as driving all over town to save two cents on a gallon of gas. But, they do this too.
Anyway, I think our merchants should add another layer to this campaign and start taking real care of the customer. And that got me to thinking. As members of the restaurant industry, we need to get inside our customers’ heads and start taking care of their needs and desires, even the questionable or unspoken ones.
Let’s assume you are handling the food, service, clean, and value ends of the business because those are the reasons you might hear, “I’ll never go there again.” The worst example I have of not solving the basics happened at a McDonald’s in Wisconsin back in the real early days. I was visiting stores with a new field-service manager, and we were in line behind a customer who was carrying a bag of food.
When he got to the head of the line, he asked to see the manager. This could be interesting, I thought. The owner happened to be there. This was usual in those days when the owner had his life savings in that building. The customer opened the bag and brought out a cheeseburger. He hit the counter with that burger and practically cracked it. You could have driven nails with that sandwich. He asked for a new one, one that was cooked today. The owner’s response? “If you don’t like my cheeseburgers, go somewhere else.” That was not handling the basics.
So what is the customer looking for in a perfect world, besides the basics? Here’s my list:
- He wants you to really Care and be Concerned about his business. He wants to be the Center of your attention at that moment. And he wants Convenience and Courtesy. He wants the experience to be Carefree.
- Understand his problems. Be Uniform but Unique in solving them. Always be User-friendly and certainly Uplifting.
- Be Sensitive and Sensible in how you approach him and Serve him. He expects you to Satisfy him but do it Simply. And keep him Safe.
- Say Thanks in a Thoughtful way. Give him a Treat. Give him every reason to Trust you.
- Even in the worst of rushes keep the place Orderly. And the Owner should be On site.
- Make sure your Menuboard is totally readable. Motivate your people so Morale is at its highest.
- Make sure the Environment is Easy going. The Expectations should match the Experience. There should be a sense of Exigency. And make an Effort at Enthusiasm. Also Execute, Execute, Execute.
- And lastly, Respect his Requirements. Rectify mistakes. Be Responsive and Responsible. Get Results.
Put all those words together, and they spell “customer.” You know, C words, U words, S words. And that’s who we want more of and more often. Here are a few ideas to center on the customer. This is some stuff we used to do when the Arches weren’t as well known as Santa Claus.
When it rained we had a crew person meet people at their cars with an umbrella. One of our operators used to throw a few hard candies in the bottom of each bag. We had monthly apple pie and coffee meet-and-greets with the crew and customers. We had a bulletin board with the pictures of our best customers as a thank you. We used to run field trips to plays, sporting events, and museums from the store with breakfast, lunch, or dinner as part of the package, and the bus figured into the cost.
We had a meet-the-crew bulletin board with pictures and first names, along with an “employee of the month” recognition. The owner had an owner’s suggestion box for customers so that they knew their ideas got to the owner. Today it could be a voicemail box.
Whatever the method, we need to listen to the customers’ needs. The Filet-O-Fish came from the need for a nonmeat sandwich during Lent. The drive thru came from moms having a car full of kiddos and no time or courage to parade them all into the restaurant. And, really going back, the winter front came from International Falls, Minnesota, and finding several people on the side benches when the spring thaw came.
One more word of advice: You have to be creative. Manuals are really important, but you have to solve your own customer problems when they happen. Your franchisor may not be able to help you specifically.
A McDonald’s in Texas was losing business because the food was not spicy enough for the locals. So the franchisee got permission to simply add sliced jalapeños and hot sauce to his condiment selection. Customer problem solved.
I think the restaurant that begins to solve the problems of the senior citizen in this, the age of Baby Boomers, will really reap the benefits. And I don’t just mean ramps. Portion sizes, room to maneuver, noise level, and common respect would really mean a lot to this group. And they have lots of money and time on their hands.
So if you can do it, do it. Handle the unspoken customer desires as quickly and as powerfully as you can. As I said, put it all together and it spells “customer”—the second most important group of people in your life.
A Peaceful Life and the Happiest of Trails.