Here is your Daily Dose of Amazing Service:
Let your customer lead
And here are some additional thoughts on this topic…
I can’t seem to sit down in a restaurant anymore without being offered something I have no interest in. Take sweet tea for example. Everywhere I go a server offers me sweet tea. Yet I don’t drink sweet tea. I have never liked sweet tea. I probably never will. If one more person offers me sweet tea, someone’s going to need a paramedic.
So why do servers keep offering it to me? Because their managers, owners or corporate marketing people tell them to.
And there’s the problem. They’re leading the customers. The company has decided they want to sell more sweet tea so they offer it to everyone whether they want it or not.
When you focus on selling what you want to sell you are NOT serving your customer. Customers understand this. If you want them to be thrilled about doing business with you (and come back) you need to focus on helping them get what they want.
You give customers a better experience when you let them lead.
Other articles you might like:
- Should Entrepreneurs Twitter? Steve Strauss Says No!
- Amazing Customer Service Means Focusing on What Your Customer Wants, Not What You Want
- It’s not about the donuts
- How to Prevent Invisible Customers
- Ford raps the competition with a surprising customer experience
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You have to wonder at proprietors sometimes. They seem to trust their intuition over more reliable methods, and this is strange because you’d think the economic lesson of pointlessness would be learned sooner rather than later. Anyway, on a recent trip to Boston, Ma. I stumbled on a no-nonsense Japanese Noodle Cafe that did virtually the reverse. They offered very little, but by God did they do it well. Here’s a link to my story about it. It’s a real case study in service design
http://blog.capablepeople.co.uk/2008/12/quality-the-men-tai-approach/
Excellent point Shaun. Too often we think customer service is all about doing more for customers. Actually it’s about an understanding between the customer and the company. It’s a meeting of the minds that connects what the customer wants and what the company will deliver. And, finally, it’s the flawless execution of that promise. Your Men-Tai example nailed it. Thanks for the comment and the lesson!
Thanks for the link on this one Kevin. It’s an endearing little place in it’s own way as the service is actually parred back virtually to the bare essentials (like a budget airline) but then they go on to do what’s left with frightening precision. The result? A tight selection of tasty and filling meals at probably the lowest cost possible. There’s certainly a market for that. We went three times
Next time I’m in Boston I know where I’m having lunch!
Thanks Shaun!