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There's been a lot of talk lately about testing viability and market analysis before launching a product or service. While this is a crucial step, many entrepreneurs quit getting feedback from their customers once their doors are open. (I have been guilty of this as well.) Getting on going feedback is important, if not critical for any business.
Case in point:
I went out with some friends last night to a fairly new restaurant that is the new nicest place in town. (So the expectation is A+ food and service--which is why we went there.) All during our dinner the waitress hovered over us and politely interrupted (but still interrupted) about 6 times asking if there was anything she could do to make our food or visit "anymore perfect" as well as asked how we found them, and then after serving us (but before we even had the chance to taste our food) asks if we want to return our food to the kitchen. (wtf?) When we said no, as we hadn't even tried it yet, she joked "good because if you did we'd have to take you out back and shoot you. Haha." Let me tell you how funny I found that to be once I tasted my food and it wasn't very good. How awkward would it have been if I had sent it back?
So throughout dinner we politely smiled and said that everything was fine--even though my pasta wasn't memorable and we were all annoyed that she kept interrupting. I mean it was so bad that at one point one of my friends mentioned that it was so odd how she kept misreading our table as she's interrupted so much, as he was very obviously mid story as he was very animated and we were all laughing. I made the comment that I don't think she realizes what awful service she is giving, and that ironically I bet she thinks she is giving over the top awesome service.
The sad thing is that this is more common than not in business. Customers smile and nod even at mediocre to mildly awful service and then they leave with no plans on returning and then proceed to trash talk your business up one side and down the other. ...And the owner has no clue as to what happened or where he/she went wrong as they file for bankruptcy. They probably blame their failure on not enough marketing or possibly the location--and they'll never know the truth. Sad really, as they are doomed to repeat their mistakes, because they have no idea what the real mistake really is.
The kicker is that the solution costs about ten cents: a simple comment card. We would've happily filled out a card and dropped it into a box (anonymity is key), were we given the opportunity. But since we weren't given the opportunity, we'll never go back and odds are that we'll each (as well as other unhappy customers) tell a handful of people how ridiculous the service is there...and that place will probably shut its doors in about 5 months.
The lesson here is two fold: 1. Train your staff (which I'm not even going to get into lol) and 2. Engage your customer. More often than not you'll be surprised to hear what your customers have to say. Find out what they like and don't like and then respond accordingly. If a negative comment was made, then let them know what steps you are taking to ensure it won't happen again and then give them a coupon or some sort of incentive to come back so you can prove yourself, if a postive comment was made thank them for their feedback and invite them back with a coupon or incentive. The sooner problems can be identified the sooner solutions can be implemented and damage control can be done.
</rant>
Case in point:
I went out with some friends last night to a fairly new restaurant that is the new nicest place in town. (So the expectation is A+ food and service--which is why we went there.) All during our dinner the waitress hovered over us and politely interrupted (but still interrupted) about 6 times asking if there was anything she could do to make our food or visit "anymore perfect" as well as asked how we found them, and then after serving us (but before we even had the chance to taste our food) asks if we want to return our food to the kitchen. (wtf?) When we said no, as we hadn't even tried it yet, she joked "good because if you did we'd have to take you out back and shoot you. Haha." Let me tell you how funny I found that to be once I tasted my food and it wasn't very good. How awkward would it have been if I had sent it back?
So throughout dinner we politely smiled and said that everything was fine--even though my pasta wasn't memorable and we were all annoyed that she kept interrupting. I mean it was so bad that at one point one of my friends mentioned that it was so odd how she kept misreading our table as she's interrupted so much, as he was very obviously mid story as he was very animated and we were all laughing. I made the comment that I don't think she realizes what awful service she is giving, and that ironically I bet she thinks she is giving over the top awesome service.
The sad thing is that this is more common than not in business. Customers smile and nod even at mediocre to mildly awful service and then they leave with no plans on returning and then proceed to trash talk your business up one side and down the other. ...And the owner has no clue as to what happened or where he/she went wrong as they file for bankruptcy. They probably blame their failure on not enough marketing or possibly the location--and they'll never know the truth. Sad really, as they are doomed to repeat their mistakes, because they have no idea what the real mistake really is.
The kicker is that the solution costs about ten cents: a simple comment card. We would've happily filled out a card and dropped it into a box (anonymity is key), were we given the opportunity. But since we weren't given the opportunity, we'll never go back and odds are that we'll each (as well as other unhappy customers) tell a handful of people how ridiculous the service is there...and that place will probably shut its doors in about 5 months.
The lesson here is two fold: 1. Train your staff (which I'm not even going to get into lol) and 2. Engage your customer. More often than not you'll be surprised to hear what your customers have to say. Find out what they like and don't like and then respond accordingly. If a negative comment was made, then let them know what steps you are taking to ensure it won't happen again and then give them a coupon or some sort of incentive to come back so you can prove yourself, if a postive comment was made thank them for their feedback and invite them back with a coupon or incentive. The sooner problems can be identified the sooner solutions can be implemented and damage control can be done.
</rant>
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