Are some Customers ruining the Customer Experience for others? Do your team members know your Mission, Vision, and Values and LIVE them through their Customer Service Experience?
All it takes to destroy a Customer Experience for the entire chain is one bad apple.
My kids and I went to a local restaurant chain for brownies and ice cream. Gracynn, our oldest is 9 going on 25. She is a wise egg. Macauley is 6 going on 6. He is Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky.
Our kids LOVE going out with Dad for treats like this - and Mom too (she was out with friends)! We really make a big deal out of it. I remember as a child some of the things that stick out most for me. Going to a restaurant was a big deal - especially on the rare occasion that we went just for dessert.
Upon arriving, everything was good - good waiter, location, etc. We were, of course, enjoying more than just brownies and ice cream. My kids and I were connecting. We were creating memories.
Just before getting our brownies and ice cream, two tables were pushed together to make room for a large party that was moving from one part of the restaurant to the other. We were about to find out why.
Immediately upon their arrival, it was clear that several of the party of 10 had a bit much to drink. Two or three of them were cursing continuously (f-this and f-that) while the "designated driver" tried to get them to behave. Several waiters and waitresses were nervously milling around.
What did we do... We left before we were finished. Apparently our values of eating and enjoying one another's company without verbal assaults weren't as important as the party of 10's rights to public drunken behavior. Yes, it was a bar and grill with a "neighborhood" branding concept.
Funny how I have never seen my neighbors drunk and cursing. I imagine that happens in some neighborhoods, but not in mine. Perhaps I should have gone north of the tracks...
Hey! It's not about the food folks... Any idiot can put a menu together. The experience is what brings people back. It's what brought us back. But inbetween the last time we were there and Friday, October 13, something happened. Someone changed the Mission, Vision, and Values and forgot to tell us about it. We experienced our values being grossly infringed upon. We experienced the restaurant's team members enabling those values to be trampled on. Our values aren't for sale and we won't be back as a family. For the sake of my kids, I can't risk it.
Key questions for you...
- Are you allowing one Customer to destroy your Customer Experience?
- Are your team members living your organization's Mission, Vision, and Values? Do they know them?
- Are some of your Customers silently leaving and never coming back?
What should have happened? Several things...
- The other party should have been dealt with - immediately.
- Team members should know how to handle situations like this.
- Team members should know the Mission, Vision, and Values and LIVE them.
- We should have been apologized to and/or moved before the situation became what it did.
I called the location manager this morning (October 16) to share my concerns. I will keep you posted.
Ready? Go make your difference in the world...
Kind thoughts become deeds. Choose the right thoughts...
Now go Maximize Possibility!
Other blog posts you may be interested in:
- Customer Service Defined by Four Little Words
- Consistency is Key to an Exceptional Customer Experience
- Bad Customer Service - What is it Costing You?
- Are Your Vendors Hurting the Customer's Experience
Chris Young helps organizations Maximize Possibility through talent management, cultural transformation, and strategic intervention. Bring Chris in today!
Comments