Jim Sullivan has an article at Nation’s Restaurant News (free registration) which shares his thoughts on customer service flaws in the restaurant business:
1. Hosts are distracted when greeting or seating guests.
2. Service is slow when speed is expected.
3. Service is fast when ease and comfort are expected. In tableside-service operations, assess first what time constraints — if any — your guests might be facing.
4. Servers interrupt without permission. To truly serve a guest, you must first connect with them, respect them and treat them preferentially.
5. Managers interrupt without permission.
6. Front-of-house employees are superficially congenial.
7. Guests overhear managers and crew discussing the daily activities of running a restaurant.
8. No one notices guests with problems.
9. Everyone avoids guests with problems. This is much worse than not noticing problems in the first place.
10. Public work areas are not spotless.
11. Employees spend too much time with regulars and ignore the "unknowns."
12. Employees make lots of mistakes but never learn from them.
These certainly twelve of the big sores often felt by restaurant customers. What should be noted is their cause, not so much what they are.
Customers are the means to achieving business goals and as such businesses, especially restaurants, need to put the customer first.
Imagine cooking a lovely dinner and no one came to eat it. So many restaurants go out of business every year and the two biggest reasons are the lack of capital and taking care of the customers needs.
Of course their are a lot of task that have to be completed for that to happen as the above 12 reasons demonstrate.
Posted by: Tim Whelan | August 8, 2006 8:27 AM | Permalink to Comment