Service success: add just a pinch of observation.

Here's the thing - service is just not that hard. We wow people in customer service. That's what we do. We create memorable experiences...a sense of urgency to have our product...a need to tell everyone they know to come to us. Experience us. Be wow'd by us. Like, WOWW, wow'd by us.

Welp...it's more challenging than that. According to restaurateur Danny Meyer: "In the end, what’s most meaningful is creating positive, uplifting outcomes for human experiences and human relationships. Business, like life, is all about how you make people feel. It’s that simple, and it’s that hard.”
― Danny Meyer, Setting the Table

Take this for example: a married couple I know recently told me two very different stories about service they received from the same restaurant, the same night...they were literally sitting at the same table! Yet one of them said the service was, and I quote, "eh, just ok" and the other said it was "miserable." I've been to that same restaurant many times (it's one of my fave's) and felt nothing but WOWW'd so, I ask...how does this happen? How do we let customers leave our restaurants feeling "eh" and "miserable"?

Many things could have happened. Maybe they were in a bad mood. Maybe the server had too many tables. Maybe the manager offer proper training. Maybe a key person walked out on the biggest service night of the week. Maybe it was Tuesday. Lots of scenarios.

What we need to do to avoid these situations of letting it come to "eh's" and "miserables" is be observant. Ask questions. Be authentic. Look at feedback as gifts. Know when to step in and when to leave them the heck alone. Train people how to do this. Soft skills can be taught through observation and repetition. Then check it out. Are the people observing?

In the Hospitality Leadership course I teach at Madison College our students learn about the power of observation, reflection and correction.

How do you ensure your employees are ready to see what's happening right before them?

Stay tuned for future posts where I'll be interviewing some of Madison's great industry leaders and giving away some of their tips to service success.