I don't normally eat fast food. But when I do, it usually leads to disappointment . For the past month a commercial from a big chain burger joint has been tempting me to try their new chicken sandwich. It looked amazing. It came with pickles. I'm a sucker for pickles. I managed to abstain, until Sunday. I sat in the drive-thru for 18 minutes, not exactly fast food, but I was loaded with anticipation and I was salivating as I drove home with my coveted chicken delight.
Once home, I unwrap what I expect to be a sandwich masterpiece. I quickly discovered my expectation of a plump, crispy, pickle loaded sammie is really an over-cooked, flat, soggy mess. How bad can it be? I still got the pickles. Two bites in and I toss it. Even the pickles couldn’t save it.
Now, while I could go on about my sandwich defeat for days, that’s not really the point. My expectations were not met, my hopes, dreams and needs were unfulfilled. I could have called. I could have taken it back. I likely would have received some sort of resolution. Instead, I just moved on. When a company fails to fulfill their promises, customers can choose to either try to remedy the situation or to simply walk away.
How as a business owner can you make sure that your employees nail it everytime? That your customers are happy and not just quiet? How can you be confident in your product and service level if you are not working in the trenches? How can you make sure that your customers' expectations are not only being met, but being exceeded?
Never be shy of achievements. Be proud of your quality and your high level of service. But never believe you can't still be better.
And always. I mean always. Offer the pickles.