Customers Are The Real Bosses

The idea that the customer is the boss is not new,  but it seems like most customer service does not recognize this fact. Sometimes you can go to a restaurant and it seems like the staff are very disinterested in serving customers properly.


For example, I went to a restaurant the other day when it was hot outside, and the hostess brought us to our tables and she was friendly. However, when I asked if I could get some water right away, the hostess said the server will be around soon. The issue is that, the restaurant was very slow, and the hostess was just standing around, plus the server came to our table in around 5-10 minutes. Why on a hot day does a customer have to wait for so long for water? Then the server comes and proceeds to mention the daily specials, and I say can I get some water. The server then asks if they can  first tell me about the specials, so I let them finish, and still have to wait a long time to get some water.


You would think that common sense would tell the server to bring some water with them to the table. Also, why could the hostess not bring some water, or at least tell the server to bring some water. I can tell you that if the server saw their manager or boss just come from outside on a hot day, they probably would make sure they bring water promptly. Staff need to think of customers as their bosses rather than just bothersome customers. The customers are the reason the staff all have jobs and are the people that need to be treated well, to ensure they are happy.

Surprise Rewards Will Build Loyal Customers

Everybody likes a surprise, but when it comes to customers, they really love a good surprise that will make them remember your business in a good way. Most businesses will do just enough to keep a customer happy, but that is not enough to really impress a customer. When you provide the unexpected surprise to the customer, it creates a very positive impression, which causes the customer to tell all their friends. Most people expect average customer service, but when you deliver surprisingly great customer service, you will get people talking, which will create very positive word of mouth for your business.


Now, the actual ways that you will have staff provide surprise rewards will vary from business to business, but it will all start with proper staff training. The key will be to empower staff to provide a special surprise to customers. The business will need to determine some basic criteria, that will give staff insight as to how they will surprise the customer. Some criteria could be the size of purchase or how loyal the customer is, but it should easy enough, that the staff can quickly recognize a situation in which they should surprise a customer with some reward. 


The rewards that will be offered will vary from business to business, but should provide some good benefit to the customer. For example, you might have a restaurant and know that this is a ten year old loyal customer, why not surprise them with a free meal. Cleaning companies could provide a free cleaning every so often to their customers.


The main point about these surprise rewards is that because they are unexpected, the customer will be more impressed, leading them to generate very positive word of mouth for your company.