I have been banging on about the need for physical retailers to create an experience when they have a customer in front of them. It’s critical, unless you want your customers to not come back as they can’t see the difference between buying in store and buying online.
Restaurants are in the same boat, unless you create a memorable experience for diners, then they won’t come back either. Word of mouth is extremely powerful and that is so often the case with new or great places to eat. You go there because your friends recommended it to you.
Obviously, the food has to be wonderful or it wouldn’t matter what level of service you offer, diners would simply not come back. Given that the food is great, the service delivered to diners has to also be memorable.
One simple way is to ensure the serving team know your menu and have tried all of the meals. How many times do you go to a restaurant and the waiter hasn’t tried some or worse still any of the dishes? Doesn’t fill me with a great feeling.
Contrast that to an enthusiastic waiter who talks passionately about each dish and offers up their recommendations and personal favourites. Huge difference in the feeling! I have certainly experienced both levels of service and I know which one I definitely prefer.
A couple of recent examples spring to mind.
While having a coffee at a new café, I glanced through their breakfast menu and mentioned to the team member how good one particular dish looked. She immediately added that this was also one of her favourites.
At a restaurant in Canberra that had been recommended to us, we had an amazing young waiter who complemented every dish we ordered and added in her own thoughts. Of course, the food was amazing, but she added to the experience with her passion and knowledge.
It’s a simple process to have all your team try items from the menu and therefore talk knowingly with diners. This will also ensure diners have an even better experience and want to come back.
Roger Simpson – CEO, The Retail Solution and Author of “The Ultimate Retail Sales Experience” With over 35 years’ industry experience, Roger Simpson is recognized as Australia’s #1 Authority on customer ROI in the retail industry and as a global expert on staff coaching, customer service, and selling skills.
