I don’t have the data to answer that question but I have two anecdotes that make me wonder:
A breakfast restaurant near my office opens at 7:00 a.m. The Panera Bread Company next door opens earlier and is always busy. When I tried the “later opening” restaurant recently, there were a dozen people milling around outside at 7:05. I knew with their late start and crowd of people the chances of getting in and out quickly were diminished so went elsewhere.
Is business so good there that they can afford to make customers wait?
A major hotel chain down the street from my office has a restaurant. I dropped by for a quick breakfast. There were two diners in the place when I was seated. I saw one waitperson wander slowly to a table, ask a question, then wander away. After reading the first section of my newspaper I decided the chances of getting coffee much less getting food were slim so I left. Interestingly, this was a hotel where we had planned to put up clients when they were in town.
My friend Robert Tucker recently told me he’s not seeing the hustle that we both agree make individuals and companies successful. One thing about a recession: it certainly focuses your attention. Hustle, or initiative, must increase for survival.
Now that the economy seems to be improving, the hustle–at least in the service examples I experienced–seems to be decreasing.
What do you think?
I think there is a relationship between a good economy, the work effort it consumer, and the genetic trait we all seem to have to think and work ‘inside-out’. By that I mean we feel we have to focus on the work at hand, what it is and how it is done as efficiently (hopefully) as possible.
In doing this we lose sight of the ‘why’ part and for who. The outside-in, or customer centric view that connects us to the experience, and of course customer satisfaction.
So, I agree, I think there is a strong correlation between an improving economy and the likelihood of degrading customer experience.
I agree. I have been experiencing terrible customer service at big brand entities. I have used that as a strategy for consulting opportunities. But, customer service in any business, whether it is product or service oriented, is the heart of the matter. Simply insuring that customers get the very best customer service at all times can be an essential factor in guaranteeing business success. If an entity does not have the best customer service at all times, customers will seek out those companies that are providing it. Regardless of the economic situation, quality customer service is key. One client informed me yesterday that “well, you know the labor pool availability today…” I responded, “yes I do and the training and vision sharing is the problem.” The session ended very shortly.
Great points Mark. It’s crazy…..common sense ain’t so common. Good news is, you do the little things well and you’ll win in today’s environment.
All out hustle and passion for business works. That’s the issue….motivation to do the right things. The things that build client loyalty.
Mark,
All the restaurants that serve breakfast in my area open at 7 AM. If they paid attention to their customers and their customers’ needs, they’d open earlier so we could have breakfast — maybe even have a breakfast meeting — and get to work, which for most of us starts at 8 AM.
Putting the customers’ needs first and, as you say, hustling is more necessary now than ever.