IN a special feature in Saturday’s Weekender, former Ballarat restaurant owner Ron Egeberg wrote about the importance to restaurants of not only providing good food, but equally good customer service.
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In the feature, the former restaurant owner pointed out how important it was for diners to have a good overall experience if restaurants want repeat customers and word-of-mouth business.
“Poor service is a problem that plagues the hospitality industry. When you analyse why that is, the answer can usually be found by studying the attitude of the owner or the manager,” Mr Egeberg wrote.
The same can also be said of other industries and businesses, from clothing retail to your local butcher.
No-one wants to be served by a surly, disinterested person who would prefer to be anywhere else than at the counter looking after customers. No-one wants to hear two workers talking about what happened at the weekend when they should be attending to customers.
What has happened to a warm greeting, a smile and even a “thankyou … have a nice day” by some employees? And don’t blame the younger generation … some of the older workers out there also need a good dose of manners.
Has customer service in all sectors gone out the window?
The same can also be said of the customers’ attitude towards those who are serving them. No check-out person wants to hear someone else’s mobile phone conversation when they are trying to scan groceries. No department store employee wants to be publicly berated because an item scanned incorrectly or the dress size they want was not in stock. These are issues which are beyond the staff member’s control.
And what has happened to a warm greeting, a smile and even a “thank you … have a nice day” from the customers?
While we’re on the subject, what has happened to manners in general? Please and thank you seem to have disappeared from many people’s vocabulary today. Even the most simplest of acts like holding a door open for someone often does not generate a kindly response.
Yes, we live in a bustling society, but even the simple act of smiling at a stranger can brighten someone’s day.