Case Studies

First impressions from a restaurant in England

This story comes from my good friend, Graham Agass.

For several years Graham has had a favourite Indian restaurant in our home town. The food has always been very good and the service has been excellent. Graham was a real fan.

On his most recent visit, Graham used the toilet.

Whilst he was in there, one of the waiters also came in and used the toilet.

Graham washed his hands before returning to the restaurant.

The waiter didn't!

Graham doesn't use that restaurant anymore.

As always, I think it is important to tell stories of bad service but not so that we can shame the business concerned.

What I want you to do is to take this as a case study. Use it with your own team. What are the little things that really make a difference for your customers?

And sometimes your customers might feel that procedures need to be taken more seriously.

I'm reminded of a quotation by Jan Carlzon from Scandinavian Airlines. He said, "Coffee stains on the flip trays tell the customer that we don't service our engines properly."