Customers are no longer kings

While in high school and college, I worked in one of the most customer-service-intensive and thankless industries: food service. I worked in cheap dives, ice cream stores, Italian restaurants and -- for a seven-year stint -- at one of the country’s largest amusement park chains.

{sidebar id=44}

These experiences taught me a lot and drilled the “Guest Is Always Right” rule into my head. (Yes, customers were “guests” who were to be welcomed into our “home” to spend an insane amount of money.)

Thanks to this intensive training, I usually bristle when I witness or read about bad customer service. Sometimes though, my initial instinct is a little off base.

Amazing, horrifying and true!

I recently read an interesting article in Zagat Buzz (brought to you by those fascinating people who publish the regional dining guides). It made customer service sound not only dead, but stuffed, mounted and placed in a natural history museum.

In the article “Would You Like a Side of Attitude With Those Fries, Sir?” staff editor Randi Gollin details restaurants from across the country that have a downright anti-customer policy. My favorite was The Vortex Bar and Grill’s menu. This Atlanta restaurant has a section on its Web site entitled, “Stuff You Should Know.” Here’s an excerpt:

Special orders and extras

The Vortex is a true short-order kitchen and we will always try to prepare special orders whenever possible. If you order something that is not on the menu and we do make it for you, we will charge you whatever damn price we want to and you will thank us for it. If you request extra stuff, that’s no problem, but you will be charged for it. Hey, we don’t get any of this stuff for free you know. Requested deletions will not reduce the price of any menu item, tightwad.

How far will you bend?

It seems harsh, but I think The Vortex has a point. Basically, if the restaurant does extra work or adds items, customers will pay more. Makes sense, doesn’t it? It’s a basic business model: If it costs you more, you pass on the costs to your customers, whose payments will help offset the incurred costs.

In a time when customers seem (or demand) to be treated like royalty, it’s unusual -- and refreshing -- to see any business that’s not rolling out the red carpet for all potential buyers.

How do you handle add-ons in your business? Do you give away free flats or upsize to more expensive pots without passing along costs? Sure, telling a customer that it’s going to cost him more money is hard at first. And, yes, he may go to your competition to get freebies. If so, let him. Allow your competitors to go out of business for not covering their costs.

Maybe we should all be on the lookout to see if we are rolling the carpet out too far, too fast and for too little money.

For more: Zagat Buzz, http://www.zagat.com/buzz/Detail.aspx?SCID=42&BLGID=7292&zagatbuzzid=oct07week4.

{sidebar id=1}

- Jyme Mariani