You never know when someone will wow you or surprise you with how they handle a situation. I recently was blown away by some amazing customer service at a large chain restaurant. It made me think about the timeless book Raving Fans by Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles.
The book Raving Fans is an easy read that shows one manager’s journey to create quality and service in his new position. In it, he shares anecdotal stories about companies that are creating “Raving Fans”. They do this by exceeding expectations, empowering employees to do all that they can to service their customers and capitalize on opportunities to provide a wow experience.
My husband and I went out for dinner last week. The restaurant we wanted to go to had a long wait and we were hungry, so we settled on a large chain restaurant next door. They’re known for providing a good value for their food and we knew what we were getting. Our waitress was great! She was engaging, fast, friendly and focused on getting her customers what they wanted in a timely manner.
When my husband’s meal came out we noticed that his chicken was undercooked. They immediately took it away to expedite a new order. The waitress brought him a free salad to eat while waiting for his food and the manager came over, apologized profusely and told us his meal was on the house. That was great. A better-than-necessary reaction to the scenario. They both remained attentive to us and the rest of the meal went smoothly. After dessert the waitress told us that there was no bill for our meal. A totally unnecessary offer based on what occurred. They went above and beyond to fix the issue, were understanding and accommodating, and created Raving Fans by going the extra mile and doing the unexpected!
Have you had a customer service situation that exceeded your expectations? Tell us about it here.
