I'm really not sure what's up with this country. As a rule, we truly offer the worst customer service experience of any country I've ever visited. My latest 'service with a snarl' experience was at a well-known coffee house and whilst American owned, clearly the UK staff were resistant, I dare say immune, to what i'm sure was comprehensive training in the subject of customer service.
So pubs are closing, leisure businesses are suffering, dare we look at what service we offer new and existing customers and see if that will make a difference to trade. A friend of mine, Keith Knowles, head of the Beds and Bars business who operate across Europe, has very strong views on customer service and staff training, in fact alongside ensuring his venues deliver a quality experience, I'd say Keith is the most dedicated person I know when it comes to staff development - it's funny how this dedication from the top has meant that every time I've visited a pub of his, I've had an excellent experience - it couldn't just be that the staff feel cared for, empowered and maybe even enjoy working for the organisation...of course it is. One issue I think hampers this development in other businesses is that they are trying to fix too many things from the Boardroom. So often a failing unit is subject architects, mood boards, the introduction of a premium Italian lager...how about looking at the experience through the eyes of your customer...smile at them, serve them in order and in an efficient way and let them know you appreciate their custom.
As a hospitality industry I think we could do with a few less awards looking at the quality of the food and drink, or for Christ's sake we have them for the quality of the loos, and have a scheme that rewards / monitors customer service. I'd love to know if anyone is doing such a thing and if they are, let's get behind it and work towards making it an industry standard - it's simply not enough to try and halt the decline in the pub trade, done better, I believe we're not far away from seeing growth, but first we need to sort our own house out!
Have a nice day!
