“NO! I don’t want another friggin’ cupcake…”
Really. I was up to my eyeballs in calories already. I had made a clean plate. I had had my share of dessert. I was ready for…well…a nap.
Of course it was my fault, I opened my mouth when the manager came around. He seemed like a nice guy, a really tall guy, but nice. And he asked how everything was. I felt like I owed him a truthful response.
But wait! You need a little more information…
You know how you want to complain about something but you don’t because the waitress looks like she’s 16 years old and she’s all bubbly and you figure she might cry if you mention there’s something wrong with your cupcake? Yeah, that was our waitress.
Okay back to the story…
So I say to the manager, “Well, since you asked…”
My dinner pals look at me surprised and a little mortified; I scare people with my frankness sometimes.
I go on, “The cupcake included with our delicious dessert sampler platter…not so good…in fact mostly on the dry side. But other than that…everything was great.”
He looked around and my dinner pal handed him her plate with half of the hard cup cake on it. Mine was…well…gone. I ate it dammit, I wanted dessert! Of course the manager noticed it. So now I’m explaining why I ate the terrible cupcake…
Anyway he insists on bringing us another cupcake. At this point I’m stuffed. I say, “No really, we’re good. We just wanted to let you know.” And yet, he insists.
Back he comes with the fresh cupcake that he had a hand in making just that morning. We fawn over how delicious it looks and he stands there waiting for us to take a bite. Now the one dinner pal who had no cupcake sits smiling at us, completely amused by this whole scene. But we can’t put off the inevitable so we grab a knife and start to cut into the cupcake and finally the manager is called away.
We try the new cupcake. Yup it’s good but we are stuffed and can only eat half of it between the three of us.
Manager comes back.
Manager: “Why didn’t you say anything? That other cupcake was horrible.”
Me: “Well, it wasn’t that big of a deal I guess.”
Manager: “Yeah, but you paid for it and it was awful and I feel terrible. I would feel even worse if you never came back because of it. Especially since I wouldn’t have known why?”
Me: “Well…I really didn’t want to hurt the waitress’s feelings, you know. It’s not her fault, and waitresses take things personally…”
Manger: “Yeah, but how can I do a better job if you don’t tell me when I’m doing a bad job?”
Huh. Good point.
And then it hit me…
I was a terrible customer.
As small business owners we take pride in what we do and we want to do a great job. If we aren’t doing a great job we want to know so we can correct it. We want our customers to be happy. We want them to come back. We want them to be fans.
The very thing I would have fully expected from my customers I, myself, failed to do. Worse yet, I failed to let this manager do a great job for me and I discounted the importance of it.
Wow. Bad customer.
If one of my hard-earned customers had failed to tell me when I was doing something wrong I would have felt…the same way the manager did.
So I ask you, what kind of customer are you?
We must be all that we expect our customers to be when we, ourselves, are out there being customers. I assumed that because this was a big restaurant with nation-wide locations that it really didn’t matter. That the manager was just a guy managing a restaurant. But he wasn’t just a guy managing a restaurant, he was a guy trying to make his restaurant great.
This guy was actually a perfect employee…the guy you’d hire in an instant because he clearly gets it.
Worst of all, he got it much more clearly than I did at that moment.
I preach all the time that “you teach people how to treat you”. I wasn’t following my own best advice. If I want my customers to be truthful with me and allow me, even help me, do the best job possible for them, then I need to do the same. If I expect, as a customer, great service, then I need to make sure I demand it. If not I don’t deserve it.
Demanding great service doesn’t have to be the kind of thing you do in frustration because your food isn’t right. In fact, mistakes happen. Demanding great service can be all about helping the other guy do his job the best way possible.
So, next time your cupcake comes to you a little dry…mention it; it just might change your perspective.
Hey Wait!!! Are you on the list? You know the 10 Minute Marketing Motivator list? What! Well, scroll up and get on the list…go on now…
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Yolanda, I’m one of those polite people that rarely complains at a restaurant. If I feel a meal was poor, I likely won’t come back. Or if a dish wasn’t as good as usual, I forgive with the idea that sometimes things don’t go as well as others.
For me, there has to be something truly wrong with a meal before I’ll complain.
In the broader sense, though, I do let businesses know when they’ve let me down, especially service providers like web hosting.
I admit I rarely complain in restaurants, but after hearing the manager’s plea I realized that maybe I should give it more thought. Granted, this guy was the exception. Most of the time the manager rushes by, asks how the meal was, dishes in hand not really interested in the answer.
And, I was careful to be really light about it and perhaps that, too, is the key. If you are crabby about complaining I think it just turns people defensive. So I think there is also an ‘art’ to complaining constructively!
Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Yolanda,
I came over here to get in touch about the column on Give A Brick but seeing your yummy cup cake reminded me that I already read this (and loved it!) in my feed reader this morning. (As an aside, I have to say that as convenient as the rss feed is, it’s a bit of a swine for encouraging conversation on the blog.)
I’m like John. It will take a lot for me to complain. If all managers were like the gent you met, that would encourage me to be a better customer but when the risk is that you’ll end up with something unmentionable hidden in the replacement, I for one would rather keep quiet
Great story telling by the way. Far more interesting way to make a point than delivering a lecture.
Hmmm, there’s a thin line between providing constructive criticism and griping. Some people just LOVE to complain, no matter what. Nothing seems good enough for those people. But I do agree that you’re doing ppl. a favor when you are honest and tell them what your experience was with their product or service. I think it’s beneficial to always provide feedback, whether it’s good or bad.
Right. It is hard because I have a hard time with complaining. Probably because I have friends to complain when we are out and expect their meal to be free. I don’t expect that and I really didn’t need him to bring me another cupcake! But it was important to him.
Recently I was out an a fancy schmancy restaurant and a server dropped food and it landed on my back and chair. Seriously. I simply asked for something to clean it up with. The manager came and offered to dry clean my shirt…yeah, like that’s $2. I said no thanks. Of course previous to that they had completely dropped on of our meals on the floor at the table and brought the wrong food. So these guys clearly were having issues.
You have to give feedback where feedback will do some good!
Hey Eleanor! Thanks for stopping by!
Yep, you’re right. You don’t want them spitin’ in your food I guess. That’s why I never send my steak back!
But it’s all about getting a feel for the place I guess. And I think the manager is a better place to raise your issue. I always wait until I’m finished eating, unless it is absolutely unacceptable. And, I rarely complain. But he asked and I told him, again I made it light and friendly and joked with him. I didn’t ask for anything either which I think is more genuine.
Hi Yolanda,
My name is Jazz and I’m a terrible customer. After reading your post I feel like I need some kind of a twelve step program to be a better customer.
I never complain. I just don’t go back. For me, it’s the whole voting with your feet kind of thing. You’re right though, there are probably people who would have cared that I was dissatisfied and genuinely valued the feedback.
Awesome post.
LOL!
Yeah, a 12 steps to being a better customer! There might be a product in that!
Thanks for stopping by!
I like giving thoughtful feedback to businesses, especially small businesses, because, as you said, I want the same from my customers. Thank you for this thoughtful post! Best, Stacey
Thanks for stopping by Stacey!