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Method
Marketing Newsletter: Volume 2 Issue 33
September 23rd, 2002
Part
II
Intuitive
Service
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Synopsis:
To
connect with your guest, start with the principle that a
'centered' staffer realizes that whatever the 'emotional
temperature' of the table, is not to take it personally
and to operate from a spirit of abundance rather than scarcity.
This is not a matter of thinking, but of feeling.
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"Never forget
that you are in an environment of mayhem."
-Angie
Arkin
Your
guests define 'value' by the totality of the experience:
the service, the décor, the food and its flavors
and aromas and the cost: all details that create a memory.
The most memorable experiences come from an organized,
well-rehearsed and communicated performance. Great 'word
of mouth' is built note by note, scene by scene, act by
act, so that by the end of the visit your guest walks
away 'wowed'. Or bored. Or, worse of all, disgusted. It's
your choice. |
Like
"Kismet", another friend, Angie Arkin, called to tell
me she was developing a series of seminars to help operators
train servers in "Intuitive Service", a kind of holistic
approach to teach staff how to connect to guests to be able
to give great service.
The lessons are simple. Using these techniques, staffers learn:
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To
'ground' themselves to be able to put the guest first, 'intuit'
the mood of the guest, read the table and take the party's
emotional temperature
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To
identify and use their energies to orchestrate the experience,
while overcoming any negative 'vibes' the guest might bring
in with them
-
To
'separate' themselves from co-workers and clientele, so
that they will not be influenced by someone else's negativity
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To
project a prosperous consciousness to increase guest satisfaction
(and, coincidentally, their tips)
-
To
connect with both staff and clientele to create an atmosphere
of peace and prosperity
When I asked if she thought these techniques would work in chain
restaurants, she laughed, "It's easy! We romanticize the
industry. See it as a big kind of lump, moving along like a,
well, a lump. In truth, restaurants are mayhem.
"Servers don't want to be there. Guests are powder kegs
ready to blow. This is the real world in which the staff operates.
I care about focusing myself, my energy, so that I don't get
scattered by these torrential forces buffeting me.
"I want to possess a feeling of abundance rather than scarcity;
that way, I don't feel entitled nor belittled. I want to have
the energy to 'meet the guest's need' right away. This is something
I cannot do, if I am distracted by wishing I were somewhere
else. I want to have the stamina to be personal and direct,
to reassure the guest that I see, hear and understand what they
want. I want to survive the drama of the night without capsizing.
I want to bring each party to the end of their dining journey,
so that they leave fulfilled in all their particulars. By doing
these, let me add, I have earned more per hour than any other
server I have ever met."
So, some things that are important aren't easily categorized
and put in a manual, but they can be learned, nonetheless.
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Seminars:
Now, for a little shameless self promotion. Looking for a high-energy speaker,
capable of personalizing a presentation to meet your needs? Just email me at rkhendrie@linkincmethodmarketing.com.
I will get right back to you, so that we can discuss how I can be of service to
your organization.
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