| In a past life, a former colleague of mine taught our | | | | typical complaints. Rate them between 1 (minor) and |
| company the concept of the | | | | 10 (major). |
| Complaint-O-Meter for handling guest | | | | Unfortunately, each typical complaint is different in |
| complaints.We've all been through various types of | | | | the eye of the beholder. While I might |
| complaints as both a customer and an employee. | | | | believe a hair in the food is low on the scale, if I |
| You remember both ends of the extreme. On one | | | | have that attitude with a customer who |
| hand, the Ritz Carlton hotel has | | | | feels it is a 10, we lose.Gauge where the customer |
| empowered any employee to handle any complaint | | | | is on the Complaint-O-Meter in their mind and handle |
| or issue up to $2,000. On the other | | | | their |
| hand are many of their competitors: Have a | | | | problem accordingly --- they just want it fixed. It |
| complaint? You're told to call the office or fill | | | | might entail a replacement item or |
| out this comment card.When handling complaints, | | | | apology on the low end, or a refund and lifetime |
| here are a couple keys:- Understand the lifetime value | | | | comp card for the higher end. Ensure that |
| of a customer. Too often, managers and employees | | | | you address the issue they have today --- cold fries |
| worry about the cost of the replacement item or | | | | are not fixed with a comp card. |
| refund (the pennies), but forget about how | | | | Don't trip over dollars to pick up pennies. Ensure the |
| much that customer spends with them (the dollars). | | | | customer leaves happy so they return |
| If a customer visits you twice a week | | | | again!T.J. Schier is service professional, consultant and |
| and spends $6 per visit, they are worth about $600 | | | | speaker with over 20 years experience in operations |
| per year to you. Now, if they have a | | | | and training. Founder and president of Incentivize |
| complaint over a $5 value meal --- even if they are | | | | Solutions and podTraining, T.J. has helped numerous |
| wrong --- is it worth losing $600 in | | | | clients enhance their service and training programs |
| annual sales over $5? Try attracting that much | | | | and spoken to tens of thousands of managers, |
| business with that small an investment.- Educate the | | | | franchisees and operators in various fields. Visit for |
| employees on what they can handle without the | | | | more info motivating today's employees, training |
| manager. For | | | | today's generation and delivering outstanding guest |
| example, are a customer's fries cold? Replace them | | | | service; or a unique new system and the foundation |
| with hot ones. Wrong drink flavor? | | | | of 'i-learning' - using the device of today's generation, |
| Replace it with a larger size of the right one. People | | | | the iPod - to train your workforce. |
| just want their issue handled!You likely have a few | | | | |