Restaurant Customer Service That Rocks
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What makes a twelve-dollar hamburger worth twelve dollars? Hint: It’s not just the Certified Angus Beef.
To differentiate yourself in the restaurant business—and make that burger worth the price—you have to be innovative, creative, irreverent and unpredictable.
At least that’s what works at Hard Rock Café, where customers don’t just pay for those twelve-dollar burgers, they line up for the privilege. And while you may not be able to attract guests with a giant electric guitar or an original Beatles concert poster, you can implement some of the same best practices that have made the Hard Rock’s culture of service so irresistible.
When Peter Morton and Isaak Tigrett opened the first Hard Rock Café in 1971, their vision was to offer hospitality unparalleled in the industry. A lot has changed since then: the menu, the music, even the memorabilia. What hasn’t changed is the Hard Rock’s “unbelievable guest obsession”—or the eight best practices that keep that obsession alive in every restaurant, every day.
- Train employees in the language in which they dream. Respect for individuals means respecting the ways in which they learn. Variety is the key: offer training in multiple languages, through multiple medium. At the Hard Rock, most training is delivered “comic-book style,” with fewer words, more pictures and a healthy dose of humor.
- Assist your staff in creating a volunteer philanthropy group. Make sure your mottos are more than just words on a wall. At the Hard Rock, the phrase “Love All – Serve All” represents an absolute commitment to making the world a better place. A unique volunteer program is created at each café, and the employees drive the process. As a result, they are more determined in their efforts—and more loyal to the company that helps them make a difference.
- Enforce standards, but give out “permission slips.” Fundamentals are important: the right people need to be in the right positions with the right training, and technical standards must be met. But truly individualized service is delivered by individuals. Give employees the freedom to be the people you hired.
- Hire only “rock stars”—and treat them like volunteers. The expression “hire for personality, train for skill” is popular for a reason: Unique experiences are created by unique people. And to get the best performance out of those unique people, treat them with the same courtesy and respect you’d show a workforce of volunteers—and they’ll pass that behavior on to your guests.
- Realize that people will only repeat what they like. If guests paid a cover charge to enter your restaurant, would you treat them differently? Would you welcome them more warmly and talk with them at every opportunity, rather than just when you’re serving them food? This is how Hard Rock employees are trained to think about guests—and it shows in every interaction.
- Earn mental “shelf space” by creating positive experiences. Guests rate us on a REX scale: reality versus expectations. To earn a positive rating, we have to exceed expectations. And since guests have so many choices (and such short memories), we have to earn positive ratings every time, with every guest, to stay top-of-mind.
- Treat every customer like a guest in your home, your company’s CEO or a first date. When the CEO eats dinner in your restaurant, do your cooks make absolutely certain his or her order is perfect? Do servers execute every step of the sequence of service? Do managers stop by the table for authentic, personalized conversation? Now imagine what would happen if every guest were treated this way.
- Do what you say you will do. Companies with integrity have employees with integrity. Deliver on your promises to employees, and they will deliver on your promises to guests. At the Hard Rock, that “promise” is the same as it was in 1971: an unparalleled guest experience. What promise does your company make?
by Jim Knight, Senior Director of Training and Development at Hard Rock International and member of CHART, restaurant training.
Restaurant Reviews On Yelp Driving You Crazy, Too?
As a former Yelper, I can honestly say, I’m scratching my head over why certain restaurateurs put so many eggs in the Yelp basket.
The appeal of this mostly-popular-among-Gen Y-user-generated-content site is two-fold, catering to innocent restaurant-goers seeking a quick online review of a certain eatery as well as those who want to open an account, jump in and become a part of the cliquish—often snarky, sometimes vulgar—culture that gives Yelp its intimidating reputation.
The influence of sites like Yelp are often underestimated, even by the likes of travel publishing mogul Arthur Frommer, who shamelessly criticized the site for its amateur writing and unnecessary venting. Of course, he was challenged by quite a few Yelpers, including one who cowardly went by the pseudonym Muffin Top or something like that, calling Mr. Frommer the most offensive of names while defending the “credibility” (my choice of words) of the reviewers.
In the realm of journalistic review, this past week, the San Francisco Business Times featured an article called “Restaurants Learn to Yelp,” which talks about restaurateurs who respond to negative Yelp reviews through ass-kissing of its members and inviting dissatisfied patrons back for a new and improved visit.
“Elizabeth Falkner of Citizen Cake fame tried to stave off negative reviews of her new restaurant Orson by inviting in top Yelpers, those who post the greatest number of reviews, for a private pre-opening party,” the article states. And Faulker says she had a party for Yelpers and “they wrote a lot of cool things.”
Hmm. Oh nothing. Just, hmm.
In my experience of talking to folks who Yelp, or post online reviews elsewhere I discovered a lot of folks who bashed on professional food writers for their lack of integrity. Saying they provide the honesty because no one is handing them a free meal to write the review. But based on the article above, apparently this might not be so true anymore. Having worked on that side of the media desk, I can say, yes food writers can sometimes get preferential treatment. And yes, this might lead to embellishing the experience and cloud an honest review.
What’s most interesting though, is how food bloggers, Yelpers and whoever else might be reviewing restaurants online are gaining recognition for their impact on consumer buying behavior, and therefore receiving this preferential treatment by restaurateurs and PR folks they were so quick to bash before.
In the same article referenced above, one eatery mentioned they had given free meals to anyone who posted a negative review, until word got around that Yelpers just need to bash the place to get a free meal ticket.
In a blog I posted earlier this year on the restaurant social networking site FohBoh, I talked about a former fellow Yelper who generated a buzz of a certain restaurant in Orange County. After it started becoming popular on Yelp, to the point of a group of them visiting the place for a couple of meals, the restaurant still shut down. In other words: Yelp was no help.
My guess is, and it’s only a guess, restaurateurs who give Yelp credence are doing so because if you Google any restaurant, and it’s been reviewed on Yelp, no doubt this review will appear on page one of Google, and perhaps be No. 1. This is how I found out about Yelp. Of course, after clicking on the review, one is easily sucked into the numerous reviews, the humor, the caddiness and eventually the appeal that anyone—and I mean anyone—can be a food critic.
But if there’s no review on Yelp, then there’s no presence of Yelp on page one of Google, and more than likely not on page two or three for that matter. But other review sites might appear on page one, making Yelp not just the only game in town. Besides, think about what you look for in a review when you Google the restaurant. Chances are honesty, the date (how recent it is), price range and the summation of an experience are the key things. If so, any of the sites below can give you the same thing, although some without the large quantities of reviews but enough to give you an idea of the quality of food and service:
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Article provided by Judy Asman.
Restaurant Marketing, Coupons And The Economy
If there’s a perfect time to introduce coupons to your marketing, it’s during an economic downturn. CouponCuisine has tracked search engine statistics of people looking for coupons for over a year. In the past four months (since February 2008) we have seen a 325% increase in related traffic.
Restaurants that normally don’t use limited time offers, Outback for example, have done so recently to weather the storm. Only time will tell if the strategy reaps profits, but the fact that LTOs are being used says plenty.
Bottom-line: people are looking for value. Attracting new and return customers with coupons is not a difficult concept, but when other restaurants are also opening accounts with the direct mailer… it’s even more important to become familiar with Restaurant Revolution’s Clever Coupon process.
Free Restaurant Training Report: “Tough Economy Edition”
Restaurant Revolution and Judy Asman conducted an information session with John Alexander of Chart.org. This interview was put into video format and can be seen here.
To help you get the most value of this information, we created this 10-page, no-fluff report (shown right). If you want the lists, tips and bullet-points that John brings up, make sure to get your copy of the report absolutely free.
How Training Will Help Your Restaurant Thrive In Any Economy
If you enjoy this report and want more like it, you’re invited to Join Restaurant Revolution.
Restaurant Training, The Economy and Restaurant Marketing
In May 2008, Restaurant Revolution began producing and participating in a variety of restaurant industry-specific discussions.
These have been recorded. Videos, handouts and pamphlets on each topic are being created for your benefit. Please check back often, or Join Restaurant Revolution to be notified when these materials are available.
The first in this series is an interview by Judy Asman of John Alexander from CHART. John shares why restaurant employee training and manager training is of utmost important during a tough economy. He also provides step-by-step information that you can immediately apply.
I strongly encourage you to watch each video. They add up to around 22 minutes of advice.
Restaurant Employee Training and the Economy: Part 1
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Restaurant Employee Training and the Economy: Part 2
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Restaurant Employee Training and the Economy: Part 3
UPDATE: Now you can download the Restaurant Training In A Tough Economy Report.
If you’re interested in this topic and want more information, visit Chart.org.
If you’re a professional that would like to be interviewed and have a similar production of videos, handouts and other marketable materials, please contact Judy Asman or Restaurant Revolution.
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