Last Saturday, I went to Orchard Cineleisure to watch (500) Days of Summer. Since my film was at 1pm, I decided to eat lunch in the Orchard area.
First I went to Botak Jones at the Youth Park. I wasn’t even sure if they were open or not, because the employees didn’t seem interested in having any business. The downpour of rain that morning made all the chairs and tables wet, and even if I wanted to eat there, I wouldn’t have been able to find a place to sit down. Frustrated, I looked around and saw Shokudo’s big yellow signage at Cineleisure. So I went there instead.
At Shokudo, I was served water without asking for it. When my pasta came, the server even rotated my dish so that the Shokudo logo on the plate would be facing me. All in all, it was a world of difference from the surly indifference I met with at Botak Jones.
It’s such a pity that the Botak Jones staff couldn’t even be bothered to clean their tables and chairs so that customers could have a place to sit down. No matter how good your product is, it’s only half the story. Unless I am starving to death and the Botak Jones outlet is the only place selling food, I have other choices. One cannot afford to be slack and “heck care” the customers, especially when competition for business is so keen.
Of course in our business, our product IS a service. Nevertheless, the side services that go along with it are important in making our customers feel that we truly value their support, and in ensuring that we will get referrals and repeat business.
I think I will start serving my students water when they come in for coaching…
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