Electronic House Call - January 24, 2003

ELECTRONIC HOUSE CALL - January 24, 2003

It's nice to be back in the warmth of Washington! It was 60 degrees today after some morning rain (remember that it rains ALL the time in Washington -- please don't move here!) The New York Restaurant Show was a great time ... if a bit nippy on the street ... and they want me back again next year, so something is working right!

The last of the sale orders will go out today, so if you were one of the first to take advantage of me, thank you for your patience.

THE STELLA AWARDS
The Stella's are named after 81-year-old Stella Liebeck who spilled coffee on herself and successfully sued McDonalds. That case inspired the Stella awards for the most frivolous successful lawsuits in the United States.

Not all the stories making the rounds of the Internet as Stella Award contenders are real ... and even the details of Stella's original lawsuit are not generally known. When you have a more complete summary of the facts, you might change your mind about her. Or maybe not.

For a summary of the Stella vs. McDonald's case, go to http://www.stellaawards.com/

YEAR OF THE GUEST REPORTS
The early reports are coming in from Year of the Guest subscribers. In the weeks ahead, I will share a few with you for what they may offer in terms of insights ... and for what they may suggest about how others are using the program material.

My first response was from Ed Chilleen, owner of The Satisfied Frog in Cave Creek, Arizona. I had a great chat with Ed for the March Management Insight Series interview -- we talked about how he is using smart cards to build business -- and I am pleased that he is also joining us in the YOTG program. Ed writes:

I had my first meeting on Friday and it was very well received. We had about 10 people at the meeting and the first thing I asked them was. Which grocery store do you shop at? 8 out of 10 said, "Safeway". I then had them tell the rest of the group why. Service and friendliness won hands down. We had a busboy who worked at Safeway and we asked him how they trained everyone to be so friendly and he said they didn't. They just told you to watch everyone else and do what they do. If you were not friendly you stuck out like a sore thumb. I told them we should have a sign up at our hostess stand that says " Welcome to Safeway!"

A Note From the Doc: Bob Pike counsels that "People don't argue with their own information." Notice how Ed let his crew come up with their own answers rather than giving a lecture on service. It is much easier ... and much more effective.

THE YEAR OF THE GUEST
Restaurant marketer Joel Cohen and I have declared 2003 as The Official Year of the Guest. We believe there are still some tough times ahead and that operators must return the focus to their guests and the experience that diners have in the restaurant.

To do this, we have developed a series of 50 proven tips, delivered once a week by email, that will help you enhance personal connection, increase frequency, develop positive word-of-mouth on the street, build party size, create the WOW and make your operation more guest-friendly.

The program is free ... with a minimum $12 donation to Share Our Strength, the national organization that taps the resources of the hospitality industry to end hunger and homelessness. 100% of the money will go to Share Our Strength.

The word has gone out through several networks and is now being picked up by some of the state restaurant associations. I don't understand is why anyone would NOT be willing to kick in twelve bucks for a good cause ... and a year-long training outline. To date we have raised over $8000 toward our $50,000 goal. Will you help?

For information on The Year of the Guest, go to http://www.YearOfTheGuest.com

THE PERPETUAL QUESTION
What did you learn from your staff today?

[ Home ] [ Top ] [ Email Restaurant Doctor ]