Picture this. You’re in a restaurant with your loved one eating a steak that is not particularly special or tender. The waitress then walks to your table and in an upbeat, positive tone of voice says…”How’s your meal“, in a knee-jerk reaction type of response you say “fine….” and before you can add any more she’s gone. The waitress then duly reports back to the kitchen and management that all’s well with the diners and the food.
This scenario is happening in restaurants all around the world everyday. So, what does it tell us?
That people (customers) are not always honest with their feedback. And the way you collect feedback is as important as collecting it in the first place. Sometimes when we are asked for feedback we don’t always tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. It’s not that we mean to lie, it may be that you’ve caught us off-guard or we don’t want to offend or deliver bad news.
So, if you have a customer feedback program – well done. But just take time to ensure that you ask the right questions at the right time and that the right people are asking the questions; as we can see from this example, sometimes its better for someone else to ask that question. Otherwise you might carry on serving that tough steak to fewer and fewer people!
