This video is old, but it’s new to me. Take 45 seconds to watch it and see a customer experience that practically defines “delight.”
Apparently in Japan, if you press the “help” button on a train ticket kiosk, a guy actually pops out from the wall behind the kiosk to lend assistance–to the delight and befuddlement of foreign tourists.
Doing a little research, I discovered that the guy isn’t just sitting behind the kiosk all day waiting for Americans to push the help button. His main job is keeping the machines stocked with blank tickets, which is done from behind the kiosk so it doesn’t disrupt normal operations. But as long as he’s there, he can lend a hand as needed.
Of course, to the Japanese this is just normal and not the least bit delightful. That’s the problem with the treadmill of customer delight.
I’m also reminded of the New York subway (and many other large American cities), where attendants are also available at many stations. But in America, we tend to put the attendants inside glass booths instead of having them magically step out of the wall when needed.
The Japanese way somehow seems so much more…delightful.
