In order to improve customer service, those who own and manage the business must practice what they preach.  They need to not only tell their staff how they want them to treat their customers, but indeed they need to show the staff.  After years of working in the food industry and of course of being a customer as well, I am aware of what good customer service should be like.  If you, as the owner or manager don’t place the best value possible on customer services, then your staff wont think it important either.  They wont be motivated to improve customer services.

As soon as a customer enters your premises till the time they leave, you must treat them as guests.  Your service must be consistent, even if you are having a bad day, you do not let your guest see this and you most certainly don’t take it out on your customer.  You must, at all times, be professional and mature, not matter how your guest is behaving.  Even if your guest is being rude or belligerent you must remain calm, efficient and businesslike.  You must remember at all times that you are there to fulfil the customers every requirement.  Never forget the customer is paying for a service, and you must provide that service, come what may.

I’ve listed below some suggestions that I have found helpful in the past.

Almost all people will put cleanliness at the top of their list of priorities when choosing somewhere to eat.  75% of people would leave the establishment if it were not clean.  Saying that your kitchen is clean is all fine and well, but how many customers would want, never mind be allowed to eat in the kitchen?!!  The customer is looking for cleanliness as soon as they come through the door.  First impressions really do count.  Are the doors and windows clean?  You should not have posters or signs up on your windows and doors.  These get very grubby.  Is there rubbish, cigarette ends, or dods of chewing gum littering your entrance?  Are your carpets and floors clean?  Have your little six legged friends left any horrible webs dangling from the ceiling?  Are the menus grubby or splattered with food and such?  These are all things that can put your customer off their food and worse still they will not want to return to your establishment.  Be under no illusions if the customer has a bad experience at your establishment, they will certainly pass on their findings to anyone who will listen.

If you use tablecloths, these must be changed at the end of each sitting.  I have seen some restaurants using two cloths and only changing the top one; this is all fine and well as long as you also check the bottom cloth for any spillages etc.  No one wants to sit looking at someone else’s dinner all evening.  If you don’t use tablecloths or have the wipe clean version, then you must ensure that the cloth you are using to clean them is not grotty and smelly.  If you wipe the tables with a dirty cloth, it leaves an odour on the tables.  This again is not pleasant when you sit down to eat.  Ideally you should use a spray cleaner and you should use different cloths for cleaning the tables and the chairs. 

It is imperative that toilets are clean.  There should be no graffiti on the walls and doors or in the cubicles.  Lighting must be adequate and in good working order.  You should also ensure that there is an adequate supply of soap, loo rolls, paper towels etc.  Staff must check the toilets on a regular basis to ensure that levels of hygiene are not falling.

Employing good staff is very important.  Never ever forget that good manners are paramount.  It is not difficult to be polite and things like saying “please, thank you” and “can I help you?” should be run of the mill stuff and definitely a requirement in your staff.  You should always remember that the way you treat your staff will rub off on how your staff treat your customers.  You must always be professional, do not raise your voice and never use foul or abusive language.  You have to be aware of your body language.  Don’t stand, waiting to take an order with your arms folded across your chest or tapping your pen on your order pad.  Don’t roll your eyes or stare at a customer and don’t look past them as if they aren’t there.  You should greet your customers as soon as they arrive, acknowledge them, smile at them.  Acknowledging customers entering your premises, especially when you are busy, is more likely to stop them leaving when they see how busy you are. 

Staff who are over worked and under too much pressure, wont care if they are stroppy with customers, or take wrong orders, or get the bill wrong etc.  If your staff are run off their feet they may not have enough time to clear away properly, clean properly or indeed ensure that all equipment and accessories needed are readily available.  Employees who feel over worked and under too much pressure will soon give up and not return to work.

Personally I think this is very important.  Customers don’t want to be shouting at each other just so that they can have a conversation above the music blaring through the PA system.  The music should be relaxing and in the background.

I know I’ve touched on this before, but again it’s very important.  We are all human and we all make mistakes, so you should ensure that you give your undivided attention to your customer and after you have taken their order, read it back to them.  Even if you’ve followed this advice, customers may well still say that their order is wrong.  Even if you know that the blame lies with the customer, do not go on the defensive.  The best thing to do is to apologise and tell the customer that you will put the order right. 

Finally, you should ask the customer if they have enjoyed their meal, thank them for choosing your establishment and say “goodbye, hope to see you again soon”.  This should help make your customer feel that they have had a ‘positive dining experience’. 

Happy dining.