Train Up the Staff Behind The Counter
New Mexico restaurateurs are all too familiar with young workers. Your restaurant may have a fresh crop of millennials in front and back of the house. “Cash Register Culture” describes younger workers who just ring up sales. Many times, they need help in understanding what makes good customer service. Diners are impressed with restaurant staff who are positive, motivated, polite, focused on the task at hand, and willing to go the extra mile. Don’t miss the chance to win loyal customers. Without the right training from you, your staff could lose you business. Create Customer Service Culture. QSR has some smart ideas to help you.
Keys to Make Cash Register Culture Customer Service Culture
1. Make yourself available
Teach your waitstaff the basics, along with courtesy, eye contact, and a pleasant attitude.
Key things to highlight:
- Be visible.
- Be unobtrusive.
- Pay very close attention to their tables.
2. Say as little as possible
- Be friendly, not pushy.
- Respect diners’ need for privacy.
- Don’t ruin the flow of their discussion.
3. When you do talk, choose your words carefully
- Ask customers what they want.
- Show customers they are being listened to.
More Ideas to Make Your Staff Customer Friendly
QSR also suggests this: Help staff by creating a script that is standard for the front of the house. Managers should provide them them with prepared materials and encourage them to study them and be ready to share the information with customers.
4. Never wing it
- Make sure your staff is concise, accurate and direct with diners.
- Be specific when asked how long until seated, or when the meal will be out from the kitchen.
- Sometimes the best thing to say is, “I don’t know. Let me find out for you.”
5. Request feedback
Managers should also teach young workers to confirm that the customer is happy and has no unsatisfied expectation or need at the moment. Make sure they ask questions like, “Is that acceptable?” or “Are you happy with everything?” or “Is there anything else you need?”
6. Problem solve
Empower line staff to solve problems. But make sure they have the knowledge, authority, and resources to offer solutions. Train your staff to know the difference between what they should deal with directly, and what needs to go up the chain. Once problems are solved, share the solution with the whole team. This gives them information for the future. Better trained staff means better customer service, and a better bottom line for you. QSR has more to share in the article here.
