“Collin, you are not going to believe the customer service experience I had this weekend.”
These words mean only one of two things, right? The experience was either really amazing or it was really (really) bad. In business today, if a customer service experience is good, you are lucky if that person shares his or her experience with anyone else. But, rest assured, if that customer service experience is horrible, it will be shared with the whole world…sometimes quite literally, as review sites and social media platforms are the first places people go to vent.
It was Monday morning before our weekly leadership meeting as my service manager, Leigh, explained, “It was 4 p.m. on Saturday and Pam and I were a little hungry, so we decided to head over to 4 Rivers Smokehouse.”
Now, Leigh turned our entire team onto 4 Rivers when he first heard the company was coming to Gainesville, as he was an avid fan. We have had group scooter rides over there for lunch, and I have to admit I became an instant fan after experiencing the food and service myself.
Leigh continued, “I was always told by John (Mr. Rivers himself) to ask for a fresh rack anytime I ordered ribs, as that is the way to enjoy the best, freshest meat. We received our meals and went to sit down to enjoy our meal. I couldn’t believe it…the ribs were bad. Really bad. I told Pam to make sure that no matter what I do, don’t ever let me order these ribs again. Please, please, please make sure I order something else!”
Leigh grit his teeth and ate them anyway, as he is not one to complain.
A few minutes later a gentleman walked by, “How is everything, folks?”
“To be completely honest with you,” Leigh said, “I am not sure I received exactly what I ordered.”
The gentleman asked, “Can I get you something else?
“No, it’s ok. I will get through it,” Leigh replied.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes I am sure,” Leigh finalized.
A few minutes later, the gentleman from 4 Rivers showed up to Leigh’s table with a fresh full rack of ribs (Leigh had only ordered a half rack) in a plastic container and proceeded to tell Leigh (who had already eaten half of his meal), “Sir, you shouldn’t have to ‘get through it.’”
(Pay attention to this part. This is the BOOM moment!)
Leigh was blown away by the excellent customer service. He ended up talking with the gentleman about 4 Rivers for twenty-plus minutes, and the experience ended with a full tour of the restaurant and a look at the sweet smokers. It is safe to say Leigh will forever be a customer of 4 Rivers Smokehouse.
What is UCE?
Since the early days of New Scooters 4 Less (NS4L), I set out to create a company that would be known for its customer service. Customer service is average at best in today’s world, and I didn’t want to create a business that would just get lost in the mix of mediocrity. I wanted to create a company that strived to go above and beyond the call of duty and instead create an experience. When we sat down as a team to formulate our core values, we started with one core value that would determine the direction of the entire company — NS4L Core Value No.1: Create and Recreate the UCE (Ultimate Customer Experience).
Life is all about experiences, and experiences create memories that live with us forever. Why should business be any different? That is why providing the UCE is so important. You don’t recall anything special about that last trip to Walmart, but the rapping flight attendant on your Southwest Airlines flight…that’s a different story. It made your vacation that much better, and you told several of your friends about it, recorded it, put it on YouTube and now it has over a million views — it was an experience worth sharing! I want to create similar experiences that are worth sharing: Ultimate Customer Experiences.
My teams (New Scooters 4 Less and Gulejo Coffee) are on a mission to bring exemplary customer service and the UCE back to businesses. Join in the movement. Let people know about excellent customer service by using the hashtag #UCE in your social media posts, and let’s rid our area of poor customer service.
Way to go 4 Rivers Smokehouse. The customer experience you provided was worth sharing.
Want to begin creating a UCE culture in your workplace?
Here is a tip to get you going in the right direction: Tape a note on the back of your office phone that says, “Before you pick this phone up, be ready to make this person’s day!”