EATING YOUR OWN COOKING—PART 2
Sometimes I am amazed at the customer experience of some companies. That amazement is from the positive side but unfortunately, it is sometimes from the negative side. When I encounter an amazingly good customer experience, the first thought that comes to mind is that this company knows what it is doing. When I encounter an amazingly bad customer experience, the first question that comes to mind is do these people ever eat their own cooking?
Granted, you don’t necessarily have to eat your own cooking (not that that is a bad idea at all, per my “Part 1” post), but you must at least think vicariously enough to put yourself into the customer’s shoes. You have to be able to imagine what the customer will experience as he or she does business with your company. Some of these opportunities are so obvious yet so many companies miss them completely.
For example, I have been in restrooms in organizations of all types and sizes in which I could immediately see that zero thought had been given to the convenience of the customer. Here are just a few of those observations:
- No hook on which to hang a coat.
- No shelf or small table to park your belongings.
- Not one extra shred of toilet paper.
- Paper towel dispensers that are empty.
- Hand dryers that don’t work.
- An overall sense (or smell) that no sanitary place exists to park your beverage.
If we are serious about eating our own cooking, that means that we will force ourselves to think intensely about all aspects of what our customers experience. If we would not be satisfied with that customer experience, then what right do we have to expect our customers to be satisfied with it?
