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OUTBACK Steak House, Kansas

Traveling through Kansas, I stopped for dinner at a local Outback Steak house in Kansas. Upon arriving at the restaurant, I am greeted by the maitre d'. After asking how many in my party, I was politely informed "We are running a bit slow due to being short staffed, but we will do everything we can to give you a good meal." I was seated in the family section of the restaurant. This was a nice place with t.v.'s located around the dining room for entertaining the guests. As I waited for the my dinner, I noticed the different shows on the t.v.'s. After my dinner arrived, the t.v. close to my table changed to a new show. CSI came on the t.v. and started to show a brain dissection, not quite the best dinner show. I looked around the restaurant and noticed in a different part of the family section, one of the t.v.'s was interviewing an adult star about her career. I watched as a family of 4 children waited for their meal and watched the show (a very adult show).

After my meal was over, the manager came over to my table to ask me about my service and the meal. I asked him if he was open for some input? I explained what I do for a living and the value of a customers experience with a business.
I asked him if he knew what was on the t.v.'s for his guest to enjoy? He did not know what was being shown and when we discussed my experience and my observations, he was shocked. Not what he was wanting his guests to experience. Then we talked about the message that was given to me by the maitre d'.

What if when I arrived, I was told that due to a overwhelming amount of great customers, we are running a bit behind, but we will make sure you have a great meal. This would have made me feel lucky to even get a table, let alone quick service. Rather than telling me that their staff was unreliable and possibly that I would not get a good quality meal. Why start out my experience with the restaurant on a negative.

Sometimes you need to create and paint the right image of the level of experience the customer will have at your business even before they spend their time with your business.

Customer Experience Rating: 7

Factory Card Outlet

Why does shopping now a days, involve sharing your personal information? I understand that the purpose of information gathering, is to help the business with customer profiling. Once all data is gathered, companies spend millions of dollars chasing the profile that fits where they feel they will get the most return.
What most companies don't understand is the value of the customer experience. Most companies have forgotten the basics of selling. Its not the price, its the experience.

Shopping at Factory Card Outlet for a simple .49 cent card required me to give my home phone number. WHY? In today's world of no-call lists and way to many calls taking me away from my personal/family time, why would a business want my personal phone number? This put me on guard the minute I stepped up to the register. Me saying no thanks, got me a frown from the clerk and a few stares from the other customers. I watch as most people freely give out their number, without even thinking we give away our private number??

Customer Experience Rating: 4

Victoria Secret Mall Store Experience

Recently, I was at the mall and decided to purchase something for my wife, that she had mentioned seeing in a catalog. I went to the Victoria Secret store and after having a nice young lady help me, made my purchase. Upon checking out the lady put my purchase into a very nice bag for me to carry it thru the mall to my car. This bag had one purpose when it was created. To tell every person who saw it, where you shopped and what you were buying. This is a great marketing piece to really drive the message as it is carried thru the mall. All of this is true if you are FEMALE. But as a 40 year old male, I was not planning to tell my friends, everyone I saw or want them all to see by the bag what I had purchased. No matter how comfortable I am in being an adult, I was still not wanting to share with the world that I shopped at Victoria Secret.
From the male perspective, lets figure out how to get me to tell others where I purchased my wife's gift at in the mall. What would raise my comfort level, enough for me to share that information or possible shop there again.

What if I was able to take my purchases out in a simple plain bag? What if when checking out y purchases, the sales person put my items on the lower counter as she bagged them. What if we found a different conversation other than the comfort level of other customers when they wear thong panties? How about not chatting with the high school friends as they enter the store, while you hand me different panties to feel?

OK, enough it really comes down to a simple bag...sometimes! Customer comfort level : 3