Harvest Roasting
February Newsletter
By Don Eckles, President
Now may be the time to upgrade your staff. Whoa! If one of your employees opened this letter, you may not even see it. But seriously…now may be the perfect time to evaluate your staff, and make changes, if changes are needed.
Regular readers of this newsletter know that I think customer service is one of the most important parts of your business. Customer service is as important as your location, and, it’s more important than your pricing structure or the brand of syrup you use (no offense, Monin).
It’s well known that people buy from people they like. It has always been that way. You can’t resist great customer service…not if it’s genuine. A pretty good drink and a warm friendly smile will always win out over a great drink, handed out with indifference.
Indifference is everywhere. I can’t tell you how “bugged” I am when the person checking me out at the grocery store carries on a conversation with the check-out person in the next lane…completely ignoring me. Or, how I feel when I pull into a fast food place, and the window opens…someone say’s $3.89 (O.K…they really say $5.89)…and the window closes. A few seconds later, the window opens again, someone hands my change out, and the window closes again. Man…I can’t wait to go to that place again.
On the other hand, I had lunch in a national chain yesterday. My server told me about the specials of the day, offered me a “regular customer card” of some sort, wrote my name on the card and told me how the program worked, and called me by my name several times during my time there. When I left, she said “it was nice to meet you, Don”. Wow. I was not only impressed…I’m going to offer that lady a job.
We all need people like that representing us to our customers. Customers get a wonderful feeling when they are treated really well. They can’t get enough of the place. And they certainly wouldn’t go anywhere else for their coffee. They would almost feel like they were “cheating on you”. People with great customer service skills make you feel like you’re a friend. Their whole focus is on you and how they can make your day better. It’s so enjoyable that you kind of hate to leave the place. THAT is great customer service.
We sell coffee and assorted products to a store in south central Nebraska. The couple that owns the store have it all figured out. He is warm and easy to talk to…she is “out of this universe” friendly. With her, “Hi” is spelled “Hiiiiii! You just want to get your wallet out and say “here…take it…it’s yours”. That friendliness has served them well in the past few years. Another coffee store has come to town. It has a better location, 2 drive thru windows, and a great looking building. What they don’t have is Greg and Kim.
You know people like that. In fact, you may be a person like that. But you should strive to have everyone in your store be a person like that. And, repeating what I said at the top of this letter…now may be the time to find those people.
With the economy struggling, many people are unemployed or underemployed. When we run ads now, looking for help, we get dozens, if not hundreds of applications. There are some very gifted and friendly people out of work, through no fault of their own. Some of those people would be wonderful additions to your staff. Or, they may actually be on your staff now.
If you have that person, now may be the time to sit down and talk about building a business together. Talk about what it’s going to take, and the new attitudes that will be required. Generally, unless you have a real “dud”, your employees will be excited to be part of something new and better. They know what it means if your business doesn’t make it…they lose their job, too.
If you don’t have that person, now may be the time to find them, and start moving forward. You need someone who is not only willing to try, but anxious to try.
Here’s what you should look for…
A very clean, well kept person
Appearance is so important. If they aren’t neat and clean when they come in for the interview, it won’t get better…I can promise you that. You and your employees are handling things that your customers are going to put in their mouths. Believe me…they are looking at cleanliness.
Bright, friendly eyes that are full of life
Some people just have a love for life. Find those people. They are pleasant to be around, and your customers will feel the same way.
A warm genuine smile
You can’t fake nice for very long. Nice people attract other people. Hire genuinely nice people.
Someone who looks you in the eyes when they are talking to you
It’s the best way to tell whoever is speaking to you, that you care about what they’re saying.
Good speaking skills, someone who uses proper grammar
Poor grammar is a real turn-off. They don’t need to be an English professor, but they do need to be able to walk and chew gum at the same time.
Good listening skills, someone who doesn’t monopolize the conversation
Good listeners know that it’s always about someone else…it’s not about them.
Someone who is not afraid to up-sell (in fact…have them sell something to you during the interview)
This is a great way to find out whether or not you have a winner. If they are too embarrassed to do this…how are they going to up-sell your customers? It doesn’t matter how good they are at it (at least when they are practicing on you), it’s the fact that they were willing to try. If they are willing to try to sell something to you, they will probably be willing to try new things, as your employee.
It’s been interesting watching how various stores seem to do during difficult times. We’ve noticed that, in stores where we have a great staff, business always gets better. In stores where the staff is poor to OK, business stagnates or drops. If we fix the staffing issue, business turns around. It really is about taking good care of our customers.
I hope you have noticed that my newsletters are about constantly moving forward. There is no such thing as a ½ empty glass (not for successful people)…only a ½ full one. My intent is to help you see the potential your business has. It doesn’t matter where you are, or which challenges you face, there is a solution, and that solution is wearing your shoes (you are the solution). Be proactive with your business. You have time and money invested…you can make it work.
Finally…have you noticed our new web-site? It is harvestroasting.com. Great new look…easy to navigate. As always, we have the best products on the planet, and they are competitively priced. Please try our world class espresso and coffee beans. With any order of 75 lbs. of coffee or espresso, we’ll ship your entire order, freight free. That includes syrups, smoothies, sauces, cups and lids, etc. By the way, we have added Chinet’s line of triple insulated cups to our site. They are called “Comfort Cups”. We currently have 16 ounce and 20 ounce cups. The lids are black, and they fit both sizes. We will have the 12 ounce cups in stock very soon.
Thanks for reading this. I hope you get some good from it, and that it helps you to grow your business effectively. Past newsletters are available on our web-site. If we can help you with anything, please contact Barb Miller at 402-670-9755. Or, you can e-mail him at barb@harvestroasting.com
Sincerely,
Don Eckles
Harvest Roasting