On a weekend where I should have been ‘checking in’ my geoplace; using my nearfilled location (NFL) mobile phone to debit my account for afternoon tea; and testing Zaarly (www.zaarly.com currently in beta) to see if there was a near-by, real-time buyer for my new service idea, I simply found myself in the Blue Mountains for a weekend away with all digital communications switched off!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh…

…the feeling of fresh, crisp air. The enjoyment of real life social conversations. A step back in time to fossicking around antique shops (my wife bought knitting needles, I bought an old friend a 40th bday present). And a rustic old cabin with log fires. Oh and uncovering diametrically opposed customer service experiences!

We were searching for tea and scones and stopped at what looked like the perfect place, The Apple Bar, in Bilpin. After standing in front of the waitress for a couple of minutes whilst she did her best deadpan ‘ignoring us’ impersonation, I finally asked did they serve scones. With a face of disdain she started saying that they did not, and in mid sentence the manageress cut across her reply and asked her to close off the last cash register transaction. We were dumbfounded. Well I thought nothing ventured, nothing gained. Surely she could recommend another nearby cafe that did. My phone was off and I couldn’t search for recommendations of like-minded scone hunters. To our surprise she indicated there was one just a few kilometers down the road. Well there was nothing by that name a few kilometers down the road.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr

But we couldn’t resist a cute, little cafe called Tutti Fruitti that we stumbled upon without www.stumbleupon.com

All I can say is locate it, bookmark it, visit it, share it, recommend it, re-visit it – and try the scones with their home made Tutti Fruitti jam. We’re heading back there for their ice-cream on a hotter day! http://tuttifruitti.com.au/wordpress

Their welcome was friendly, inviting and genuine. The overall experience was simply outstanding.

In my opinion service makes or breaks an experience. Great customer service is often so simple.

If you’re in the service industry, please don’t forget these 3 basic rules:

  • greet customers before they greet you
  • make them feel special as they’re the ones spending their money
  • recommend based on knowledge and not guesswork

Otherwise your customers will be going, going, ‘scone’ to your nearest competitor.