Everybody talks about expectations, especially those of customers. They may be absurd or realistic, attainable or outlandish at times.
However, they are frequently appropriate. As a client, I anticipate a bare minimum, like:
- The good or service ought to function as planned.
- The cost of the good or service should be fair and consistent with that of similar goods.
- Utilizing the good or service should be risk-free.
I demand the bare minimum from vendors, and these are what they ought to offer.
As per Deloitte’s research titled “The True Value of Customer Experiences,”
“Creating an effective customer experience is about more than just ensuring your customers receive the products and services they desire in a timely and efficient manner. It’s also about creating touchpoints with real people who can organically evangelize and grow your brand through their social media and offline interactions with friends and family.”
They’re correct. It’s all about the “experience,” and I’ve written extensively about it. However, a pleasant experience also raises expectations, which the company needs to satisfy and even beyond. Customers also anticipate different things from their service provider.
Customer Expectations
1. Get a Straw with a Drink
When purchasing non-alcoholic beverages, especially through a drive-thru window, customers always expect that they will receive a straw with them. Plus, the majority of fast food businesses, if not all of them, always do this right. You also get a straw when they bring you the drink. That is anticipated. Nowadays, though, a lot of eateries request that you request a straw. What if we tried to predict the wants of the customer?
2. Napkins Come With a Takeout Order
This one ought to be as simple as always using a straw when drinking, but regrettably, it’s not always the case. How many times have you picked up your meal bag from the drive-through window, got in your car, and then realized that the napkins were missing? I can’t stand this. When ordering and eating meals, isn’t a napkin a must? You would assume that all drive-thrus would get this, but they don’t. How come I always have to beg for a napkin? I anticipate finding it in the bag.
It seems that businesses would rather save some bucks than let their clients wipe the ketchup off their lips because napkins have become so expensive.
3. Serve All Food Together
This seems to be a dreadful place for the food sector, but I believe it is justified. This is the reason. Six individuals stroll into a restaurant for a relaxing supper. Everything runs smoothly up until the dinner is served. There are just five delivered meals. You wait as the server informs you that the last meal will be served soon. Or do you?
Should the five patrons begin eating now, or should they wait until the last course is presented in a courteous and mannered manner? What’s the duration of the wait? Will their food become chilly and possibly lose its flavour? Or should they begin to eat in the hopes that this will be the last meal served soon? Will it, though? What happens if it doesn’t?
Any kitchen that is unable to prepare and serve six delicious meals simultaneously is having issues. However, the consumer shouldn’t be burdened with their issues. The failure of the restaurant shouldn’t put its patrons in an awkward situation because they are used to having their meals served simultaneously. It’s not unreasonable to assume this.
4. Get a Receipt With Purchase
The most recent thing I’ve noticed is that employees at gas stations are now asking, “Do you want a receipt?” Undoubtedly, a lot of individuals oppose them. However, why do all other businesses just provide them to you without question? The grocery store does. The shoe store and dry cleaners also do. And the petrol station, why not? Is it because you can only return an item with a receipt? Perhaps. However, what about people who use it to keep tabs on their spending or account balances? Are they not counted? Do they not share comparable expectations?
5. Food Is Not Compressed in a Bag or Container
You make a quick stop at the grocery store on your way home from work to pick up some milk, bread slices, eggs, and possibly even a box of your best cookies. The cashier is bagging your purchases while you swipe your credit card through the machine. After saying your goodbyes and packing your bag, you get home to see that your bread has milk on top of it! I mean, shouldn’t the bread be in a different bag or placed on TOP of the less delicate items? Do I have too many demands?
6. Regular Business Hours
This is typically an issue for certain smaller, privately owned companies. They close early if “business is slow” to send workers home early and save a few payroll dollars. Alternatively, it enables them to join their family for dinner at home. Of course, staying home for supper is a commendable goal, but what about their patrons who anticipated that the store would be open for business? particularly those who checked the store’s advertised hours before driving a distance to shop.
7. Product Instructions Must Not Be Tiny
Recall that I said the good or service ought to function as planned. So how on earth am I going to figure out how it works when the instructions are printed in the tiniest typeface imaginable, legible only by a grasshopper? I’m hoping for printed instructions so I won’t need to take out my handy magnifying lens to read them. It is annoying.
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