November 2009 - Posts
A new low that will get someone into trouble
We were in Covent Garden last week to see Oliver. We visited Covent Garden and tried to get a meal. A simple task I thought until I experienced new lows in welcoming people with wheelchairs. My eldest daughter Karen went into Tuttons and sked for a table. Their attitude was not great but when told there was a wheelchair they said, "We haven't got space for a wheelchair". This sort of attitude is going to get a catering business into a lot of trouble very soon. And don't say you haven't been warned. There are now people with disabilities checking out hotel and restaurant facilities and then blogging their findings. My biggest concern is that one day soon there will be a case that goes to court rather than being an out of court settlement. The impact on that business will be substantial.
A flip camera with outstanding customer service
If you haven't seen it, this is a flip video camera. It is brilliant because you don't need wires or docking stations. You just plug into your USB port and off you go. However, this is not the point of this post. In the shop I visited and on the camera stand it said ask a member of staff to demonstrate it. So I did, but nobody had been trained on the product. I complained about the sign and why did they do it. The person I was speaking to blamed the company supplying the product, but the manager overheard me. He did not know me and I am not a regular customer. However, he said, "Buy it. Take it home. Play with it. Learn how to use it and if you don't like it then just bring it back and I will refund it". I was going to walk out of that shop without making a purchase. Insted I am a very pleased owner of a flip camera. The shop made a sale when it had lost it. Customer service is not expensive, it is profitable. I wish more hotels and catering establishments understood that.
I wish there were more psychic customers
I visited a hotel at the NEC recently. I can't show the picture because I accidently videod the door instead of taking a picture. Probably another senior momment. The picture was supposed to be of an accessible toilet, marked with the wheelchair logo but did not have a handle and it was locked. It had no sign or anything else on it to say why. I had already had to push myself all around the hotel to find this toilet. Now I had to find out what was happening and where there was an alternative. This was really unnecessary. Why could'nt the hotel just put a nicely printed sign on the door explaining it was out of order and where the nearest toilet was. I am not psychic and not many customers are. Surely it is not to much to ask for a clear sign to make life that bit simpler!
Three logos but the same event
These are the three logos for National School Meals Week (NSMW) that is taking place next week. You might be asking yourself why is the logo different. The answer is very simple they are each targeted at a different market segment. They were created after extensive market resaerch on the Internet. For example have a look at how Disney does similar, they might have one logo for young children (with bright colours) and another for parents (just black). In the case of Disney they have many logos e.g Disney World, The Magic Kingdom.
With NSMW, LACA had different target audiences and used the logos in the following way. The first one with the LACA letters was targeted at local authorities and schools because that is where the name is recognised and it wanted to get this group involved. It worked because it is now the biggest NSMW ever. The next one is brightly coloured so it is targeted at Primary pupils and their parents. The last one is for teenagers.
I am surprised that more businesses don't segment their strategy in this way. What do you do?
Do you agree or disagree?