Rita and Kyle quit their day jobs, pooled their savings, and opened a vegetarian restaurant. It was their dream to earn a living and promote a different kind of eating.
While business was steady for the first six months, they knew that many good restaurants fail. So they hired a consultant to help them find out what their customers want.
The consultant surveyed everyone who came into the restaurant and produced a report.
The information surprised Rita and Kyle. The consultant swore that all of it was accurate and encouraged immediate action in order to guarantee the future of the restaurant. After all, the advice came from people who were inside the restaurant. While there was a lot of positive feedback, some of the findings were surprising:
- The restaurant should start selling pork and beef dishes;
- The restaurant should have overnight hours like McDonalds;
- The restaurant should sell ice cream;
- The restaurant should sell health food products.
In this case, the information was accurate but interpretation was missing from the consultant?s report.
Some people came into the restaurant, not knowing that a vegetarian establishment doesn?t serve meat. Should Rita and Kyle dilute their vision for this group? Are meat eaters their target market?
The overnight comment came from someone who works a second shift and can?t come in during normal business hours. While Rita and Kyle could sympathize, they weren?t sure if it would be worth hiring extra people to cover the overnight hours. A failed venture of this nature could cost them dearly.
Ice cream and health food products are things that could be brought into the restaurant. But both are somewhat specialized foods and could require additional equipment (like a freezer for ice cream) or staff. Would the profit margins be enough to make it a worthwhile endeavor? Perhaps it would be better to form a partnership with businesses that already have those products.
Not all customer feedback is useful. If you ask people a question, they may feel compelled to answer.
Their answers may not reflect your mission and values. You must decide whether you change to fit them or stay true to your course.
Rita and Kyle decided the report did not provide them with the correct information needed to grow their business. For them, it weighed every opinion equally, from the regular customer to the person who stumbled into the establishment, expecting spare ribs.
To Clear the Path the couple decided to do a second survey, on their own, with a select group of loyal customers. They brought them into the restaurant, explained the challenges they faced, and they asked for advice on how to make the business grow and succeed.
In this model, they focused their customers on a problem instead of asking for random comments.
Your customers can be incredible resources, if you approach them the right way.
