Are You Annoyed When Customers Try To Give You Money?
As a professional, do you get annoyed when people try to give you more money?This may sound like a stupid question, but it seems like some people just want to be bothered when you give them more business…
This past weekend my karate school had a big test. As is traditional, we went out to dinner afterwards at a local Japanese restaurant. When we called in the reservation, we told them to expect 20-25 people. In preparation, the restaurant set aside a private room that could accommodate 24-30 people comfortably.
Problem is, by the time we got to the restaurant, the number of diners had ballooned to 36!
Amazingly, I am not going to rant about how the staff reacted. They did a good job simply saying, “no problem, we’ll figure it out.” Eventually, we got everyone into that room It may have been a little tight – especially considering it was a hot summer day in a room of hibachi tables filled with people who had been sweating at a karate test all day – but it worked.
This scenario did remind me of times I had gone to a restaurant and shown up with a couple more people than the reservation, and the staff seemed incredibly put out to be inconvenienced…
Look, I get it. It is an inconvenience to have planned for one thing but to then have things suddenly change (Ding Happens! anyone?). But these are the kinds of unexpected Dings that are a good thing! More diners means more revenue for the restaurant. And (in theory, for the non-cheapskates in the world) more tips.
Feel free to bitch and moan when on break or after work, when out of earshot of the customers. But when a customer shows up and wants to give you more money, say “yes, and” with a hug smile!
Alternately, if you can’t say “yes,” – say you really don’t have any more room – politely explain the situation. But remember two things when saying no:
- Try to your best to come up with an alternative to accommodate
- Don’t make the customer “wrong”
– Can the people squeeze in? Will you be able to accommodate them if they wait a bit? Can you get creative with the seating? The Japanese restaurant brought in two small side tables to place next to the hibachi tables. Worked great.
– You may feel the urge to “educate” the customer for the future. “Next time, call us in advance so we know the number has changed.” I don’t care how you say it, when you say that you are blaming the customer, and nobody likes that. A simple, better, variation: “Next time, if you call us in advance we can definitely work with you to get your whole group seated together.” Small difference, but small differences in word choice can have a huge impact on reaction.
This obviously applies to any industry, not just to restaurants. I once responded to a real estate ad by a large company in Philadelphia for apartments. The ad listed a huge number of units, and the only information about each was the cost, relative address, and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms. When I called, a woman answered and asked me which units I wanted to see. I started listing them, and when I got past the 3rd or 4th one she blurts out in a huff, “well, I can’t show them all to you!” Yeah, that kind of sucked. Guess I won’t be giving her any of my money (I didn’t).
This reminds me of one of the greatest “store snobbery comeuppance scenes” ever (from Pretty Woman):
The problem is that some people just abhor last second changes. You’ll recognize these people by the shear level of drama and stress they both create and allow in their lives. If you recognize yourself in some of that statement, then you may want to consider working on your improvisational skills and learning how to let go of control and accept the inevitable Dings of life. Even better, learn how to take advantage of them!
As a business person, you must always remember that the customer or prospect represent revenue. Too often people forget that and treat the customer like a necessary evil.
It’s ok to have boundaries and say no. But if you do, say it in a polite way that keeps everyone happy. And if you say yes, then act like you mean it and leave the passive aggressive behavior for the next time you’re an angst-ridden teenager.
Otherwise you could be making a big mistake. Big. Huge…
About
By Avish Parashar. As the world's only Motivational Improviser, Avish uses techniques from the world of improv comedy to engage, entertain, and educate audiences on ideas around change, creativity, and motivation. Connect with Avish on Google+
6 Responses to “Are You Annoyed When Customers Try To Give You Money?”
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I guess I would have to counter with: You are booked for 3 workshops in a day at one company. They then want you to do 5 and they’ve already booked a room and invited the people who flew in from another office. That should be okay, right? You may or may not have another afternoon appointment. You may or may not have errands to run.
Thanks Lourdes,
Interesting situation – I’ve had similar stuff happen. It’s not necessarily *ok* (in fact, I think when someone changes plans on you without letting you know it generally leans towards being unprofessional). There’s a difference between someone asking you when you show up “hey, can you do two extra workshops?” and someone telling you, “we changed our schedule and brought in more people so you have to do 2 more.”
In either case, our best response as service providers who are hired/getting paid, is to grin and bear it, so to speak, and be as accommodating as possible. And if they’re going to pay for two extra workshops, that’s what I want to focus on, and not the errands that will have to get put off or appointment I may have to cancel. And whether I can or can’t, I am going to be as polite and professional as possible.
I’m sorry but that’s just inconsiderate to make an inaccurate reservation. It makes the host/hostess’ job much harder than it should be and they do not share in the wealth that the additional diners bring.
Nathan,
I agree that making a major change in the reservation without letting the restaurant know is a pain (in fact in the article I say that I totally understand if people want to bitch and complain about it out of earshot). My point though is that stuff is going to happen (i.e. Ding Happens) and what’s important from the business side is how those unexpected events are dealt with – especially when the unexpected event brings in more money.
Avish, I see all your points, and concede each. One other thing to consider, from a restaurant’s point of view, is that they may have other reservations and customers that are affected by one party showing up with an extra table’s worth of diners. It can throw off the whole system, and push every reservation after that out of whack. That said, Ding does happen, and it’s not like dining parties don’t show up late/not at all/with extra people all the time. Restaurants (and other establishments) must be prepared to handle the unexpected in a professional, polite, and customer-conscious way.
You are very right Sarah. Also, I think it is well within a restaurant’s prerogative to say “no” if they can’t accommodate the overrun, provided they actually try and then say “we’d love to help but we are booked solid.” The “yes and” mindset isn’t about always giving in or being a pushover; it’s about a) how you react when changes happen and b) the attitude and approach you take when you have to say “no”
thanks for the comment!