“Are you serious?”
That question drives me crazy, and I heard it too many times a few Saturdays ago. Here’s the reply I wanted to give but never did: Would I be standing in the rain at 7 a.m. with a money bag and stack of parking passes asking for five bucks if I wasn’t serious?
In the rain. Seriously, would I?
How did I end up in that Saturday morning rain, you ask? Simple answer: for the children. In this case, the 10-Year-Old and her soccer team. A friend and I volunteered for parking duty at our daughters’ big tournament in Clinton earlier this month and we realized quickly that our fellow soccer moms and dads don’t like to pay to park.
Nevermind that it’s pretty standard — most big tournaments do it. Nevermind that it’s going to support a worthy nonprofit organization. Nevermind that you’ve already spent thousands of dollars so your kid can play competitive soccer around the South so what’s another five dollars anyway.
Just nevermind.
Drizzly litany
In addition to the “Are you serious?” attack, we also had:
• “Haven’t I already paid to play in this tournament?”
• “I’ve got three dollars.”
• “My daughter said I didn’t have to pay.”
• “You need to come to Monroe.”
• “I just don’t have it.”
Perspective, please
I’ll be honest with you, I wasn’t going to argue about five dollars, debate parking policies, or chase after anyone who breezed by us and our bright yellow passes. At some point that Saturday morning, I decided to just be nice and take the sneers, barbed comments and incredulous stares.
Along the way, I talked to some really nice folks, gave directions, laughed about the weather, and did my best at providing a positive customer service experience for those parents and players, friends and fans.
Feel free to scoff, but as many an observer has pointed out, lamenting the sorry state of customer service is our new national pastime. Taking advantage of a face-to-face service opportunity, even as a volunteer, can be an eye-opening experience for those of us who aren’t on the frontlines with customers and clients every day.
So, for two hours I tried to answer questions, make change quickly and leave ‘em with: “Have a great tournament!” Did any of that make a difference? Did our tournament customers appreciate the effort? Who knows, but my parking lot partner and I did our part.
I learned two lessons from the experience: One, my mother is right — being nice matters and makes a difference. And two, give the best customer service you can at whatever it is, whatever you do, and you’re guaranteed a solid return on the investment.
Contact MBJ editor Jim Laird at jim.laird@msbusiness.com or (601) 364-1018. Read his blog at mbjblog.wordpress.com.
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