Better Customer Engagement Means Better Business

It can be difficult to remain optimistic in this industry. Between clamoring needy guests and slimming profit margins, it can be hard to stay cheerful and peppy for every customer, to reach out and try and make that personal connection with them. It is important that you try, however, because what separates a good restaurant from a great one is customer engagement.

Make a Personal Connection With Your Guests

Recent studies, including a Goodsnitch analysis of customer feedback, found that at more than 2,000 restaurants, the prime motivator of positive customer feedback was when customers connect with a specific employee meaningfully. That means making a personal connection and giving them personal feedback is primary to customer interaction.

Making the customer feel like someone you actually care about drives business. When asked by Goodsnitch if they would recommend a specific restaurant, customers were 57% more likely to select the strongest positive answer if they also identified a specific employee as particularly central to their dining experience.  This means that most of the time when a customer leaves strong positive feedback about their dining experience, a particular employee tends to be singled out.

These findings are unsurprising and support the findings of Deloitte on repeat restaurant business. Deloitte found that customers are more likely to return to a restaurant on multiple occasions when they personally identify and have a friendly relationship with the waiters, baristas, chefs, owners or other restaurant staff. When asked about their most frequented restaurant, 32 percent of survey respondents either agreed or strongly agreed that they had built a personal relationship with the restaurant that they had visited, compared to 21 percent who disagreed or were neutral on the issue.

Your Business Will Grow

The impact that wait staff members have on their guests is evident in these feedback scores.  It is incredibly important that your staff knows this and keeps it in mind when serving restaurant guests. You never know which guest your service staff will find that connection with, as these sorts of personal relationships occur naturally. The best thing you can do is always provide the best service you can, and attend to the needs of your guest in every scenario. You’ll find that, if you do, you’ll have more and more of these repeat guests who in turn spread great word of mouth and bring their friends.