Hallmarks of Customer Service Excellence

Recently, there was a McDonald's employee who made an error about a customer's order. There was a slight discrepancy involved because the customer wanted a breakfast biscuit with eggs, and the employee thought that since the customer mentioned "eggs" in the plural sense she wanted two of these biscuits. However, even once the customer clarified that she wanted just one biscuit, the employee continued to stating that the customer ordered two. The employee was remiss for not admitting his mistake. He was focused on being right, when he should have been focused on satisfying the customer by fulfilling her order correctly. He should have merely admitted his mistake the first time, and corrected the order as opposed to arguing with the customer.

Another time, there was a McDonald's employee working the drive-through window who was guilty of overpromising to customers. One of the customers was uncertain about which beverage to order, and the employee suggested a cup of coffee. The employee, however, overpromised how much the customer would like it, and even made some far-reaching comparisons to some of the more exotically brewed varieties of coffee. Her intentions were good: she was attempting to make a sale for a cup of coffee. Nonetheless, she crossed the boundary between salesmanship and overpromising when she offered a personal guarantee that the customer would like the cup of coffee. She could have easily rephrased her promise by stating that other customers liked it or that she herself did, which would have helped with the sale but not constituted an instance of overpromising.

3. There was also a time in which it was apparent that a McDonald's manager required additional training. A customer was asking another employee for a sandwich which the company had offered for a limited time only and no longer offered to its clientele. The employee, however, did not recollect the offer and told the customer that the McDonald's had never offered such a product. The customer remonstrated, stating that she had purchased this food item from this particular location. At this point the manager intervened on behalf of the employee, stating that the item was never on the menu and had never been on the menu. Were it not for another employee's ability to remember the item and state that it was only offered for a limited time, the manager would have confused the customer by disseminating misinformation. Managers should keep abreast of the various changes in McDonald's menu.

5. Feedback is a key to excellence and a way to make employees better. There was a time in which a McDonald's employee was short-tempered with customers. The employee rolled her eyes, sighed heavily, and tapped impatiently upon the cash register while the customers were attempting to order. Such a dearth of patience is not conducive to friendly customer service. This employee required immediate feedback about her performance. Management should have instructed her on the way to truly value customers and their idiosyncrasies, and conveyed that her interactions were not befitting of excellent customer service. This employee could only change her actions by receiving this feedback.

2. It is critical to monitor and evaluate complaints, especially in a large franchise such as McDonald's which services so many customers each day. Some McDonald's have websites and phone numbers for impromptu customer surveys which enable management to monitor and evaluate complaints. These mechanisms are an integral way to understand the general populace's perception of a particular location, and to improve it.