EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT INFLUENCING CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

After completing the research phase and creating a benchmark for both employee and customer engagement levels it was time to run the first customer focused training session for the front of house team at The Pawn.

We delivered an energetic Team Building session based on customer experiences and expectations that saw the front of house team and managers on the streets hearing straight from the customers mouth. What was the best ever restaurant waiter service and their views of what makes great service to them?

Tema Franks article on Customer Think establishes what she thinks customer’s really want. She determines the importance of defining who your ideal customer is and then develop a customised and personal service approach.

This too was our first step before we headed onto the streets – identify the typical Pawn customer.

We asked questions like:

• Are they male or female?
• What do they look like?
• How old are they?
• Where do they come from?
• What do they wear?
• What time of the day do they come in?
• How much would they earn?
• Where do they work?

We had an almost even mixture of local Hong Kong and foreigners, and their differences depended on which time of the day they visited. We had young professionals in the early evenings for after work drinks, corporate business types for weekday lunches and a mixture of young families and middle-aged consumers for brunch sittings.

It was important for the team to establish a common profile for the typical Pawn customer so when they headed to the streets of Wan Chai, they approached the right demographic and character types previously discussed.

After hitting the sidewalk and completing many an interview, the feedback was consolidated and we found customers were after the most simple things:

• Smile and be positive
• Be attentive to their needs
• Show empathy when needed
• Engage in chit chat
• Give recommendations
• Show their personality
• Be efficient

Click play below to watch the fabulous Front of House team in action

Within Tema Frank’s article, she fosters the idea of creating a ‘real person’ or ‘persona’ that have the same characteristics and come from the same demographic of a typical customer that frequents the company. Even to the extent of giving them a name and photo.

Associating the learning topics during training ‘real play’s’ with a real person, makes the connection between the employees and the customer’s more personal. The more you bring the ideal customer to life, the easier it will be for the employees to customise their service to meet the wants and needs of that particular type of customer.

From the customer’s interview feedback, the mystery guest data findings in the next step, and management-identified concerns for on-going customer experience, we will develop the training sessions. We’ll use ‘real play’s’ and our ‘Pawn Persona’ as tools in an aim to increase the level of engagement between employee and customer.

Until then, we await our mystery diner reports and feedback from front of house team customer engagement skills.

Read previous blogs in this series:

HK RESTAURANT CASE STUDY: An Introduction – Employee Engagement in relation to Customer Engagement

HK RESTAURANT CASE STUDY: Step 1, Engagement Evaluation

Learning Curve, Keira Mackenzie-Smith and her team, develop tailored training programs for customer-focused industries in Hong Kong and throughout Asia