Rink

M ost managers can rattle off their top 10 list of when a customer has been so wrong, it's actually brought tears to their eyes. COACH: The key for Locker Room 3 on the Blue Rink doesn't work. MANAGER ON DUTY: Actually that's the key for Locker Room 2 on the Red Rink. COACH: How do you know? MANAGER ON DUTY: Because the stick on the end of the chain is red and has Red Rink written on it with a No. 2 next to it. COACH: Why would you give me the wrong key? I walked all the way over there and then had to come back, don't you think that's a little bit of bull****? ME: Coach, you're in Locker Room 2, skating on the Red Rink. That's the right key. Did Chris (my Manager on Duty) not tell you that when he took your keys? COACH: That's what he said, but I just figured he didn't know what the **** he was talking about. It's dangerous to train customer service staff that the customer is always right. It can send the message to your employees that they won't have your support when a customer, like Coach, is clearly out of line. It can cause resentment and will create a work environment rife with low morale. Aggressive customers get an unfair advantage over your employees in "The Customer is Always Right" setting, and both sides know it. Customers can say (and do) just about anything that they want and your employees have little recourse. SKATE MOM: Hey, this coffee is terrible. Give me a bottle of Gatorade instead. CONCESSION KID: Oh no! What's the matter with it? SKATE MOM: What's the matter? It tastes terrible, weren't you listening? Give me an orange Gatorade and we'll call it even. CONCESSION KID: I can refund you the $1 for the coffee, or pour you a new cup, but Gatorade is $2.25, so you'll need to pay the difference. SKATE MOM: (Loudly) I can't believe this! Do you know how much money I spend here? I pay your sal- ary! I can't believe this! Get your boss — no, forget it, we're leaving. This place is ridiculous. We are never coming back! Of course, at some point in Skate Mom's tirade about the injustice of having to pay for an inventoried item while getting a full refund on her coffee, a well-meaning employee is going to alert you to the developing crisis. Yanked from the con- fines of your quiet office and thrust in front of Skate Mom as the sacrificial lamb to quench her appetite for justice, you do exactly what the majority of us would do: Give her the Gatorade. "It's not worth the aggravation," you mutter to Concession Kid. Guess what? It was worth the aggravation, and when you try to justify it to Concession Kid after Skate Mom walks away by using those five little words, you have effectively told Concession Kid and the rest of your employees that they don't count. Recognize that some customers are bad for your business. They may cost you more in resources and revenue than they actually generate. They may hinder your staff's ability to provide other customers with service, and sometimes it's more important to stand up for your staff than it is to keep a customer. ✪ Final cut Lessons learned around the rink 54 / JANUARY.FEBRUARY.2013 RINKMAGAZINE.COM RINK PHOTO Sometimes we need to sacrifice customers for the better of the business RECOGNIZE THAT SOME CUSTOMERS ARE BAD FOR YOUR BUSINESS. THEY MAY COST YOU MORE IN RESOURCES AND REVENUE THAN THEY ACTUALLY GENERATE. The Customer ISN'T Always Right by JOHN MONTELEONE

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