A typical Friday night begins with a family dinner in a friendly atmosphere. This time we decided to visit one of our favorite restaurants for a light sushi dinner. As soon as we arrived we were amazed. This place is usually packed on a Friday night. Today, more than half of the seats are empty. Therefore, getting in and taking a seat on the conveyor belt is a breeze. Before the waitress has a chance to approach us, we’ve already had a few plates of Sushi. We tell the waitress that aside from a few drinks, we don’t need to order from the menu.
She confirms, “So you take the buffet for two adults and one teenager?” “You call it a buffet? We just want you to count the number of plates as usual.” “Sorry we don’t offer this anymore. We offer buffet instead. Prices are…”
A little disappointed and caught in the act, we decided to stay and give in to the new scheme. And of course we eat more than intended since we pay for it anyway. While we eat and enjoy the Sushi we draw some conclusions: No wonder this place is half empty. People definitely don’t like the new scheme. Did you see that half of the self-service screens are broken? So is the product knowledge of the staff.
After finishing more food than we originally wanted, we asked the waitress for the bill. Another waitress comes over to our table and starts counting the plates. Now, we are very puzzled. “We thought you weren’t counting plates anymore? Did your colleague tell us we have to have the buffet…?” During some back and forth we received no answer to our question about what the restaurant’s pricing strategy is. I give up and walk over to the cashier – still feeling cheated, hoping they’ll admit to his big mishap and compensate us with a discount or voucher or something – and apologize. Not a thing. I paid the buffet price.
Surely they will not see us again in this place.
conclusion
A “Moment of Truth” is the moment when the company interacts with the buyer. Careful product development, successful marketing, and perfect product preparation can easily be shattered by minor mishaps during the moment of truth. Unfortunately, in a restaurant you have a series of these moments, all of which are capable of shaping the impression of the experience dramatically. Often this experience is much more important than the price or even the food itself.
The later in service delivery the Moment of Truth turns bad, the less time there is for a remedy. If the remedy is not applied immediately, the opportunity may disappear forever, along with the client.
