Say It With Humor

When you own a business, you may find yourself in situations that may be a little tricky to handle. Dealing with customers who steal is one of them.

A few years back we were faced with the problem of how to handle our free water cups. It seems some of our customers were filling them with the fountain drinks instead of water. This was, of course, was theft - pure and simple, but we felt confronting the guilty customers would create a bad atmosphere in our restaurant and we wanted to change their behavior and keep them loyal.

As we were mulling over how to handle this, one of the young men on our staff decided to take things into his own hands. While he was making his rounds, checking the dining area, he came across one of our chronic offenders. He walked over to his table and looked at his drink in the free water cup and said, "There is something wrong with your water, it's a mess!" He then picked up the water cup and said with a smile, "Let me get you some fresh water."

Well, the chronic offender knew we were on to him, along with some of the other onlookers and that problem was no more. We all had a good laugh and it made a lasting impression on me.

Recently, we were visiting our daughter and her husband in Maryland and they took us to the "California Tortilla." We ordered our food and moved down the line and when we got to the beverage counter we noticed two pictures. One of the pictures was titled; "Good Bob" and it showed "Good Bob" holding a water cup and under the picture was the caption, "Good Bob only puts water in his water cup." The other picture was titled "Bad Bob" and it showed "Bad Bob" holding a water cup. Under the picture was the caption, "Bad Bob puts fountain drinks in his water cup." We thought this was a great and ingenious way to handle this problem and we noticed it brought chuckles and smiles to the other customers as well.

About The Author

Luana Emmons, http://www.allfoodbusiness.com; allfoodbusiness@allfoodbusiness.com

---

Oil Change Customer from Hell or Hoax; You Decide

Evacuation, "E-Vac" Oil System for Oil ChangingHow do most mobile... Read More

Customer No Service - How to Lose a Loyal Customer!

So today was the day where I almost stopped going... Read More

Sending Mixed Signals Can Send Your Clients Away

I call it the "wave and roll."You walk up to... Read More

We Sell For Less and Our Stores Are a Mess!

What kind of image do you present when marketing your... Read More

Learn to Anticipate Your Customers Needs

This morning I was having breakfast with my good friend... Read More

Increase Sum in Your Check Account with Follow-Ups

We'll be examining what makes follow up to prospects/customers so... Read More

Setting Up a Customer of the Week Program for a Mobile Car Wash

In a mobile detail or mobile car wash business you... Read More

Customer Service: Why Bears Make Bad Customers

Every business owner should have a picture of his or... Read More

CRM - Its Relevance

In today's demanding economy, the first line of any business... Read More

How to Win the Hearts of Your Customers and Friends

Those of us doing business over the internet have to... Read More

Customer Service Has Moved Toward Customer Care

As I waited for an answer to my VCR inquiry... Read More

Losing Angry Customers

This article offers five ways to help you deal with... Read More

Everyone talks in code!

How often have you left a meeting with a customer... Read More

Automating Your Help Desk Workflow

Do you know you can open, answer, close and report... Read More

Have You Hugged a Customer Today?

It all started a couple of weeks ago when a... Read More

Your Actions Tell Your Clients How You Expect To Be Treated

There is a widely accepted principle of human behavior that... Read More

Service Equals Performance Equals Service

Service can be described as a "performance" of some kind... Read More

Handling Customer Complaints

Even the best business will receive an occasional customer complaint.... Read More

When a Customer Has Done Everything to Get Your Goat

You try to make your customers happy. You sincerely WANT... Read More

Aint We Wonderful!

It may come as a surprise to you to discover... Read More

Putting The Serve Back Into Customer Service

Good service is easy to spot and hard-to-find. Mediocre service... Read More

Writing The Book On Great Customer Service

Q: One of the big chain bookstores recently opened up... Read More

What?s in a Name?

Different people call their Customers by different names. If they... Read More

How Not to Get Stiffed, Improving Your Collection Procedures

Some businesses have slow paying customers or past due balances... Read More

Dealing with Disgruntled Customers

No matter how hard you try, in business you simply... Read More

Say It With Humor

When you own a business, you may find yourself in... Read More

We Got It Wrong: Never Under Promise & Over Deliver

You know how it is, you believe something for so... Read More

Breaking the Ice and Winning Over the Client!

Wherever you turn these days you'll find articles covering every... Read More

Customer Service and The Human Experience

Historically, customer service was delivered over the phone or in... Read More

Make Your Customer Your Friend

The simplest way to describe a 'durian' (pronounced doo-ree-ann) is... Read More

4 Things Your Clients Want From Your Company

Sure, all clients are different. They have different kinds of... Read More

The Art of Giving Great Service

Sales is tough to get right, and depends on retaining... Read More

Modern Call Center Solutions - Keeping in Touch is the Key

Call center solutions solve a range of age-old problems. As... Read More