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Overheard at a Trader Joe’s
Overheard at a Trader Joe’s - an exchange between a cashier and a customer, all while bagging groceries… Employee: How was your morning? Customer: It was good. I had class. Employee: What class are...
Raising the Bar
Have you ever stopped to consider how a business makes you feel? What is your energy like when you enter? Or over the phone? What is your energy like when you leave? Or hang up? Do you leave with a...
The Missing Putter
Someone took my putter at a women’s golf clinic. By accident. I am a left handed golfer and someone, who had the same set of clubs, took my putter and left behind a righty putter. They would...
Are you Hospitable?
This month we celebrate National Pineapple Day (6/27) and since a pineapple is the universal symbol of hospitality, I wanted to take a deeper dive into what it really means to be hospitable and the...
Bad, Better, Best
“We’re out of orange juice. Can I get you something else?” – asked our breakfast server at 8am on a Tuesday morning at our full service hotel’s restaurant. I didn’t want cranberry juice or...
Creating the Best Possible Learning Environment
Employees who are required to attend an educational training deserve a learning environment that will foster personal and team growth. If you are on the planning team, you can control a multitude of...
Reflecting on the Importance of Self-Awareness and teamwork
I was in a committee meeting last week unexpectedly dominated by a bully: ✓ They controlled the agenda and flow of conversation. ✓ They weren’t open to other people’s ideas or suggestions. ✓ They...
Surprise & Delight with Farm Fresh Eggs
Are you finding ways to surprise and delight your customers? Customers initially choose to spend money on your product or service because either they need or want what you offer. Maybe the...
My 2024 Mantra: Think Like a Guest
Do you put yourselves in the shoes of your customers? When you do, is the experience memorable? Does it feel effortless? I naturally do this while traveling with my family, not just because I'm a...
Are You Safe at Work?
One of the many things that bring me professional joy is helping soon to be Septa bus operators think about the many ways they can make a positive first impression with their passengers. I’ve worked...
Emulating a Pop Star While on Stage
I got to see PINK in concert last month and I was blown away by the production, the technology, the sets, the costume changes. All of it. Most of my previous concert experiences had been with...
The Verdict Is In
Jury duty last week was awesome. Yes, awesome. All because one employee, who was responsible for the jury assembly room, remembered their purpose. · They acknowledged and welcomed first timers.·...
High Tech Service is good until it’s not
While out to dinner at a full service winery, my family was impressed with the handheld POS system used by the server. · Food/drink orders were...
Small Changes that Make Big Impacts
All summer my daughter had been working towards earning her Red Cross “Green Cap” in swimming at camp. The test for a Green Cap would require that she could complete a list of required skills...
Personalized Service at its Finest
On a recent afternoon out with my sister, she recommended we stop into a clothing store that she loved but was new to me. The product and pricing met my expectations, but it was their service that...
When is Four Diamond Service Enough?
Did you know that it is actually better for a company to deliver Four Diamond Service, rather than have its employees strive for Five Diamond Service and miss the mark? A scenario from a recent...
Dining Early with Consequences
We dine early, mostly due to our daughter’s sleep schedule. Recently, I’ve noticed a pattern of a few restaurants not being fully ready for our reservation upon arrival. A 5pm dinner...
experiencing “luxury” firsthand
Imagine a world where you don't need to be wealthy to experience luxury service. A world where your name was used, where your preferences were known, and everything was offered in a proactive...
Are You Knocking it Out of the Park?
My husband’s annual fundraiser gala for work was at Citizens Bank Park this year, home of the Philadelphia Phillies. I’m a huge baseball fan, (even a former Phillies Ball Girl from 2004 & 2005!)...
“Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.”
It’s recital season and my daughter (pictured right) was terrified. I can relate. I was the kid (pictured left) who ran off the stage at age 5 when the curtain went up. Now I speak...
Top Notch Service Brought to Light
Upon waking up on the final morning of our Spring Break trip, we noticed the lights flickering on and off in our hotel room. It was early, around 7am, and we wondered if the hotel was performing...
Embracing the Gray
Frequently restaurants have a policy where incomplete parties will not be seated. This was the case at the restaurant where I dined over Valentine’s Day weekend. But sometimes, as you’ll...
Searching for a Human
According to Zen Desk, 67% of customers in 2023 say that they would prefer self-service over speaking with a company representative. But there are certain situations where speaking with a human is...
Attending Rather Than Presenting
Usually when I put on a blazer, a dress and/or heels it is because I’m scheduled to deliver an interactive workshop for a client. Last week I had the rare opportunity to be an attendee at a half day...
Rollercoaster of Entrepreneurship
January is a pivotal month for most consultants and for me it is no different. Budgets turn over. Decision makers are back in the office. What happens in January can set the tone...
On Thin Ice
I love to ice skate. I always have. And this was going to be the year that I finally treated myself to my very own pair of skates! Rather than supporting a big box retailer, I...
The Tale of Two Restaurants
Two notable (and expensive) restaurants, a block from each other, left us with very different emotions on back-to-back weekends. Restaurant 1: · Empathetic hostess when difficulty with parking made...
What Would You Do?
This is me. From the perspective of the diner who chose to forgo their dinner and instead sketch me as I was dining with my family. It was awkward and completely detracted from my enjoyment of...
A Masterclass in Service Recovery
Last week I attended my cousin’s wedding in Denver, CO and it was the first plane travel I’ve had in years. One of the many things I absolutely love about travel is the opportunity to...
How to be Patient with Overworked Employees
It took 2 phone calls and 3 post office visits (at 3 separate locations) to find my “missing” package. All due to misinformation from the very first person I spoke with and a few misguided...
Yoga or Not?
Details matter the most. Especially when you have customer facing employees. Taking that extra step may require additional time and effort, but it provides the customer with correct...
How to Handle a Disruptive Participant
Over the years I’ve practiced strategies to deter and redirect the “constant hand raiser” and the “sleeper” in my college classes and workshops. Yes, even I get the occasional sleeper. After almost...
Owning your own business is hard. Really hard.
I’m especially reminded of this when setbacks occur and I have to push my bruised ego aside and forge a new path. Although my business is 8 years old, I’ve had three complete halts of business...
HOW CAN WE FULFILL THE SOUL OF OUR EMPLOYEES?
My daughter couldn't go swimming in the lake at our recent Catskills vacation because no lifeguard was on duty. Our passport renewal appointment was cancelled because, again, there wasn't adequate...
Powerless Employees Will Take Their Power Elsewhere
Sometimes you just have to laugh, rather than cry, when a customer interaction doesn’t go as planned. This was the case last month when trying to renew my daughter’s passport. But just...
First impressions Matter
First impressions matter. In seven seconds or less a customer has formulated an opinion. The personality and behavior of the first employee you come into contact with (even over the...
Memorable moments: reflecting on both the good and bad from a stay at a Five Star resort
Every customer interaction matters. Especially when staying at a @Forbestravelguide Five Star property, where customer expectations are at an all time high. Over Spring Break my family had the...
Should employees encourage automation?
Do you prefer a human or automated check out when given the option at a local store? Yesterday, while buying a few items at a local CVS I found myself in a line of customers waiting to...
Empathize please
It was 92 degrees and I desperately needed to find shade while waiting for my car to pass its annual state inspection. I hunkered down on a shady bench outside a tobacco shop in an adjacent strip...
Celebrate your top employees before it’s too late
Some people are just meant to help others. It’s as if they wake up, bounce right out of bed and say, “who can I assist today?” I had the good fortune to interact with one of these individuals...
Sometimes an alternative isn’t helpful: how one employee’s lack of empathy and empowerment left me incensed.
I understand why policies exist. I write policies for companies. But sometimes policies are made to be broken. All I needed was a gift certificate, a simple paper gift certificate for a silent...
Missing Pajamas: How our postal worker overdelivers on service
I feel cared for every single day thanks to our postal service worker, Glenn. It’s the unexpected use of my name when I open the door, that leaves me grinning widely.
Creating magic for a youngster
My husband and I have a tradition of going to Brigantessa for dinner on Christmas Eve and afterwards we always go for a drive to view some amazing South Philly light displays – The Miracle on South...
A specialty iced tea and a whole lot more!
It was a really hot summer. Super hot actually, especially in the city and I found myself patronizing more independent coffee shops since our local Starbucks location had closed its...
A purpose driven mindset saves a day at the farm
I had made a big mistake. I wanted to take my daughter berry picking for the first time at a nearby farm. I had checked the website the night before to confirm hours of operation and to...
Would you pay more for a better customer experience?
By next year, 50% of people will value the customer experience above price and product. My husband definitely falls in the half of the population that is seeking a memorable customer...
Would you hire Manny?
While dining at a popular chain restaurant last week I couldn’t help but smile and cringe at the same time when our server Manny first approached. Manny had poor diction, used slang almost...
We Need a Refrigerator Please…
It took 4 staff interactions at a recent hotel stay in Philadelphia to successfully get a mini refrigerator placed in our room: 1) 2:30pm: upon initial check-in with guest service agent who said she...
Please…Throw Away the Phone Script
The art of making a customer feel as if they are the only one you are serving can be a challenge for customer-facing employees. It is easiest to provide personalized service when a repeat customer has shown certain preferences or displayed distinct patterns in their behavior.
C is for Cook-KEYS?
My husband and I checked-in to the Hotel Monaco last month for a stay-cation. Well, not exactly. We were in the middle of a kitchen renovation and had to exit our home for the week while spray foam insulation was being administered.
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J. COOPERSTEIN HOSPITALITY CONSULTING, LLC
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