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July 05, 2005
When the back office is out front
I had to rent a tuxedo last week, so I decided to visit a good-looking formal wear store I've seen several times in Chicago's Loop district.
The entrance of the store is organized like a salon: a receptionist greets each customer. At this particular store, the receptionist's desk looked as if a tornado had visited; order forms were strewn about and the phone was ringing several lines at a time. She swore quietly under her breath at her workload.
Here's how a business owner might see the scene:
1. A busy day.
2. A receptionist who needs more training. Or should be replaced.
Here's how a customer probably sees the scene:
1. A disorganized operation that runs the risk of losing my order form on that desk of chaos.
2. A receptionist who's obviously doing several jobs at once. I'd probably be swearing, too.
3. A poor first impression.
How many times have you seen that scene? Whether it's at a salon, a doctor's office or an office park, the default set-up for too many businesses is to make the unwitting receptionist the back-office work Dumpster.
In this set-up, businesses with frequent customer visits sacrifice the personal warmth of a receptionist who is there to greet and help customers, not the ringing telephone or the UPS driver. The store associate who eventually helped me left my side three times to help answer the phone. (He was pleasant, so I hung in there with him.)
The answer is: put back-office operations, like scheduling, accounting, paperwork, or intra-office chat sessions in the back office. Or outsource them.
Clearly, the opportunity for a strong word-of-mouth experience was lost and replaced with an unfortunate story I told quite a few people during the July 4 holiday.
In the end, I swallowed hard and decided to trust the business not to lose my tuxedo order. Not exactly a referral.
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Around these parts, we don't call the person at the front desk the receptionist. They are officially called the "First Impression," which is a constant reminder that we will be judged by how they answer the phone and how they treat peopl who walk in our front door. By changing the title, we have also changed our perception of that position and therefore look far beyond office skills when hiring. They are a major part of the face of our company - one that is as important (if not more so) than any job here.
Smart move on your part, Spike. Some companies bestow a "Chief Impression Officer" on the person at the reception desk as well.
It's up to companies to ensure their first impression people are able to fully dedicate themselves to setting a favorable first impression.
Good post. Compare and contrast John Winsor's report on visiting Patagonia. (The biz, not the region): http://www.corante.com/brandshift/archives/2005/05/19/whos_your_gatekeeper.php
We used to have one guy from the local theatre who was the First Impression. He showed up every day to work as a different character and dreseed to fit the part! It not only keep our clients and prospects on their toes, but us, too!
We used to have one guy from the local theatre who was the First Impression. He showed up every day to work as a different character and answered the phone and dreseed to fit the part! It not only keep our clients and prospects on their toes, but us, too!
I checked into a hotel recently (a resort property nonetheless) - a process that took almost 15 minutes because the woman checking me in was also answering the phone and taking reservations from other customers on the phone while she was attempting to check me in. I left your same point on the commet card. Front is front and back is back and never the twain should meet.
Johnnie -- loved the John Winsor link. Believe it, bro!
Spike -- I love that idea. I can only imagine the word of mouth that First Impression Man generated. Sounds like a terrific reflection of your company's identity and values. Pine & Gilmore would be proud, I'm sure.
Shawn -- I'd completely forgotten about hotels and the propensity (among some) to include the back-office reservation work at the check-in desk. Like you, I plan to leave that feedback on the hotel comment card next time it happens.
Why does this surprise anyone? Time and time again I've been in stores, sometimes with a few items, other times with hundreds or thousands of dollars burning a hole in my pocket and I've left because I refuse to put up with that.
Frankly the person at the front desk doesn't care because he or she isn't getting paid any better if the place is busy. And the owner is probably thinking of the bottom line.
So move on, don't give them your money. Go shop somewhere where they appreciate you as a customer.
No, it's not really a big surprise. It's a systemic problem and more pervasive than it should be.
