Aaltos, Canad Inns Brandon

Today we made our annual trip into Brandon with our Grandson, Timothy for a birthday brunch. We have gone to Aaltos at the Canad Inns before and had service that was seriously lacking, but we thought we would give it another try because we have a loyalty card and would like to collect the points.

We were seated fairly quickly and Erin R. came to take our order. We were having the buffet and only wanted coffee to drink. Erin was the perfect server - smiling, friendly and efficient. We never had to wait for coffee refills as she was always there with a fresh pot. The dirty dishes were always quickly removed, although not always by Erin but by other staff members.

The Canad Inns should know that we will be coming back mainly because of the terrific service Erin gave us.

Businesses should realize that their staff can make or break them regardless of whether the food is good or bad. That one person, who is on the front line, will determine whether or not there will be a repeat visit. This restaurant should ensure that all their staff give the service that Erin gave us today.

CIBC - Above and Beyond

After finding out that I could not bank on my Blackberry with CIBC, I proceeded to my bank to exchange some money into US funds. I went to the CIBC bank on Rosser Avenue. While I was talking to the teller, she asked me if I had an account with them. I said, "I do, but I am thinking about closing my account because I cannot bank on my blackberry."

Lisa Kosior, the Branch Ambassador, was within hearing and said, she didn't want to see me close my account and if I had a few moment she would find out if I could bank on my BB. Lisa went above and beyond to find the answer I was looking for. She made a number of phone calls to find out the answers no one at the branch knew. They said that because of their security, it was not possible to bank on my BB,

She then showed me how I could call the 1-800 number to do anything I would do online. It was not the answer I wanted, buy it does solve my problem of transferring money between account when I am away from home.

When I got home there was a message on the answering machine from Lisa saying that I should contact MTS to see if they could change something on their system so I could bank on my phone. The bottom line is I can do everyone by making a phone call the way Lisa showed me.

Lisa was friendly, smiled, showed empathy and went above and beyond to try to solve my problem. Maybe the problem was not solved the way I wanted it solved, but Lisa definitely saved the CIBC a customer.

More on MTS Brandon Corral Centre

I had to have something checked on my Blackberry and went to the MTS store in the Corral Center. The clerk, Jessica Whalen, who sold me my phone from was there so I went to her. I wanted to get my text messages separated from my emails. I also wanted to know if I could do banking with CIBC with my device.

Jessica never treats me like a fool and actually made some changes on the phone for me. She then informed that I could not bank on my device with CIBC.

Thank you, Jessica for another good customer service experience.

MTS Customer Service for my Blackberry

I was disappointed this morning that my email server was down. I immediately called MTS and got a recorded message that there were known issues. It didn't make my feel any better, but I was thankful that I didn't have to stay on the line and wait to speak to someone.

Later I noticed that I got an alert that my Blackberry was no longer set up for receiving emails. Bummer. I called MTS customer service and was told that I would be on hold for awhile but they would call me back.

In the allotted time I got a call from Susan. She helped me solve my problem without making me feel like a complete idiot. She showed empathy, she was friendly, polite and very helpful. If she didn't know something, she would tell me that she was going to ask someone. That also impressed me. We solved my problem and I decided that I would bring up another problem I was experiencing with my device. It could not be resolved at that time, but she did put a ticket in for it.

I asked to speak to her supervisor because I feel that the boss should know when someone is doing something right. I think it is almost as important, if not more important as telling them when they have done something wrong.

I ended up talking to Nick and told him what great service Susan had given me. He saw that there was a ticket regarding my device and said he would personally help me solve my problem, which required that we call RIM, the maker of the blackberry. For a variety of reasons, I didn't want to do that today.

I am so glad I have MTS as my carrier. They know how to make lemonade out of lemons.

Forbidden Flavours - Souris

On Sunday afternoon my husband and I went for coffee to Forbidden Flavours in Souris. The service was o.k. we got what we wanted BUT the server did not smile once when we were there. I really felt that she did not want to there. My other complaint about this person was that we saw a lot more of her bare back than we wanted to.

In this economy one should be happy to have a job. Please ensure that staff are friendly and smile when waiting on customers. Also ensure that a dress code is adhered to.

When we went to the Bakery in Bottineau we were impressed with the customer service we received. It may not have been anything special but the server was very friendly and she smiled a lot. It means a lot to feel comfortable when visiting an establishment whether it is the dentist's office or a local coffee shop. Customer Service is all about making the customer want to come back.

Bottineau Bakery & Restaurant

My husband and I will occasionally take a day trip to Bottineau, North Dakota. We find that the savings we get filling up at the gas station in ND pays for our trip. We like to shop at the stores there because we can find things we can't find in Manitoba and the prices are usually cheaper. In today's economy anytime you can save money is a good thing. To round up the day trip we usually have lunch in Bottineau.

Yesterday we went our our little day trip and we had lunch at Bottineau Bakery and Restaurant. Husband had a sandwich and fries, I had a chef's salad; we both had coffee. It is funny how little things can sometime make an experience something to rave about, or something to complain about. The waitress (I am sorry I didn't get her name) was the reason to rave this time. She was friendly, she was funny and she was efficient. The first clue came when she put the pot of coffee on our table so that we could fill up whenever we wanted more.

The food was o.k. (The salad was actually too much for me to eat and I had to leave half of it) but the waitress really made our day. As I said she was funny, but the thing that struck me was that she always had a smile on her face. It certainly makes for an enjoyable experience when staff smile and appear to enjoy their job (whether they do or not). An example of her humor was when we asked what the special was. She replied "A foot long hot hog and something else." She had forgotten the other special. Of course, she immediately went to find out, but she started us on our dining experience in a good mood.

Staff in your business may be the only contact the customer will have with your establishment. Make sure that your staff are trained in providing the excellent customer service your customers deserve. Make sure they give the service with a smile - smiles are under rated.

An Example of Poor Customer Service

I just had to share this blog with everyone. It is an example of poor customer service and the reason I won't be changing my service provider.

http://strategicsenseinc.wordpress.com/

This lady makes a lot of sense.

Word of Mouth - the Best Advertising

Companies spend a lot of money on advertising, whether it is in the printed media or on TV or radio. One unhappy customer can destroy an advertising budget and of course, happy customers save the company money while bringing in more customers.

Ever see someone with a bad haircut? You want to know where that person went so you don't make the same mistake. The same works for Word of Mouth Advertising, it is what people say to their friends and family that can make or break a company. How many times have you gone to see a movie because someone ranted and raved about it saying how good it was?

Don't under estimate Word of Mouth. Make sure your customers are telling others good stories about your business. What is even better is to tell customers that they will get something for a referral. Think about what you can give to someone who refers a customer to your business. It just makes good business sense.

Another option is to give the new customer something when referred. All you have to do is give the customer something he can give to family and friends that they can take to the place of business in return for a rebate or some other "gift".

Remember your customers are one of your most important assets. After all They say that Christianity started with 12 men who told others.

Visions - & Victoria Inn - Brandon Aug 30

Yesterday my husband and I were shopping in Brandon. The first thing we were going to check out was a new TV because one of ours is certainly on it's death bed. We started our comparison shopping by going to Visions on the highway. As soon as we walked into the store, a gentleman said "Hello. How are you today?"

My first thought, was "Oh no, this man is going to be in our face all the time we are in here." That was not to be the case. We looked at the various Televisions, and of course looked at the price tags. After a reasonable amount of time David Leland came over to see if we had any questions and if he could help us in any way. He answered all our questions and we developed a good working relationship.

We weren't ready to buy a TV, but we had some questions about a combination DVD/VHS recorder. He showed us a Toshiba he had in stock. It was the last one in stock and it was $193. He gave us his card and we went to do some comparable shopping. We found the exact same one in another shop for $210. We then went to another store where they had a no brand machine for less than $100. My husband was very skeptical. I told him I liked dealing with David and asked him if Visions was worth the extra $100. He said yes. Needless to say we called David to see how long he was open and told him we were on our way. When we got there, David had the machine ready for us to take away.

Will we go back to Visions? Absolutely! He had the right product for the right price and the customer service was excellent.

We then went for dinner at the Victoria Inn. We had certificate for a free entree with the purchase of another. We placed our order and the service was o.k. When the the entree arrived the steak skewers I ordered as medium rare, was well done. When informing the waitress of the problem she said she could get me another one. I was hungry and did not want to wait. She said I could eat the one I had and she would still bring me another. I declined because I knew I couldn't eat that much or, shouldn't eat that much. I don't know her name but she was friendly, compassionate and she smiled.

When the manager, Brendan Carmichael (I think that is his name) came around and asked if everything was alright, we informed him about the well done steak. He said he would do something about it and he did. He didn't charge us for either entree so all we paid for was the appetizers and our drinks. This certainly was a pleasant surprise! Will we go back? Absolutely because all though there was a problem, the problem was fixed to our satisfaction.

What is Good Customer Service

What are some of the ways various businesses can provide excellent customer service?

• Remember that you are there to serve the customer. If you don't have customers you don't have a business or a job. Happy customers keep coming back. I think many places have forgotten rule 1 "The customer is always right." Rule 2 is: See rule 1.

• Listen to your customer. There is nothing more annoying than someone telling you their policies without actually listening to what you have to say. The best sales person will listen to what you are saying so that they can sell you the product you actually want.

• Handle the complaints. You probably won't always be able to provide perfect customer service to everyone. When you have a complaint, fix it. Make sure your customer will want to come back regardless of the service this time.

• Be careful of your reputation. Remember that your customer will probably tell others about your service, whether it was good or bad. When I teach customer service courses, I always have examples to share about both good and bad customer service and the companies that provided each type.

• Always keep your promise. Another frustrating aspect about businesses is when they tell you something will be delivered on a certain day and it doesn't come until the next week. If you tell a customer "I will get that for you right now." get it right now, don't go do something else.

• Smile. If you don't like your job, find one that you do. It isn't the customer's fault that you have had a bad day. A customer deserves to be served by friendly smiling staff, it makes everyone's experience more enjoyable.

• If you have staff train them. If you don't know how to train them to provide excellent customer service, spend the money to hire someone who does. The money spent will increase your business and your bottom line.

• Be helpful. If a customer asks where something is, don't just say aisle 3, show them where it is. They may have more questions when they see the product they are searching for.