It
is an almost daily endeavour for Retailers to “delight” their customers, which
is perhaps the highest level of “Customer Service & Engagement”. Brands like Apple, Gap, Disney, are a few
global examples that have delighted their customers, which have become global
case studies. Back home, Retailers like Shoppers Stop and Café Coffee Day have
set very high benchmarks in Customer Delight which are continued to be emulated
by small and medium retailers till date. One such recent example is restaurant
chain “Rajdhani” which recently held a special preview for their preferred
guests of the “Aamlicious” menu.
We
were invited to be part of this special Dinner session on Monday 3rd April
2017 at the flagship outlet of Rajdhani that was held at Phoenix Market City, a
premium Mall in the suburbs of Chennai. Even as we entered, the entire team who
were eagerly awaiting our arrival welcomed us with a special mango-based welcome drink. The Head of customer engagement
was personally present at the event who struck an instant conversation with all
the guests. She was open to discuss the current business scenario and informed
us that post Demonitisation, there hasn’t been much impact for them since a majority of
their customers paid through debit or credit cards.
After
a while of socializing, the team started serving the new Aamlicious menu, which
is a summer menu with Mango, the King of fruits and the summer special as a
central theme. There were starters, salads, entrees, main course items and of course
the desserts. The Captain of the table explained each item in great detail and
suggested pairing of food with the new Aamlicious menu. Despite our repeated
requests, the team went on serving more and more of the tasty items that we
were feeling over-fed in just 30-45 mins since starting dinner. I had to take a
5 minute break before the dinner was all over. At the end, we were introduced
to the Maharaaj, the Chief cook who comes up with such delicacies year after
year through extensive research and analysis of customer preferences.
To
experience this menu, reach out to any of the Rajdhani outlets in your city.
So
here are some lessons from this initiative of the Food Retailer about Customer
Delight which is worthy of emulation by the Industry.
Remember
your Customers: Every time you have a special activity, a new product launch or
a new menu, do remember your loyal patrons. A single happy customer (like me) will talk
about their happy experience to a hundred people.
Product
Consistency: If you are in a product business, especially the food business, it
is vital to ensure the consistency of the quality of the food items. It is one
thing to invite guests but if the quality slips, everything is down the drain.
In-Store
Experience: Retail is a business where no matter how many millions are spent on
Marketing, Advertising, Branding & Promotion, it is the final experience
that the customer encounters at the store that matters the most.
