Five Star Service Bonus Chapters

How to be a Five Star Customer

For most of Five Star Service One Star Budget I focused on giving amazing service to our customers. Whether they are internal or external, big or small, easy or difficult it’s all been about giving them a brilliant customer experience.

With a bit of luck the next time you get some customer service it will be from someone who has read the book and wants to test ideas out on you! However, the fact is many won’t but you still want to get amazing service.

Obvious Statement – People who are liked by those who are serving them get better service.

Some people believe that by complaining and causing problems they’ll get better service. Actually what you’ll find in most cases is that they are getting the minimum of service that will just shut them up. If you want to get brilliant Five Star service then there are some things you can do which will make doing some extras for you a pleasure.

Being a 5 star customer is Karma thing to. If you believe ‘what goes around, comes around’ then it makes sense to be a Five Star customer so that hopefully you’ll attract some Five Star customers too.

How to get upgraded on a flight.

Well you could always pay 6 times more than everyone else and fly first class or you could study this seven step guide and stand a better chance than most of having a most pleasurable flight.

The number one reason why people get upgraded is because the economy section of the plane has been oversold and some people need to be upgraded to make extra space. Sometimes people have friends at the airline or they have flown so many miles that their loyalty cards are bursting. You’ll never get ahead in the queue against those people but they aren’t always there, airlines still upgrade and you could be in the right place at the right time when this happens but here’s a couple of things to remember, 1) Bad News - It’s happening less and less, 2) Good News - It will be a human who’ll make the final decision on who gets to ‘sit up front’.

Before you do anything take a few moments to mentally rehearse getting upgraded. See in your minds eye everyone connecting with you and the reward for your understanding and customer friendly attitude is you get your upgrade – see yourself with your glass of champagne!

Then follow these seven steps.

Step One – Be on time. There’s very little chance of getting upgraded if you arrive late for a long haul flight, the idea of arriving late and all of the coach class seats being taken doesn’t happen (with my research) at all.

Step Two – Look like you are a business or first class traveller. If you arrive wearing a pair of tracksuit bottoms and tee-shirt you chances of an upgrade have effectively dropped to nil. You don't have to turn up in a suit but it is one of the single biggest factors that will help you in your quest for an upgrade.

Step Three – Be an absolute pleasure to check in. Whilst it’s not often the check in staff who make the decision airline staff all talk, make sure they are talking about what a pleasure you are to deal with.

Step Four – Ask, but do it in a classy way. A cheeky wink with, ‘Any upgrades going, sweetheart?’ won’t increase your chances as much as. 'I was wondering if you needed any volunteers to be upgraded for this flight?’ Warm smile, raise of the eyebrows. ‘I fly with you a lot and always hope that my loyalty would be remembered if you were looking for someone to free up a place in economy’. This may seem crazy but in the days when I travelled in economy a lot I would ask this and on most occasions got an ‘I’ll see what I can do’ and also on several occasions I was upgraded.

Step Five – Follow any instructions you get to the letter. For example they may say. ‘We may need to free up a couple of seats so can I suggest you go to the gate and ask for Rita Potts, she’s responsible for boarding the flight. Ask her.’ Ask if you can use their name then rush off to the gate. When you get there play back exactly what they said, don’t exaggerate, just smile and report for duty.

Step Six – Mentally rehearse again being a world class passenger who they just have to upgrade you. Remain calm and sit within sight of the person who is responsible for boarding the flight.

Step Seven - Even if you don’t get upgraded before you board don’t give up! Enter the plane with a big smile and when you are greeted give them a big smile, eye contact and respond.

If it doesn't work what have you lost? If it does work what have you gained!

How to get amazing service in a restaurant.

Popular restaurants can see upwards of 100 customers a night. In most cases staff aren’t working for a tip, they have a lot to do and they are rushed off their feet. Getting great service starts well before you even arrive. Here’s a 7 step guide to getting 5 star service in most reasonable to high quality restaurants.

Step One. Be flexible when you book ahead. When you make your booking ask them when they would like you to arrive. This seems strange but it does 2 things. Firstly in 90% of cases it makes no difference and they will tell you so. However, you will have made an impression on the person answering the phone and the chances are high that that person will be serving at the time you arrive.

The other option is that they will advise you of a good time to arrive. If they have lots of bookings at 9.00pm they may suggest you arrive at 8.00 if you want a more attentive service you may just take that advice.

Step Two. When you have agreed the time tell who ever is taking the details that you are 'celebrating' that night. In most cases they won’t ask what you are celebrating but if they do make sure you have something up your sleeve. ‘Some recent successes’, ‘Seeing some very special friends’ or ‘It’s an anniversary’ are all cool. If you have a big celebration such as a wedding anniversary or birthday make sure they know.

Step Three. Arrive on time. No it’s not cool to be late. If a restaurant is running a tight ship they’ll thank you for being on time. When you arrive wait until you are asked for your name and then, smile, say it clearly with the time of your booking and remember to say thank you.

Step Four. Be understanding. I was once out for a meal with my good friend Jeremy Taylor. The waitress was being rushed all over the place, there obviously wasn’t enough staff on duty and she looked flustered. When she came to ask for our drinks an arrogant pillock on a distant table started waiving his hands around gesturing for her to come over. Jeremy smiled at here and said, ‘You look like you’re having a really busy night. Why don’t you go and see him and then come back to us when you get a minute’. You could have knocked her down with a feather. After a brief pause she said thank you and served Mr Obnoxious.

When she returned I guarantee we couldn’t have had a more attentive waitress. Even when the restaurant appeared to burst at the seams we didn’t have to wait or ask for anything, she was on autopilot.

Step Five. Ask for recommendations and listen carefully to the advice. Ask a couple of genuine questions and take an interest in the response. A simple but great question to ask is, ‘What would you have from the menu?’

If there is anything you don’t like tell them in a nice way. A sharp, ‘And I don’t like peas’, will be taken in a completely different way than, ‘Oh, there’s one more thing. I have a bit of a challenge with peas, they don’t agree with me, so I’d be grateful if you would let the chef know. Thank you’.

Step Six. Say please and thank you at every opportunity. Next time you’re in a restaurant observe how many people don’t say 'thank you' when their food arrives or don’t say please when they ask for something.

Step Seven. If you have had great service tell them. Compliment the chef and ask to meet him or her. If you have had particularly good service ask to see the manager, introduce yourself and let them know. Ask if they train their staff and if they commend them and let them know its working.

Wee WOW
Learn the names of the people who are looking after you and use them. Most waiting staff are known as ‘Excuse me’ or ‘Hey’ for most of their careers.

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