Hi,
Some years ago I was looking for a comfortable hotel to lodge for a fortnight. With a bit of spare time and a fair budget on-hand, I decide to foray a little and see what options might be available.
So I came to one hotel which from the point of entry really caught my eye. As I walked towards the reception desk, the concierge moved pro-actively and gave a warm welcome. Then with a small gesture, disappeared into a back-room. Returning around half a minute later, I was handed a chilled medium-sized glass of juice. It was tropical juice, one of my least favourite! Nonetheless a little tired by now, and not wanting to seem discourteous, I accepted.
It's funny because I never liked Tropical Juice although we have copious volumes and varieties of it around the family home (has always been my brother's favourite). But that day somehow, it turned out to be one of the most pleasant drinks I’d ever enjoyed.
So after checking the rooms and services on offer, I decided to choose that particular hotel over a number of their competitors without hesitation. The next evening, returning to the room, it was a pleasant surprise to see that the make-up was not just immaculate - it was artistic. And placed on a neat, corner side fold-over of the bed sheet was carefully balanced a small, but delectable luxury chocolate.
Isn't it nice when people don’t just give you what you deserve, but make the effort to go one step further? You want have your cake and eat it, but isn't it the icing on the cake that makes the whole experience one that you never forget - one that you want to repeat?
One hotel I stayed at (in Singapore) had an assigned member of the concierge demonstrate the room facilities at check-in; so instead of spending time in experimentation with switches and intricate gadgets, I could move swiftly to find a restaurant for dinner and other more constructive activities. When the airline misplaced the baggage, hotel staff voluntarily did all of the chase-ups and did not cease until my suitcase was finally located and delivered safely to my room.
It’s all too easy for us to get absorbed into the daily run of life, engrossed with the fires of the present and not devoting sufficient time to look out beyond the horizon.
Within IT, we need to keep in mind that our role is in providing innovative solutions and supporting the business needs - so let us give ourselves high and lofty targets. When it comes to customer satisfaction, let us see what can be done to go beyond what’s expected and give that something extra; let's give our customers the icing on the cake!
Regards,
Musab Qureshi
p.s. this post was written with cognisance of value and efficiency; the objective was to portray a perspective which is neglected all the often.
p.s. this post was written with cognisance of value and efficiency; the objective was to portray a perspective which is neglected all the often.
