Customer Service Lessons I Learned from Starbucks

I get ideas for articles from all over the place. This is one of those times that you don’t want to be what sparks the idea.

I was heading into New York early this morning. I took the train so I had less control over my schedule and found myself in Penn Station with about 30 minutes to spare.

I decided to go to Starbucks to get a cup of tea.

There were five people in front of me when I got in line. There were three registers and the line moved quickly. I was next and then everything changed. I watched as each of the three people at the register finished with their customer and went to do something else. I was left waiting with nobody to help me and apparently nobody working.

For a moment I was the only one in line. Then three more people got behind me. One person waited for a minute and left.

Finally, someone came and took my order. A cup of mint tea. She took my money, gave me a receipt and went to get it (this is not an order for the barista). She came back, without my tea, and asked for the next customer without communicating to me.

As it turns out they were out of mint tea and she asked someone else to bring a new box down and get my tea for me. I didn’t know that, I was left waiting and confused.

So why am I sharing my tea story with you?

Starbucks messed up on many levels today. Looking at my business I am sure that I have done similar things. My guess is that you have too. So here are four tips for you so that you don’t “pull a Starbucks”.

1. Do not leave potential customers waiting.

The line was moving along quickly and then everything changed. It’s true that I was the only one left in line, why couldn’t someone have taken my order before they left their station? I was left to stand there and felt lost. A moment before there were three people taking orders and now there were none. And I had nobody to ask for help.

The other day I was on the phone with someone. She told me about a conversation she had a few weeks ago about her services. The person she was talking to wanted to buy her services. The next step was simple. She had to follow up and get paid. It had been almost a month and she hasn’t followed up. She has been keeping the potential client waiting and now has to figure out the best way to follow up.

Do not leave potential customers waiting. They will leave and become someone else’s customer.

2. Communicate with customers regarding delays or other unusual situations

I totally get that they ran out of tea and needed to get some. And I would have been happy to wait for it. Unfortunately, that is not what I saw. All I knew was that someone went to fill my order, came back empty handed and called on the next customer. All she needed to do was tell me what was going on and I would have been happy.

Delays happen. Unusual situations happen. Just because you are doing exactly what needs to be done to rectify the situation doesn’t mean that your customer knows it. I felt ignored and wished I hadn’t already paid for my tea. And while I’m sure it wasn’t their intention, it is how I felt.

When things happen tell your customer so that they know that their needs are being taken care of.

3. Make it easy for someone to buy from you.

I was standing at the front of a line with my money out. I knew exactly what I wanted and there was nobody there to close the sale. I had time so I waited. Someone who joined the line after me did not.

What’s going on in your business? Have you made it easy for people to buy? Do you have the systems you need in place? Have you set prices for your products and services? If someone walked up to you right now and said “I’m ready to buy” are you ready to sell?

4. SMILE.

This is what really bothered me. The person at the register never smiled at me and, as I was sitting drinking my tea, I noticed that the person making the drinks never smiled either. It’s such a simple thing. When I worked at the New York Stock Exchange I used to be on the phone with our customers a lot. My boss came over one day and taught me an incredibly important lesson. She told me that I needed to smile when I was on the phone. That even though they can’t see me they can hear the smile, or lack thereof.

Your interaction with your client may be brief and you may be having a lousy day. It might seem insignificant to you, but it’s not. Smile at them. It will brighten their day and your day too. And will bring customers back to you again and again.

Will I buy from Starbucks again? Probably because it’s convenient and I have several gift cards to use. Will I go to that particular Starbucks again? No.

What about you? Have you experienced any of this as a customer? Are you missing any of these things in your business?