In the movie, Get Shorty, the Chili Palmer loan shark character is played by John Travolta. In one scene he is teaching the Danny DeVito character how to play a loan shark. Travolta says “look at me,” “look at me” while looking at Dan DeVito with a blank expression on his face. Then he says, “What am I feeling when I say this? Nothing. That’s what  I think about you. Your nothing to me, just a number in my book.”
 
   It’s well accepted that good customer relationships are essential to winning customer loyalty. Unfortunately, more and more customers feel like the mark in the Get Shorty movie. They are nothing to the people serving them. A Gallup research study of 300,000 businesses showed that 75-90 percent of employees are achieving much less and feeling far less enthusiastic about their work (Hoover). While these workers are physically present on the job, they are at least partially psychologically absent. They are not fully engaged by their job and this shows up in the disconnected way they treat customers.
 
   They also found that fast food restaurant customers who felt the employee was engaged were six times more likely to return. If employees at a bank treated customers in a friendly and personal manner, the customer was up to 20 times more likely to continue a relationship with that bank (Hoover).
 
   Until recently, Starbucks Barista’s made all espresso drinks from scratch. They ground the espresso coffee beans; hand tamped it into the espresso handle and watched over the steaming process to make sure the espresso was made within 30 seconds. If it took more than 30 seconds, they were told that the air would degrade the coffee and were instructed to throw it out and start over. That was then. These days most Starbucks use automated espresso machines. There’s nothing for the Barista to do but press a button. Of course, the new process saves time and someone at Starbucks believes time is money.
 
   An informal study suggests that the switch to the automated espresso machine might be having unintended consequences. In the past, the Barista made the espresso drink from scratch and almost always looked the customer in the eye as they handed it to them, smiled and vocalized a greeting. That might still happen in some cases, but more and more often, customers feel the espresso drink is put on the counter by a disengaged employee who doesn’t look at them. Certainly, there are many Starbucks employees whose inherent courtesy keeps them engaged and engaging. But this is not the norm. Check it out for yourself the next time you order a Starbucks. If you get the “Get Shorty” blank expression, think about how it makes you feel and make a point of remembering the feeling. Now, the next time you feel an employee has been especially personable, contrast the feelings. Most people can make the comparison in their head and know which customer experience they prefer.
 
  This is an excerpt from Chapter Three of my forthcoming book Addicted Customers: How to Get Them Hooked On Your Company. For more information on the book go to www.AddictedCustomers.com.

Posted by John Todor on Friday, February 10th, 2006 at 8:21 am.