So my wife and I walked into IHOP last night, to use a gift card she received for Mother's Day. The hostess stand was empty. 10 tables and booths were occupied, but no employees were in sight. After 5 minutes, I would have just walked away, but since dinner was going to be free, it was pouring rain, and I am stubborn, we waited. And waited. And waited... Finally, a server entered the dining area and at least made eye contact with us, but then proceeded to take orders from 2 different tables before coming over to us to say, "We'll be with you as soon as we can." It was a full 31 minutes before we were seated. Others entered the restaurant and left without anyone employed by IHOP knowing they were there. Several families stood in line only because their kids would be eating free.
OK, so I get it. The restaurant is understaffed, overworked, and probably underpaid. But is that situation likely to change with such indifference when it comes to recognizing who is paying their paychecks? How many dollars were spent at nearby restaurants instead? Seeing a significant increase in sales might justify hiring more staff. How much effort would it have taken for someone to come over, take us to a table, apologize for the wait, and at least take a drink order? It would have changed the perspective of the entire dining experience, not just for us, but for every person who left to eat somewhere else. The message would have been "We care, we are glad you are here. We know you have a choice in where to dine, and are thankful for the opportunity to serve you." And believe me, there are choices! Hundreds of food choices within 2 miles. Instead, the message received was just the opposite - "Why do these people keep coming? If we ignore them, maybe they will go away. If they go, we won't have to work as hard!"
In this economy, a business simply cannot afford to be indifferent. At least not if they want to remain in business.
