Tracking guest satisfaction through feedback helps restaurant operations

http://www.rimag.com/article/CA6634984.html

Just as there are multiple forms of expression, there should be multiple ways in which guests can reach out to restaurants. For many operators, this means allowing for a combination of comment cards, online feedback forms, phone calls, letters and personal conversations.

At Ivar’s Mukilteo Landing, general manager Michelle Dobaran uses a variety of data-collection points for customer feedback. Her staff is trained to gather feedback holistically by talking with guests in the restaurant’s dining room. Guests can send comments through Ivar’s Web site via a Web-based tool that is managed by a third party. And when a table receives its check at the end of a meal, guests also receive a paper comment card.

“I’m constantly amazed on how many people take the comment card with them when they leave, then spend the 42 cents to mail it back,” says Doboran, adding that she receives about 50 comment cards a day.

Restaurants, thou shalt heed these tips

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/lifestyle/chi-0305-commandments-vettelmar05,0,5943482.story  by By Phil Vettel | Tribune critic    pvettel@tribune.com

5. Hearken to thy feedback. Worse than any service misstep is the sense that complaints are being ignored. If a customer has a valid complaint, own up to it, make amends and do whatever you can to turn this negative into a positive. And pay attention to other customer comments. “The best thing to happen to us is the customer comments from OpenTable.com,” says Alex Dana of the Rosebud Restaurants Group. “They send them in like you wouldn’t believe, and I hold my workers accountable.”