I do not plan to write stories systematically, however there are times that it comes naturally. Therefore, as it is Friday night and I have no plans this time, I got the following story, which I would like to share with you.

Friday night, after a very hard day at work and the last working day before my leave for Easter holidays. After my wife and son finally slept, I decided to treat myself with some grilled meat. Here it is common to get grilled meat (chicken, pork, beef) on its own or in a sandwich, even during the night. Actually, it is almost like a tradition to eat something like this after your night out. As I didn’t plan to drink on my own, I went outside directly to my favorite place. Nevertheless, I forgot that it was already late (hard night with both of my “babies”), as when I arrived at the shop, the team had already started cleaning the grills, mopping, and preparing for the next day. Just to be clear, I am not one of those people that enter the place just 5 minutes before closing, just to browse. However, as I saw the door still open, I thought to say hello (and try my luck in case they actually had ready what I needed – 2 skewers of pork and chicken, one of each, nothing else).

The boss looked at as if he wanted to pass the message without talking. “We are already closed my friend”, another guy told me as the delivery guys were having their after-work dinner at the tables. I replied that it was ok, and that I would try my luck the next time.

And then the boss, looked at the grilled food containers (they grill some items in case somebody wants to make a sandwich), looked back at me he told me that if I wanted, he had something left, one grilled beef patty and a sausage in particular. I told him that I wanted specifically 2 skewers (I try to eat more meat) and that it was ok. I would try another place.

However he insisted! He said “don’t worry, I don’t want to sell them to you, I will just give them to you for free! If you are ok with that, I can put some bread and some tomato. I can’t let you leave while hungry! I CAN’T LET YOU STAY HUNGRY”.

This last thing blew me away! With this kind gesture, he thought about how I would feel after leaving the place, perhaps feeling hungry AND a little bit frustrated as I would have to go to another place. At the same time, he utilized the remaining products that most probably he would have thrown away, and he gave me the opportunity to try the other products in the menu. And last but not least, he made me feel grateful for getting a free meal (and at a difficult time). And as he said while giving me the box “all we want, is your love”…Nice!

Conclusion:

There are ways to service your clients, even if theoretically, you can’t. There are some nice gestures that will increase customer satisfaction and loyalty and at the same time will steal the opportunity from your competitors to do the same. You just have to be creative and to understand how the client feels.

Next time, skewers!