I caught the manager’s eye as I took a seat at a table next to an open window that let in a refreshing breeze.

The manager waited on me at once.  I could see in his face the love for his job as he expertly made me feel at home.

My medium-rare ribeye came out soon after my perfectly suited Shiraz Cabernet and I devoured my meal.  Every once in a while the manager or another staff member would check in to see if I was happy with everything.  I was.

My table was cleared as soon as I’d finished my meal and the bill was delivered to my table upon my request.  The price was by no means outrageous and I was happy to even leave a tip.

So what did they do wrong?

I would understand, at this point, if you were wondering exactly what gripe I could possibly have with this restaurant.  Was this not, afterall, the perfect dining experience?

It was.

And then… they let me walk out the door without:

• asking me for a testimonial to put on their website;
• giving me a business card or flyer (including their website address, of course, so that I could tell YOU what it was); or
• providing any incentive whatsoever to hand over my email address so that they could keep in contact me with promotions (as a very happy customer I would be more than happy for them to do this!)

Would doing the above significantly impact the business in a positive way?

Definitely!

Is this easy to implement?

Absolutely.

What’s one way that you can think of to elicit a testimonial from a happy customer?

Ask!  In this case they could have provided a DL-sized feedback form with the bill.  I would have filled it out.

Could they have included their business card or a flyer in the bill folder?

Absotively!  Had they, I would now remember the name of the restaurant and their website address and I might be able to give them some good promotion right here and now.

Ah, and here’s the tricky one.  How could they have prompted me to hand over my email address?  Well, if it was requested on the feedback form I might have writen it down.

Better yet, they could have provided some tangible incentive.  A complimentary after-dinner mint would have been enough bribe to get me to write down my email address.

Also, had I’d been there with one or more friends I might have really appreciated a complimentary digital photo (emailed to me!) to remember the event.  (oooo, ahhh!)

Are you and I missing similar opportunities?

Probably   I gradually and continually uncover my own business dumbness – and you might be able to relate to that at some level.  Take a moment to think about what ONLINE BUSINESS opportunities you’re overlooking right now.