My son, Jon (pictured above) and I went for a long jog along the beach one sunny afternoon and we fell victim to a remarkable customer service failure. He was thirsty, so we visited a small pizza place along our running path. It was the only place open at the time and Jon asked the pizza dude if he could have a cup of tap water.

“I’ll have to charge you 25 cents for the cup,” said the guy behind the counter. Jon looked at me and asked if I had 25 cents. Unfortunately, I had no money on me at the time. I asked the fellow if he could make an exception to their rule. He shook his head and bluntly said, “Can’t give you a cup if you don’t pay.”

Another patron at the counter offered to pay for Jon’s cup. The pizza dude accepted his money and gave my son some tap water.

As we continued our run on the boardwalk I couldn’t help but wonder how much money this Pizza place spends on advertising, enticing customers like me to visit.

The truth is, Jon and I are pretty nice guys. We were hungry too and I had plenty of money back in my car. And after a long jog there’s nothing like a slice of pizza. But would you have driven back to eat at that Pizza place? We wouldn’t either, and we haven’t been back since.

Are “Nice Customers” Ruining Your Business?

“I’m a nice customer. You all know me. I’m the one who never complains, no matter what kind of service I get.

I’ll go into a restaurant and sit quietly while the waiters and waitresses gossip and never bother to ask if anyone has taken my order. Sometimes a party that came in after I did gets my order, but I don’t complain. I just wait.

And when I go to a store to buy something, I don’t throw my weight around. I try to be thoughtful of the other person. If a snooty salesperson gets upset because I want to look at several things before making up my mind, I’m just as polite as can be. I don’t believe rudeness in return is the answer.

I never kick. I never nag. I never criticize. And I wouldn’t dream of making a scene, as I’ve seen some people do in public places. I think that’s uncalled for. No, I’m the nice customer. And I’ll tell you who else I am.

I’m the customer who never comes back!” ~ Author Unknown

The pizza dude had an opportunity to do the right thing — he had a chance to reach in his own pocket for the quarter, but he stuck to the rules, kinda like the waitress in the classic diner scene in Five Easy Pieces. In so doing he lost us forever as customers… and our connections too.

Do the right thing.