Café, Barista & Customer Satisfaction
It May Be Relative but the Fact That It Falls in the Service Sector Makes the Displeasure, on Either Side, All the More Evident
Does working in a café ensure job satisfaction? Does a barista enjoy his/her job?
Every time I visit a café, interact with the staff and get affected by their behavior I cannot help but think about this. In an attempt to get an appropriate answers to the questions above let’s go through a few different case scenarios.
Case I: You head into a café, show your vaccination proof — very important in these dire times, place your order and take your seat. A couple of police officers amble into the café, ask the staff for details and make sure everything is being done as per rules.
The staff then, who had long back taken your order, delivers that after the cops leave and thanks you for being patient, offering a slice of cake or a cookie as compensation since the order is delivered pretty late. You politely refuse. Surprised, the staff member insists on the same, saying it is on the house. You refuse again, and the staff expresses gratitude again before leaving you with your bean drink.
Case II: It’s that time of the year, leading up to Christmas and New Year. You enter a café and find a few staff members decorating the café, taking care of every minute detail and giggling away all the while.
A few young, adventurous ones also make it interactive, making the audience post a message or utilize confetti in some way. In no time the festive spirit is apparent. Even as you sip your coffee you can feel the positive vibes all around you.
The ambience works like an elixir and enlivens your mood.
Case III: You visit a café fairly regularly. You are aware that self service is not the prevailing norm therein.
The staff is also aware that once you finish your coffee you will clear the table yourself, and save them the effort, thereby ensuring the table you had occupied can be immediately taken up by another customer. You place the order and find yourself a table. A few minutes later a staff member gets you one cup of coffee and asks you to pick up the other stuff ordered from the counter.
The lackadaisical manner in which he/she approaches your table and serves you, without a slightest regard for the fact that you frequent the place, makes you question if yours was a smart choice.
Case IV: You climb up to the first floor of a neighborhood café and a staff member offers you a seat. Even before you have made yourself comfortable the person returns to inform you that the table is booked and that you have to wait outside.
You tell her that there is no reservation board on the table but she will take none of it. Not keen to argue further you get out and wait outside, only to see her ushering in customers who have come after you first. You lose it at that point and decide never to visit the café again. Because of the behavior of one individual the establishment loses a regular customer.
Case V: You enter a café during another of your several attempts at satisfying that eternal wander lust. The café is somewhat reputed, with many travelers suggesting it as a go to option if one is visiting that particular city/town.
You see a vacant table and head towards it, only to be stopped by a middle aged waitress.
“Its not free,” she says in a stern voice before adding there is no spare table available. As you turn to leave a young lady politely stops you, informs that one table will be available soon, requests you to wait a bit while assuring that she will clear it immediately for you to sit. The middle aged waitress tries to dissuade her but she not only does her job well but also lets her senior colleague collect the bill, and the tip. You go ahead and tip her as well.
The first two scenarios feature in all likelihood students working part-time in a café. They are excited with their temporary jobs, as in they know that they are in it for a while and are happy with the chance to make a few quick bucks. That happiness reflects in their body language and also when it comes to the quality of their service.
The third and fourth scenarios, is about middle aged staff, who have obviously accepted jobs at the café for want of a better alternative. They have possibly lost their jobs or aren’t qualified enough. They are working only for the monetary incentive, and derive little or no job satisfaction. Maybe they aren’t happy with the money as well. They are there because it is the only thing that ensures them something. Their disinterest is apparent in their mood and service, rather the lack of it.
The fifth case study is a mix of both, the young lady’s enthusiasm being a sharp contrast to the middle aged woman’s apathy. While one is willing to go the extra yard to make the customer not regret their decision the other could not care less. A reminder that this is a café of repute and staff behavior can cause a severe dent to that reputation acquired over a considerable period.
It is not about judging any coffee shop employee here. It is about being satisfied as a customer, as someone who pays his/her hard-earned money and expects good service in return. Any person visits a café to be relieved from stress and freshen up the mood. It is the barista’s job to ensure that. No points for guessing what kind of staff ensures your time in the coffee shop is well spent, and who you end up tipping.
It is a fact that like in every other field job satisfaction in a café is relative. That said, the fact that it falls in the service sector makes the displeasure all the more evident. Truth be told in a café customer satisfaction matters more than employee satisfaction.
When you are catering to customers, who are there to relax a bit, there’s only one rule: ensure the customer gets treated well and camouflage personal emotions (and mood swings) as much as possible. Not every café serves you the best coffee. There are occasions when customers are left deeply disappointed with the quality of product on offer, one that completely belies their expectations. In such a scenario decent conduct of the staff member goes a long way in assuaging that displeasure and ensuring that customer makes another visit to the same café.
Behavior is sacrosanct, as much as the quality of the products on offer. For a frequent customer may be forgiving on an occasion or two, but repeated misbehavior from a staff member will lead to the obvious. Not to forget it also ensures a negative word of mouth for the establishment.
There are many customers who frequent coffee shops on a regular basis. What’s the best way for these customers to avoid such avoidable situations?
For starters, it is best to have multiple options at your disposal, and not confine oneself to a particular café. Having a few options not only helps to pick and choose on every single occasion but also helps avoid places which don’t make one feel very comfortable.
About Them Beans:
Who: Yours Truly.
Where: A number of Cafés across Germany.
When: Between Christmas Eve and January 3, 2022.
What I was drinking: Cappuccino, with an extra espresso shot.
