I felt welcomed.
I don't usually plug places in my blog but today I am. I happen to be in Hickory yesterday at lunch and decided since I had not eaten breakfast it would be a good thing to get a bite to eat. I had no idea where I wanted to go so as I begin to think of places I decided to try someplace new. The first place I saw that I had not been was Dickey's Barbecue Pit. So I pulled in. As I walked up I could smell smoked meat so I figured I had picked a good place.
I walked in and was immediately greeted by a very nice lady carrying a sign. She welcomed me to Dickey's Barbecue Pit and showed me where to go give my order. She then put her sign at the counter where I was to order. She read the sign to me, "Thank you for your patience, we are in training." I promised I would be patient if they would be patient with me because I had never been there. The nice lady then turned where I could see her nametag and her title was owner. She thanked me for giving the restaurant a try and begin to give me the tour. She showed me how to read the menu, where the specials were located, where I was to order and where I was to pay. I thought that was really nice of her but what she did next was even better. She told me I could have a sample of not only any side but any of the meats I wanted to try. I took a quick glance at the menu and asked for a sample of the spicy cheddar sausage. The trainee quickly turned to the man behind her as to ask for guidance. The man smiled while grabbing something out of a warmer and soon I was presented my sample. It was delicious. So I made my order. As I walked to the cash register I was once again met by the owner who showed me where the drinks were, explained the different sauces, pointed me to the silverware and reminded me that there was FREE ICE CREAM. After paying she told me they would bring my food right out. I had barely reached my seat and the man who gave me my sample brought me my food. His title was General Manager.
I thought I must be getting such great service from these two people because they were the owner and General Manager. I was wrong. They grabbed a stack of papers and took a seat at a table near the door to work on some scheduling issues. A few minutes later a man entered the restaurant and asked where to go order because he had never been there before. The owner greeted him, thanked him for choosing to try their food and pointed him to ordering counter. She and the General Manager continued working on their task. As I was thinking how glad I was to get there before they begin working on the schedule something amazing happened. A young man had appeared from the back to stand with the trainee. Both this young man and the trainee begin to give the exact great service the owner did including the offering of samples. Their service may have been even better than the owners because the young man described the taste of the different meats and side dishes. I now knew why the owner didn't jump up to give the great service. She knew her employees would do a great job.
As I ate my meal the trainee, the owner, the General Manager and the young man all walked past my table, the table of the other newbie and the table of each of the other costumers to check on them and the quality of the food. The other newbie was seated at the table beside me and we struck up a conversation about the unbeaten Panthers, the weather and how bad traffic was due to all the Christmas shoppers. After throwing away my trash I told the other newbie to have a good day and he replied that if I wanted to we could met back at Dickey's the next day. I could see the owner smile. As I left she inquired one more time about my visit, reminded me about the ice cream and encouraged me to fill my cup up before leaving. I thanked her and let her know I would be back.
Why am I sharing this experience? It's not for free food, although if someone decides to go to Dickey's Barbecue Pit after reading this please tell them and recommend they give me free food. The reason I am sharing this is because after I left I begin to wonder how different it would be if churches gave the same guest service. I expected the great service from the owner and General Manager because that was their job but the other employees were just as good at it. Everyone made it their job to make sure every guest felt welcomed and was invited back. If every member of a church made it their job to get to know every visitor and to make sure they felt welcomed there would be a lot less one and gone visitors.
There is a claim I have read and heard many times that I had some doubt about until my visit at Dickey's. The claim is that 90% of visitors make up their mind about returning to the church before the service even starts and most of the time the service good or bad will not change their mind unless they are looking for something specific. This was true of my visit. Before I even got my food in my mind I was thinking about what I would try the next time. I didn't have the thought of, "Will I be
coming back?" or "I like this place, I will be back." Instead it was more of a natural thought of "when I come back." As for the worship service not always changing people's mind, the food didn't change mine. The spicy cheddar sausage and smoked turkey was great. The beef brisket was good but didn't stand out from other restaurants. The waffle iron fries were good but a little cool. The jalapeno beans were so hot temperature wise that I burnt my tongue and the roof of my mouth. The spice level was not that hot but even after I ate the rest of my food I still couldn't eat the beans. The hushpuppies, well, they were ok at best. Had the service not been so good would I go back? It wouldn't be on the top of my list to visit but I would go if somebody wanted to go there. With the service will I be back? I am thinking when I go to Sam's on Friday I may stop by there for lunch.
Visitors expect to be welcomed by the pastor and they should. What sits a church apart is the people. Do they do more than just shake their hands and go on. Do they stop to take the time to get to know them? Do they invite them to other things? Do they check on them? Do they do all of this sincerely? When a church gets to the point all of this happens naturally and regularly the church will find the one and gone visitor will be rare and the returning visitors will become the normal. Of course we all know returning visitors are just potential members. So this Sunday at your church if you see a visitor remember that you can make the difference of them being a one and gone or a returner.
Parting Thought: I am still mad at my preacher for not shaking my hand Sunday, oh wait, I am the preacher.
I thought I must be getting such great service from these two people because they were the owner and General Manager. I was wrong. They grabbed a stack of papers and took a seat at a table near the door to work on some scheduling issues. A few minutes later a man entered the restaurant and asked where to go order because he had never been there before. The owner greeted him, thanked him for choosing to try their food and pointed him to ordering counter. She and the General Manager continued working on their task. As I was thinking how glad I was to get there before they begin working on the schedule something amazing happened. A young man had appeared from the back to stand with the trainee. Both this young man and the trainee begin to give the exact great service the owner did including the offering of samples. Their service may have been even better than the owners because the young man described the taste of the different meats and side dishes. I now knew why the owner didn't jump up to give the great service. She knew her employees would do a great job.
As I ate my meal the trainee, the owner, the General Manager and the young man all walked past my table, the table of the other newbie and the table of each of the other costumers to check on them and the quality of the food. The other newbie was seated at the table beside me and we struck up a conversation about the unbeaten Panthers, the weather and how bad traffic was due to all the Christmas shoppers. After throwing away my trash I told the other newbie to have a good day and he replied that if I wanted to we could met back at Dickey's the next day. I could see the owner smile. As I left she inquired one more time about my visit, reminded me about the ice cream and encouraged me to fill my cup up before leaving. I thanked her and let her know I would be back.
Why am I sharing this experience? It's not for free food, although if someone decides to go to Dickey's Barbecue Pit after reading this please tell them and recommend they give me free food. The reason I am sharing this is because after I left I begin to wonder how different it would be if churches gave the same guest service. I expected the great service from the owner and General Manager because that was their job but the other employees were just as good at it. Everyone made it their job to make sure every guest felt welcomed and was invited back. If every member of a church made it their job to get to know every visitor and to make sure they felt welcomed there would be a lot less one and gone visitors.
There is a claim I have read and heard many times that I had some doubt about until my visit at Dickey's. The claim is that 90% of visitors make up their mind about returning to the church before the service even starts and most of the time the service good or bad will not change their mind unless they are looking for something specific. This was true of my visit. Before I even got my food in my mind I was thinking about what I would try the next time. I didn't have the thought of, "Will I be
coming back?" or "I like this place, I will be back." Instead it was more of a natural thought of "when I come back." As for the worship service not always changing people's mind, the food didn't change mine. The spicy cheddar sausage and smoked turkey was great. The beef brisket was good but didn't stand out from other restaurants. The waffle iron fries were good but a little cool. The jalapeno beans were so hot temperature wise that I burnt my tongue and the roof of my mouth. The spice level was not that hot but even after I ate the rest of my food I still couldn't eat the beans. The hushpuppies, well, they were ok at best. Had the service not been so good would I go back? It wouldn't be on the top of my list to visit but I would go if somebody wanted to go there. With the service will I be back? I am thinking when I go to Sam's on Friday I may stop by there for lunch. Visitors expect to be welcomed by the pastor and they should. What sits a church apart is the people. Do they do more than just shake their hands and go on. Do they stop to take the time to get to know them? Do they invite them to other things? Do they check on them? Do they do all of this sincerely? When a church gets to the point all of this happens naturally and regularly the church will find the one and gone visitor will be rare and the returning visitors will become the normal. Of course we all know returning visitors are just potential members. So this Sunday at your church if you see a visitor remember that you can make the difference of them being a one and gone or a returner.
Parting Thought: I am still mad at my preacher for not shaking my hand Sunday, oh wait, I am the preacher.
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