Balancing Quality and Pricing
Learnt something last night eating sushi about what we have to think about improving our customer experience.
I went to a X sushi place. The staff recommended me Blue Fin Tuna Shashimi Set. It was expensive indeed, but I had it before at this place. I think its quality justify its price, so I said yes to her.
So the fish came, looking all shiny and delicious. Had a bit of each, and they were Dry, and Icy, there is no smell of "fresh fish", it tasted dull. It was so tasteless to the point that the Fatty Acids of the Blue Fin Tuna stood out the most. Yeah, it was a Sour, Icy, Tasteless expensive fish. Pretty disgusting i'd say. Especially, remembering the one I had before tasted sweet fresh sea-salt with juicy meat that melted in my mouth. It was such a let-down to the point I am thinking, maybe I should not come anymore.
So let's put this case into cafe.
Cafe Y: A customer walked in, ordered a cup of espresso at a price of 150B. Barista Y tried shots after shots to ensure that coffee tasted right. And then served it. The wait was long, but the coffee was excellent, customer was happy and left a tip on the table for Barista Y's effort and left. 2nd day, the customer came again for the same menu. However, something is wrong today and Barista Y knew that particular the coffee is only performing at 80% (Good but not Great) compared to yesterday's 95%, but since is still good, Barista Y served it anyway. That customer, came back to Barista Y and say, "hey, the espresso was good, but I think it tasted better yesterday".
Cafe Z: A customer walked in, ordered a cup of coffee at a price of 90B. Barista Z had been brewing coffee with effort and quality within range of 80%-85% everyday, a good espresso that anyone can enjoy. Customer comes, order an espresso, and Barista Z deliver the exact same thing today, tomorrow, day after tomorrow. One day, Barista Z had a really good coffee he wanted his customer to try. So Barista Z recommended that coffee at the price of 150B. Customer agreed. Since the customer is paying more than usual, Barista Z paid extra attention to that cup of espresso to make sure it's right and served it. Customer is happy and left a tip of table. The next day, customer came again and wanted another shot of that great espresso he had yesterday again. However, the coffee wasn't tasting great today. So Barista Z told the customer, "Sorry sir, the espresso I served you yesterday is good but it wasn't as great as yesterday, do you want try something else today?"
Cafe X: A customer walked into Cafe X known for its exotic taste. A shot of espresso here cost 200B. Customer ordered an espresso and Barista X served it perfectly. If the espresso is off, Barista X would throw that coffee away since he knew the price he is selling includes the waste he produces for making great espresso. Customer came 4weeks later and ordered another shot of espresso, and left with the same satisfaction.
Cafe W: A customer walked into cafe W. Ordered an espresso at 60baht. Barista W spend all his effort making sure his espresso shots is right and would throw away espresso shots like Barista X if it's not right. Espresso tasted great and customer is happy. 2months later, customer came back and the cafe had closed down.