Pizza Guy
I was watching TV, pretty relaxed, when all of a sudden a Papa John's commercial came on. They didn't give a number, but a website!! Brilliant! So I went online and ordered a pizza. I've never had Papa John's before, and thought what the hell, I might as well try it. Well this is a story I have to tell because of the profound influence one incompetent delivery man had over my relationship with the franchise.
I'm not elitist; I have no problems with people of different backgrounds, intelligence, or careers. I simply state that he appeared lazy.
So I'm sitting on the couch with $15 in bills and 4 quarters. The buzzer buzzes and I let the inept pizza delivery guy in. He tells me it's $14, takes the $15, and hands me the pizza very quickly and turns away, as if in a huge rush. I tell him to wait a minute as I hand him his tip [in quarters] for making the delivery so speedily. I tell him to have a good night and close the door. I sit on the couch as my mouth waters, the delicious smell of Italian herbs and spices wafting into my voratious nostrils - the tender, juicy meats just crying out for me to enjoy them...I can smell it, and I can't wait to eat it.
I eagerly open the box to find a naked pizza with a pile of cheese and toppings on the side. The delivery guy must have carried my pizza under one arm, on its side!! I was incredibly upset because I had just gotten comfortable again - and now I would have to get up to get a fork. I figured, while I'm up, I should look up the number and give Papa a call. A few minutes of online information gathering resulted in a few minutes on hold, and then another few minutes to find the manager. When I finally got through to him I told him that my pizza was delivered in a very unsatisfactory condition, and that I wanted a refund. The bothered manager credited my account for a few dollars and apologized. It was then that I realized what a hassle the entire 15 minute complaining process had been.
For me to get up off the couch, look online for a phone number, wait for more than 5 minutes on hold, and settle on a 3 dollar credit of apology was a complete waste of my time. It was the principle that I cared about. I now ask a very simple question - how many people would go to the trouble based on principle alone? How many people would interrupt their nightly television routine to complain about the guy who brought them their dinner? How many people would go through the trouble of looking up phone numbers? And how many people would NOT hang up the phone after 2 or 3 minutes on hold? My answer: not too many.
That said, for every person who actually takes all these steps to complain there are probably on the order of a hundred other people who did not take the time to complain. This could be a serious detriment to the franchise. From their point of view, the delivery guy is the most important person in the Papa John's/customer relationship. It's the delivery guy who makes receiving the food a pleasurable experience, and it is the delivery guy who will make you feel good about the service. Moreover, it's the delivery guy who singlehandedly determines the condition of your meal upon arrival. So the delivery guys are responsible for repeat business, they're the ones challenged with maintaining the relationship.
Considering all of this, one complaint should result in a firing. The delivery guy who delivered my pizza in such poor condition should have been immediately relieved of his job. He not only provided a customer with a bad experience, he ruined any future relationship between that customer and Papa John's. That could amount to hundreds of dollars each year - per person!! And for every one complaint there are a hundred pissed-off customers!! If that guy wasn't fired I hope the company goes out of business. From now on I'll order from Robin Raj, the deli with the delivery guys who ask me how my day was and make me laugh with an occasional wise crack.
I never liked pizza too much anyway.
I'm not elitist; I have no problems with people of different backgrounds, intelligence, or careers. I simply state that he appeared lazy.
So I'm sitting on the couch with $15 in bills and 4 quarters. The buzzer buzzes and I let the inept pizza delivery guy in. He tells me it's $14, takes the $15, and hands me the pizza very quickly and turns away, as if in a huge rush. I tell him to wait a minute as I hand him his tip [in quarters] for making the delivery so speedily. I tell him to have a good night and close the door. I sit on the couch as my mouth waters, the delicious smell of Italian herbs and spices wafting into my voratious nostrils - the tender, juicy meats just crying out for me to enjoy them...I can smell it, and I can't wait to eat it.
I eagerly open the box to find a naked pizza with a pile of cheese and toppings on the side. The delivery guy must have carried my pizza under one arm, on its side!! I was incredibly upset because I had just gotten comfortable again - and now I would have to get up to get a fork. I figured, while I'm up, I should look up the number and give Papa a call. A few minutes of online information gathering resulted in a few minutes on hold, and then another few minutes to find the manager. When I finally got through to him I told him that my pizza was delivered in a very unsatisfactory condition, and that I wanted a refund. The bothered manager credited my account for a few dollars and apologized. It was then that I realized what a hassle the entire 15 minute complaining process had been.
For me to get up off the couch, look online for a phone number, wait for more than 5 minutes on hold, and settle on a 3 dollar credit of apology was a complete waste of my time. It was the principle that I cared about. I now ask a very simple question - how many people would go to the trouble based on principle alone? How many people would interrupt their nightly television routine to complain about the guy who brought them their dinner? How many people would go through the trouble of looking up phone numbers? And how many people would NOT hang up the phone after 2 or 3 minutes on hold? My answer: not too many.
That said, for every person who actually takes all these steps to complain there are probably on the order of a hundred other people who did not take the time to complain. This could be a serious detriment to the franchise. From their point of view, the delivery guy is the most important person in the Papa John's/customer relationship. It's the delivery guy who makes receiving the food a pleasurable experience, and it is the delivery guy who will make you feel good about the service. Moreover, it's the delivery guy who singlehandedly determines the condition of your meal upon arrival. So the delivery guys are responsible for repeat business, they're the ones challenged with maintaining the relationship.
Considering all of this, one complaint should result in a firing. The delivery guy who delivered my pizza in such poor condition should have been immediately relieved of his job. He not only provided a customer with a bad experience, he ruined any future relationship between that customer and Papa John's. That could amount to hundreds of dollars each year - per person!! And for every one complaint there are a hundred pissed-off customers!! If that guy wasn't fired I hope the company goes out of business. From now on I'll order from Robin Raj, the deli with the delivery guys who ask me how my day was and make me laugh with an occasional wise crack.
I never liked pizza too much anyway.
posted by Joe in Manhattan @ 3:22 PM
1 Comments:
thats so mean. i mean i understand that its frustrating not getting what you want...particularly when its relating to food...ie like the girl at baskin robbins who made my caramel shake w/far too much coffee & ice, plus it didn't look pretty like the picture, not to mention it had caramel dripping down the side which got my hands sticky...my absolute pet peeve. but i wouldn't want her fired...i mean maybe she had a bad day. perhaps the customer before me yelled at her or she got a c- on a paper that she worked really hard on or her boyfriend broke up w/her. what if he's supporting his sick sister or he's paying his way through art school. if anything give the guy a break-- i mean...who knows...he coulda even not realized he did that. maybe if it happened more than once i'd understand. perhaps not ordering from them again...but firing? wishing them bad luck. just speaking from experience being on the other side of that counter dealing w/customers who treat you like crap cause you're wearing a silly cap and apron to pay the bills. i dunno, we're human and as people we make mistakes. anyways...i feel judgemental for calling you mean. so perhaps you're not...just frustrated. so i hope next time your pizza man gets it right, that guy remembers to keep the pizza upright, and my ice cream lady at least wipes the cup. good day to you joe.
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