Spectrum Analysis highlights the importance of servicing customers beyond the provision of product

I am sure if I was able to interview the doyen of toilets in Australia, Kenny (aka Shane Jacobson), he would tell us the importance of a clean lavatory and his classic film “Kenny” gave us a new view into the lowly toilet.

His graphic examples of the work he would undertake to keep the “port a loo” toilets clean should be a “training must watch video” for every fast food restaurant and service station in Australia. I would feel that, combined with an old McDonalds saying, “If you can lean, you can clean” would be where most employers feel the standards should be.

Luckily, many businesses understand the benefits of clean and tidy restrooms as part of the overall Operations of their business, but some see it as a bit of an unwanted chore.

In my past life in the oil industry, the leader in this area throughout the 1960s and 1970s was Golden Fleece. They even had advertisements built around ‘Stanley’, a mythical petrol serviceman who was ’decommissioned’ (had his stripes removed), for not treating the customers in the best possible way by keeping the service station up to the correct standards.

Images like Stanley are not seen much any more, but maybe it would be good if he was to reappear. Maybe you can remember back to when you travelled around Australia, how often you looked for the Golden Fleece Restaurant as the place to stop.

I was a Marketing Manager at Caltex when Caltex bought Golden Fleece in 1981 and I must say that unfortunately we were unable to keep those standards alive. Things were changing in the oil industry, especially as the drive for efficiency was to self service. The highly labour intensive full service was to disappear over the next 10 years and with it the labour that was required to try and provide clean and tidy service stations, washrooms and toilets.

It is good to note that according to Ben Galton, Caltex’s current Franchise Development Manager, that the convenience retailer is again placing a high priority on standards. “Caltex measures retail execution through the eyes of the customer in key areas such as the customer experience, merchandising compliance and alignment to operational standards.

Caltex’s “All Stars” program also measures the cleanliness of its restrooms using detailed criteria. As a popular destination for convenience customers and traveling motorists, restrooms are a very important part of Caltex’s customer experience”.

Mark Maumill, current FCA Franchisee of the Year advised me that they see this as a very important part of their Banjo’s business. He says that they train their Managers to check the toilets hourly, and a full major clean at the end of each day is an essential requirement and part of their daily checklist.

Mark did comment that one of their biggest bugbears is complaints about washrooms that are out of their control, normally under Centre Management in a Shopping Centre. You can only control that which is yours, so do your best to assist Centre Management if the toilets are communal.

A business has an intrinsic value which many of us call the ‘Operations Score’, and this refers to how well a franchisee is performing. I believe a good franchisee can add up to 40% to a store’s sales, and likewise a poor franchisee can decrease sales by 40% from the average starting point.

What is it that separates a good franchisee from a poor franchisee?

Operations are all those mystical things the franchisee does that make it all work. In AFL, we would call these the ’one percenters’, or those little extras that make the difference between the ball being cleared by the opposition, compared with smothering it off the boot, or single handedly, tackling three opponents, to eventually force the ball over the boundary for a throw in.

Areas of Operations that I feel make a huge difference in retail sales include: 

• Acknowledging the customer if they are a regular, and engaging in conversation 
• Being able to discuss their customers’ needs and possibly up sell. How often are we asked “would you like fries with that”? 
• Consistent and competitive pricing policy. You don’t have to be the cheapest, but you can reflect good value for money 
• Consistent product quality. Companies spend millions of dollars on this, but a franchisee can be the biggest variable by far
• Meet and greet – those first words and the smile you give to every customer 
• Providing a neat, clean sales environment – including washrooms and toilets. We can only work with what we have, but we can keep it neat and tidy, compared with messy and dirty
• Uniforms and consistent dress code – look and act like part of the team

How important to you and your customers are the washrooms? In my view they are very important, and set the standard of what can be expected throughout the rest of the facility. If the toilets are filthy, maybe your customers will think your kitchen is as well.

Many large organisations, like airports, have a regular servicing regime where a staff member must inspect and clean the washrooms on a regular basis and sign off that this has occurred. How many times have you seen the clipboard as you enter the washroom? This may occur every half hour at busy areas such as Melbourne and Sydney airports. The effect is cleanliness and consistency.

Toilets come in second behind one of my great other passions in providing service within a business, and that is phones not being answered. The solution I have always said is to ring your own office on a regular basis so you can see what the customer’s experience, either positively or negatively. I would also assume if the Managing Directors and CEO’s made a beeline for the toilet whenever they visit a store under their brand, they will have a better feel for their customer’s experience.

Many businesses work extremely hard to have the reputation of clean and consistent washrooms. It really can make a difference in making a great operation compared with a good operation.

Franchise advisors, Spectrum Analysis , provide franchise and market analysis, Mapping and Franchise site selection.