How May I Help You?

But there are also sites that absolutely win you over. For example, I love my interaction with Amazon.com. I have three children, and I've told the folks at Amazon that I'd like to get information about children's books. About a month ago, they sent me an email that was written in a way that felt personal, as if they were paying special attention just to me. I'm fond of a particular children's author, and the email said something like "Because you've purchased several Rosemary Wells books in the past, we thought you'd like to know that she has a new book coming out." And they told me all about the book. It was very friendly and nonintrusive. I felt that someone was watching out for me.

That's what I call serving customers -- not just providing so-called customer service. It's remembering that at the root of the word "service" is the word "servant." Those creating a commercial site online today must think of themselves as devoted servants of customers.

It's a powerful concept: You have to prove that you are worthy, in the humblest way, of your customers' trust. And until you can do that, you will never own them.

Nancy Kramer (nancy.kramer@resource.com) founded Resource Marketing Inc. in 1981. Initially, the firm focused on the development of marketing strategies for Apple Computer, and it was involved in launching the Apple Macintosh. Today, Resource Marketing is a $75 million technology marketing and communications firm, with a client list that includes Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Victoria's Secret, and Cisco Systems. Its "Analyst Watch," a study released last October, reviews and rates e-commerce shopping experiences.

Danny Meyer

President
Union Square Hospitality Group
New York, New York

We've tried to distinguish ourselves by going beyond "customer service" -- by offering people hospitality. What's the difference? Service is a technical skill; hospitality is an emotional skill. To me, great service means that the food arrives on time, that the wine is presented properly, and that the plates are cleared gracefully and promptly.

But I'd say that a place has great hospitality if you leave there feeling that the staff is on your side. It isn't any more complicated than that. Say that you're mulling over the menu at a restaurant, and you just can't decide what to order. A server who's "on your side" -- having overheard you debating between the oxtail and the lamb -- might bring you a small taste of each before you order.

Or say that you leave your credit card or your bag behind at a restaurant. When you call the restaurant, most will say, "Yes, it's here in our lost-and-found. You can come by and get it." But we always say, "Where can we send it to you by messenger or FedEx carrier?" And although it costs us money to return your belongings, it's a great investment: When you realize that you've left something somewhere and that you'll have to schlepp back there to get it, it leaves a bad taste in your mouth -- even after you've had a wonderful dining experience. So we try to turn what could otherwise become a negative feeling into a positive one.

That's what I mean by being on the customer's side. That's hospitality. To deliver that kind of hospitality, you have to hire the right people. Waitstaff skills are very trainable; human-being skills are not. I can train anyone to be knowledgeable about our wine list or how to clear a table properly. But I cannot teach people to care about how their actions affect others. Do your hiring right -- that's more than half the battle.

Danny Meyer launched Union Square Cafe in 1985, at the age of 27. It has ranked number one in the New York City Zagat survey for the past four years, and it has twice received a three-star rating from the New York Times. Grammercy Tavern, which Meyer opened in 1994, has also received a three-star review from the Times. Eleven Madison Park and Tabla, Meyer's newest culinary ventures, both opened in New York City in 1998.

Yap Kim Wah

Senior Vice President of Marketing Services
Singapore Airlines Ltd.
Singapore, Singapore

The meaning of customer service is always changing because customers are always changing. Today's customers want more choice and more control. People don't want to feel that they're at your mercy, especially on board an airplane. So we give them a wide selection of choices -- from what and when they eat to how and when they are entertained.

The most important thing that you can do for customers is to make them feel cared for as individuals. That means doing the little things, looking for opportunities to provide extra customer care. It means making passengers feel as if everything you do were especially for them -- how you serve a cup of tea, with just the right amount of sugar, or the way you empathize with a particular passenger's plight.