Park 11, TX
API: Stated question.
Staff: We do have weight restrictions, yes.
API: OK…
Staff: Right, so bear with me for a minute here because I usually handle the picnic part of this place. And everybody who could, who knows the thing inside out, is gone for the day. But you can go on our website, which is abc.com, but I believe the weight is 275.
API: OK, no problem. And your website will have it for certain?
Staff: Yeah. There’s like frequently asked questions and things like that, and I’m 99% sure it’s a 275 weight limit.
API: OK. Well I guess I’ll jump on your website and check it out.
Staff: Right. And if you can’t figure it out or anything give us a call back in the morning when the rest of the gang will be in.
API: Sure thing. Thanks so much.
Rating: 5
Comment: Minor points for a specific website mention and advice on when to call back. But isn’t this important enough information that every employee should know the answer?
Park 12, FL
First contact: Automated machine. Chose operator.
Answering phone: Male.
API: Stated question.
Staff: Yes ma’am. We have a size limit of a 48-inch waist, but that’s it.
API: OK, well I’m pretty sure he’s under that and if it’s not a matter of weight, then he can do everything you offer?
Staff: He sure can, because they’re all steel cables, and we have harnesses to accommodate larger bodies so he’ll be more than able to do it all.
API: That’s great to hear. And he’s a pretty physically fit guy even though he’s a bit heavier.
Staff: Of course. Regarding fitness levels, it still might be a bit more difficult in some parts, and the canopy will probably be the best one to do. I wouldn’t, however, suggest the X course, only because it’s a little bit more intensive even for the most fit people we have visit.
API: Well, thanks so much for the advice. I appreciate it.
Staff: No problem! Thanks for calling.
Rating: 9
Comment: High points for enthusiasm, detailed information and insider tips on the course options.
1 Comment
This is an interesting article covering customer service, and potentially a useful assessment of customer service styles and responses. However, it is always easy to be enthusiastic for a guest if they can go on the tour be it because they are under the weight limit or size limit. It is much more difficult to enforce a size or weight rule in a way that is upbeat and enthusiastic. Guests who call for reservations typically want to go, and telling them they can not go is hard for the guest to hear and for the customer service staff to relay. This would have been much more useful if API had consistently adjusted the fictitious guests’ weight to just always be right over or right around the weight limit or waist size limit. That way each customer service agent would be dealing with the same issue, how do you politely let the guest know that they may not be able to go on the tour. That is a customer service challenge. Telling a guest they can go is pretty easy. the way in which this was written many of the customer service agents had the easy job of saying “sure you can go!” – admittedly some did it more enthusiastically than others, but the point of the article seems missed if only some agents are confronted with a guest who is in fact “on the heavier side” according to each courses definition of that statement.