Expect this-service with a smile that says “thanks for coming; we are glad you’re here! We know you worked hard for the little money you came to spend with us. That you probably took s#@* all week long from your boss, husband or wife, customers, kids, or the guy next door, and we greatly appreciate your spending your time and money with us.” Expect this-smiling attentive service that makes you feel wanted and appreciated. It’s the world today, and businesses big and small seem to be missing the point. There is too much competition for service to unappreciate or underappreciate the customers they have.

Take Springfield’s Golden Mile for example. Most days you could swing a cat over there. It may have more empty stores than full ones. But who survived? The people with the snarky attitude or the happy smiling service person who welcomes us to come back and see them again?

Best Buy used to be the greatest place in the world to shop, before Circuit City went down. Circuit City made no bones about having no sales and service values and/or policies for their people. Most of the time they were down right rude or you were on your own, in a free for all. Best Buy back then said we are not on commission and here to help you with educated pleasant people. THAT SERVICE POLICY IS WHAT PUT CIRCUIT CITY OUT OF BUSINESS –NOT THE PRICES. Now, without the competition, Best Buy has become almost adversarial in the way it treats customers. They lost me and my money as a fan. The managers, if you can find one, are more important than the customers. If you have stock sell it. If you have gift cards spend them. What are they thinking?

This brings to mind how we became customers at one of our favorite little places to eat, watch a game, or on separate occasions take the kids. Pappous in Springfield became one of our happy spots, but we would never have kept going there if not for an accident of fate and a happy smiling guy named Bill.

Pappous is between the CVS and the Burger King on Baltimore Pike and the Route 420 intersection. It’s a little place that has been there for years-handed down from generqation to generation. It has all the old favorites for the 60 year old kid down to the 6 year old kid- and all at great prices to boot. Grilled hot dogs and burgers on butter grilled rolls, milkshakes, hand made fish and chips, pizza, and of course ISOPs (don’t ask- just try one, its an InSide Out Pizza deep fried…marrone!)

One day we were coming home from B.J.s and just by fate made a quick stop into this little place to try something new. It was nice and clean with a homey atmosphere. We ran into Billy the bartender. He treated us so well and was so happy and enthusiastic about the place, we had to go back. I remember asking him, “Are you the owner’s son?” And he said “No, I just love my job and love working here.” Over the years we have gone back too many times to count and have sent everyone we know. All because of this one guy who treated us like we mattered, and he was glad we were there. That attitude led to countless visits and customer sales for Pappous.

When did it change that when you go to the supermarket (Acme, Fresh Grocers, etc.) and spend a hundred bucks, you don’t get so much as a thank you-while the cashier is texting and you’re bagging your own stuff.

When I’m done bagging my groceries I say to them in a loud and boisterous voice “THANK YOU, THANK YOU FOR SHOPPING HERE!” and they look at me with bewilderment. Sometimes 1 out of 5 goes “Oh yeah right.” But still no “thank you”. Who is training these people? More to the point, who is the so called manager that hasn’t taught his representatives to say thank you to customers, and still calls himself a manager? Poser. Man -poser.

Speaking of thank you, half the servers that wait on you in restaurants don’t say thank you for the tip you leave them. When that happens now, and my tip isn’t even worth a thank you, I figure you don’t need it next time I come back, IF I ever come back.

SO EXPECT THIS:

DEMAND THIS….service with a smile, glad you’re here, thanks for coming, we appreciate your business, please come back again, and thank you, thank you, thank you.

Or find someone and someplace that appreciates you and your hard earned money!

Maybe then people will start to go back to the old fashioned way of doing business.

Pappou’s Pizza Pub is located at 415 Baltimore Pike in Morton, PA. Call 610-544-0142 for more information.