First Impression turned bad

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

You heard it before, your first impression is the one people remember the most. That is true.

Last week I visited a kosher market in the Cooper City area for lunch. I was very impressed with all the attention to detail. They proudly exhibit their ORB certification throughout the store. The food presentation was incredibly impressive. Every detail was considered. The store was impeccable.

I proceeded to walk to the deli area to order a sandwich. At the time there were two customers waiting including myself. The lady before me had just ordered and was waiting for her order. Behind the counter were two individuals. One was helping the lady while the other was busy tending to making the place look good while I waited.

As I continued to wait, the deli person helping the lady began to argue about a certain work-related issue with his co-worker... I still waited. As he hands the lady her order, he continued to argue and not even look at her. He even ended up putting two prices on her order and then proceeded to hand it to me by mistake.

After finally getting the order into her hand, it was my turn to order. I ordered a tuna wrap, but was informed wraps were not available that day, so I settled for a wheat pita. As my order was being filled, The gentlemen's cell phone rang. He proceeded to talk on the phone through the completion of my order. I was finally able to get my sandwich and headed to the cash register to pay. So much for the beautiful presentation.

My lesson for the day... first impressions are only the beginning to a memorable positive experience. If we are not careful, we will put all our attention to the details of our surrounding, and then forget who we are doing for.

Every week we work really hard to create the best environment we know how so that people can give their lives to Christ. Sometimes, I confess, I forget that the customer is standing right in front of me and that I do not need to be organizing the bibles or anything else, just take care of the customer the best I can.

Let's not forget why we do what we do as a church. When we are open for business, nothing is more important than the customer. That is why we exist.

ia