{"id":16879,"date":"2019-08-22T12:28:12","date_gmt":"2019-08-22T12:28:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.customerservicemanager.com\/?p=16879"},"modified":"2022-10-05T15:49:25","modified_gmt":"2022-10-05T15:49:25","slug":"10-ways-to-reduce-lineup-stress-for-staff-and-customers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.customerservicemanager.com\/10-ways-to-reduce-lineup-stress-for-staff-and-customers\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Ways to Reduce Lineup Stress for Staff and Customers"},"content":{"rendered":"\"Customers\n

Jeff Mowatt takes a look at the impact of waiting in line and how to improve the experience for customers and employees.<\/strong><\/p>\n

How do you let a cashier know that you\u2019re in a hurry when you\u2019re waiting in line?<\/p>\n

a) look at you watch and shake your head,<\/p>\n

b) sigh, huff, and roll your eyes,<\/p>\n

c) complain to others in the line,<\/p>\n

d) say to the person at the till, \u201cWe\u2019re in a hurry here!\u201d,<\/p>\n

e) all of the above.<\/p>\n

If you answered positively to any of these options, then you\u2019re like most of us who definitely do mind waiting. \u00a0 Lineups are frustrating. \u00a0 They are barriers that prevent customers from fulfilling necessary and often tedious tasks. \u00a0 That means that if you don\u2019t manage your lineups properly, you\u2019ll lose business due to customer frustration. \u00a0 Not to mention your staff will be stressed-out. \u00a0 That\u2019s a lose\/lose scenario.<\/p>\n

Most managers think the best way to manage a lineup is to get the staff to work faster. \u00a0 Often, this only creates worse problems. \u00a0 Consider the impact on your staff of trying to work at full speed. \u00a0 It\u2019s impossible to go flat-out without eventual burn-out. \u00a0 Morale drops. \u00a0 Turnover increases. \u00a0 Tired employees make more mistakes; which take even more time to fix.<\/p>\n

Ditto for the negative impact of working faster on your customers. \u00a0 Only a fool would want tired, aggravated employees interacting with customers. \u00a0 Working faster to get through a line-up cuts short the human interaction that creates customer feelings of loyalty.<\/p>\n

In the long term, working faster doesn\u2019t work. \u00a0 Instead, we need ways to reduce the stress of lineups for both customers and staff \u2014 without working faster. \u00a0 Here are ten:<\/p>\n

1. \u00a0 Warn the customer in advance<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ever been frustrated by the long waiting-room lineup to see a doctor? \u00a0 (I, know \u2014 stupid question). \u00a0 Though delays can happen for legitimate medical reasons, some doctor\u2019s offices reduce patient frustration by phoning in advance and warning them of the delay.<\/p>\n

If your customer calls and says that they plan to come in, suggest the best times for them to drop-in to avoid waiting.<\/p>\n

2. \u00a0 Schedule time for preparatory tasks<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you know the customer will have some \u201cpreliminaries\u201d when they arrive \u2014 such as filling out forms, suggest that they arrive early to complete them before the scheduled appointment or event.<\/p>\n

3. \u00a0 Acknowledge people entering the line<\/strong><\/p>\n

Too often, the first time the employee acknowledges the customer is when they get to the front of the line. \u00a0 That means a person who wants to spend money is being deliberately ignored. \u00a0 Lousy strategy. \u00a0 Instead, acknowledge customers with a \u201cHi there!\u201d or \u201cI\u2019ll be with you in just a few minutes!\u201d as they enter the lineup.<\/p>\n

4. \u00a0 Organize the line<\/strong><\/p>\n

Often, people don\u2019t mind waiting if they can avoid standing in line and yet still keep their place. \u00a0 Some restaurants and medical offices give customers pagers so they can go shopping while they wait. \u00a0 They\u2019re paged just before it\u2019s their turn.<\/p>\n

5. \u00a0 Distract and entertain the customer<\/strong><\/p>\n

A sociology experiment found that the best way to speed-up a slow elevator was not to add a faster motor. \u00a0 Instead, they added mirrors to the inside of the elevator. \u00a0 People got so caught-up in looking at themselves they thought the ride was twice as fast. \u00a0 Lesson: you can reduce the perceived length of the lineup with a distraction. \u00a0 Examples:<\/p>\n