Guest Blogger: Nick Whitty, Store Leader Wrightstown

Emily (Nick’s Wife) and I had some errands to run last night and we stopped at Buffalo Wild Wings for dinner.

Everyone knows the story with this place – Great food, great atmosphere, good time right?

The restaurant wasn’t packed but there were plenty of people there. Obnoxious cubs fans, 1 kids birthday party, and then your standard Tuesday night out for dinner folks like Em and I.
We went because baby Whitty wanted wings. All you dads out there know how that goes, baby gets what the baby wants. Sat down to order at 6:20. Waitress came over right away and she was very nice. We both ordered the boneless wings that BWW is so famous for. All things were pointing to a great meal.

6:55 rolls around and I’m on my 3rd glass of water, Emily was getting that crazy pregnant woman look in her eyes, the 2 tables next to us were starting to get restless, haven’t heard a word from the waitress.

7:00 she comes over and says, “I know you’re going to think I forgot to put your order in but I didn’t. It got stuck behind a big order and your food will be right out.”

When the food finally came at 7:05 we were so frustrated and the experience had lost it’s shine that both of us ate as fast as we could and didn’t say a word to each other. I mean we ordered wings right? How does it take that long at a place that has “Wings” in their name? And to be honest, I didn’t think they tasted as good as usual. They probably were the exact same wings I’ve had before, made the exact same way, with the exact same sauce but they were different.

You all know where I’m going with this by now… It’s about the experience and setting expectations. If the waitress would have told us “just so you know there’s a big group of people in front of you who’s order just went in, I’ll check and see how long it’s going to be for your food and let you know” we would have been fine. We weren’t in a rush, didn’t have anywhere to be, but in our heads a 15 minute wait for wings would have been ok. Not 40.

In our day to day roles our version of wings are 2×4’s and bundles of shingles. Or maybe a new vanity in a bathroom or a whole new kitchen. Or possibly an invoice or credit that a customer is looking for. We aren’t doctors or surgeons or lawyers, it’s not life or death, but we can really make someones day in a hurry. We can put that feeling of comfort and pride in someone when we help them through their project and they see the finished product. It’s not about the wings or the shingles, it never is. How do we supply happiness to someone today? We might have a delivery that doesn’t get to a jobsite on time, there will probably be a crooked stud or two that leaves here, we’ll have a door that laminates and a window crank that just doesn’t work. How do we clear these obstacles?

Set clear dead lines, meet them. Be comfortable with your price, stand to it. Understand customer expectations fully, exceed them. And smile for god’s sake. If issues come up, meet them head on and get it taken care of. Get your teammates involved. Use our core values as a cornerstone.

We’ve moved mountains folks. But we’re not done yet, we’re just getting started. Be the best!