Introduction
For some time, I have appreciated how the Japanese culture in their films has made quality customer support the centerpiece of their movies. This includes
Doramas & Customer Service
But I am pleased that this has also carried over to doramas or Japanese dramas. Here some of the key takeaways.
1. Make your Mission be a Part of Each Day
In Aquarium Girl, at the start of each workday, those working at the aquarium get together for an all-employee meeting and end by reciting the "business" mission which is strongly customer focused.
What a great reinforcement and wonderful thing to do!
2. Provide a service or product that customers truly want and NOT what you think they want.
This is a reoccurring theme which causes some growing pains for protagonists.
Chef: Mitsuboshi no Kyushoku has the chef undergo a painful learning journey to understand how to make her new clients (elementary school students) happy with their lunches. First, she starts with what she was successful with in the past -- three star french cooking. But that is visibly rejected by her new charges. Afterwards, she starts learning about meeting the strict government requirements as well as researching the perfect meal. At one point, she pulls off making a meal that satisfies parents and their children -- not an easy task. But patience and persistence leads to eventual success. (An ongoing theme.)
In Rich Man, Poor Woman, the lead develops a product that no one uses. Only afterwards, interviewing their customers (elderly) do they develop an innovative and useful system.
3. Understand and surpass customer expectations.
I like how the protagonists take great pains to understand their customer's past and current intentions. This sometimes takes a leap of face based on the data gathered. One successful, they have to do the same thing in the following weeks. But what a wonderful thing to see customer expectations exceeded. Some examples are:
- Itsutsu Boshi Tourist spends a lot of time asking questions and learning about their customers before creating the perfect customized tour of Kyoto.
- The Knife and the Sword and Gu Ra Me deal with creating a meal that must also pass a political message.
- Pretty Proofreader deals with a proofreader(!!!) trying to verify facts in a manuscript and also determine the author's intentions. Even if successful, the proofreader stays anonymous in the book credits.
So the next time you watch a movie, show, or read a book, there may be an underlying customer service lesson in it! Please share with this community.