Thank You Dave
Posted on January 6, 2007, by Conor O'Neill, under Personal, Purchasing, Restaurants.
We discovered over Christmas that you can in fact put 5 children, 2 adults and all their stuff in a Zafira+Roofbox and go from Cork to Kilkenny to Cavan to Cork. Hurrah.
On our trip back from Cavan on the joke’s of national routes known as the N55 and N62, we got to Roscrea and Oscar decided to puke. We caught most of it in a nappy bag and then I dropped the bag as I exited it from the car. We pulled into the McDonald’s carpark at the roundabout and proceeded to change both Oscar and Fionn.
A McDonald’s employee appeared and asked if we needed any help, we did. He headed off and got black sacks and a roll of kitchen paper. He introduced himself as Dave and stuck his card in my pocket. He then apologised for heading off but his shift was over. Two minutes later he reappeared with a cup of water for Oscar to wash out his mouth and another one of 7-Up which he told us to shake flat so it would settle Oscar’s stomach (a trick we’ve used many times in the past).
Dave then left with the message to give any of the bits to staff and to just say that he had said so. I was so impressed with this guy. All of this help was unprompted and was deeply appreciated by us. I thought he was just one of the new-style Helper’s in McDonald’s which are a fantastic addition but when I checked his card later, I found he was the manager.
Anyone who thinks McD’s are going away any time soon had better wake up and smell the lattes they now serve. McD’s are finally realising that customer service is just as important as the burgers to retain customers. It’ll be employees like Dave who make that seachange happen.
Promote this man fast – he’s capable of far more than Roscrea!
Thanks again Dave.
Technorati Tags: McDonalds, Roscrea, Ireland, Dave+Green, Customer+Service
19 Replies to "Thank You Dave"
Anthony on January 9, 2007
Impressive stuff. Good to see someone is still paying attention to stuff like this.
Conor O'Neill on January 9, 2007
Dave is actually American, which I found odd. What the hell is he doing in Roscrea? On a secret mission from US HQ?
echomadman on January 9, 2007
That guy is always super helpful, it’s quite unnerving the first time you encounter him, being more used to the surly grunts or Irish employees or the fractured english of the latterly more common immigrant employes
Conor O'Neill on January 9, 2007
Yeah, I think he helped Catherine the last time she was passing through with the kiddies too.
To be fair to the new helper people, they are also doing a pretty good job. I think it makes sense to get older people doing it, particularly older women who seem to be well used to the mayhem of children. The woman who helped us inside McD’s was very friendly.
Not to be a total corporate-loving whore but the new McD’s in Dungarvan is a big leap forward for them too. Good simple business sense – if the customers stop buying the world-view you are selling, change what you are selling and the way you sell it. They have come a long way since the late 90’s when I was sure they were on the road to bankruptcy with badly made food in horrible run-down eateries.
And yes I have read Fast Food Nation!
Barry on January 9, 2007
People in the US laugh when I say the McDonalds in Ireland are so much better than the ones in the US, but it’s true.
Conor O'Neill on January 9, 2007
It really is true but does depend on the franchisee here. I’ve been to a couple in the US and they were shockingly bad. Actually most of the fast food chains were horrible – dirty and sleazy.
On the upside at least they have In n Out Burger and the one I really want to try; Shake Shack. Also, A Hamburger Today is a great burger blog if you are a fan.
McDonalds’ Ten Commandments at Piaras Kelly PR - Irish Public Relations on January 10, 2007
[...] I was pointed in the direction of this glowing reference for a McDonald’s employee in one of their Irish stores recently. The story brought to mind something which I read recently about McDs. In his book “Treasure Hunt – Inside the Mind of the New Consumer“, Michael J. Silverstein recalls Jim Cantalupo’s bid to turn around MacDonald’s fortunes at the start of this century. Canatalupo’s aim was to refocus on the company’s “ten commandments”, which had been drawn up some fifty years earlier. I’ve listed them below because they are as relevant now as they were back; not alone for MacDonalds, but for all companies. [...]
Damien Mulley on January 10, 2007
Another pro McDonald’s story: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055032005
Conor O'Neill on January 10, 2007
I’m genuinely surprised by that – they really have upped their game.
To be honest I’m never that bothered by sullen servers as they are usually teenagers working part time for peanuts. This was done beautifully by Catherine Tate recently with an “am I bovvered?” routine.
But then I’m not Jeff Jarvis badgering staff for 58c.
Evert on January 11, 2007
Have a look here for more of the same:
http://spongebopp.blogspot.com/2007/01/im-not-only-one-loving-it.html
E.
Conor O'Neill on January 11, 2007
Seems like Dave is the man. And overall a far superior McD’s to Athlone which is also enroute for us. The one in Midleton really impressed us too.
JD on January 17, 2007
En route back to Cork from a meeting in Wexford yesterday and decided to Ctrl/Alt/Delete the diet I have been put on post-Christmas 2006 and stop in McDonalds in Dungarvan. Was pleasantly surprised. All very helpful, clean and it also has the world’s Super Turbo-charged hand dryer which will remove skin if one is not paying attention! My de riguer order is Mac’s is usually a Big Mac with Home(!) Fries and diet something beverage. It was delicious (but calorie-laden). I suppose these new places wear down over time and I will monitor progress!
Conor O'Neill on January 18, 2007
We were there a few days after it opened and it was super. Love the cube stools and the frosted glass. Very helpful too and an ideal spot when doing the N25 run.
Evert on January 22, 2007
I took a trip to the Roscrea McDonalds yesterday evening and unfortunately Dave wasn’t working. This wasn’t only obvious by his physical absence but also by the absolutely dismal service.
More on my blog: http://spongebopp.blogspot.com
E.
JD on January 22, 2007
Had a quick look at your blog, Evert & notice you have been having ‘difficulties’ with Messers. FedEx. I use them a lot in work and when they make a mistake.. it’s always a howler! More often than not they are good but true, outside urban centres they hand collection/delivery to a local lad who reckons when God made time he made plenty of it. Can be v annoying. S’pose if they provide a Tracking number it’s possible to see the progress/ non-progress of the package via http://www.fedex.com.
Conor O'Neill on January 22, 2007
As a techie, all I’ve heard down the years is how FedEx created the world’s most advanced logistics software to enable them to squeeze every ounce of efficiency out of the system. Now it just sounds like PR and hype.
Damien Mulley » Blog Archive » An Irish Customer Care Portal? on January 26, 2007
[...] being highlighted. McDonald’s seems to be getting great press recently via Piaras and Conor and even Insure.ie are getting some positive remarks from an initial negative me. I’ve also [...]
Chris on January 10, 2008
Does anyone know what type of latte machine they use in Ireland?
Damien Mulley on January 6, 2007
Wow, that’s really impressive.