(This
blog was originally posted on May 17, 2016)
Photo by Rick Hustead |
On Saturday afternoon, I wandered into a branch of MOD
Pizza to check out their menu. I heard that their food is great but never
eaten there. To be honest, I was initially put off by its cafeteria-style
ordering system. Sure, it was one thing to walk along a counter and see/point
at what items you want on your sandwich at Subway®,
but I wasn’t feeling very warm and fuzzy about this set-up to order pizza.
Especially since I planned to place a phone order and pick it up on the way
back from the barn later in the afternoon. Unlike other pizza menus I was
familiar with, the various toppings were listed and the diner could just pick
and choose the ones that looked good. The price was determined by size of the
pie as opposed to what went on top. There were so many options and the print on
the menu was so tiny to read while wearing my contact lenses that I decided I
couldn’t be bothered. So I picked up a take-out menu for future reference and
decided to leave. Then something amazing happened.
One of the servers behind the counter saw me turn to leave and wished me
a great day. Even though I was obviously not going to buy one of their pizzas,
she was cheerful and gracious.
“Actually, I do have a question…” I said and headed back to the counter.
Within a minute (probably less), she sold me a pizza. I explained that I
felt overwhelmed by all of the topping choices. I was already going into environmental
hypnosis from the delicious aromas of the baking pizzas and the cornucopia
of toppings available. The last thing I wanted was to have to consider the
possible combinations of toppings when all I wanted was to order a medium-sized
veggie pizza. Talk about experiencing the pain associated with a subconscious
unknown.
No problem, the serve said. She reassured me that I could choose my
toppings right then and call in the order about half an hour before I planned
to pick it up. I could even wait to pay for it until I returned to pick my
pizza up.
As I left the restaurant I thought about the factors that sealed that
sale, as it were. Again, the stimuli in the environment—smells, sights,
sounds—definitely played a role because I was going into a light trance the
minute I walked through the door. The server’s enthusiasm and interest in
helping me to have a great experience at the restaurant was evident throughout
my visit, which relaxed me and probably facilitated the original sale. In a
final gesture of ultimate “people” and rapport-building skills, the server happily
chatted with me while I waited for the pizza to be boxed. We discussed the
great special effects in San
Andreas, which I planned to watch with a friend later, and the “fun” aspect
of other movies starring Dwayne
Johnson. I asked whether a custom pizza that one of the workers created and
named after a manager—“The Salvatore—was a marketing strategy to tie in with The Vampire Diaries.
By the time I left with my pizza, my mouth was watering and I knew I would be
back for that “Salvatore” pizza.
Talk about a good first impression. And my first MOD Pizza experience
was very good, too.
Sara R. Fogan, C.Ht. is a certified
hypnotherapist based in Southern California. She graduated with honors
from the Hypnosis Motivation
Institute in 2005. For more
information about Calminsense Hypnotherapy® and to set up an
appointment, please visit http://www.calminsensehypnotherapy.com/.
© 2017
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