The Secrets of Fine Dining & Relationship Growth

Greensboro, NC -- In addition to writing and podcasting, I read a ton of different blogs, sites, and books, as well as listen to several newscasts, mainly NPR.  How else do I gather the information that I scribble here without being interested in the news?  I recently crossed the path of this social, economics-driven blog, called "Relationship Economics" by David Nour.  Nour, an Emory University graduate (like myself!) poses some interesting economic questions with a social bend to them.  I like this post from last year, named "Change Our Questions."  I'm going to re-post Nour's blog entry from last April below because I occassionally experience this situation with my fiancee when we're "fine" dining.

My wife and I were at a great local restaurant recently and noticed that they were doing terrific business, while many others are suffering. I couldn’t help but wonder why?

Through a closer lens, I noticed:

• Seemingly loyal customers (you can tell, because they know the menu without having to look at it!) created by great past service which reinforce strong personal and business relationships;
• Extremely attractive ambiance where people want to hang out (casual, comfortable with an understated elegance);
• Appeal to diverse age groups (our favorite three categories: just married – still gagah over each other, married with kids – typical conversations about school issues and concerned about the babysitter back at the house, and empty nesters – free at last!)
• Diversity of menu items (notice I didn’t say quantity of menu items!)

Which made me think about some of the companies all around us: when any organization reduces staff, cuts back on travel and entertainment, minimizes its marketing or advertising campaigns, and generally shrinks its market presence, it is in a doom loop. A critical part of any company’s reputation is its brand equity – a fundamental contributor to that brand equity, is the organizations portfolio of relationships. In many companies, those relationships (within as well as external to the organization) are being ignored!  You simply cannot cut your way to growth!

How are you preparing for the market recovery?