Good customer service can affect the community and make somebody's day. Walking in and having an above and beyond experience can leave one feeling good about the business and themselves.
To ignite a conversation about service in the community, Celebration! Cinema and sponsors asked customers and community members where they can find the best customer service. On Friday, the winners were announced.
“
People go to businesses that take care of their needs,” said Emily Loeks, Director of Community Affairs at Celebration! Cinema. “But we love the places where we are personally recognized and appreciated! These businesses let their customers know that they matter. They make people feel special and well cared for.”
22,205 vots were placed via online and text for award finalists in six cities. The winners are:
Lansing - BAD BREWING COMPANY: “Being a small town brewery, we don't expect a lot of attention or notice,” said Danielle French, of BAD Brewing company. “To find out that someone recognized us for being exactly what we aspired to be when we first opened the doors is a great feeling.”
Grand Rapids - FAST SIGNS: “Being nominated for the Celebrated Service Award was an honor,” said Michael Gilpin, of Fast Signs. “It was great to get to know other nominees and see a common desire to serve customers that makes our community so great. The amount of support we had from our network was overwhelming.”
Benton Harbor - MASON JAR CAFÉ: “This experience has been so much fun for us,” said Jayme Cousins, at the Mason Jar Café. “This experience really showed us how much our community supports what we do.”
Portage - CHOCOLATEA: “My customers are my team, and this has been so good for us,” said Polly Kragt from Chocolatea. “It’s been a huge boost to moral and an encouragement to focus on our core value of creating an exceptional customer experience. It doesn’t matter the size of your business; if you care about customers, you can be successful.”
Muskegon - GETTY STREET GRILL: Being a part of the Celebrated Service Award campaign for the past six years has been nothing short of inspirational,” said Ashley Veihl, of the Getty Street Grill. “We couldn’t be more proud of everyone who works here and thankful for everyone who voted. Our hearts are full today!”
Mount Pleasant- COOL DIP ICE CREAM SHOP: “We are overwhelmed with emotion right now,” said Jennifer Ames, of Cool Dip Ice Cream Shop. “To know that our customers feel that we deserve this honor for doing a job we love is very rewarding.”
The package for the six regional business recipients totals more than $360,000 in recognition and cash, making this the biggest award for service in the world. It includes a recognition package for the year on Celebration! Cinema movie screens, lobbies, website, Facebook, radio, and more. It also includes $30,000 total in cash prizes, specialized training at Zingerman’s consulting and training business, ZingTrain (Ann Arbor), and movie watch parties for the employees of the business recipients. More about the award can be found at www.celebratedservice.com.
“There is no script or formula for providing celebrated service,” says Emily Loeks, Director of Community Affairs for Celebration! Cinema. “It requires genuine connection and creativity. We hope that telling stories about places and people that get it right help us to continue to grow a culture that we are proud of in this region. We’d like to thank each of our award finalists for inspiring us.”
