The seats in the back of the store were a little chilly today.
A relatively leisurely Monday.
Rain was forecast for the afternoon, so we were a little relaxed, but it was surprisingly hectic, with the restaurant being fully booked at times.
Now then…
When the Tohoku earthquake occurred, I refrained from posting for a while, as I thought there was a possibility that I might share uncertain information and that it might be better not to send out unnecessary information.
On news apps, you can also find articles criticizing or causing controversy over posts made by celebrities.
Although not many people see our posts, we are still careful about what we post right after an earthquake.
I'm thinking of posting as usual, but the atmosphere is very different, so I think the risk of receiving criticism will be higher.
A photo I posted on Instagram yesterday.
I had some thoughts while working, so when a customer came to the store several times and I felt that they would understand, I would serve them latte art with a Kumamon hat on it.
I thought about using the standard design for new customers and this design for everyone else, but since it's a sensitive topic, I thought some people might find it unpleasant or inappropriate.
In the end, we were unable to reach out to everyone who had visited our store.
In posts on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, etc., I have used the term "regular customers" for convenience, but even among those who come to the restaurant often, there are some who were hesitant to serve us.
I reflected on this after the business had closed, and the criteria I used to decide whether it was okay to serve food to customers were "customers I know often follow the store's posts" and "customers whose faces match those on social media accounts and whose posts the store owner sees."
When we see their posts, we think they probably share our thoughts and have similar sensibilities to us.
The criteria were not just frequency of visits, but also "frequency of contact, including social media, and depth of relationship." People who the store felt had similar values.
The owner personally considers these people to be his "regular customers."
Regulars = People you know on social media and continue to interact with
I think this is also influenced by the fact that they don't talk much to customers in stores and that they mainly attract customers through the internet, but in an age where social media has become commonplace, I guess this way of thinking is the standard.
I was thinking about this after closing yesterday.
There are times when the store doesn't realize that customers are looking at the posts, so this is an issue that will need to be addressed in future sales efforts.
