Shazaam! The taqueria has better customer service than the golf course

How does my local taqueria outshine golf courses?
Better. Customer. Service.

And how does this happen? An owner's commitment to customer service, and point-of-sale technology that makes it easy to fulfill that commitment.

That's right. The little taqueria - it maybe has 20 seats but also has the best quesadillas in town - did something no golf course I frequent has ever done. It recognized me and anticipated what I like!

I frequent a little taqueria a few blocks away because they have killer quesadillas. I always order extra sour cream and quacamole, and a bag of their outstanding homemade chips. Most importantly, the owner recognizes and greets me when I walk in the door.

Last night got a bit late for preparing our own dinner, and we had to watch the Golden State Warriors cap their incredible season with their 73rd win. Go Dubs! So I called the taqueria to place an order. As usual, they asked for my phone number and gave me 15 minutes for a pick up time.

In the car I realized I had not ordered the extra sour cream, quacamole, and chips. And, it was not the owner behind the counter when I arrived - it was someone new. No worries - he knew who I was! And when I started to explain I had not ordered everything I wanted - shazaam! Everything I always order was already in the bag. Their new point-of-sale system had my "likes" in the system and what I wanted was anticipated and filled.

As I drove home, I started to cry. This is exactly what golf courses should be doing! I've never - NEVER - been recognized at a course I've played before. I started fantasizing about walking into a golf shop, being greeted by name, and asked, "Mr. Silverman, the last time you played you bought a sleeve of Pro V1s - we have a special this week - would you like another?" Or, "Mr. Silverman, we have a special today on the club sandwich you ordered last time you were here."

How does this happen at a taqueria and not a golf course? The taqueria owner has made a commitment to customer service - both in how he trains his employees, and in choosing a retail PoS system that enables him to fulfill his customer service goals. And there's the catch - the golf PoS systems, by and large, do not make easy this simple customer service desire, so even if the course owner/operator chooses to be just as good as the local taqueria, he can't given the crippling inadequacies of his PoS.

And so, I cried.