This weekend marks a significant next step in the easing of lockdown restrictions.
When you visit a restaurant, you don’t expect to find customers washing the dishes, taking the orders and brewing coffee.
But that was the scene in one restaurant when customers realised there was just one overwhelmed member of staff on duty.
It happened at a branch of Waffle House where the only employee was trying to meet the needs of 25 hungry customers.
What resulted was an uplifting story of human kindness where some customers donned aprons and worked behind the counter to ease the pressure on the member of staff and enable him to focus on cooking the food and getting orders out at the budget 24-hour diner in Alabama.
One of those customers who helped out, Alison Stanley, later told the media: “I don’t think it’s anything special. He needed help, so I got up and helped out.”
It’s a story that ticks the ‘unusual’ and ‘human’ boxes on the TRUTH element we use on our media training courses to describe to delegates what makes something ‘newsworthy’.
And consequently, it created plenty of headlines:
The lone employee at an Alabama Waffle House was swamped. So customers jumped behind the counter to help. https://t.co/GLCEIxfvzp
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) November 12, 2019
The interesting thing about the coverage is that none of it is particularly negative. Yes, it is an uplifting story, but it also had the potential to be something of a crisis media management incident for Waffle House.
Why was just one employee working? Was the short staffing down to greed? Were customers making the food? Is this the sort of service customers should expect?
That becomes even more intriguing when you realise this is not the first time Waffle House has made headlines with this type of story. Back in 2017, a customer jumped behind the counter to make his own meal at a branch in South Carolina after waiting more than 10 minutes for assistance.
He chronicled his experience on social media where it went viral and captured the interest of mainstream media.
So, how did Waffle House escape without any really negative coverage?
Well, one of the key factors is the way it responded to the story.
The quotes provided by PR and external affairs director Pat Warner stayed clear of the defensive approach many organisations take in crisis media management situations.
Instead, he admitted mistakes, praised the customers who helped out and the member of staff who kept the restaurant running and took the opportunity to stress the brand’s values.
He said: “We had two associates scheduled to leave, however, due to a communication mix-up, their relief did not show up promptly.
“That left Ben, our cook, alone in the restaurant with hungry customers. He worked the grill and got the orders out.
“We are blessed that many of our customers feel like they are part of our Waffle House family. There is a sense of community in each and every one of our restaurants, and we appreciate the fact that they consider our associates like family.
“We are also very thankful for Ben, who kept the restaurant open. He is a testament to our Waffle House culture by always putting the customers first."
And there were also some touches of humour in other interviews. Although this is something organisations need to tread carefully with in crisis media management situations, it was well-judged in this instance.
“We really appreciate their efforts, though we do prefer our associates to be behind the counter,” he said. “The key to our concept is, we’re there to serve you, not the other way around.”
And he joked that if the customer who did the dishes was “looking for a side hustle, I hope he comes in and fills out an application.”
This could have been a story that turned out differently but Waffle House’s handling has ensured the focus has remained on the feelgood factor.
Media First are media and communications training specialists with over 30 years of experience. We have a team of trainers, each with decades of experience working as journalists, presenters, communications coaches and media trainers.
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