dir="ltr">Providing great customer service has long been a priority for fast food chain Chick-fil-A, and it’s no surprise that the brand has once again been recognized as the top dog among its competitors. In the America’s Best Customer Service 2019 report compiled by Newsweek and Statista, Chick-fil-A beat out runner-up Sonic and Arby’s, which came up third. The survey of 20,000 revealed that customers still greatly value that personal touch when it comes to brand interactions.
“As we examined the larger, impersonal forces that are transforming retail, it seemed like a good time to recognize a more personal factor in business success: the ways in which many companies nurture their relationships with consumers,” Newsweek’s global editor-in-chief Nancy Cooper wrote in an open letter accompanying survey findings.
At Chick-fil-A, restaurant employees don’t rush through orders, throwing meals at patrons with scowls on their faces. Instead, workers take their time and put care into putting orders together, saying “my pleasure” in return for every “thank you” they hear. On its corporate website, a quote from the chain’s founder, S. Truett Cathy, proclaims that “we should be about more than just selling chicken. We should be a part of our customers’ lives and the communities in which we serve.” Based on the results of Newsweek’s recent survey, and others that came before it, it’s evident that the brand executes on its founder’s promise through day-to-day operations.
The brand not only excelled in its own “fast food restaurant chain” category, earning a score of 9.11, but also received the top score among competitors across other categories, including “bagel and sandwich chains,” “casual restaurant dining chains,” “doughnut chains,” “movie theaters,” “upscale chain restaurants,” “buffet restaurants,” “coffeehouse chains,” “fast casual restaurant chains,” “ice cream and frozen yogurt stores,” and “pizza chains.”