The Chicken Salad Conundrum
As a small business owner, I’m always seeking ways to improve my business, satisfy my customers, and make sure that people come back.
But I’m also always looking for my own creative outlets, ways to make sure my business reflects my own unique take, and ways to set myself apart from what other businesses are doing.
Hence what I call the Chicken Salad Conundrum. We have a changing menu, meaning it shifts from week to week to reflect what’s in season and our mood. Yet we quickly discovered that, no matter what else was on the menu, we HAD to have chicken salad. Why? I’m not entirely certain but it appears to have everything to do with public expectation and nothing to do with what else might be on the menu that week.
The weeks we attempted to go chicken salad-free we found we actually had complaints about the lack. Angry, angry complaints.
So now we keep chicken salad on the menu at all times. Which allows many people to stay well within their comfort zone and not try any of the other great stuff we have on the menu, but I sell a LOT of chicken salad. I mean, our chicken salad is good I will admit, but so is everything else on the menu!
An thus, the conundrum. As a small business owner is it my job to fully please people or is it my job to try and get people to try something new, as my business is quirky, unique, and new? Or do I need to find a way to do both?
I still don’t have an answer to that. And for now? The chicken salad is staying on the menu.
71 Comments
Chicken salad is much like that sweater you own. You know the one. It’s stored away every summer, and every fall it reappears in your closet. You don’t love it. You don’t hate it. It’s ubiquitous. When you wear it you don’t necessarily get compliments, but no one raises their eyebrows at you either.
So you allow it to remain in your possession through yet another season. You know eventually the tides of time will gently wash it out to sea. It will become yesterday’s object. It’s absence will go unnoticed – even by you. Its departure just another non-event in your life.
The sweater will be replaced by another, equally ubiquitous sweater – never quite awful enough to discard, but not wonderful enough to ever become your favorite.
Hi! As a small business owner, too, I can totally relate to this conundrum! I don’t serve food but am sort of service oriented business as well. I don’t have the answer but I’m leaning toward staying true to the vision and those that like it will stick around, those who are adventurous and open minded will try it, those that cannot or will not change, won’t. Compromising a little is a good thing, as long as it doesn’t create an internal conflict.
Best of luck and I will definitely try to find you when I’m out that way.
Luna
I just had a woman in today that commented on your great chicken salad and her recent discovery of your lunch options. Funny