Earlier this week, we broke our coffee pot. It’s apparently an unusual size, so we weren’t able to quickly replace it at Walmart or Target. So this week, i’ve been driving through McDonald’s every morning on my way to work to get a large coffee. I get headaches if i don’t drink a nice big cup, and it’s something i look forward to every morning. (No, i’m not giving it up!)
McDonald’s has this thing called Priority Parking. If you get to the second window and your food isn’t quite ready, you might be asked to pull up to the “Priority Parking” spot.
I used to work at McDonald’s. For two years in high school. It was hard work, and yes gross at times, but i actually liked that job at the time. So i know a little something about how things work at ole Micky D’s. If you’re not aware of this, the drive-thru is timed. Every store has a goal to minimize average wait times for each car. They might get in trouble if their average time is too high.
Here’s the thing – the timer is running while you’re sitting at the window, but you come off the queue once you move to Priority Parking. It’s just a way for them to move the people behind you through the line quicker, thus keeping their average time down. As a customer, though, i can’t help but feel the opposite of prioritized when i get moved to that spot, as i watch the other happy customers drive past me shoving biscuits or fries or straws into their mouths while i have to wait.
Oddly, during four visits this week, i have been asked to move to Priority Parking twice. Twice!! All i ordered was coffee! There is no possible way that it is quicker for anyone if they make me move forward to that stupid Priority spot. So what’s the deal? Have they tricked themselves into believing that it’s actually a special parking spot that customers want to move to?
September 25th, 2009 10:31 pm
Do you ever listen to Bob and the Showgram on G105? As a listener, I subscribe to the theory of “I do not pull up.” It’s a big pet peeve of Bob’s.
November 19th, 2009 11:47 am
Yes, Tonia, exactly what I was thinking. Bob promotes this theory and now, I support it even more after hearing about this timer crap! WTF? And it’s false data!!
And seriously, priority parking over coffee? There should *always* be coffee…