The Difference Between Limo driver and Chauffeur
There is a world of difference between limo drivers and chauffeurs. A team of chauffeurs will make your bottom line profits soar by driving repeat business to your door.
Limo drivers are often just limo drivers – employees happy with the fact they get to drive a limousine. Usually pleasant individuals, they focus more on the limousine than the service. For the most part they take services at face value and get their clients from point A to point B. They might work for a company that threw them the keys on the first day and said, “Good luck.” They have little or no specific training and are not aware of the difference it makes.
Think back to your last restaurant visit. How was the service? Was your water glass ever empty? Did you have an unreasonable wait for any aspect of your meal?
If you had good, adequate service you will recall your meal as a pleasant experience. You will certainly remember bad service – frustrating waits for condiments or forgotten appetizers. Great waiters or waitresses create truly memorable dining experiences. Friendly, attentive and one step ahead of your needs - they allow you to relax and enjoy the company of your dining companions without the worry of needing service.
A limousine is a limousine. It’s the service that makes all the difference. In selling a job, we often sell the limousine as the sparkling feature. However, isn’t the limousine just a stage where a great chauffeur performs? As an operator in the limousine industry, you have the power to set the standard of service your company will provide. You may spend $100,000 on a limousine but you can still get bad reviews for poor service. You rely on the level of service you establish as policy and the training you provide to ensure your chauffeur delivers a top-notch service.
Great chauffeurs are trained in the advanced etiquette necessary to handle special occasions. A client expects a special occasion service to be perfect the first time. Great chauffeurs perform these services confidently. They take great pride in being personal valets during the service and always think one step ahead in difficult situations. Great chauffeurs realize a Special Occasion Service starts with the letters S.O.S – a cry for help. The client is saying, “Please help me achieve my expectations by enhancing this occasion to be a truly spectacular experience I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
Great chauffeurs are the ones getting the most thank you cards and the biggest tips. The clients they service call again and specifically request them for future trips. Great chauffeurs don’t just drive limousines. In fact, they may take offense to being called limo drivers. They use limousines as accessories to consistently provide superior service to go above and beyond the call of duty.
What makes a chauffeur great? Here’s a perfect example:
Jason, a great chauffeur, is assigned a limousine service for a 10th anniversary dinner for Mr. Smith and his wife. He calls Mr. Smith a few days in advance to review the itinerary. The plan is to pick the Smiths up at their home, travel to their favorite restaurant for dinner then return home.
A great chauffeur asks, “What can I do Mr. Smith to help make this the most memorable evening of your life?” Mr. Smith replies, “I’m not really sure.”
“May I suggest sir - do you have a special song when you first met or favorite music we can play in the background?” Mr. Smith quickly agrees then mentions the anniversary ring purchased for the special occasion. Everything is to be a surprise – the limousine, the dinner, and the ring.
The more they talk about the evening’s plans, the more Jason discovers ways to help. By conversing with Mr. Smith, Jason helps choreograph an entire evening.
On the day of service, Jason picks up Mr. Smith at their residence and drives to Mrs. Smith’s workplace. Mr. Smith points her out as she exits the building with some of her friends. He waits in the back of the limousine where it’s tinted and private. Jason steps out, unfurls the red carpet and approaches Mrs. Smith. He introduces himself and informs her that he will be her chauffeur. Jason guides her across the red carpet and opens the limousine door. A smile comes across her face when she sees Mr. Smith waiting inside.
Next stop is her favorite salon. Jason escorts Mrs. Smith from the limousine across the red carpet to have her hair and nails done. Mr. Smith had previously stopped in with one of her favorite dresses and arranged the details. Meanwhile Jason and Mr. Smith prepare for the next scene by placing the ring in a champagne flute. They retrieve the perfectly chilled champagne from the trunk cooler. They set the stereo with the song from when they first got engaged. Mrs. Smith changes into her dress at the back of the salon. Pampered by her friends, she looks and feels better than she has in a long time.
As she leaves the salon, she looks over to her husband. They lock eyes with a gaze like from the first days they were dating. Jason escorts her back and Mr. Smith takes her hand and guides her inside. Soft music plays from the speakers. Jason pops the cork on the champagne and pours two glasses. He makes sure Mrs. Smith receives the glass with the ring. He leaves the couple to toast to their evening in privacy. Returning to the front, he adjusts the stereo and the Smith’s favorite song starts playing.
The mood is set. They toast. Midway through the song, Mrs. Smith finds the ring at the bottom of the glass. The emotions of a perfect evening bubble forth. Jason drives slowly so they can enjoy every moment of a comfortable ride. He makes a courtesy call to the restaurant and informs the maitre d that the Smith party will be arriving a few minutes late. They agree to hold the table and thank him for the call.
At the restaurant, Jason lines up the red carpet with the front door. As they exit the limousine Jason quietly informs Mr. Smith that he called ahead and their reservation is still intact. The maitre d greets them by name and takes them directly to their table. After a wonderful meal and romantic dining experience, they cross the red carpet to hear more of their favorite music playing from the limousine on the ride home.
Jason intercoms the Smiths to let them know they will arrive at their final destination in about five minutes. At their residence, he backs smoothly into the driveway of their quiet rural home. Getting out of the limousine, Mrs. Smith asks, “Where are the kids?” Mr. Smith answers, “Spending the night with their grandparents.” Mr. Smith slips Jason a large tip and thanks him. The Smiths look at each other once again like they are the only ones in the world. They move slowly toward the front door holding hands like a couple of teenagers in love.
Jason watches for a moment overwhelmed with a feeling of professional pride, knowing he contributed to something very special.
That’s what a great chauffeur does. They help choreograph a complete service paying attention to every detail. They never push unwanted suggestions on a client. Instead they suggest ideas from their vast training and experience and let the client decide.
Mr. Smith wrote a letter expressing his gratitude at how wonderful the evening was and how it rekindled their relationship and life. The Smiths couldn’t help but talk about it for weeks. The limousine company received many referrals.
At the end of the day Mr. Smith had spent a few more dollars than first intended. He reserved the limousine a few extra hours to accomplish everything. He added a salon visit and champagne. However, he had no regrets. Neither of the Smith’s will ever forget that evening. Great Chauffeurs realize these things and work with their clients to help enhance and stage memorable evenings to be remembered forever.
Great chauffeurs are not just born. They are created. Chauffeur training is vital. It starts with your mindset. As the operator of a limousine company, you alone have the power to set the vision and set the service standard you are willing to provide to your clients.
When Mr. Smith called to rent a limousine, he intended to have a special occasion. He never expected it to be so perfect. Are we in the limousine business? Or are we in the business of lifetime memories?
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