Have a Nice Day!!!

This happened about a year ago.

I was with a friend. Had about a 100 bucks on me. Wanted to hangout for at least a couple of hours. There is only one answer to a situation like that. A coffee place.

I went to the nearest Cafe Coffee Day outlet. The coffee was ok. The food could trouble even the strongest stomach; But all-in-all a decent enough place to hang-out. We asked for the bill. The 100 rupee note converted into about 3 notes of Rs. 10. But while i was paying the bill, i realized something written on the bill. I was hand-written with a blue ball-point pen. It read “Have a Nice Day!!!”

Come to think of it almost all the restaurants you go to have something like this written on their bills. The difference is, it’s printed along with the bill. It’s a process. Maybe the computers they buy to print-out the bill have this facility in-built. But when you see something written by hand, it suddenly seems a lot more personal. It’s as if the guy is really wishing me.

Secondly, when you see something written by hand, it does manage to catch your attention. We are so used to seeing bills, our eyes automatically dart towards the final amount first, and if that amount is more than the money you are carrying with you, you immediately check the items you are charged for hoping to find some mistake. But the rest of the bill goes rather unnoticed.

I don’t know if this was another idea by the so called marketing strategists, but it felt nice. It definitely has more effect than something printed.

I smiled.

Tipped the guy Rs. 4 and left in a much better mood.