Waiting Time - Good Times & Bad Times

Bad times are whenever the customer is made to wait. Understandably, they don't like it, but as reasonable beings, they'll do it - up to a point. Beyond that, though, comes trouble.

In study after study, we've seen that the single most important factor in determining a shopper's opinion of the service he or she receives is waiting time. If shoppers think the wait wasn't too bad, they'll feel as though they were treated capably, and well. If the wait went on too long, they feel as though the service was poor and inept.

Quite simply, a short wait enhances the entire shopping experience and a long one poisons it.

- Paco Underhill, from the Book Why We Buy, The Science of Shopping