The lack of competition in a business may oftentimes be considered an advantage since it allows for less pressure and ease of operation without having to worry about a neighboring business providing the same service as you. Hence the existence of a sense of business security.
While zero competition may seem like a good thing, it doesn't provide your business with the opportunity to grow but closes your eyes from the numerous potentials that your business could have.
Too much comfort results in a lack of advancement. This advancement normally should come from re-investing in the business for customer satisfaction. After all the business wouldn't exist in the first place without the customers.
Unfortunately, customer service goes down the drain because the customers cannot but make do with whatever nonchalant service is provided to them since they literally have no choice.
Such is the case of Filmhouse cinema at Akure, Ondo state, Nigeria. I went to see a movie at the cinema yesterday but was met with terrible management that resulted in a protest.
Poor Management at Filmhouse Cinema, Akure
The Cinema business is one that thrives and has become popular in Nigeria over the years due to people's passion for entertainment.
In cities like Lagos where there are lots of cinemas, the competition is high, and cinemas are constantly challenged to meet up to standard and provide a quality customer experience in a bid to not lose their customers to the competition.
Source [Credit - Jeremy Yap]
Such competition does not exist here in Ondo state as the Filmhouse cinema is the only cinema in the whole of Ondo state. There is literally no competition, hence the poor standard of customer service provided.
Perhaps the following examples will suffice.
Contradictory schedule online and on-site
Movie tickets can be bought both online and onsite, but when the schedules on both are contradictory, it becomes a problem not only for the management but majorly for the customer. After all, the consumer is the one paying for the service.
While I like to get more movie tickets online instead of having to wait in a long queue at the cinema, I decided to simply check out the schedule for the movie, Avatar: the way of water, on the FIlmhouse cinema site while choosing to buy the ticket onsite for reasons best known to me.
The schedule on-site says 4:10 pm. On arriving at the cinema about 15 minutes before the schedule, I was told by the attendant that the movie was scheduled for 5:10 pm and not 4:10 pm as stated on the site.
This contradiction meant that I had to wait for another hour for the movie. No apology was rendered.
Non-functioning teller machine
The contradiction was not the only problem. After payment had been made, the teller machine became dysfunctional, and I had to stand for an extra 15 minutes before a receipt was issued.
I was asked to go sit down, but there's no way I'm leaving the counter without a receipt. The attendant was initially nonchalant about it but eventually took it seriously after the queue became unbearable.
Ten minutes delay before admission
It is a custom to be in the cinema hall four or five minutes before the start time. For a 5:10 movie, I should be in the hall by 5:00 or 5:05 for convenience. However, the ticket verifier/security personnel didn't allow anyone into the hall for the flimsy reason of, the hall was still occupied.
We were asked to wait till exactly 5:10 before admission. 5:10 came, yet we were not allowed in until 5:12. By this time, the movie had already started, and five minutes had already passed from the movie. Thus proving that the movie had already started playing for an audience that didn't exist.
One hour and thirty minutes of blackout
The movie, Avatar: the way of water, which was originally scheduled for three hours and 12 minutes eventually lasted for five hours due to poor management at the cinema.
Barely thirty minutes into the movie, there was a blackout that lasted for one hour and thirty minutes. This resulted in a heavy protest. The manager had to exit the cinema premises out of fear for his life as he was being threatened for the inconvenience.
Five minutes of blackout is bearable, but 30 minutes to one hour reflects incompetence and zero accountability. This lack of accountability is caused by only one thing - zero competition.
A Glitch in the Matrix
After one hour and thirty minutes of the blackout, power was restored but another glitch came through. The movie did not continue from the scene before the blackout but moved forward by an estimated one hour. Perhaps it was being watched on our behalf during the blackout.
This was not rectified even after several complaints until some of the customers including myself had to go into the 'staff only' section to get things rectified.
As a form of compensation, the movie had to begin all over since the entire ordeal made the lots begin to ask for a refund since the entire ordeal had made them lose interest.
A movie originally scheduled for 5.10 to a few minutes past 7 pm resulted in a 7 to 10 pm movie. Thanks to the management's nonchalance.
Conclusion
The entire ordeal is simply the implication of a lack of competition. While several customers were frustrated by the situation, they had no choice but to sit it through since there was no alternative.
Competition causes growth. It provided an opportunity for expansion as there would constantly be a need to meet up to a standard for customer retention. In a bid to meet up to standard, there would be a comparative advantage generated in terms of customer service and user experience.