Hotels using PR jargon as a disguise to mask failure to deliver
Last December, to celebrate my birthday, my wife booked a table for the family at Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo. Unknown to me, she had blurted out the occasion as a celebrative dinner when requesting a nicely located table. The order-taker on her own accord, offered to arrange for a slice of cake to be served as a surprise. Well and good. Sadly, the delivery of the promised cake did not happen, and my wife took to TripAdvisor to voice her disappointment - posting this:
“This happened at Cinnamon Lakesides’ ‘Dining’ restaurant. When pre-booking the table for my family, I mentioned to the person who took down the details, that it was to celebrate my husband’s birthday and I wanted a table in the main area of the restaurant. She then said that a ‘slice of cake’ would be arranged as a surprise, and asked me if I wished to have any ‘wording’ on it? Thanking her, I replied “Happy B’day Shafeek” would do.
Came the evening and mid-way during our meal, the restaurant’s manager came along and asked my son” All OK?” And as it was ok upto that point, he said “Yes”. He then requested him “post a good review. “ My son said we would do that. When we all had finished eating, I asked for the bill – which should have been the cue for the waiter who attended to us, to bring out the cake. It did not happen. Instead, I was presented the check to settle”.
When a hotel overpromises what it can do and doesn’t…its brand credibility is compromised - no matter what! You don’t build a strong brand by failing to deliver. Disappointment by an expectation that remains unfulfilled is anything but positive. As a rule, the simplest way hoteliers can encourage guests to leave positive reviews is by making sure they don’t have anything to complain about in the first place. That’s the only way to be ahead of unfavourable reviews. However, let me dwell on that later.
Getting back to my wife’s posting, the response from the hotel was as follows:
“Dear Guest, Thank you for taking the time to write a review Trip Advisor and providing us with such valuable feedback. Please accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience you experienced. Please know this is not a reflection of our standard, however, we can assure you that the matter will be closed at the earliest possible and kindly be in touch with me on gm.lakeside@cinnamonhotels.com my team continuously works on understanding the unique requirements of each and every guest as you are our utmost priority. We hope we'll have the chance to welcome you back to earn your full trust. Cinnamon Lakeside Management.”
Now this is a typical PR- crafted canned draft devoid any customization, i.e.it fails to address individual concerns. A neutral response, where the words are wind: it adapts a tone, language, and content that does not address the issue or resonate with the apology. When one checks out the other negative reviews, posted for whatever reason, the stock response by the Cinnamon Lakeside Hotel to everyone, includes all that is underlined above - almost identical to what my wife received.
The psyche behind this type of response, (muddied with PR dynamics) is to spin the situation to make the hotel look like the good guy and use the opportunity to highlight its positive qualities, whilst subtly conveying the message, “We always deliver exceptional standards, but its guests like you who make it difficult for us to do that.”
The hotel’s rather pompous claim of continuously working to understand the unique requirements of each and every guest as an utmost priority - is openly at variance with what actually occurred. Begs the question: was the promised slice of B’day cake deemed unimportant and thus tossed aside?
Then there is the call for a resolution by the GM providing his / her email address and requesting the disillusioned guests to get in touch. Now that’s a smart tactic, because it invites the reviewer to discuss the matter offline, outwardly, putting the guest in direct contact with the hotel. Works for me – so long as it shifts in the correct direction - it didn’t.
The hotel GM went MIA after my wife emailed him seeking closure. Not even an acknowledgment from the bloke. Now, all it needed was a simple “My team and I, apologise for the failure to deliver on our promise during your celebrative meal at our hotel…” and the matter could have ended there. There’s nothing worse than having a negative experience with a hotel and have them brush it off like it was no big deal.
Unhappy guests deserve to know why there was an inadequacy in service. They want to be heard and given a reasonable explanation about the same. If it was a genuine mistake tell them so, Let the reviewer know that they are not just dealing with a business front, (like signing off as the ‘Management Team’), but with real actual people who are ready to listen and resolve. Show that you’re authentic and genuine by signing your name or initials.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, Ex-Hotelier
|
|
|
|
