A tale of hotel customer service
It’s great to start the year with a nice story of a positive hotel customer service experience! This was not a five star hotel, but was more importantly a business that did not focus on stars but focused on people.
The hotel was in Istanbul Turkey, how did they get it so right?
- The hotel description and outline of services was clear, correct and helpful. The email confirmation gave lots of useful information and was written in clear English with a genuine feeling of help and warmth.
- A few days before we travelled, another email reminder arrived with suggestions of places to visit in the area, a map of how to find the hotel and also an offer of an airport pick up at a reasonable price. This was useful as we don't know the city and a door to door service took the uncertainty and stress out of our journey. The fixed price was also handy as they confirmed they would just add it to our bill.
- On arrival they noticed us at the door and came to greet us there and help with luggage. We were seated and provided with hot drinks as we filled our registrations. At this time they told us about the hotel, advised us that breakfast was included,
- That little bit extra all the time, this hotel always made a point of surprising you with a little extra value along the way, Providing afternoon tea and snacks for free, We stayed over the new year and they left a small gift in the room - all unexpected and nice with no over sell or promotion in advance.
- Pricing, value for money and consistency of service delivery all spot on. Every member of staff always made eye contact and greeted us at every occasion including managers, bell boys, and housekeeping staff. The staffs kept the rooms and public areas very clean and tidy - a feeling that everybody cared.
The overall experience of the hotel was
- Memorable
- The service delivery and value was in deemed in excess of the price we paid
- The little surprises and added value were great
- The anticipation of client needs and possible worries were all taken into account and planned for.
- Sensible (if not cheap) in room mini-bar prices.
- The overall experience was not an accident, it was clear that a lot of work has been put into recruitment, training and development of the team and hotel operations.
- What did the extra value noticed cost the hotel?
Very Little!
- A little extra time in providing extra information emails.
- A few cups of tea, coffee and snacks.
- A little extra time spent with customers at arrival.
- Staff doing their jobs, knowing what is expected and quality control from management. Great training for the team.
- Staff focusing on the clients needs at all time.
It’s all from recruiting with care, great training, coaching and providing the team a roadmap and quality control. Hotels.... Don't focus on stars focus instead on people.
Source: External
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