When being slow or too fast can turn off customers
Service delivery is an important aspect in the hospitality industry. The delivery chain consists of two processes; one is the back-end, the other the front. The front-end is only visible to customers and it is usually this activity, which comes under intense scrutiny. Not only should proper delivery of service be consistent, it must also be accurate, timely and meet the expectations of the customer. In the language of ‘Total Quality Management’ (TQM), it means “Do it right the first time.”
In today’s hectic world, speed of service plays a big role. Those ‘first off the blocks’ and the quickest to provide a response (offer), will stay on track and get to the finishing line before others. The key to success when dealing with offers or orders is to keep on the first wave of accuracy, quality and speed, and to stay there! It’s where speed aligns with customer expectations and needs. Being fast though may not be a deciding factor in certain instances. What counts is the right speed at the right time in the right place.
Serving food / drink
Fast food restaurants continually push the need for speed as their top priority. Speed of service is important not only to today’s busier consumer but also to the restaurant operator - to pick up the pace… to move the ‘next in line’, by processing payment and delivery as fast as possible. Major chains keep working to become faster, smarter and more responsive to changing customer expectations, because seconds matter and impact decisions customers make, on repeat visits. It’s all about the fast beating the slow.
When eating at a fine dining restaurant, the ‘timing’ factor can be different. Most diners want to enjoy their meal leisurely. They wouldn’t expect their food to appear immediately after ordering – except perhaps the drinks. Here, perfect pacing of the dining experience, so that it does not appear to be hurried – determines how fast or slow the service delivery should be. For that to occur, staff at such establishments should know what their customers expect. And that means, understanding what is the right “now”.
Answering the phone
The worse thing that can happen in any company is to let the phone ‘ring out’ in our ever-competitive business world; the ring of a phone is not just a call. It’s a lifeline in trading, and missing that call may end with potential business loss. Furthermore, it creates a first impression that you are unreliable or indifferent to the client’s priorities. So, let the phone ring – but not for long…since opportunity knocks, nay rings…only once.
Do you have an automated recording telling callers that their call s important to you…so important that it keeps telling them this repeatedly, even after they reach 10 minutes ‘on hold’? It actually is insulting for callers, especially potential customers to be told they’re important…when they obviously aren’t. This is no better (though less insolent), than letting the phone ‘ring out’.
Responding to enquiries
Sometime ago, I enquired from a hotel regarding the availability of a suitable meeting room to hold a seminar. Being told that space was available, I sent them my requirements and requested for a quote – which I didn’t receive even after two days had lapsed. I took my business to a competitor hotel that responded to my needs within eight hours. Since I did not get what I wanted, the hotel that I contacted first lost around Rs. 2 lakhs in revenue. The revenue loss experienced is actually much more than that, when considering that the likelihood of my booking that venue in the future has also taken a deep dive. Additionally, should a client ask for local venue recommendations, this hotel will be off my list. This kind of revenue leakage occurs all the time at hotels around the world and most hotel managers are none the wiser – because evidence of such things happening simply doesn’t show in the hotel’s available records.
Webpage loading
While a pretty design might entice ‘lookers; the threat of slow loading times can turn away ‘bookers’. Not only is a sluggish hotel website a real barrier to conversion, it also leads to poor service experiences, customer frustration and potential business loss. As customers move to mobile devices, the time to load a website is a critical part of the service delivery. If your site takes too long to load — more than 3-4 seconds, customers won’t stay on the page long enough to book a room.
Alas, most hoteliers don’t even know how high the abandonment rate is, meaning how many lookers left the hotel site for a competitor’s site.
Shafeek Wahab - Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Customer Service Trainer and Ex-Hotelier
|
|
|
|
