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by Ken Heymann
When I check into a hotel, I want to get to my room. I’m not anti-social and I'm
never unpleasant to desk clerks who are pleasant to me. But I do sometimes
wonder why I have to listen to a variety of pitches to upgrade, and I confess that
I often wonder how the clerk and I got to know each other so well that he's on a
first name basis with me.
When I go into a restaurant, I want to get my food. I want it prepared well and I
want the server to be pleasant when she delivers it. But I can often do without
the recitation of the specials and the more drawn out aspects of the process.
I understand that staff upsells to generate more revenue and, for service staff,
more tips. I just wish that companies would understand that upselling requires
my time and my attention when I’m not always pre-disposed to offer it.
There are, unfortunately, times when my objectives vary from the hotels, even
though the essence of service lies in providing what the customer wants at a
price the customer is willing to pay. But there are a number of areas, like those
cited above, when the hotel, at a certain level, fails to account for the
customer’s desires.
The challenge for hoteliers is to define those critical incidents when interests
diverge, and determine how to satisfy the customer’s desires. Sometimes,
there is common sense involved. Room Service tries to deliver meals in a
timely manner, but frequently fails to recognize that the guest simply wants the
server to put down the tray and leave the guest be rather than set the table and
chatter away. Servers know to offer pepper with salads (and sometimes,
everything else), but they rarely ask if the customer would like the meal to be
served expeditiously. Bellmen know to bring the luggage to the room and point
out the amenities, but they could simply ask whether the guest needs to have
each aspect of the room explained.
These moments can all be dealt with by simply asking “Would you like to:
consider an upgrade, hear about our specials, or have me serve the meal.” Yet
too often the procedure or policy is locked in place by an organization that has
decided that certain steps must be followed.
The critical factor then is in training the service staff to offer the possibility and
let the customer decide what he wants. Service is not a set of behaviors; it’s a
dialogue between the organization and the customer.
Ken Heymann, President Watson, R.M. TM Division, UniFocus.
Reprinted from FocusEd, Spring 2004 edition.
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