Tag Archives: total customer experience

August 2, 2021 · 11:29 am

The Business of Hospitality: How to Cater to Each Guest/Customer Category

The hospitality domain has begun recovering from its 15 month or so pause in bookings and vacancies due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Getting back to a new normal business mode requires a refined approach to attracting and retaining guests/clientele. Hopefully, the operators will profit from lessons learned from recent history along with adequate time they were reluctantly bestowed for reflection. From the following five types of hotel guests, each requires a different approach to effectively attract them. However, in regard to retaining them, the approach is the same across the board. Seamless service and creating a pleasant total guest experience will most certainly turn them as your raving fans. Nowadays, and moving forward, contactless check-in and check-out will be expected. Exceptional service should not be merely exclusive with luxury properties. Nothing can and should be taken for granted. Do not meet guests’ expectations, instead, surpass them.

1. The Leisure Traveler

The leisure industry is the segment of business focused on entertainment, recreation, and tourism. To the leisure traveler, it is about going on holiday for fun, excitement, and relaxation ─ a vacation get-away whether for a few days or weeks. This may include relaxing on a beach or on the premises and/or going on guided tours and experiencing local tourist attractions.

Offering the guest enjoyment with the ultimate mix of relaxation and inspiration is key to winning them over repeatedly.

Along with the expectations of the staff being quite accommodating, the discerning leisure traveler in a luxury hotel expects generous property amenities and refined services such as:

Complimentary fashion house brand toiletries
Nutritious breakfast
Hair styling tools
Flexible checkout
Complimentary electronics chargers
Spa & wellness niceties
Exercise facilities
Distinctive and artistic entertainment
Custom offers
Curated experiences
Fancy bathrobes
Limousine service available
Kid-friendly rooms
Premium bedding

2. The Business Traveler

Unlike a leisure traveler, the business traveler is a hotel guest who arrives strictly for work. He or she is not there to view the sights. However, this traveler will be interested in local restaurants and coffee shops he or she can use for business and personal purposes. Typically, their days are long and full of meetings. More than likely, they’ll want to come back to their rooms to relax and have a quiet meal before doing it all over again the next day. While also in town for work, make time in their schedules for more leisure and tourist activities. The business traveler might extend his or her work trip into a long weekend and have a brief vacation before returning home.

To appeal to business travelers, keep the following into consideration:

Easy check-in: Business travelers demand a quick and effortless check-in process. Always make certain you have adequate, efficient and polite staff at the reception desk to meet this need. Consider offering online check-in with keyless room entry.

In-room business features: Fast, reliable internet along with conveniently located ample power outlets

Co-working spaces: Create spaces and perhaps restaurants too where business travelers can work or have meetings.Loyalty programs: Creating a strategy for repeat business, like offering some free nights for a minimum number of overnight stays during each check-in is one effective way to attract and create repeat business. Alternatively, extend the negotiated discounted room rate through the weekend or add a few days pre-conference to encourage guests to stay longer or arrive early.

Work with local attractions and businesses: Offer incentives like discounts at local restaurants and shops or tickets to a museum or a show.

Having a solid CRM set-up, with proper usage, will make engaging with the guests/clients seamless.

3. Families

Families that travel together want to have shared experiences. With families, there will likely be differing styles of travel and preferences within the group. The key is to have something for everyone. Think like a parent and provide in-room amenities that can keep the youngsters occupied, like game boards, books, and fun snacks. Also, offer a nanny or babysitting service and a list of family care services in the area, as well as kid and family-friendly attractions and activities, such as discounted vouchers for the zoo, aquarium, and/or museums.

In addition, offer the ability for families to avoid carrying heavy cases and flight bags by providing essential items that enable families to travel lighter. This can be accomplished with guests reserving baby/toddler equipment online via the hotel’s website. In addition to an array of essentials, such as playmats, potties, and buggies, parents should be able to also request, ahead of time, non-essentials such as storybooks, swimming jackets and even car seats requested for private transfers.

4. Event Attendees

Event attendees can be a mixture of business and leisure travelers. Some might want to attend the conference and relax alone in their rooms, and others might be looking to explore the city more in their off hours. Most often, event attendees are interested in networking with others at the event and will seek entertainment after the end of the day’s events. This is where, as a hotel operator, you can attract and retain them by providing unique experiences for attendees that they will much appreciate and distinguish you from competing nearby hotels. To entice them, offer to organize receptions and other social activities for them, prior to checking-in, and make it easy for the attendees to add on their reservation. Additional activities can include a poolside happy hour, a dinner cruise (if applicable), or other group activities at a local attraction. Provide those guests incentives and special deals such as discounts for additional night stays or an exclusive dining experience at the chef’s table of your hotel restaurant.

5. Health and Wellness Travelers

Aside from travelers in general being more aware of cleaning and sanitization due to COVID-19, wellness travelers are those who are taking a trip to promote their own health and wellbeing. This type of traveler will most likely be interested in holistic wellness packages which include relaxation, detoxing, and practicing healthy habits during their trip. Some will be more concerned with physical and mental wellbeing, therefore features such as fitness, outdoor excursions, as well as yoga classes, workout sessions, spa treatments, guided meditations, and healthy dining options could be appealing. Additionally, more people will be looking for staycation trips. As a result, hotels should consider focusing their marketing efforts on guests who reside within a two-hour drive.

Creating Loyalty through Exceptional Service and The Total Customer Experience

What good is it to be an upscale hotel establishment with generous amenities if the service is weak? The “total customer experience” is defined as the interactions and relationship between a company and its customers. The customer experience journey can include how a customer interacts with a company’s employees, facilities, and marketing, in both the real and digital worlds.

The holistic approach to the total customer experience will make the difference between a single visit type of customer and a repeat and loyal customer.

The service dimensions consist of reliability, responsiveness, assurance, empathy which characterize an emotionally intelligent and spirited staff with tangible elements in the ensuing way:

Reliability reflects the service provider’s ability to perform service dependably and accurately.
Responsiveness is a strong indicator in assisting guests and providing prompt service.
Reassurance reflects the courtesy and knowledge of employees and their ability to inspire trust and confidence.
Empathy involves the caring individualized attention the brand provides its guests.
Tangible elements include the facilities, amenities and ambiance felt by the guest directly or indirectly.

A company’s reputation for excellence in the services sector can be developed and supported, as long as the firm has a strong organizational culture oriented in high quality service, customer focus throughout the organization, as well as a dynamic set of employees. They are conscientious and committed to act within the quality standards which the company has established.

For a hospitality organization to achieve high levels of customer service and maintain constant satisfaction, it should develop and implement a structured service strategy, which covers all necessary actions on what measures and actions will be taken to:

Create a customer-centric culture.
Develop and install appropriate infrastructure service delivery system.
Identify the necessary procedures to recognize and meet the needs and expectations of guests.
Refine and encourage staff to speak with the right attitudes, skills and behaviors to internal and external environment of the company and towards the guests.
Measure – evaluate the degree of guest satisfaction.
Continuously implement practices to improve internal operations and procedures relating to excellent guest service.

Contactless Check-in & out

A 2020 study revealed that 73% of hoteliers agree that self-service tech will become increasingly more important to their business and when asked what makes a good hotel stay, 90% of millennials said they would be interested in checking-in in a hotel through their mobile phones. If those statistics were pre-pandemic, imagine what they would look like nowadays. Guest expectations are not static, they evolve indefinitely. Contactless check-in and check-out do not have to be impersonal. The experience can be seamless and pleasant, whereby the hotel staff can still remain in touch with guests even without ever seeing them in person. During─and eventually post Covid-19, guests are demanding the highest levels of hygiene, ‘sanitization’ and social distancing. Study shows that 84% of guests would feel much safer with social distancing practices in a hotel and 71% of guests are more likely to stay in a hotel offering self-service technological capabilities.

On a Final Note: Targeting the Most Profitable Segments for Your Hotel

There are five main generational segments recognized by marketers. Each generation certainly differs and each of whom have unique spending patterns and personal preferences. Their main characteristics are summarized as follows:

Credit: Hotelbeds

For advice on attracting Millennials and Gen X, reach-out to me at jdrazure(at)gmail(dot)com

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Four Forms of Business Capital: Trust Capital, First and Foremost

By James D. Roumeliotis

Businesses usually focus on three types of capital such as Financial, Human and Intellectual but you rarely hear about a fourth one ─ Trust Capital. This is when a business and its brand possess honesty and considered trustworthy by its clients, employees and stakeholders. A brand is mainly a symbol, mark, logo, name, word, and/or sentence that companies use to distinguish their product from others. However, it is a person’s perception of a product, service, experience, and/or organization which matters a great deal. For those reasons, a brand is considered a promise which is a value or experience a company’s customers can expect to receive every single time they interact with that company ─ also known as touch points. The more a company can deliver on that promise, the stronger the brand value in the mind of customers and employees.

Defining each business capital

Financial Capital can be defined as an investment asset whose value is derived from a contractual claim of what they represent. These are liquid assets as the economic resources or ownership can be converted into something of value, known as cash, financial instruments or securities. It is liquidity available its disposal to operate efficiently.

Human Capital, also known as human resources and manpower among other organizational division names/designations used, is the group of people who work for or are qualified to work for an organization—the “workforce.” Human Capital or “people talent” helps creates economic wealth for the business. Human capital also includes assets like education, training, intelligence, skills, health, and other things employers value.

Intellectual Capital also known as “IP” refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce. IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable a business or individuals to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create.

As for Trust Capital, it is an intangible asset whereby confidence in the leadership, integrity, credibility and responsibility of a business to deliver its promises to its customers, employees and its stakeholders exists. Trust capital is what the business utilizes during a setback or crisis when it needs to defend itself in an unfortunate and unexpected circumstance. The trust capital the business has built over time can help to weather the crisis of character.

Additionally, some of the most important traits your customers associate with your brand are honesty and trustworthiness. Consequently, presenting a brand that is honest and trustworthy can make it easier to gain and retain your customers. It is something that takes time and plenty of effort to build but can also be scarred overnight.

Ways to build Trust Capital

1. Adopt a Trust Agenda within the organization, led by top management. Build a strong corporate brand with leadership, credibility, integrity and responsibility at the heart of its organizational values and behaviors. Do not just making empty promises. Failing to match behavior and expected results with merely talk results in loss of credibility and trust.

2. Recognize that trust is not the same as reputation – both are equally important and should be treated so. Reputation is the backward-facing evaluation of past experiences with a company or brand. Trust is the forward-facing evaluation of consumer expectations of future experiences.

3. Focus on customization and personalization but know your limits. Trust plays an important role in both. The more a consumer trusts a brand, the more the consumer will share, and then the more personal a brand can be. Differentiate between customization and personalization.

4. Acknowledge that every consumer is value conscious and that consumers determine value, not companies. Value as perceived by consumers is what matters. All consumers want to think of their purchase of a product or service as a good, fair value. Best value is more than merely low price, nowadays it is the total customer experience and how a brand makes them feel.

5. Create brand attributes. Those attributes are what you want to share with your customers. Part of discovering your brand attributes is also defining a brand tone. Every communication you have with your customers should display your brand attributes and tone. These communications should include website content, FAQ page language, and social media posts. What differentiates your brand? It can make a huge difference in how much information customers will trust your company with.

In addition, consider ways to build customer confidence by:

Take ownership of customers’ concerns and complaints.
Reassure customers by reviewing what they have stated and confirm you understood them before working on and providing an answer or solution.
Keep customers posted in a timely manner.
Always exude calmness, be tactful and remain professional.
Encourage feedback.

In the end

The four Cs to build organizational value are Financial, Intellectual, Human and Trust. Many companies focus on the 3Cs of Capital, Financial Capital, Intellectual Capital and Human Capital. Now, they must add a fourth C, Trust Capital. Trust Capital creates value for the organization and helps protect the business when there is a credibility issue or a crisis. Trust Capital takes time to build but can be destroyed very quickly. Senior Management/Executives must think of themselves as the organization’s ‘Chief Trust Officer’. Trust is earned over a long term. However, trust can be lost quickly. Facebook, We Work, Boeing and VW are good examples of how trust can dissipate over short sighted decisions and/or poor corporate decisions. How management behaves after a crisis is critical because actions speak louder than words. However, if a brand has plenty of prior trust capital, it can eventually help stabilizes and return the situation to their trusted relationships with customers, employees and stakeholders.

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The Authentic Brand: A Precious Asset Developed Through Transparency, Customer Experience and Ultimately, Loyalty

By James D. Roumeliotis

Trust is a hard thing to come by these days whether between people or between people and brands. When the founders of a start-up build a brand from the ground-up or the executives of an established one are in modus operandi mode, taking a cautious approach to their brand image, in both scenarios, ought to be part of growing and preserving the business with a constant eye on the future.

Sadly, nonsense, and plenty of it from ubiquitous brands, is probably the best noun to describe what consumers are offered by many companies selling their products and services to them. Whether it is advertising, package labeling or an overstated pitch by their sales staff, the information presented may be deliberately misleading. With some brands, it is the tiny print in disclosure statements which defeat what is promised in larger and bold advertising headings. The majority of consumers do not read small footnotes. Think of the worst offenders of this practice: the cellular phone/telecommunication providers, insurance companies, credit card providers, as well as the automobile manufacturer promotional offers and pharmaceutical advertisements – to name a few.

Deception concealed as sincerity: How to chip away at your brand

The key to a successful business growth, along with reputation, is truth in advertising, delivering on promises made, avoiding deceit – and marketing the brand, not the product. Contrary to popular belief, a brand is not a logo, label or product but rather a relationship with customers. It is a promise. Branding, when carefully executed, adds value to a company including brand equity. This is considered intangible brand value. By applying a short-term revenue and profit strategy at the expense of long-term negative consequences, a business’s brand reputation will ultimately lose its luster.

In the 2018 Harris Poll Reputation Quotient®, published the reputations of the 100 most visible companies among the U.S. general public. What appears on the top five, among other notable brands as consumers perceive them, are Wegmans Food Markets, Amazon, Samsung, Costco and Johnson & Johnson respectively.

Consumers have high and explicit expectations from brands, thus anticipate what the brand promises via its marketing material and/or what is stated on the product packaging. What a brand actually delivers and how it behaves in the process is what consumers get to feel.

A brand which utilizes short-term sales and marketing tactics for quick short-term gain fails financially in the long-term by acting in an ethical way. As marketing maven Seth Godin rightfully proclaims, “In virtually every industry, the most trusted brand is the most profitable.” As with our personal lives, trust with branding is based on what one does, not what one says.

Boosting sales and market share via misleading and deceptive tactics

According to a 2018 Harris Poll, regarding the most and least trusted industries, Banks represented 4 of the top 8 companies by trust rating this year, with Supermarkets adding in another two of the top 8. The remaining companies in the top 8 were in the Credit Cards and Insurance industry, such that Supermarkets and Financial Services companies took all of the top 8 spots.

By contrast, TV and Internet Service Providers occupied each of the bottom 4 positions in the rankings, and 7 of the bottom 11 overall.

The food processing domain is no more honest with labels that claim to be healthy but without support with any concrete scientific facts. Food companies tout their devious label claims of organic, nutritious etc. – although an absurd amount of sugar and/or sodium is present in the ingredients along with unnatural artificial ingredients). Kelloggs even went as far as having to be ordered, by the courts, to discontinue all Rice Krispies dubious advertising which claimed to boost a child’s immunity system.

Then there is the “premium” orange juice from popular brands such as Tropicana, Simply Orange and others which are highly processed, and usually stored for several months before reaching consumers at the supermarket fridge aisles. This processing method is used to retain the juice from spoiling. However, during that process, it also strips the flavour which is injected back into the product, once it finally gets packaged, to give the juice its original orange flavour. Not surprisingly, the orange juice producers do not make any reference to this anywhere.

Informative and authentic eye-opener documentaries such as Food Inc. and Tapped have upped the ante in terms of the exposure shared with the public to what is wrong with the food processing/food chain and water bottling sectors respectively. Moreover, the GMO debate with the exceptionally well-connected and deep pocketed Monsanto (the St. Louis-based biotech giant and world’s biggest seed seller) will not be going away any time soon.

Other industries notorious for deceit are banks and cellphone/telecommunication companies with their hidden fees. These blatant revenue generators are sales at any cost – short-term gains, of course. These companies guilty of gouging seem to be testing the limits with consumers – as if the latter are ignorant. Those absurd fees evidently enrage the culprits’ customers.

Employees reflect the brand

First and foremost, trust begins with company employees. If they are well trained and treated with respect and transparency, the employees will trust their employer and radiate their enthusiasm, as well as loyalty to their customers by going the extra mile.

Along with a brand being a valuable asset for any business, people also fit into the equation as an important asset. This is where hiring the right people, on-boarding them, training them adequately and empowering them all create a positive impact on customer satisfaction.

Many brands are myopic to the point that they unintentionally and unknowingly allow their dissatisfied customers to go away without a thought. Front-line staff is either not trained properly and/or lacks the proper attitude to handle clientele appropriately.

During the industrial era, consumers would simply purchase what was produced, shopping where that product was available and paying the price the retailer demanded. In essence, the manufacturer and the store were in position of strength. As products and consumers have changed over the years, the concept of ‘brand loyalty’ and ‘consumer insight’ came about. As we progressed into the new millennium, the transparency and unrestricted information available on the internet has changed all of that. Today consumers are not only better informed but they are also in control. They can make or break a brand through their actions. So what does this say about listening – and acting?

Consumers will no longer refrain from informing companies on what may have gone wrong ─ whether it’s a particular brand or a competitor’s. With the numerous platforms for consumers to make their voices heard online, brands have to be very reactive and not allow anything to chance. In an age when the consumer’s outcries and influences spread quickly, the results can signify lost sales and a deterioration of brand loyalty.

When all is said and done

Building and nurturing a brand is what makes an enterprise gather wind under its wings. Common intelligence dictates that the way a customer is dealt with reflects on the integrity of the brand, and the image of the company in the mind of the consumer.

A “Brand” is a promise of something that will be delivered by a business. This promise comes in a form of quality, an experience and a certain expectation in the mind of the consumer. It includes the Unique Selling Proposition (USP). Marketing, on the other hand, is about spreading compelling messages to your target audience while branding is a combination of words and action. Marketing is extroverted and communicates quickly, while branding is introverted and a slow process if it’s to produce any real impact. Effective marketing activities are vital in developing a brand. When combined successfully, branding and marketing create and promote value, trust, loyalty and confidence in a company’s image, products and services.

According to an Edelman’s Trust Barometer, it was revealed that 77% of respondents refused to buy products from companies they distrusted. More disturbing is that 72% said they had criticized a distrusted company to a friend or colleague.

When customers are treated with honesty and delighted by a particular brand experience, they begin to bond emotionally with the brand. They become brand loyalists and advocates – buying the brand more often and recommending it to others. This behavior serves to build the brand’s reputation. This approach is priceless –even though it may take longer to take positive effect.

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Tag Archives: total customer experience

The Business of Hospitality: How to Cater to Each Guest/Customer Category

For advice on attracting Millennials and Gen X, reach-out to me at jdrazure(at)gmail(dot)com

Four Forms of Business Capital: Trust Capital, First and Foremost

The Authentic Brand: A Precious Asset Developed Through Transparency, Customer Experience and Ultimately, Loyalty

Deception concealed as sincerity: How to chip away at your brand

Boosting sales and market share via misleading and deceptive tactics

Employees reflect the brand

When all is said and done

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