Diet Water, Melted Ice Cream, Blowfish Among Top 10 Most Unusual Room Service Requests, Hotels.com Reports

Hotels.com | June 7, 2023

Charging Four Figures by Rethinking the Guest Journey

Adam and Larry Mogelonsky | May 24, 2023

Guest Experience

The New Service Recovery Paradox: Step it Up with Follow-up

Coyle Hospitality Group | April 3, 2014

The service recovery paradox is as simple as it is timeless: A dissatisfied guest who becomes satisfied is more loyal than the guest who never had a problem. What isn't so simple is the act of service recovery itself. The hospitality industry as a whole has been committed to service recovery for some time. The brands, operators and employees all understand that things happen and that part of the daily routine is handling guest complaints. What differs dramatically though is how hoteliers handle complaints, and the ones that do it well have a distinct advantage in creating loyalty. Our study reveals where the difference-makers excel. Hot...

Can Seasonal Employees Still Deliver Great Customer Service?

Steve DiGioia | February 20, 2014

by Steve DiGioia Recently I was asked to teach a customer service training class for the new hires of a ski resort. The seasonal resort just completed their job fair and had their newest set of fresh-faced recruits all ready for work; they just needed to know how to deal with their customers. In preparation, I met with the resort's management to find out some information about the new hires, if there were specific topics they want covered and what their expectations were for the class. Here is what I learned: Job Fair attendees: 200 Employees Hired: 180 Positions Hired: ski lift operator, equipment rental associate, retail store cle...

5 Phrases That Should Never Be Used in the Customer Service Business

Steve DiGioia | December 16, 2013

by Steve DiGioia "Customer Service" is a term that too frequently is used as a catch-all for the experience received or given in today's business world. But what customer service is to me may be different from what it is to you and what you expect, or tolerate. It's strange that I mention tolerate since that is exactly what most of us have been doing when we are on the receiving-end of many service businesses. We wait in long lines because the business didn't schedule enough staff to work the cash registers. We search down aisle after aisle to find an employee so we can ask where something is or if they have a particular product in stor...

Industry Preview: Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) 2013

Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) | October 14, 2013

By Lawrence Dvorchik,General Manager & Chief Content Officer, Customer Engagement Technology World What can you expect at Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW) this year? You'll be interested in hearing from South by Southwest (SXSW) Events' Scott Wilcox, a member of the Board of Directors for SXSW and their Director of Technology, about how they create communities through myriad technologies, including mobile apps, digital signage, social media, kiosks, Wi-Fi, streaming, RFID, QR codes, and a host of custom software. A big theme of the event is Customer Engagement Must Be 360 Degrees, 365 Days a Year, an issue that Dunkin' D...

Chestnut Hotel, a Brand-New Boutique Property in Morgantown, WV Celebrates Grand Opening

The Chestnut Boutique Hotel | September 28, 2013

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA – The Chestnut Hotel, located in the heart of downtown Morgantown, celebrated the official Grand Opening this week. As Morgantown's only boutique hotel, the venue has already received excellent reviews from out-of-town guests and the local community through TripAdvisor and YELP. Located at 345 Chestnut Street, the hotel is just steps away from local shopping, theatre, museums and transportation. The property features 41 oversized guest rooms and suites. Each room is uniquely decorated, and includes luxury bedding with Tivoli Elegance Pillow-Top mattresses, 42-inch LED television with DIRECTV, in-room safe, co...

Service Excellence: Find a Way To Make It Happen / Bryan Williams

B.Williams Enterprise | August 6, 2013

"As long as it is legal, ethical, and moral, find a way to make it happen". That was the directive which was programmed into my brain very early in my career. I remember it vividly. It was on my first day of work at new employee orientation at the Ritz-Carlton, St. Thomas in 1996. The general manager passionately spoke about the need "to move heaven and earth to delight" our guests and creating memorable experiences everyday. Although I worked in a luxury property before, it was obvious that this was another level of service excellence altogether. I love exceptional service, and I love people who are passionate about giving exceptional ...

Service Excellence 101: The Smile Reserve

B.Williams Enterprise | July 12, 2013

by Bryan Williams Some people believe that they have a limited supply ofkindness. After the first ten people, for example, their "smile reserve" will dry up, and there will be no more smiles for anyone else. Their "anticipate needs" reserve will be empty, and their "learn preferences" reserve will be depleted. They feel like they can't actually be nice to every customer they meet. It's not possible! Or is it? Commuter flight Recently, I was on board a small commuter plane that was staffed with one flight attendant. The first person to board the plane was an elderly lady, and I saw the attendant give her a warm hug and big smile before s...

PAR Springer-Miller Systems Extends the Atrio® Platform with the Addition of Atrio POS

PAR Springer-Miller Systems, Inc. | June 25, 2013

The Industry's First Multi-Tenant Cloud-Based POS System June 26, 2013 - New Hartford, NY - PAR Springer-Miller Systems, Inc. (PSMS), a wholly owned subsidiary of PAR Technology Corporation (NYSE:PAR) and the leading provider of guest-centric hospitality management systems announced today the newest module of the ATRIO Hospitality Technology Platform, ATRIO POS. With ATRIO, PSMS pioneered and delivered a new generation of technology for the industry by moving the hospitality industry to The Cloud, creating a new user experience, and thereby a new way of doing business. ATRIO POS, the next generation point of sale system, reduces the Tot...