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How to Deal With Customer Complaints: The Perfect Thing to Say
Shep Hyken | April 21, 2022
By Shep Hyken There are many ways to deal with complaints or angry customers. I’ve written a number of articles on the different ways to do so, and today I want to add an excellent technique. The idea is to say something that lets the customer know you understand the problem, you’re in sync with their concerns, and you empathize with their frustration, anger or whatever emotion they’re exhibiting. I refer to this as The Perfect Thing to Say. This is more than apologizing and acknowledging the customer, which are steps one and two of my five-step process for dealing with angry customers. When a customer brings you a pro...
Customer Service Is More Important Than Price
Shep Hyken | April 7, 2022
By Shep Hyken “Is customer service more important than price?” That’s exactly what we asked more than 1,000 consumers in our customer service research. The response was that 58% said, “Yes.” And just to make sure, we asked a similar question later in the survey, “Would you pay more if you knew you would receive great customer service?” Once again, 58% said, “Yes.” “Please take care of me, and I’ll even pay a little more.” When more than half of your customers are saying, “Please take care of me, and I’ll even pay a little more,” you have to listen. The point is tha...
What Hotel Guests Really Want: It Might Surprise You
Venkatesh Sakamuri | April 6, 2022
You don't need the resources of a large global brand or chain to take the steps that will keep your guests coming back for more By Venkat Sakamuri What do hotel guests really want from the hotels they frequent? And what are they willing to pay more for? As we collectively move beyond the challenges presented by the pandemic, hoteliers view these questions with renewed interest. Not only has the industry changed, but the world at large has changed. So what does that mean? Surely, travel behaviors have changed to adapt to the new normal, and what guests want from hotels today might be different. Guests now crave a more customizable exper...
The Number One Customer Service Strategy
Shep Hyken | March 30, 2022
By Shep Hyken We just released our annual customer service research where we surveyed more than 1,000 consumers and asked what customer service experiences are most likely to cause you to come back. The top answers belong together: helpful and friendly. That seems pretty simple. All a typical customer wants is for someone to be nice to them, with a willingness to take care of them. How hard can that be? It seems like it’s just common sense, right? Yet we all have the customer service horror stories that are the exact opposite of people being helpful and friendly. Please keep reading, even though this is basic information....
Good Habits Are Just as Important as Talent and Skill
Shep Hyken | March 23, 2022
By Shep Hyken I recently received a note from my friend and Shepard Letter subscriber, Michael Staenberg. He commented on the recent Never, Never, Never Be Late article and sent a list of what he referred to as Things that Require Zero Talent. At the top of the list was being on time. I’ve seen lists like this before. They include being on time, having a good work ethic and a positive attitude, doing more than expected, and more. I did a little research and found similar lists that included all those mentioned above and others including being coachable, smiling, saying please and thank you, being nice, doing what you s...
Back to Class: Shep’s Law of Customer Service
Shep Hyken | March 17, 2022
Let’s go back to physics class for just a moment. Isaac Newton’s third law of motion states, “For every action in nature, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” I admit to struggling in physics, but this was one principle I understood. The other day, a friend quoted Newton’s third law, and it hit me. Not only does this happen in physics, but it also happens in business, specifically when there is bad customer service or a bad customer experience (CX). So, with that, I bring you Shep’s Law of Customer Service, which is: For almost every bad customer experience created, there is an opposite reaction by the customer. The...
Back to Class: Shep’s Law of Customer Service
Shep Hyken | March 16, 2022
By Shep Hyken Let’s go back to physics class for just a moment. Isaac Newton’s third law of motion states, “For every action in nature, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” I admit to struggling in physics, but this was one principle I understood. The other day, a friend quoted Newton’s third law, and it hit me. Not only does this happen in physics, but it also happens in business, specifically when there is bad customer service or a bad customer experience (CX). So, with that, I bring you Shep’s Law of Customer Service, which is: For almost every bad customer experience created, there is an opposite reaction by ...
A Fictional Press Release Can Be a Great Motivator
Shep Hyken | March 10, 2022
By Shep Hyken I’ve been asked many times how to get the C-suite to invest in customer service. There are plenty of good answers. My go-to response has always been, “Show them the numbers.” The C-suite loves numbers. Prove that spending $100 will make the company $200, and you just may capture the attention of a decision-maker in the C-suite. Now there is a new way to approach leadership with an idea, which is to write a Fictional Press Release. The Fictional Press Release is probably not what you think it is. It’s not a fake release with fake news. The word fictional does not refer to the contents of the press r...
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