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Doing More Than Expected (Even When It’s Not in Your Job Description)
Shep Hyken | September 14, 2023
By Shep Hyken As customers, we appreciate it when someone we’re doing business with does more than we expect. Even if we don’t consciously recognize it when it’s happening, the value of that “something extra” makes us enjoy the experience and want to come back. The same thing happens with employees inside an organization. You can usually find someone who seems to be doing more than expected – something that’s not in their job description. The other night, I was at a restaurant that had an outside patio. It looked like it was going to rain, so we opted to eat inside. About 20 minutes later, the sky opened up, and it ...
VAI Resort Taps Hapi and Salesforce to Deliver Hyper-Personalized Guest Experiences
HAPI | August 31, 2023
One-of-a-kind desert oasis in Glendale, Arizona, featuring an 1,100-room luxury hotel, will deploy Hapi Guest to personalize the guest experience across all areas of the resort. MIAMI and GLENDALE, Ariz., August 31, 2023 – VAI Resort, a $1 billion, 60-acre oasis featuring a 1,100-room luxury hotel scheduled to open in 2024 in Glendale, Arizona, has partnered with Hapi and Salesforce to personalize and differentiate guest service across the entire resort. The VAI operating team has selected Hapi Guest, a suite of hospitality-ready tools and configurations built for Salesforce CRM, to power a groundbreaking 360-degree personalized guest...
Meyer Jabara Hotels’ Journey Culture Reaping a 75% Employee Retention Rate
Meyer Jabara Hotels | August 8, 2023
Implementing principles of continuous cultural improvement is slashing the management company’s turnover rate through empowerment and accountability [Danbury, Conn., August 8, 2023] — Meyer Jabara Hotels is reporting a 24.20% turnover rate through the first half of 2023. With the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics citing 70% to 80% turnover annually as the industry norm, this 46-year-old hotel ownership and management group is obviously doing something right. With hotel operators still feeling the sting of the “Great Resignation,” MJH is revealing its secret to employee retention success. “Our biggest competitive advantage is wha...
12 Easy Ways to Secure More Direct Voice Reservations
Doug Kennedy | June 14, 2023
By Doug Kennedy Despite the predictions of its demise, the voice reservations channel is alive and well for all sectors of the lodging industry. For decades now, pundits have predicted the death of voice as a booking channel. First, it was the emergence of OTA’s, then the birth of the smartphone, then the emergence of the concept of imaginary “generations” based on birth year, which supposedly have homogenous attitudes about technology vs. people. And yet the phones still ring. Surely, the number of voice bookings has decreased significantly over the years as online options grow, but smart leaders recognize that direct bookings ar...
Nothing Is Free, Even Free Shipping
Shep Hyken | June 8, 2023
By Shep Hyken Free is often an illusion. It looks free and may be advertised as free, but it’s not free. I’m not saying a company that claims something is free is lying. As consumers, we must be careful and understand the difference between what is truly free and what is perceived as free. And as businesses, we must be cautious about what we promise. Let’s use free shipping as an example. I think we can all agree, free shipping is not free. Somebody is paying for it, and it’s usually the consumer. Typically, free shipping is built into the price. Sometimes, free shipping is part of a membership fee, such as...
Customer Service Is a Team Sport
Shep Hyken | April 13, 2023
By Shep Hyken The other day I was having breakfast with 11 of my friends. The server came over, introduced herself, and said, “I’ll be taking care of you.” She took our orders, and a few minutes later, a different server dropped off three of our meals. Then, two more servers brought a few more meals a moment later, and another server showed up just after that with the rest of our meals. It wasn’t until after all the meals were served that our original server came over to ask if everything tasted great. Was it this server’s job to simply take our orders and let others do the work? No! I observed all of the people who bro...
Tipping Used to Be For Good Service
Shep Hyken | April 6, 2023
By Shep Hyken The other day I was at the airport and ordered a chicken sandwich from one of the “to go” restaurants. When it came time to pay, they didn’t ask me for a tip. For a moment, I thought, “Did I go back in time?” This is just my opinion, but the concept of tipping is getting out of hand. I go to a fast-food restaurant and order a burger and fries. The person behind the counter takes my money and gives me my food. For most of my life – until the recent past – the customer wasn’t expected to tip. Today, there is an expectation, even if it is disguised as an option. I feel guilty if I don’t check one of the bo...
What Will It Take to Succeed in Hotel Sales in 2023?
Doug Kennedy | January 11, 2023
By Doug Kennedy The skills required to succeed in hotel group, event, and BT sales are going to be hugely different here in 2023, but the disruptions that have caused these changes began much earlier. Traditionally, succeeding in hotel sales was more about personality than process. Target rates were locked in well ahead of time and fees were few, so negotiations were much simpler. A focus on filling the house made it easy to get concessions approved, but since most planners and BT buyers were novices, they weren’t asking for that much anyway. Closure rates on inbound leads were much higher because initiating an inquiry required more e...
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