The Tricycle of Guest Service Excellence: A Perfect Model For Remarkable Experiences
Doug Kennedy | October 4, 2024
Crafting a Unique Employer Brand for Today’s Talent Market
Veronika Mercier | August 14, 2024
Smart Strategies
Nobody Asked Me, But…No. 108 Is It Fair?; After Two Years in the Making; A Preview of My New Book
Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC | August 27, 2013
Quote of the Month By Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC 1. Is It Fair? So you bought a Hilton franchise because you believed that the Blackstone Group was a strong owner. Now, Blackstone has begun preparations for an initial public offering and has hired the Goldman Sachs Group, Bank of America's Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley to find appropriate buyers. What recourse does a Hilton franchisee have? None at all. While the franchisee can't sell his hotel without Blackstone's approval, Blackstone can sell the entire Hilton Corporation without the approval of its more than 4000 franchisees: (consisting of Hilton, Embassy Suites Hotels, DoubleTr...
Nobody Asked Me, But… No. 107: Are Franchisees Agents of Franchisors?
Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC | August 12, 2013
Manhattan's New Water Source; Brand USA Needs Our Help; Quote of the Month By Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC 1. Are Franchisees Agents of Franchisors? Did you read that a federal district court in Utah recently found evidence that a Best Western franchisee was actually the "agent" of the franchisor? The evidence was based on the fact that Best Western had strict requirements for its franchisees, showing its ultimate authority. The evidence described that Best Western had control over the buildings, grounds and public areas and how they should be kept. And it showed how the hotel chain ruled over the housekeeping department and how guest roo...
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 ...
It’s Time to Burst the Hotel SEO Bubble: What Hotels Really Need to Know / Vikram Singh
Vikram Singh | August 2, 2013
by Vikram Singh Hotel search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the most debated online marketing techniques in our industry. That's because its efficacy is hard to prove, and techniques have to constantly change to outmaneuver Google's updates. Google maintains strict control and secrecy about how they manage and update their search engine results pages. Of course, there are guidelines posted on their Webmaster Central product, and a few utterances here and there. This leaves the floor open for some serious speculation... Cue in the SEO "experts." I am not an SEO expert, nor have I played one on TV. But I am definitely a trained SEO o...
Nobody Asked Me, But…No. 106; What Is A Hotel Manager?; Quote of the Month / Stanley Turkel
Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC | July 29, 2013
By Stanley Turkel, CMHS, ISHC 1. What Is A Hotel Manager? In 1963, the Loews Hotel Corporation published a small booklet with 18 black and white photographs from vintage movies. The booklet was named "What Is A Hotel Manager?" The captions under the photographs were funny then and, I believe, are still funny fifty years later. The booklet's dedication and introduction read: Dedication: It is with deep appreciation that we thank Tom Troy, Harry O'Brien, Pierre Bultinck, Frank Berkman, Arthur Levey, Henry Judermans, John Braun and Jerry Olin without whom this booklet would never have been possible. Introduction: A hotel manager is a man o...
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What really matters to guests in resort hotels is personal transfer, wi-fi, and property safety
Status Solutions | July 25, 2013
Jennifer Dunphey and Konrad Rzasa, hoteliers, travel connoisseurs, and serial entrepreneurs, have a popular Facebook destination for high end global travel, White Collar Vagabond. From tips to traveling with your dog across borders to how to outfit your Costa Rican cabina on the cheap (get goods in Panama), the site is a treasure trove of how global citizens live the good life. Recently, in conjunction with hotel situational awareness authority Status Solutions, the pair posted a few questions to their 9,000 followers about what really matters in the boutique hotel experience. They asked questions about safety and service that are top o...
Tourism Tidbits: On Being A Great Tourism CEO and Industry Leader / Dr. Peter Tarlow
Dr. Peter E. Tarlow | July 18, 2013
Many people outside of the tourism industry tend to think of tourism and travel as an ongoing never-ending party. Yet anyone who has ever worked in the world's largest peacetime industry knows that travel and tourism professionals spend long hours at work and that travel and tourism works to a great extent like any other large corporation. Just as in other businesses tourism and travel professionals need to deal with budgets, have to justify lost opportunities and must overcome the issue of spoilage. The loss of revenue from an unsold airline seat or hotel room can never be recaptured. Travel and tourism executives have other problems t...
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...
7 Days Group Holdings Limited Completes Previously Announced Keystone Merger
Vikram Singh | July 8, 2013
GUANGZHOU, China, July 8, 2013 -- 7 Days Group Holdings Limited (NYSE: SVN; "7 Days Group" or the "Company"), a leading economy hotel chain based in China, today announced the completion of the merger contemplated by the previously announced agreement and plan of merger dated February 28, 2013 (the "Merger Agreement"), by and among the Company, Keystone Lodging Company Limited ("Parent"), Keystone Lodging Acquisition Limited ("Merger Sub"), and Keystone Lodging Holdings Limited ("Holdco"). As a result of the merger, the Company became a wholly owned subsidiary of Parent. Under the terms of the Merger Agreement, which was approved by the...
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...
Attention Vacation Rental Reservations Agents: Go Beyond Website Search Support
Doug Kennedy | June 24, 2013
by Doug Kennedy As President of a hospitality industry sales training company for most of my entire career, I have had the opportunity to conduct reservations sales training for just about every niche of the lodging industry. I have trained five star hotels and one-star youth hostels; destination hotels and all- inclusive resorts; city center and airport hotels, conferences centers and ski resorts. But there is one niche of the lodging industry that has by far the biggest need for training such as we at KTN provide: the vacation home rental industry. I recall often hearing reservations agents at my traditional resort clients saying "Dou...
Service Excellence: Four Lessons ALL Businesses Can Learn from a Five-Star Resort
Bryan K. Williams, D.M. | November 2, 2012
by: Bryan K. Williams, D.M. November 2, 2012 Have you ever experienced service so pure that you could literally feel it? Service that is unpretentious, unrestrictive, unscripted, yet seamless and professional all at the same time. Even as a service consultant, it would have been difficult for me to imagine that such a caliber of service could exist so flawlessly and naturally. I am referring to a recent memorable experience during a trip to the Ayana Resort & Spa in Bali. I wish that I could pack up a few of the staff and take them around the world with me so they can show everyone what excellence, humility and professionalism look...
World-Class Service: The Double-Platinum Rule 2.0
By Dr. Bryan K. Williams, DM | April 5, 2011
By Dr. Bryan K. Williams, DM April 5, 2011 When I wrote the Double Platinum Rule years ago, my intent was to communicate the importance of exceeding customer expectations. To exceed expectations, you must not only treat people the way they want to be treated (Platinum Rule), but treat people the way they don't even know they want to be treated (Double-Platinum Rule). I even shared some examples. Then, something recently hit me. Many people may think that the double-platinum Rule is only about anticipating needs. It is not. The double-platinum rule is also about providing information that the customer may not have known otherwise. In oth...
Customer Problem Resolution: The 100% Principle
Dr. Bryan K. Williams, DM | March 16, 2011
By Dr. Bryan K. Williams, DM March 16, 2011 When it comes to serving others, chances are that you will make mistakes occasionally. Even in the most opulent, 5-star hotels and restaurants, guests are sometimes disappointed. The same goes for hospitals, banks, nursing homes, spas, airlines, and any other businesses that serve people. The key to this seemingly unavoidable dilemma of making mistakes is how well you exemplify the "100% principle". The 100% principle is simply this: Whenever you receive a complaint or request, follow it through until you are 100% sure that the customer is happy with the resolution. It does not get much simple...
Service Superstars: Work Like You Own It!
Bryan Williams | April 20, 2010
By Bryan Williams February 2010 Years ago, when I reported for my first day of work as a restaurant busboy, the maitre'd said something to me that I have never forgotten. He said, "I want you to work in this restaurant like you own it". I remember thinking..."what on earth does he mean by that?" Not long thereafter, the implication hit me, and I never looked at a job the same again. Working like you own it means that you take pride in your work, and will never allow yourself to give anything less than excellence every time. In The Greatest Bellman I Ever Met, I wrote about a bellman who took immense pride in his job. His service not onl...
Make Each Touchpoint Memorable: Cha-Ching!
Dr. Bryan K. Williams, D.M. | April 20, 2010
By Dr. Bryan K. Williams, D.M. April 2010 A few years ago, I wrote an article entitled Engage every customer, one touchpoint at a time. The basic message was that the entire customer experience is comprised of several touchpoints. A touchpoint is any interaction between a customer and your business. For each touchpoint, you could either make a deposit or a withdrawal. More deposits equal more customer engagement, and more withdrawals equal less engagement. Pretty simple right? I even have a client whose employees give a cheer whenever someone makes a deposit...: "Cha-Ching!" I couldn't stop smiling after I heard that one. I would like t...
5 Stars vs. 4 Stars: What’s the Difference?
Bryan K Williams | January 12, 2009
by Bryan K. Williams January 2009 - Championship winning coaches have a habit of demanding excellence from everyone on their team. They never tolerate mediocrity from anyone. Incredibly high standards are discussed everyday (yes, everyday). This article, however, is not about sports. Nor is it about AAA ratings, Mobil ratings, or Michelin Guide ratings. It is about what separates very good from exceptional. I've had the privilege to work with 5-star hotels, restaurants, and spas. I have also worked with 4-star establishments. The difference between the two is like night and day. 4 star properties are reputable and very good. In most cas...
The Greatest Bellman I Ever Met…
B.Williams Enterprise, LLC | April 3, 2006
by Bryan K. Williams, April 2006 In my current role as corporate director of training and organizational effectiveness, I travel quite regularly, and am able to experience service at some of the finest hotels in the world. In fact, I consider myself to be an expert in not only assessing world-class service, but delivering world-class service as well. During a recent business trip to Chicago, Illinois, I stayed at one of that city's finest hotels, and was thoroughly impressed with the flawless execution of virtually every service detail. Particularly, I was privileged to have been "roomed" by the most professional and genuine bellman I ...
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