Customer Service – Can you meet the Challenge?

Customer Service in Tourism – Can you meet the Challenge?

The Scottish Government’s Framework for Change for Tourism states:

‘We need to exceed our customers’ expectations so that they have a great time in Scotland and want to come back – and recommend us to their friends. In order to do that, we need to know who our customers are and what they’ll want from us. We’re in a fast-changing and competitive consumer marketplace, though, and consumer expectations are continually changing.

‘We therefore need to stay ahead of the game, keep on top of market trends and new developments and be quick to respond with development and enhancement of our own products and services. Only then can we ensure we’re always ready to exceed our customers’ expectations, however they may change, and so build our reputation as a must-visit, must-return destination.’ http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/03/03145848/4

Tourism providers are encouraged to collect feedback from customers to identify their client base, what they do well and where they could improve.  Feedback should be analysed and improvements made on a continuous basis to meet ever-changing customer needs.

Do you collect feedback and focus on continuous improvement?

It is particularly important that tourism and hospitality providers continually develop their people.  A tantalising, tasty menu, an ambient atmosphere and up-to-date decor might draw in the customers, but if the customer service does not match your customers’ expectations, they will be dissatisfied.

The people of your organisation and their skills do affect your bottom line.  It is vital that you improve and maintain the morale of your staff.  Here are a few tips on how to do this:

• Carry out an internal staff survey to understand their key concerns and their barriers to delivering great service. The principle applies that if your staff are not satisfied, then your customers will not be satisfied.
• Ensure staff involvement and participation in identifying and improving service quality. Increase the employee involvement in identifying problems and solutions and your staff are more likely to experience a sense of ownership of your service and quality problems. They will also perceive that management considers them to be important partners in providing services, empowering them to address and solve problems.

Involving service staff as partners in building a strong service culture makes it more likely that your employees will care about delivering good service to your customers.

• Create a continuous feedback loop for your frontline staff. Don’t just give feedback when something negative has happened. Your staff need to know when they are doing well. Don’t leave them to guess.
• Don’t try to shoehorn your staff in to a ‘one-size-fits-all’ operating model. Staff are motivated in different ways. Some will want recognition; others just want or need the money. Some strive for career advancement, others are seeking self esteem. Try to understand these drives and manage accordingly, or productivity and quality may suffer.

It is a team effort to improve products, services, skills and knowledge. Through a focus on continuous improvement, your business will grow and prosper by providing a competitive and exceptional visitor experience.

For your FREE workbook on Supporting Customer Service Improvements contact Michelle Fenwick by email mfenwick@protocol-skills.co.uk and the workbook will be emailed back to you, alternatively call Michelle on 01383 842254 or 07795256193.

Protocol Skills also deliver qualifications in Customer Service; check out our courses by following the link. www.protocol-skills.co.uk

Delivering Service Excellence – what’s it all about?

Last week I had the pleasure of observing one of the famed 100 Thousand Welcomes courses, run by one of our approved training providers, Ian Hunt.   Ian had kindly agreed to let me sit in on his day-long ‘Delivering Service Excellence’ session so that I would be able to pass on first-hand experience of the course.

The day started at 9.15 am, as attendees began to drift into the airy Champions’ Room at the Golf Practice Centre, St Andrews. Tea, coffee, shortbread and Ian all stood by ready to welcome them.  By 9.30 all the participants had assembled and Ian took the floor. From the start the day was very dynamic and participative, but also very objective focussed. After outlining the topics for the day, Ian had each attendee introduce themselves with their name and place of work, but also with the most memorable, positive service experience of which they had been a part.

With this interactive slant, the delegates soon warmed up, as they worked in different groups to complete the various tasks that Ian had set (from a quiz about St Andrews and Scotland – including ‘Why is the thistle Scotland’s national emblem?’ and ‘How many top-class golf courses are within a ten-mile drive from St Andrews?’ – to creating a poster and presentation of the key factors of service excellence).

The day was broken up into five training sessions:

Session 1 – Fife and Scottish tourism

Session 2 – Meeting and exceeding customer and guest expectations

Break – tea, coffee, and homemade scones

Session 3 – How to demonstrate a Positive Attitude

Lunch – soup and sandwiches at the Eden Clubhouse

Session 4 – Dealing with feedback (taking appropriate action and recording)

Break – more tea, coffee and shortbread

Session 5 – Improving in the future

Before lunch, participants were asked to reflect on their current work practices, rating themselves and looking for ways in which they could further strive for service excellence. Before leaving, the delegates filled out an action plan to take back into their workplaces and work on with their employers. Only if they send the completed forms back to Ian would participants receive their ‘Delivering Service Excellence’ certification.

A big thank you to all the employers who supported the St Andrews Skills Academy by sending along delegates, to Dorothy Murphy and the lovely staff at the Golf Practice Centre for accommodating us so seamlessly again, and of course to Ian for providing a fantastic training experience for attendees and observers alike!

If you would be interested in sending your staff on a 100k Welcomes course, or in attending yourself, please visit the St Andrews Skills Academy website or leave comments below.

100K Welcomes course running in St Andrews on 1st July

Following the response to our 100k Welcomes course taking place on the 11th June, we are running another 100k Welcomes course on the 1st July. The ‘100k Welcomes: Delivering Service Excellence’ course is intended for front-of-house staff in the tourism and retail industries, and is an ideal introduction to customer service for your summer staff.

Taking place in the Golf Practice Centre, just down the road from the Old Course Hotel, this one-day course runs from 9.30-4.15 and costs just £64.70 per person (including all catering, but excluding VAT).

Please leave comments here if you are interested in learning more about this highly-regarded course, and we will contact you directly.

**** We now have only two places remaining for this course, so please respond quickly to avoid disappointment ****

100k Welcomes Course – 11th June – 1 Place Left!

There is now just one place available for a 100k Welcomes course running on the 11th June. This course is intended for front-of-house staff in the tourism and retail industries, and is an ideal introduction to customer service for your summer staff.

Taking place in the Golf Practice Centre, just down the road from the Old Course Hotel, this one-day course runs from 9.30-4.15 and costs just £64.70 per person (including all catering, but excluding VAT).

Please leave comments here if you are interested in learning more about this highly-regarded course, and we will contact you directly.