Chapter 9. Customer Service
9.2 Communication Strategies
Quality customer service is an experience of feeling valued or heard. Sometimes it’s an intangible component of why a guest may prefer one tourism or hospitality provider over another. There is something about quality customer service that you often can’t put your finger on — but you know it’s there. And it’s a critical factor for tourism success, both as a means of satisfying ever-increasing customer expectations, and as a way to achieve business profitability (Erdly & Kesterson-Townes, 2002).
In 2019, A Forbes article from Blake identified that, “Companies with a customer experience mindset drive revenue 4-8% higher than the rest of their industries. Two-thirds of companies compete on customer experience, up from just 36% in 2010” (Blake, 2019).
Industry Conversation: Ben Day, Director of Sales and Marketing, Blackcomb Springs Suites by Clique
In your own words, how you describe customer service?
Customer service for me is the discipline and some would say the art of the following…. Listening, Understanding, Delivering
- Listening: Find out by listening, asking questions and watching for non-verbal cues (i.e., body language) what kind of service your guest requires
- Understanding: Once you have absorbed the verbal and non-verbal cues, takes a moment to understand what it is that the guest really wants and anticipate additional touches that will go above and beyond.
- Delivering the service: The key to delivering great customer service is in the first two steps. By listening and understanding the guests you can anticipate the type of service that might just make a lasting impression. Sometimes great service is provided by empowering the guest to take action themselves, don’t assume your guest will want you to do everything for them. Some guest may prefer that you send them a link to a website or an app so that they research their options independently.
Training is critical to ensuring quality service and meeting these objectives (Brown et al., 2009). On a global scale, Canada ranks high in human resources capabilities. Unfortunately, due to the seasonal nature of many tourism and hospitality positions, and limited access to affordable and accessible training, the industry isn’t always able to take advantage of this position (Blanke & Chiesa, 2009), as it can be difficult to attract, train, and retain reliable and qualified staff year-round.
Spotlight On: Tourism HR Canada and go2HR
Tourism HR Canada is a pan-Canadian organization with a mandate aimed at building a world-leading tourism workforce. Tourism HR Canada facilitates, coordinates, and enables human resource development activities that support a globally competitive and sustainable industry and foster the development of a dynamic and resilient workforce. Tourism HR Canada has developed a number of programs and services to help students, employers and tourism workers. For more information go to the Tourism HR Canada website.
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