As a 5 Star hotel, you need to think about service even before your guests arrive. There are many ways to do this, but in this article I will give you some ideas how you can make your guests feel special before they even visit you.
Creating the ultimate service experience is what 5 Star hotels is all about. Lets face it – if guests cannot get the ultimate experience at a 5 Star hotel -there’s no point to their stay with you.
Competition today is hard – and as a 5 Star hotel or resort, you need to set yourself above the rest and provide your guests an experience they will not forget. The reason is obvious; giving your guests the ultimate experience will not only make them happy guests, you will create valuable ambassadors that will come back again and again! They will tell their friends and business partners about the great experience they had with you. Ultimately, they will write reviews on social medias like Tripadvisor etc, which can make or break your business.
Creating the buzz
When a guest has made a booking, it is all about making them feel special. Not many 5 Star hotels or resorts are doing this today, so this is a very easy way for you to set yourself aside from the rest. No matter if you are receiving a booking from a private couple going on a holiday or from a businessman attending a conference, everyone hopes to check in at a good hotel, and have a great experience.
Create a routine of sending out an email in the hotel managers name a few days after a booking has been made. This could be done manually, or it could be automated. Tell the guest that you are very happy he/she chose your hotel, and you will do whatever you can to make the stay memorable and perfect. Provide the managers direct number or email in case of any issues during their stay.
If you would like to stand out even more, get one of your most service minded receptionists to call the guests a few days after the booking with the same agenda as described above. You could do an old fashioned mailout by regular mail, with a nice letterhead and personalized signature. This will be noticed more than an email and will give a lasting impression of special treatment with a personal touch.
Personalization
In the email, tell your guest that you would like to hear if there is anything special you could do to make their stay perfect. Ask if there is any special occasion, if they have any special requests for pillows, toiletries etc. Make it easy for them to tell you what could be done by simply replying to that email. It is important that when you send it out, the sender name will be the hotel manager, and not just the hotel name. This will create the feeling of being a personal email to a valued customer.
Notice the recurring guests
One of the things our consultants always look at when helping 5 Star hotels and resorts, is how they are remembering guests that come back. You need to have a system keeping track of your guests. If you are able to remember your guests, and let them know you appreciate them coming back, you will be able to build a guest relationship for life, and create valuable ambassadors for your hotel. There are several ways and systems to remember your guests, but I will not go into details about that in this article. Feel free to contact me for any questions on this.
I will create another article on this subject alone – I cannot emphasize enough how important this is, so let me explain this in a separate article.
Get started today
If you are not contacting your guests before arrival already, you have to get started today! Unfortunately, most are not. As much as 80% of all 5 Star hotels are not putting this very little effort into creating a special experience. That is too bad, but again, this is an opportunity for you to stand out very easily.
