Introduction
What really can be given to a well-off client to show that you recognize and appreciate their business? You might think of filling their hotel suite with caviar or the best champagne as a welcome gift but again if that is what they wanted, they would have ordered it from room service. Given then a silver-plate luggage tag with your logo on it but I doubt whether it will make it to into their junk drawer. The real question is what you can give to a client who has almost everything. For example, if a top client is to visit a hotel and he likes Johnnie Walker Black and you arrange for it and he meets it in his hotel suite, think of how he will feel.
He will want to return there later with his family simply because he has noted that the hotel knows what he wants. He may even hold a meeting here because he believes that the hotel acknowledges what he wants after a 12-hour flight.
Marketing management
In the marketing fraternity, the hotel may be considered to spend almost nothing to improve a one-on-one relationship with such high-net-worth individuals. In cases where you find that the client stopped drinking, you can arrange for milk and cookies or any other charming things in his room.
I advise you to treat them in the same way if one of your customers always dash into your agency from yoga on her way home you should buy her a deluxe spa treatment where you have reserved her family vacation.
A personal welcome letter goes a long way. Sales and marketing director of Hotel Plaza Authlenee Agnes de Bousquet says that her prosperity has a program where travel agents have personalized welcome letters placed in their guest’s rooms when they check-in. these personal letters have their handwriting. She says that these clients who book the best suites in the hotel are mesmerized to find the agent welcome them in a so personal manner. The cost of this to the hotel is next to nothing. The cost is time and thought. The benefit for your and their reputation is discernable
Hospitality management
In the hospitality world, there are some aspects that we need to look into while marketing so that one can remain in the market. In the two articles, there is the concept of the customer’s preference which is brought out broadly and clearly. We find that both articles bring out that the agent or the seller must consider what the customer or the client need. In the article by Terrero, she urges that if you are to realize or to retain your customers you have to realize or to retain your customers, you must be ready to get what they like or what makes them stay or attend to your business. They both bring the fact out that it is the service that brings the customer back to the place.
That is the good service pulls the customer to come back even with more clients. She says “… they typically want to be recognized and that’s about it. If hotel records that a top client prefers Jonnie Walker and arranges to have a bottle of it in his suite when he arrives… think of how over the moon that guest is going to feel.” (Terrero 2007)
Article two also points out the issue of a customer’s interest is considered and one should try to make sure that if the consumer is satisfied, he is likely to come back. They both say that customer’s expectation is very important to a business. “One important key to exceeding customer expects to remember that expectation is always changing.” (Customizing service pp1)
There is also a link between the two articles in that they bring one concept into place. That a seller or the agent must bear in mind that the client’s expectation changes as their needs change. They should change with these customers’ needs. “… in other cases, you man have to know that the customer has given up drinking. So instead of a welcome bottle of wine, you will arrange for milk and cookies or something equally charming to be in his room when he arrives.” (Terrero 2007.) Article two also supports this concept when it gives n example of the American automobiles industry which was the world’s standard for excellent automobiles but later the customers ran away when the industry failed to meet their standards. They did not realize this until later in theirs.
Types of customers
The article also comes up with the concept of two types of customers. That is the high touch and the low touch customers. It tries to explain that different customers will have different expectations and thus the classification. “… depending on the variables, customers will have different customer service expectations. One aspect of understanding customers is to classify them as high-touch and low-touch customers. High-touch customers require a high level of customer interaction.”
One should always ask himself what makes the customers keep coming back to his business now and then. Newmarket concepts have to be formulated to come up or to achieve the set goals. One must be able to understand his type of business well and know how to deal with the competition and customer retention in his field. One has to know whether his business has a majority of high-lobby customers or the majorities are low- lobby customers.” (Customizing service pp2), on the some, the director of sales and marketing of Athenee Agness de Bousquet says, “… these agents that are booking the best suites in the house are mesmerized that the agent was able to welcome them in such a personal manner.”
The case of a hotel is a high-lobby customer business and this means that customer expectation is of the essence here. This means that the customer must be considered as they are the ones that keep the business moving. Depending on how well you treat your customers or depending on how well you treat your customers they may, they may or may not come back. Customers stick with us for what we do to them. This means that we have to do the best that we can to see to it that we maintain our customers in very competitive businesses. This means that we have to continuously research what the customers like and try to improve on that as much as we can.
Customers are largely concerned with what they get from the service provider. It costs almost nothing to do that little additional service to the customer but the customer may find their way back to your business and a business ends up having a very good reputation. Thus in conclusion for a business to keep its customer all the time, it has to consider their expectation as they are very important.
Reference
Ruthanne Terrero (2007) Journal on Provide a Personalized Touch. Travel Agent Central Publication.