The ABC's of Guest Recovery

Today I wanted to present 20 ideas to help you respond to complaints and difficult guests with much more ease…. the ABC’s of Guest Recovery.

Act as if every lost guest’s sales come out of your paycheck.

Believe the best of your guests. Don’t make the mistake of assuming most customers are out to simply get something for nothing. The truth is, less than 1% of customers contact companies with ulterior motives in mind.

Communicate with diplomacy and tact when your final answer is “no” and when explaining company policy.   The last thing a guest wants to hear is the words “company policy” as this will leave a sour taste in their mouth any time they hear your company’s name brought up.

Don’t tell a guest she is wrong. Telling a guest they are wrong never makes them want to agree with you. It only pushes them more forcefully into their original position.

Empathize with unhappy guests and allow this empathy to season your responses.

Find a way to say “yes” to your guests. Instead of saying “no” or telling the guest what you can’t do, think critically about what you can do.

Give a token item such a coupon as a concrete form of apology.

Have a sense of urgency. Demonstrate with your words and speed of response that getting to the bottom of the problem is just as important to you as it is to your guest.

Involve guests in the problem resolution process. Sometimes it’s very helpful to simply ask, “How do you see us resolving this?”

Jot down the guest’s name and details of the problem they are describing so you don’t have to ask them to repeat information.

Keep guests knowledgeable of your timetable and progress toward resolving their problems.

Listen with the intent to truly understand your guest, not with the intent to interrupt, reply, or correct.

Negotiate resolutions that balance both the interests of your company and your guest.

Open the door with unhappy guests with open-ended questions. Make your questions demonstrate a sincere interest in better understanding their problem or experience.

Put yourself in the guest’s shoes. How would you feel if the exact same problem happened to you?

Quickly apologize. Apologize both when the company is at fault and even when the guest is responsible for the error. An apology goes a long way in creating calm, diffusing anger and regaining goodwill.  Know that by apologizing, you are not admitting wrong-doing, but that you care about what they are saying.

Recognize that the issue is not the issue. The way the issue is handled becomes the real issue.

Thank guests for their feedback and let them know that you will work to implement change to keep the same thing from happening to another guest.

View your guests as the reason for your work---not as an interruption to your work.

You are the image of company to each guest that comes through the doors. Never underestimate your power to influence their future buying decisions.

While dealing with upset guests or handling a tough situation might now always be the bright spot in your day, if you are in customer service or the hospitality industry, it is going to happen from time to time.  How you handle these situations will weigh heavily on how your business is perceived by the public. Always learn from your mistakes and use the information gathered during these sessions to make your services better as you grow.