The 3 Smartest Actions To Improve Your Customer Satisfaction Score

For any hotel manager, the goal is to create a hotel experience that feels like a respite from reality. You want be able to offer an oasis where guests can stop in and happily let your staff handle the small details of everyday life for a little while. But without all the hardworking, dedicated housekeeping staff who move behind the hospitality scenes to maintain that experience, your guests would certainly feel less satisfied, and your hotel's customer satisfaction scores would surely suffer.

So to honor and recognize the invaluable services that your housekeeping staff provides, we recommend taking these 3 smart actions to empower your team to do what they do best. Because it's the housekeepers who take care of the little things – working to keep your hotel clean and your guests happy, sometimes without ever even meeting them – so your guests never have to worry.

Today's customers start their searches for the perfect hotel on-line, dedicating time to not only comparing prices, but also to reading customer reviews and satisfaction scores. And what we've learned is that guest satisfaction really boils down to three main drivers – cleanliness, in-room conveniences and customer service.

1. Keep Your Rooms Clean to Keep Your Ratings High

   According to recent research on customer feedback from a leading rating collection software company, a hotel's cleanliness is roughly four times more impactful in customer satisfaction ratings than both location and value. Thus, the cleanliness of your hotel's rooms and the contributions of your housekeeping and maintenance staff are crucial to guest satisfaction – and key to generating repeat business.

   So keep your staff well stocked with quality janitorial equipment and cleaning supplies, including a quiet vacuum cleaner, Eco-friendly cleaning solutions (for those guests with sensitivities to harsher chemicals), and readily available odor control deodorizers and odor-removal supplies.

2. In-Room Conveniences, the Modern Little Details Matter a Lot

   A blend of good service and individual detail can go an immensely long way toward making your customers happy. And while amenities such as room service and free, fast WiFi in guest rooms are necessities these days, according to an extensive study identifying the relevant drivers of guest satisfaction, giving some attention to the rest of the room is wise as well. For example, offering your guests PTAC air conditioning and heating units that they can control with a digital thermostat will give them individualized comfort and an impression of a "with the times" hotel.

   Similarly, in-room electronic devices such as a flat screen HDTV (with the available option of paying for premium channels and content); easily accessible wall outlets (with built-in USB ports); and small appliances (such as a coffee maker, mini fridge, microwave, hairdryer and iron) signal to your customers that your hotel is evolving with the needs of its guests.

   Other hospitality supplies, amenities and accessories worth focusing on as well include massaging shower heads, memory foam mattress toppers, plush bath towels, full-length mirrors, durable luggage racks, high-quality clothes hangers, touchless trash cans, soundproof windows and motorized blackout blinds.

   And not only is it important that you offer these products and conveniences to your guests, but that you train your housekeeping staff how to keep them updated regularly and maintained in good working order.

3. Address Customer Complaints and Issues Immediately, Honestly And Helpfully

   Even the best-run hotels receive a bad review and low customer satisfaction rating from time to time. But what distinguishes them from the rest of the pack is that they use these opportunities to learn from their disappointed customers.

   Rather than ignoring or minimizing the complaints, great managers immediately address them and begin a dialogue with the guests to mend the relationship. Afterwards, they tweak their processes to achieve better customer satisfaction in the future and to turn around – and hopefully prevent – those negative reviews.

   In that same vein, managers should always be willing to accept suggestions from their housekeeping and hospitality staff. They are your eyes and ears on the ground, and activating and encouraging them to help you discover if something is not working well will improve your customer satisfaction throughout the entire hotel experience.

   Overall, if you take the time to develop a well-trained housekeeping and maintenance staff that takes pride in customer satisfaction, then your hotel is sure to earn repeat customers who will rate your property kindly and will be more than happy to spread the word of your phenomenal hotel experience far and wide.

Published on California Hotel & Lodging Association Lodging News Magazine Article – Housekeeping Issue | December 5, 2017

SOURCES USED:

1. "When it Comes to Customer Satisfaction Cleanliness Matters"
2. "The Drivers of Customer Satisfaction in the Hospitality Industry. Applying the Kano's Model to Sicilian Hotels"