Your task is to write a report to address the following questions for any service of your choice with which you were not happy:
1. Describe the service and discuss the reason(s) why you were not happy;
2. Discuss the importance of customer service for that service provider;
3. Identify and discuss ways how service quality and productivity can be improved for that particular service.
4. Finally, you are to provide a statement to reflect on how the Service Industry Marketing Unit has been valuable to you so far.
The service industry is complex due to the diverse choices of the customers. Customer loyalty in the hotel industry is achieved through quality services customized to meet consumer needs (Korschun, Bhattacharya & Swain 2016). It is necessary for the management to perform a consumer survey that is used in determining when there is a need for change in the organization. The learning of consumer needs is necessary towards enhanced productivity in the hospitality industry. The report evaluates my dissatisfactions in a local restaurant which made me unpleased with the quality of services in the restaurant. The management of the restaurants is required to provide the consumers with services which add value to the purchase. Customer service representatives in a restaurant should be committed to delivering products and services as per consumer request (Torres, Fu & Lehto 2014). The strict following of customer request is used to deal with cases of dissatisfaction in the hotel. The report will focus on the reasons for dissatisfaction in a restaurant and ways to improve services in the hospitality industry.
Description of the poor services
The primary focus of going to a restaurant is to acquire quality services that will meet the needs of the client. I visited a local restaurant over the weekend to relax and enjoy my free time. However, the services offered by the hotel were not proper making my stay in the hotel uncomfortable. The inviting personnel at the gate were very friendly, but when it comes to the booking process, the staffs were slow. The booking officers gave me a room that was already occupied which is an indication of poor recording. I had to go back to the reception for a fresh booking and when I found the room it appeared untidy. The foods in the hotel were not customized to meet the needs of people from the different ethnic background. After the weekend I was disappointed with the services offered by the hotel as it was not as described on the hotel website. It is important for a company to focus on correct marketing strategies that will maximize the productivity in the industry (Sheth & Sisodia 2015). The false marketing makes it hard for a hotel to meet the expectations of the consumers in the market.
Inconsistent services
The inconsistency in the hotel industry leads to dissatisfaction with an individual requiring the management to focus on developing plans that will maximize productivity. The consistency is acquired through benchmarking of the superior companies in the industry. According to Prabhakar (2017), benchmarking process assists a company in determining the appropriate function or operation that will provide effective quality production. The management is required to evaluate the departments that are leading to reduced production level in the market. It is necessary for the department in the hospitality industry to cooperate in ensuring that there is quality service delivery to the consumers. The quality policy is used for the employees to offer consistency quality services in the market (Sallis 2014). The local restaurant that I visited had issues in ensuring that there are quality services in all departments where some offered quality services while other departments offered substandard services.
Poor customer services
The customer service is used by the organization in acquiring an increased market share in the specific industry. The evaluation of inquiries assists in offering services that will satisfy the diverse customer needs. The confusion of inquiries leads to poor services to the consumers which reduce the confidence in the market. Customer behaviour is evaluated by the management in ensuring that there are enhanced products and services in the hotel (Kumar & Reinartz 2018). The post service reviews analysis is performed to acquire an insight of the satisfaction and dissatisfaction in the market. A high number of positive reviews are an indication that there is an enhanced customer satisfaction in the hotel market. The loyalty of customers is enhanced when there is a proper customer service that is capable of understanding the different needs of clients in the market (Kandampully, Zhang & Bilgihan 2015). Hotel customer service representatives are required to possess skills to handle people with different attitude and behaviours for stable performance in the industry.
Check-in issues
The check-in and checkout are supposed to be effective in reducing the dissatisfaction of customers. It is necessary for restaurants operating online to focus on the proper integration of online booking to reduce cases of people waiting in the checking in the area. The evaluation of consumer needs assists to fasten the check-in process in the accomplishment of the preferred productivity in the market. The local restaurant I attended had issues with check-ins where there were a poor recording of the vacant rooms. According to Hospitalitynet.org (2016), only 23% find rooms ready after booking for services online. The delayed check-ins in the hospitality industry has negatively impacted the customer loyalty to the business. An organization is required to develop a plan that will maximize check-in process to make clients confident with services offered by the restaurant. The delayed check-in process leads to confusion to the client with others having to pay extra charges to get a room.
Untrained staff
The training and development of employees are necessary for accomplishing the desired level of customer retention. The employees are used by the company to deliver products and services to the consumers. It is crucial for the HRM to apply work strategies that will enhance productivity level of the company (Bratton & Gold 2017). The hospitality industry requires proper delegation of duties to staff with the knowledge and skills to handle the task. The evaluation of customer complaints is used to determine the department that requires training in the hotel. In the local hotel, I attended the customer service, and food preparation department required training to offer quality services to the consumers. Parker (2014) states that flexible working policies are necessary for ensuring that staffs are motivated to offer quality services to the customers. The staff report is used to appraise the performance of the staff in ensuring that there is a continuous development of productivity in the market.
The room maintenance is necessary for a hotel to acquire an increased number of visitors. Hotels can acquire and retain clients through the focus on the rooms. It is essential to develop rooms that will enhance the perception of the hotel to the customers. The rooms provide an overview of operations of the hotel requiring developing designed rooms with basic amenities for enhanced service delivery. It is necessary for the management to ensure that the business operations deal with customer concerns towards an increased profit margin. The maintenance of hotels rooms is an important aspect of ensuring that there is a steady flow of operations in the targeted market. Continuous inspection of hotel rooms assists the management in discovering areas that require maintenance and repair (Sufi & Singh 2018). The painting is supposed to be regularly done to enhance the satisfaction level of the consumers as it makes the room appear clean and tidy.
A restaurant is supposed to focus on quality food products in acquiring the desired market share in the hospitality industry. Poor food quality reduced the customer base due to the dissatisfaction of the customers. People from different ethnic background have different food needs requiring a restaurant to prepare diverse foods. The menu provided by the hotel is required to provide an overview of the products and services offered to the consumers. According to Jannach, Zanker and Fuchs (2014) it is necessary for the management to evaluate the consumer feedback regarding the food offered to ensure customer delight. The diversity of food products assists in capturing the intended customers in the market. The preparation of food should ensure that it will increase customer loyalty in the hospitality industry. Creativity and innovation are needed for a company to acquire high competitiveness in the targeted market (Dawson & Andriopoulos 2014). The hospitality industry requires using creativity in preparing foods that will appear unique to the consumers for enhanced satisfaction.
Offering different products and services to what is displayed on the website
The product or service page in the website is supposed to provide the consumers with the information of the products and services offered by the company. It is necessary for the business to focus on developing a proper product page that will offer true information to potential consumers. It is unethical for the management to display products and services that are not offered by the company. According to Stangl, Inversini and Schegg (2016) online operations in the hospitality industry enhance the productivity of the businesses due to the ability to book products, rooms, and services online. The local restaurant provided different products and services compared to those on the website. It is necessary for the staff to regularly update the website to ensure that there is truthful marketing to the prospects in the market.
Importance of customer service
Customer service is a core value in the service industry as it assists in acquiring and retaining the clients. The following are the importance of considering customer service for a smooth flow of company operations in the targeted market. First customer service is used by the company staff to interact with customers in the market. It is necessary for the company to build a lasting relationship with consumers for a high level of customer retention (Nyadzayo & Khajehzadeh 2016). The retention level is known by the management by a survey or review by consumers regarding the products. Positive reviews are an indication that there is a possibility that the client will visit the hotel again due to the quality services. Second, the customer service is used to ensure that there is a fair treatment of customers which is necessary for accomplishing the desired production level. The staffs are supposed to follow the set company values in offering the services and products to the consumers. Providing preferential services to some customers leads to a reduced level of confidence in the market. The services provided are supposed to be similar to all consumers to focus on transparency and fairness in production (Kaura, Durga Prasad & Sharma 2015). Customer service management focusing on fairness in service delivery is needed in enhancing the competitiveness of the company in the hospitality industry.
Third, the customer service management provides an overview of the company image which is used to determine the flow of business operations. A company that has a stable customer service is able to acquire a stable brand that will assist in attaining the long-term goals of production. According to Izogo and Ogba (2015) quality customer service guarantees that there is customer satisfaction which is necessary in making sure that a company to achieve a competitive edge in the industry. The appreciating of customers for choosing the company is done by the customer service representatives. The management is required to come up with proper policies that will make the products and services offered to be consumer oriented for sustainable performance in the market (Bloom et al. 2015). Fourth customer service is used to determine the corporate culture exercised by the employees. The management is required to focus on developing an organizational culture that will enhance the productivity in the market. The organizational culture is the shared behavior in the business which determines the flow of business operations in the industry (Carlos Pinho, Paula Rodrigues & Dibb 2014). Organisational culture is used by the company in developing a working environment that is suitable for service delivery to the consumers. The employees are supposed to remain united in offering services that will be widely accepted in the targeted market. According to Rahimi (2017), the management is required to develop a shared culture that is aimed at offering quality services to the consumers. In the hospitality industry, the staffs are supposed to be united in offering quality services to deal with the issues of inconsistency in service delivery. The organizational structure used by the management is required to ensure that staffs work hard towards satisfying the different needs of the consumers.
Fifth the customer service is used by an organization in making the customers become ambassadors for the company. The customer referrals are necessary for a business to achieve a high production level in the market (Lobel, Sadler & Varshney 2016). The hospitality industry is complex requiring the staff to collaborate in offering services that are widely accepted by the existing and potential consumers. A satisfied consumer can refer a prospect to the company which positively impacts the flow of the business. The focus on positive experiences to customers is used to provide an increased level of referrals in the market. A happy customer can refer people to purchase from the company which boosts the sales volume and profit margin of the business. The focus on customer share is necessary for acquiring a smooth flow of business in the industry. Stein and Ramaseshan (2015), states that the referrals are used by the company to enhance the ability to achieve the long-term goals of production. The customer service chain is acquired when there are a large number of happy customers who offer referrals to the company.
Lastly, customer service is used to evaluate the performance of the company in the targeted market towards a sustainable performance in the market. Customer retention and acquisition in the market directly impacts the financial performance of the company (King, Chao & Duenyas 2016). Quality customer service is needed by an organization in attaining the intended financial level of the business. A continuous increase in financial performance is achieved through enhanced customer faithfulness in the industry. It is crucial for a company to develop a proper customer service management plan that will boost the financial performance of the company.
Ways to improve service quality and productivity
A competitive edge is achieved by a company that focuses on quality service delivery in the market. According to Ascarza et al. (2018) productivity level is measured by the customer share thus the management is obligated to focus on increasing the number of customers. The hospitality industry expects the top management to develop a customer service plan that assists in quality service delivery towards the achievement of the preferred productivity.
Develop customer service management policy
The customer service policy is used by the management to offer a guideline to be used by staff in offering services to the consumers. It is necessary for the management to develop a customer service policy that will boost the productivity in the market. The customer service management (CRM) systems are used to ensure that there is effectiveness in service delivery (Trainor et al. 2014). The CRM system uses technological innovation in accomplishing the set goals of production in the market. Customer service representatives are required to evaluate the feedback of consumers in continuously developing the services offered in the market.
Staff Training
The training and development of employees are used by HRM in achieving the preferred production level in the market. The productivity of a company is enhanced when there are employees with suitable skills and knowledge in the market. According to Chelladurai and Kerwin (2017), human resource management is required to provide skills to the deal with the diverse needs of consumers in the hospitality industry. The differentiated products are used y the management in achieving the desired production level in the market that will enhance the productivity of the business. The diversity of hospitality services is used in acquiring a sustainable competitive edge in the industry through customer satisfaction to people from the different ethnic background.
Offer incentives to staff
An organization is required to focus on developing a proper total reward system that will motivate employees. The HRM is required to measure the contribution of an employee based on the number of customers acquired and retained in the market. The incentive offered to the high performing employees assists a company to acquire an increased number of customers in the market (Gupta & Shaw 2014). The focus on incentives is used by the management in developing a corporate culture of offering quality services to the targeted consumers. The incentives are provided to the employees he the company attains a particular level of production. The employees are motivated to work hard towards the accomplishment of the targeted production level to acquire the incentives. The sharing of company income with the staff is used in boosting the morale of employees in offering quality services.
Reflection on Service Industry Marketing Unit
The service industry marketing unit has assisted to acquire needed information about the industry. It is necessary for companies to develop quality services that will enhance the productivity in the market. The service companies are mandated to consider customer satisfaction in accomplishing the short term and long term goals in the market (Han & Hyun 2015). Service industry marketing is significant through the offering of information about the services offered by the company. The unit assists in assessing the quality of services in the industry towards a smooth flow in the market.
Conclusion
The hospitality industry requires focusing on quality services that are widely accepted by the targeted consumers in the market. Customer dissatisfaction reduces the ability of a company to accomplish the production goals. The HRM is required to ensure that the staffs are well informed of the standard of production to enhance satisfaction in the market. Consumer satisfaction assists in acquiring and retaining customers in the service industry for the achievement of set objectives. The focus on customer service management is used to evaluate the inquiries and complaints of consumers for continuous development of services in the market.
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