The absolute perfect, authentic, best, most recommended, most approved product? Help me, what do I buy?

The absolute perfect, authentic, best, most recommended, most approved product? Help me, what do I buy? 

OK, I must admit that I am finally sick of the ad agencies and their creative departments. Every single product is the best out there! BUT, so are the rest.

Let’s draw an imaginary scenario. I want to buy a new toothbrush, so I hop on down to the local Shoppers Drug Mart, as I am in Canada. I identify the lane for the toothbrushes and wander down to make my pick. One particularly colorful toothbrush catches my eye and I unhook it to read about what I am going to purchase.

It is a ‘no brainer’, I gotta buy that brush. Right on the packaging it says why! Among the accolades and recommendations I find the following:

‘The brush most recommended by dentists.’  But it says that on others too! So what did they do, gather a few dentists, tell them to recommend the brush and then go ahead and print?

‘The most sold brush in America’…….so are some of the other brands, so is it sold in a specific region or what is the backup info? That, my friends, remains a secret!

‘Proven to protect from cavities’…..Who proved it? Why are all of them proven scientifically to do the same?

‘New packaging!!’……so bloody what? I need a toothbrush, not a package!

‘New, improved formula’….sounds good, what did you guys improve? Nope, no answer on that.

‘New, improved handle for better brushing’…….am I to really believe that? All of them look pretty good on the handling side to me…..

‘Special design with ‘cross brushes for greater effect’….I cross brush in any case, so why do I need the new, cross brush design? It sure looks like a great design, bristles all over the place but I am not falling for that! It all depends on how dedicated and efficient you are in daily brushing, not on the ‘cross brushes’!

So what does it all boil down to? The simple answer is that there is so much exaggeration in all advertising these days it makes me sick.

How about a bread bakery? If it’s not ‘Artisanal’ bread it’s no good?

If the frozen pizza is not ‘authentic stone baked pizza they cannot take more of your money?

Oh, and can a frozen Pizza be authentic Neapolitan pizza? I thought those were made in Napoli!

If the name of the restaurant is ‘Deep Blue Ocean’, can they take more money for a dish?

If the fish and chips are made with ‘line caught haddock’ is that worth more from your pocket than just simple Haddock fish and chips?

Another one……. ‘More value for your money’……..says who?

How about those padded guys that jump on dirt and spills in the kitchen? Does their brand of paper towels work better than the competition? Maybe they do, but you sure get fewer towels for your money, so maybe you can use two for every one if you buy cheap? And I don’t believe that a wet one can hold a knife and fork in it without tearing, nor do I believe that you can actually wash them and use again! I mean, WTF and who are you kidding?

What about the products advertised exclusively on TV? Some look really great don’t they? That is until they say….”But wait, if you order now we will double your order for free”. Why, is something so wrong I will need two? Is it so cheap that you can afford to give me another one as backup? Nope, no do buy!

So, I stand in the toothbrush aisle with a handful of brushes in my hand, all of them the best, most dentists recommended, most sold in America, newest design, newest packaging and best brushes for my teeth.

What do I do now?

I sit down in the aisle and cry! I hear someone calling for a straight-jacket………………..

HEY! I don't understand you!!

HEY! I don't understand you!

When taking part in the Mayor of Jerusalem’s panel on how to improve the foreign tourist experience, I ventured that every party involved in the chain of encounters that makes up a ‘Jerusalem stay’ must improve in every way.

Staring with all places of entry to the city I said that the train station must be clean and spotless, welcome signs in many languages and uniformed tourist agents on hand for clarifications necessary. Taxis should be in very good running condition, clean on the outside and in, all systems working. The drivers should be dressed respectfully. The same for buses and their drivers. The ‘new attitude’ I said, should filter down to all the shopkeepers, restaurants and establishments that welcome visitors.

It is not enough, I declared, that people are friendly and show warmth. Many tourists and visitors are used to a different mentality than those of the normal Jerusalemite. They arrive from places where they are used to cabs in good condition, clean, well dressed drivers, spotless shops and good service attitude.

I also added that it was absolutely imperative that as many people in service positions speak rudimentary English, and perhaps a small comprehension of another language.

Utopia, right?

I think it is attainable if everyone pulls his weight in the different professions that services tourists, and is an ever evolving improvement to be measured all the time.

Now, consider my surprise when I read in the newspaper that Brampton, a predominantly Indian city in the Greater Toronto Area is considering cancelling the obligatory spoken English test for cab drivers! Are the city councilors signaling that they want only Indian visitors to Brampton? Surely they too want guests entering cabs to be able to be understood and to be able to understand the driver?

Some will say that this is a racist attitude. Nonsense! It is a simple matter of reasonable service standards to which every service professional should be held. In many cases the cab driver is the ‘first impression’ a guest receives when arriving at a new destination. Can you imagine a tourist getting into a beaten up, dirty cab, settling down on torn seating and carpets that have seen better days………..and then not being able to communicate with the driver. Wherever the cab driver hails from he/she should have basic command of English to satisfy clear communication.

Unlike hotels and restaurants, they operate out of range of Trip advisor, so no threat from there!

Following the horrible travel experiences we are put through today (The subject of my article http://www.stayaheadhospitality.com/the-rise-of-staycations-my-thoughts ), we expect that when we do arrive at our chosen destination we would like to be understood by as many there as possible. Is that too much to ask?

And yet there are cities that think otherwise and are going backwards!

It is a fairly simple idea to understand. It is not rocket science. To develop tourism in your city everyone needs to pull together to make the experience one that will keep people coming back to your city. A modicum of spoken English is one important factor in the experience.

Complaints? Don't know the word! Only solutions.

While opening a resort hotel with four hundred and twenty rooms and ten food and beverage outlets many years ago as F&B and Executive Assistant Manager, one of the people that I still remember vividly is the onsite representative of one of the largest travel companies in Europe.

He was a very pleasant fellow but the one thing that stood out was his way of treating complaints, which, during an opening period as anyone will tell you, are numerous.

“There is no such thing as a complaint, there is only a solution.” It was his favorite way of handling a complaint, and he was right.

If you believe, as I still do, that most guests are honest, then something untoward must have happened to them for them to come forward with a complaint. In turn this means that it must be dealt with to their satisfaction or you will have an unhappy guest on your hands. Worse still, if not handled correctly, you will have a guest leaving your establishment dissatisfied which not only will lead to bad reviews across social media but will also cost you precious marketing and sales dollars in repair.

So you have an irate guest on your hands, and you may be the last person in line to handle that customer. He has already been handled by at least two of your staff and is still not satisfied that his or her complaint has been adequately taken care of.

How does you establishment take care of complaints? Is there are procedure in place, and do all the staff know what steps to take from the time a customer approaches with a complaint?

The best possible way to solve a complaint is to empower staff, even line staff, to solve them. It is not an easy thing to give empowerment to line staff, but often it is the best way to stop a complaint ‘in its tracks’. Train your staff in handling complaints and give them parameters of what they can offer as compensation for the different types of complaints. Again not easy, but this can be done with logical training. However, the staff must know when the complaint is such that it needs handling at a different level. The staffs I have been lucky to work with have virtually always known instinctively if the matter needed passing to a superior.

Giving staff the opportunity to solve the small complaints will leave them respecting your management more, and will make all those ‘niggly’, small complaints disappear before they get to you. Staff are clever and most know when a complaint is justified. They are in the best position to offer a replacement dish in the restaurant, rebate a cold soup or whatever the complaint justifies. Customers will appreciate the fast solution and no harm will be done to your reputation, something you work so hard for.

I recently picked up a takeout order from McDonalds only to find when I arrived that three orders of fries had not been included in the bag. I returned later to get the refund on my card which was done with no questions asked, and the server apologized profusely, which calmed me. What was out of the ordinary was that after processing my rebate the server handed me three coupons for free Big Macs. I did not ask for any compensation, it was offered a gesture. Will I return to that branch? You know the answer!

So, you now stand in front of an irate guest who is angered even more by having had to go through staff to get to you. What do you do now?

Here is what I have always done and it has worked for me in 100% of the serious complaints that have landed up with me……..where the buck stops.

Having concluded that the guest is telling the truth and has a valid complaint, I first apologize for this happening at the establishment I run. I do not know is an apology has been forthcoming previously, but it is a good step to take. I than ask for clarification of the actual complaint, even if the guest has already given it. I do this, as I inform the guest, so that we can learn from his experience and correct this for future guests. This gives him a feeling of ‘importance’, since we want to hear and learn, and it will, more often than not, bring out willingness to recount the incident.

While the guest is recounting his complaint, the time allows me to consider all the facts and come to a decision as to the compensation that is fair, in my honest opinion. The way I calculate this is to think of what I would want had this incident happened to me. I then decide on the maximum compensation that I would demand, and this is what I offer the guest.

I start with the MAXIMUM I would offer. I do not start any sort of negotiation on the level of compensation, but start off with the fairest offer I think suitable. It has nearly always worked for me, and oftentimes the guest is surprised by the ‘generous’ offer.

Complaints handled this way tend to sort out the ‘men from the boys’ in that if the guest still wants compensation outrageous and way above what is fair, it is now that you will see this. I again offer them the maximum that I started with, and apologize if they are not satisfied with that. But I never offer more than the maximum I would have demanded for the incident.

This method has invariable worked for me. The staff are happy that you place trust in them. They know when to pass along the complaint to a superior, and guests that do arrive at my doorstep most often depart satisfied.

It is the most sensible and logical approach to complaints. It has served me well.

Mr. Wrigley and the importance of consistency in F&B!

At the risk of sounding boring and just repeating what others have said, I write the following because lately I have visited establishments that 'think' they have all the bases covered but are a long way from managing efficiently, and in my opinion, at the risk of losing clientele and going out of business......in the end. Many fail in one or all of the subjects below.

Many restaurants and bars believe that they have a winning concept for their operations, and some do, but how long will it last?

A great food and beverage operation, even while at its' best and most successful will keep on asking questions that allow it to stay ahead of the competition.

William Wrigley was once asked why he kept on marketing his gum when he was already the largest producer and seller of chewing gum. His answer? "I market for the same reason an airline pilot keeps his engines running when once off the ground"

In the same way operations have to ask themselves what they can do better, and ask this question all the time.

Food: 
The food has to be great and consistently so.
The menu should not be crowded with choices, but each dish should be a masterpiece.
Keep abreast of trends and competition.
Prices should be competitive.
Daily presentations and tasting are a good way to ensure standards.

Beverage:
Unless a signature of the establishment, there is no need to offer exaggerated varieties of beverage, remember, idle stock costs money.
Depending on the standards, it is wise to keep a good selection of wines on the menu, and make sure you have great house wines at reasonable prices.........it will be the seller it is supposed to be if you do.
Keep abreast of trends and competition.

Service:
Every server must know each dish, the ingredients, the taste and be able to inform the guests.
Servers must know to recommend beverages and wines that suit the dishes chosen, and know the beverages and wines offered.
Servers must be well trained and friendly, they are your 'face'.
It may be superfluous to mention,  but servers must be clean and dressed in freshly laundered uniforms or clothes.
Linen must be impeccable.
Do not let a dissatisfied customer leave without resolving justifies complaints.

Maintenance: 
I have written before but cannot impress enough the importance of maintenance and upkeep.
Check all operating equipment for damage and faults: Unstable chairs and tables, lighting, HVAC, even the cutlery must be impeccable.
Create a team that checks all systems and the establishment at least once a week in depth, and daily as a habit.

Cleanliness: Make sure that everything in the facility is clean and ready to welcome guests: Floors, carpets, tables, chairs, sideboards, WC's, corridors, walls, windows, they must all be above criticism.

Criticism: Follow the comments on social media and respond to ensure better ratings.
Your clients are telling you what they think, ignore this at your peril.

So, HOW AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO FOLLOW THE ABOVE?

Putin, his personal driver and me!

A hilarious story from my time as GM of the David Citadel Hotel, Jerusalem.

President Putin visited Israel during April 2005 and stayed at the David Citadel Hotel Jerusalem.

I had the pleasure of welcoming him on his arrival and bidding him farewell on his departure.

The one humorous event that occurred during his visit actually happened in the underground car park of the hotel. The Presidential Mercedes Limousine has been flown in with the delegation, and was the talk of the hotel. It was bulletproof and equipped with high tech modern communication equipment. I wanted to take a look, so I requested that one of his interpreters accompany me down to the car and explain the gadgetry and features of the Russian Presidents car.

The car was guarded 24 hours by one of the drivers who greeted us when we arrived, and explained about the thick glass bulletproof windows, the communication gear and also that the tires were solid rubber that couldn’t be shot out.

As a joke, I asked the interpreter to explain to the driver that these cars were not very reliable, and that should it break down as expected, I would be honored to lend the President my Peugeot 407, an excellent replacement.

The burly Russian driver had no sense of humor. He looked at the interpreter as he conveyed my message, looked at me with scorn and then told me curtly, “One of the wheels of my Mercedes is worth more than your car!”

All of us at the hotel enjoyed the Russian visit very much, from the State dinner held in his honor by President Katsav of Israel, down to camaraderie with his personal Chef and members of his staff.

A sad day: The Big Mac creator has died.

A sad day for those 'Big Mac' lovers amongst us, and I suspect they are many................Michael Delligatti has died. He was the genius behind the creation of the iconic burger sandwich served so many billions of times around the world.

Why did he create the Big Mac? Simple.....he listened to his clients. So important, and something I advocated in my article 

  Losing sight of your guests needs'

A genius, he just listened................

Creator of the Big Mac dies

Independent property, can you really continue to compete as a 'Generic' hotel?

You are frustrated. You have looked at all the aspects of your independent hotel and still cannot see the way forward to a better performance and profits.

The big brands are taking over, eating away at your occupancy and eroding your rates.

You have a great operation, the rooms are clean, well maintained and everything seems to be in place to be more successful than in the past. You run a good operation. Yet that bigger success eludes you.

It may well be the time for a rethink and a ‘reboot’ of sorts.

I have seen hotels slowly sink against the big names through no fault of their own. They have renovated, increased maintenance, enlarged their housekeeping to keep their property clean and yet see their average rates slide downwards.

Why? It’s simple. More and more occupancy comes from the OTA’s because it is a more simple way to sell at less expense to the sales and marketing team. The price of this, both in terms of the rate and commissions are staggering. You cannot compete against the Garden Inns, the Courtyards, and the Best Westerns of this world. You are competing against the ‘McDonalds’ of the hotel world. Potential guests making reservations whether through the OTA’s or the hotel websites know exactly what to expect from the generic hotels. Your hotel, however, they do not know. Sure, you may have a great Tripadvisor rating and this may help but in the long run you are trapped in battle against titans.

Your website looks good, marketing material is professional, your team is on the ball and yet the situation is not to your satisfaction.

I am not suggesting that your hotel is losing or even not doing quite well in your market. What I am suggesting is that it may be time to sit down, take stock and do a rethink, a ‘reboot’ of your property and marketing strategy.

Perhaps you do not need to ‘compete’ against the big boys in the way that you are doing. After all, ALL hotels are similar in the sense that they all have rooms, beds, bars, restaurants and various facilities of one kind or another. Different standards to be sure, but similar in their category.

The things that differentiate between hotels are the service they give, and the story behind the hotel that makes it unique.

While I leave the service aspect out of this article, since that is something that good training and procedures will bring, I will concentrate on the ‘stories’.

If you have an older hotel, is there heritage behind it? Is there a story of someone famous who stayed there? Was there an historic event somewhere near your hotel? Who built the structure, and what else did he accomplish? What is your family history, and what brought you to the hotel?

Many hotels play up some of those stories to gain a USP (Unique selling point) advantage over the competitive set. If you do have a story to tell, tell it! You might want to start a theme in some rooms, decorate them with the ‘story’. Perhaps menu items from the story ‘time’, a small exhibition, photo displays…..you name it.

More and more, with the proliferation of the generic hotels, people are looking for unique places to stay. Yours could be one with a ‘rethink’.

You don’t have a ‘story”, then think of a suitable theme that fits into your town or city. Near a famous theater or cinema, perhaps that is your theme for the public areas and some rooms.

Is your town famous for artists? Get a theme on their art and carry it through the hotel.

What I am suggesting is a little ‘rebrand’ to make your property more interesting, more attractive to the web hungry crowds looking for a nicer and more interesting stay.

It could be your passport to better performance and improved bottom line.