When you ask a guest their preference you get one of two answers: 1. I don't know or 2. I am open to anything.
In my entire career as a concierge this was the one thing that always both baffled me and annoyed me. How can you not have an opinion either way? Why don't you know? Do you ever make decisions? Please come back when you have more information. These are all things that go through my head when I get a guest of this type.
Let me give you an example:
Me: What type of cuisine are you looking for?
Guest: I don't know, something good. We like everything.
That is not an answer! It gets worse though.
Me: There is a great seafood restaurant at XYZ Hotel, they have excellent service and ambiance, would you like me to book a reservation for you?
Guest: I don't like seafood. What else?
Me: Okay, there is also a great steakhouse located at the same hotel.
Guest: We had steak last night.
ARE YOU SERIOUS? You said you like everything and you wanted food that tastes good. Maybe I should start asking what type of cuisine AREN'T you looking for? Let's just cut to the chase.
Moral of this story is, guests will never know what they want so it is important to ask probing questions. Example:
Me: What type of cuisine are you looking for? Steak, seafood, Italian....?
Guest: Well, I don't like seafood and we had steak last night. Italian sounds good.
Me: Excellent, there is a great Italian restaurant at ABC Hotel, they are known for having an excellent lasagna. May I make a reservation for you?
Saves a lot of trouble to make suggestions first instead of asking the guest. In the end it is the concierge who makes decisions for the guest while making the guest feel that they made the decisions on their own.
Friday, March 8, 2013
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Outsourced Vs Hotel Concierge
There has been a lot of controversy about the value an outsourced concierge team brings to hotel guests vs hotel employed concierge. The argument against outsourced concierges such as Vegas.com, EBG and Expedia is that they don't have the guests best interest in mind. An article from the Wall Street Journal back in 2006, "The Concierge's Secret Agenda" goes into detail.
I started my career as an outsourced concierge and I am now employed by a hotel and I would like to give my take on this matter.
One of the concerns brought up in the article is that outsourced concierges have no loyalty to their property. Instead, their loyalty lies with vendors and that pay the highest commission or products and services they themselves sell (i.e. tours provided by the outsourced company)
People say they don't have the guests best interest in mind. Here is why I don't agree. When I worked for the outsourced company it was still a rule that we had to promote restaurants within our hotel first and then our sister properties which is exactly what they tell you to do if you are employed by a hotel concierge. If you really think about it, this is not necessarily what is best for the guest because of financial constraints or other issues, but that is what the rule is.
As for tours, although some of the outsourced companies do have their own tours they like to provide I see it as an advantage. They sometimes are able to offer discounts that maybe you couldn't get if you used another vendor. When it comes to hotel concierges, the hotel itself doesn't own a tour company, but they still have a short list of preferred vendors they MUST use to avoid liability issues. Again, this is not giving the guest full choice over their plans and not always in their best interests.
When it comes to show tickets, I do agree that the mark up on the tickets from outsourced concierge companies are sometimes crazy, but there is always a charge for convenience. Hotel concierges either have their own in house ticket program for their own properties or they must pick up the phone and call. It depends on who the box office decides to use as their ticketing system whether it will be cheaper to buy them direct or through an outsourced concierge. Again sometimes these outsourced concierge desks get great deals on tickets that you can't get by calling direct.
Another area where the two differ is the arrangement of in-room amenities. While at a hotel run concierge desk you may be able to place a request for rose petals, electric candles and a half dozen chocolate covered strawberries to be placed in your room so you can propose to your girlfriend, at an outsourced desk you may be transferred to room service. That can be a huge inconvenience.
Here are the things that never change no matter who you work for. When a guest needs a boarding pass both types of concierge teams will go to the same place online to print them. Once a restaurant is chosen, both will still need to pick up that phone or book a reservation on Open Table. When a guest needs a taxi, you tell them to walk out the front doors and one will be waiting. When a guest needs a shuttle you tell them the cost is 8 dollars and they can catch it outside.
What I have noticed from being in the industry is that where a lot of the outsourced concierge desks are located, there really isn't a high demand for the concierge so they will not be faced with the challenge of a lot of these more detailed requests like room setups for proposals, anniversaries, etc. I do believe that if the demand does present itself, the hotels who chose outsourced companies should require them to do the tasks. I think that this silly argument should stop, because whether outsourced or hotel employed, we still do carry the title of concierge and we are still there to help guests whether or not anyone thinks that either side has a hidden agenda.
I started my career as an outsourced concierge and I am now employed by a hotel and I would like to give my take on this matter.
One of the concerns brought up in the article is that outsourced concierges have no loyalty to their property. Instead, their loyalty lies with vendors and that pay the highest commission or products and services they themselves sell (i.e. tours provided by the outsourced company)
People say they don't have the guests best interest in mind. Here is why I don't agree. When I worked for the outsourced company it was still a rule that we had to promote restaurants within our hotel first and then our sister properties which is exactly what they tell you to do if you are employed by a hotel concierge. If you really think about it, this is not necessarily what is best for the guest because of financial constraints or other issues, but that is what the rule is.
As for tours, although some of the outsourced companies do have their own tours they like to provide I see it as an advantage. They sometimes are able to offer discounts that maybe you couldn't get if you used another vendor. When it comes to hotel concierges, the hotel itself doesn't own a tour company, but they still have a short list of preferred vendors they MUST use to avoid liability issues. Again, this is not giving the guest full choice over their plans and not always in their best interests.
When it comes to show tickets, I do agree that the mark up on the tickets from outsourced concierge companies are sometimes crazy, but there is always a charge for convenience. Hotel concierges either have their own in house ticket program for their own properties or they must pick up the phone and call. It depends on who the box office decides to use as their ticketing system whether it will be cheaper to buy them direct or through an outsourced concierge. Again sometimes these outsourced concierge desks get great deals on tickets that you can't get by calling direct.
Another area where the two differ is the arrangement of in-room amenities. While at a hotel run concierge desk you may be able to place a request for rose petals, electric candles and a half dozen chocolate covered strawberries to be placed in your room so you can propose to your girlfriend, at an outsourced desk you may be transferred to room service. That can be a huge inconvenience.
Here are the things that never change no matter who you work for. When a guest needs a boarding pass both types of concierge teams will go to the same place online to print them. Once a restaurant is chosen, both will still need to pick up that phone or book a reservation on Open Table. When a guest needs a taxi, you tell them to walk out the front doors and one will be waiting. When a guest needs a shuttle you tell them the cost is 8 dollars and they can catch it outside.
What I have noticed from being in the industry is that where a lot of the outsourced concierge desks are located, there really isn't a high demand for the concierge so they will not be faced with the challenge of a lot of these more detailed requests like room setups for proposals, anniversaries, etc. I do believe that if the demand does present itself, the hotels who chose outsourced companies should require them to do the tasks. I think that this silly argument should stop, because whether outsourced or hotel employed, we still do carry the title of concierge and we are still there to help guests whether or not anyone thinks that either side has a hidden agenda.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
The Restroom Portal
At my hotel there is a bathroom that has two ways in and out and people seem to get lost in it all the time. You will be standing here and see an older guy on the phone with his wife asking where she is at. He is yelling at the top of his lungs that he is outside the restroom and she is not while in the meantime you can imagine she is saying the exact same thing.
I just don't understand how releasing your bowels and emptying your bladder can cause so much confusion. One entrance has steps and one does not, that should be the first indicator that you took the wrong one. Second is that one enters through the lobby and one enters through the casino floor. Now if you don't notice that there were no loud, flashing machines on your way in then you probably went the wrong way out.
Let's pay attention and not lose our minds when we use the facilities. Thank you.
I just don't understand how releasing your bowels and emptying your bladder can cause so much confusion. One entrance has steps and one does not, that should be the first indicator that you took the wrong one. Second is that one enters through the lobby and one enters through the casino floor. Now if you don't notice that there were no loud, flashing machines on your way in then you probably went the wrong way out.
Let's pay attention and not lose our minds when we use the facilities. Thank you.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
"You're probably the wrong person to ask, but...."
Do you ever get that guest who comes up to your desk and says, "you're probably the wrong person to ask, but where is the restroom?" First of all, is there really a "right" person to ask that question? Of course not, but anyone in the hotel can tell you so why do you feel that I wouldn't have an answer for you.
I mean this is just an example, you can substitute anything after the "but", I just wanted to give you an extreme case. For some reason hotel guests still don't really know what a concierge does. They know that the front desk checks them in and out, housekeeping cleans their rooms and casino dealers take their money, ha ha! (crickets chirping) So why don't they know what a concierge does?
What is even more intriguing is that if they think a concierge is the wrong person to ask, what do they think is the right question to ask the concierge? I mean we must be there for something, but if we didn't do what we do then what would we be there doing instead? Here are a few possibilities for what a concierge may be:
con·cierge[kon-see-airzh; Fr. kawn-syerzh]
noun, plural con-cierges
1. A person who stands around and looks pretty (yours truly, jk)
2. A fancy title for a con man
3. One who conserves air
4. A French Airline
5. The opposite of pro-cierge
6. Not a real word, just a typo
7. French word meaning, "You're probably the wrong person to ask, but..."
The above is meant to be funny and is not a stab at the concierge profession.
I mean this is just an example, you can substitute anything after the "but", I just wanted to give you an extreme case. For some reason hotel guests still don't really know what a concierge does. They know that the front desk checks them in and out, housekeeping cleans their rooms and casino dealers take their money, ha ha! (crickets chirping) So why don't they know what a concierge does?
What is even more intriguing is that if they think a concierge is the wrong person to ask, what do they think is the right question to ask the concierge? I mean we must be there for something, but if we didn't do what we do then what would we be there doing instead? Here are a few possibilities for what a concierge may be:
con·cierge[kon-see-airzh; Fr. kawn-syerzh]
noun, plural con-cierges
1. A person who stands around and looks pretty (yours truly, jk)
2. A fancy title for a con man
3. One who conserves air
4. A French Airline
5. The opposite of pro-cierge
6. Not a real word, just a typo
7. French word meaning, "You're probably the wrong person to ask, but..."
The above is meant to be funny and is not a stab at the concierge profession.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Valentine's and Rack of Lamb
I had a guest call yesterday to make reservations for Valentine's Day, just one day prior to the popular holiday. She expressed that she didn't know she would need a reservation for Valentine's day. Although there were still a handful of restaurants open, she wanted something specific. Rack of Lamb.
Well out of the few restaurants I found with rack of lamb, they were either fully committed or they were serving from a set menu. I was stumped, so I called a colleague from the NCA and she recommended Botero at Encore, Del Frisco's off strip, and Craft Steak at MGM Grand. Del Frisco's didn't have rack of lamb, Botero did, but needed a credit card to hold the reservation which I didn't have at the time. I finally tried Craft Steak and they had an open reservation, rack of lamb and didn't require a credit card. I booked it right away.
The guest and her husband were very thankful. I had got them a reservation at Trevi Monday night, Craft Steak for Tuesday Valentine's day, and I told them I would get them a reservation at Hamada of Japan for Wednesday. I felt really accomplished and for the first time in a while, I have felt like a true concierge and not just a box office ticket agent.
Well out of the few restaurants I found with rack of lamb, they were either fully committed or they were serving from a set menu. I was stumped, so I called a colleague from the NCA and she recommended Botero at Encore, Del Frisco's off strip, and Craft Steak at MGM Grand. Del Frisco's didn't have rack of lamb, Botero did, but needed a credit card to hold the reservation which I didn't have at the time. I finally tried Craft Steak and they had an open reservation, rack of lamb and didn't require a credit card. I booked it right away.
The guest and her husband were very thankful. I had got them a reservation at Trevi Monday night, Craft Steak for Tuesday Valentine's day, and I told them I would get them a reservation at Hamada of Japan for Wednesday. I felt really accomplished and for the first time in a while, I have felt like a true concierge and not just a box office ticket agent.
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