3 Conflicts That Hotel Managers Will Need to Resolve Properly
Posted on: 7 February 2018
To be an effective hotel manager, you need to possess a lengthy list of attributes that you can use to help make the hotel run smoothly. Things such as patience, good listening skills, and a problem-solving mentality will all come in handy when things are going well, but when you encounter conflicts of any type, these skills will be even more important. Being able to successfully navigate conflicts can help to keep temporarily agitated hotel guests calm and, ideally, loyal to your brand because of the exemplary way that you deal with things.
Here are three conflicts that you may encounter at some point, and how you can proceed with addressing them.
Noise Complaints
Noise complaints can occur at hotels for any number of reasons, and can quickly escalate into serious conflicts if you don't deal with them properly. Typically, one guest will call the front desk to complain about noise coming from another guest's room. When such an event occurs, you have a variety of potential approaches, including warning the offending guest or perhaps even asking him or her to leave. The speed and professionalism at which you deal with the problem can satisfy the guest who called you, thus making him or her want to visit you again in the future.
Billing Issues
Sometimes, billing issues can occur at hotels. Perhaps a customer was erroneously charged for room service, or maybe someone left his or her phone off the hook and racked up a large long-distance bill. Customers who notice billing issues may quickly get frustrated at the front desk, which means that you'll need to deal with the situation promptly and professional. Each hotel's ownership group has different rules for such scenarios, but you can usually remove the billing error from a guest's bill and perhaps even reduce the overall bill a little as a way to make amends.
Overbooking
Overbooking at hotels doesn't happen with the frequency that it used to, thanks to computer systems that prevent such situations. However, this conflict can still occasionally take place, which means that you'll need to have a solution for keeping everyone happy. Mainly, you'll need to care for the guest for whom you do not have a room. If you have a sister property in the same city with vacancy, you might wish to put the guest up there, free of charge. Otherwise, if you're in the wrong, you may even want to pay for the guest to stay at a different hotel. Such an approach can go a long way toward keeping the guest in question happy enough that he or she will still consider your hotel during a future visit to your city.
To learn more about hotel management, contact services such as Integrity Hotel Partners.
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