To say that the past two years has been turbulent for the hospitality industry would be an understatement.
And while the future is starting to look brighter, now more than ever it’s vital that hospitality businesses are focused on making the entire customer experience a good one.
From making enquiries before booking, to adding value to clients during their stay, and ensuring they give a great review, live chat can help hospitality companies to deliver a great service during uncertain times.
Engaging with queries
While your website may host a lot of information about your facilities, rules and covid measures, potential clientele often want quick answers to simple questions. They may want to know whether you allow pets at your establishment, what time dinner service is, or around dress code.
Providing a quick and easy way for them to get answers directly via live chat can be the difference between them choosing your venue to visit over a competitor.
A recent survey found that 41% of customers prefer to communicate via live chat over telephone or email communications. Offering live as an option whether you are a pub, hotel, B&B or other hospitality business can be key to ensuring that you’re the first choice for customers.
Keeping customers up to date
Covid restrictions have meant several changes to the way many hotels and restaurants operate. Often changes are not clearly communicated on the website – or potential visitors are unsure if information online is correct.
In these instances, people often want reassurance prior to booking. Prime examples are whether facilities such as spas are open, or what type of restrictions/safety measures are in place in a restaurant.
It’s important to bear in mind that overseas travellers will often have limited knowledge of current UK guidelines and want to be reassured around the terms of their stay.
Reduce “no shows”
People don’t enjoy cancelling bookings over the phone. And right now, “no shows” in restaurants are increasing as people must isolate or feel uncomfortable dining out.
Offering and encouraging those who may wish to cancel to do so via live chat removes the awkwardness many feel about calling to give the bad news. This saves you money on potential over staffing and increases the likelihood that you can rebook the table.
24/7 contact with managed chat
Choosing managed chat can give your hospitality business the edge. While many hotels have 24/7 staff, this is not practical for many smaller establishments. However, it is often the case that your customers will need to get in touch with you at awkward times.
Yomdel offer a fully managed chat where queries can be answered by a human at any time – day or night.
This is great not just for those who are considering your venue, but also for those already staying there. You can even consider adding concierge services via live chat.
If you haven't yet looked into a 24/7 managed live chat service, or you'd just like to know more about the options available to you, don’t hesitate to get in touch, we would be happy to chat.
