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Curriculum Support Materials for New Senior Secondary Tourism and Hospitality Studies (S4-6) Part 4 Customer Relations and Services
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Having mastered the knowledge of tourism development and the functional areas of the core sectors of the industry as well as their influence on society, economy and environment, the students will now move on to learn the effective communication skills in customer relations and services, and learn how to deal with various customer-related situations, which are also an integral part of tourism and hospitality studies. This support material consists of three sections: Customer Services, Customer Relations and Communication Skills. It utilizes a number of cases to link up the text, with the aims to enable students in applying the concepts and knowledge they have learnt to practice, discuss and master the skills in providing quality customer service as well as making use of the appropriate etiquette in receiving customers of different cultural backgrounds. Activities including group activities, discussions and scenarios are also integrated into each section. Through these group activities and discussions, the students may enhance their understanding of the importance of personal attributes to the provision of quality service and master the skills of customer communication. Besides, the students may also learn about different ways to deal with the various needs of customers by writing conversations for different scenarios, and enhance their expression and organization abilities by playing different roles.
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Learning outcomes Having completed the activities, the students should

be able to master the following knowledge and skills, and build up the following positive values and attitudes: Knowledge: (1) Describe and explain customer relations and services; (2) Understand the personality of service staff; (3) Describe how culture may influence customer expectations; (4) Identify the appropriate etiquette and customs for receiving customers of different cultural backgrounds, e.g. appropriate appellations, gestures and eye contact; (5) Describe the importance of company policy in improving and maintaining quality customer services; (6) Explain the importance of values and code of behavior in customer services; (7) Identify potential problems that may occur during the provision of services; (8) Learn about different kinds of difficult customers and describe the ways to deal with them;
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(9) Explain the importance of politeness and hospitable reception; (10) Identify ways to communicate with customers. Skills: (1) Develop a series of professional yet common skills that can be applied in various contexts or beyond the tourism and hospitality industry, including effective communication, customer services skills, critical thinking, creativity and problem-solving; (2) Apply appropriate skills to deal with various circumstances in tourism and hospitality business; (3) Learn about problem-solving skills, including identifying problems, analyzing causes and proposing possible solutions. Values and attitudes:

(1) Understand the importance of integrity and ethical behaviour in the tourism and hospitality industry, and apply this to daily practice; (2) Understand the personal quality required for the tourism and hospitality industry, including politeness, initiative, adaptability and flexibility; (3) Develop an appreciation of other cultures, customs and beliefs. and
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Table of Contents
A. Customer Services 8
Section 1: The nature of customer services I. What are customers? II. Introduction to customer services III. The nature of customer services Section 2: Personal Attributes of Tourism and Hospitality Staff I. Personality of customer service staff II. The importance of personal attributes of tourism and hospitality staff to the provision of quality service 9 9 10 12 14 14 15 B. Customer Relations 17 Section 1: Customs and etiquette of major tourist areas I. Differences between Eastern and Western traditions II. What is etiquette? III. Etiquette and the tourism industry IV. Greeting - Etiquette for meeting people from different countries V. Etiquette and taboos VI. Customs, etiquette and taboos of major tourist areas VII. Cases of etiquette and taboos 18 18 19

21 23 26 31 61
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Section 2: Customer Expectations and Perceptions Customer Services Policies I. Ways to meet customer expectations II. Gain customer loyalty 76 76 78 Section 3: Challenges in Providing Quality Customer Services I. Basic requirements for providing quality customer services II. Effective handling of potential problem during service customer dissatisfaction III. Customer complaints IV. Principles of dealing with complaints V. Strategy of service recovery VI. Cases of customer services 83 84 88 90 95 101 114 Section 4: Dealing with Difficult Customers I. Understand various difficult customers II. How to deal with difficult customers 141 141 141 C. Communication Skills 154 Section 1: Communication with customers I. What is interpersonal communication? II. What is effective communication? III. The importance of politeness and hospitable reception 155 155 157 161

IV. Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception V. What communication method? VI. What does non-verbal communication consist of? VII. Effective communication - politeness and hospitable reception in the tourism industry 163 168 168 176
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Part 4 Customer Relations and Services

A. Customer Services
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Section 1: The Nature of Customer Services

I. What are customers?
Customers are the source of income for a company. Without customers, a company will not be able to Think about: (write the answer in the space below)

Why do companies have to provide quality customer services?

Students answers
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maintain its business. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the staff of a company to ensure their customers continue to choose their products or services.

II. Introduction to customer services

Customer services can be defined as a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction the feeling that a product or service has met customer expectations. In meeting these expectations, the following objectives must keep in mind: 1. Making the guests feel welcome personally 2. Making things work for the guests

3. Making sure that the operation will continue to provide service and meet its budget
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Extra-curricular activities Search for information about the tourism and hospitality industry of Hong Kong. Try to find companies with quality customer service or customer first as their objective or mission and write down the information in the following table. (Make use of the world wide web to search for more information, such as yahoo.com and google.com, etc.) Name of Company Objective and Mission of Company
Example: Hong Thai Travel Services Mission To be a company that

is innovative and receptive to changes, fulfills our commitment with good faith and strives to
provide customers with diversified quality tourist products and services.
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III. The nature of customer service

1. Integrated Tourists travel because they want to enjoy new experiences and the associated feelings which they wont come across in their daily life. Through customer service, tourism and hospitality related industry provides tourists with integrated services, e.g. pre-trip services such as inquiry and booking, and services during the trip such as transport, food and beverage, accommodation, entertainment and sightseeing, etc. Therefore, customer service in the tourism and hospitality industry is integrated. 2. Direct All customer services are provided to customers in a direct, timely and immediate manner. For example, travel agencies or tourist information centers provide inquiry and booking services; hospitality staff provide food and beverage and accommodation services; and tour guides provide tour services. Therefore, serving customers directly

is one of the characteristics of customer service. 3. Emotional In addition to practical needs such as shopping or food and beverage, customers have emotional needs such as fulfilling the needs for recognition and respect during their trips. Therefore, the service
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attitude and quality of staff are important to customers. Customer service staff should pay extra attention to take care of, and satisfy the emotional needs of customers. 4. Timely Moment of Truth is about the effects of customer and employee interaction when there is opportunity for the business to impress or upset the customer. 5. Improvising Customers have many different needs, and want services that will satisfy them. However, the perception of satisfactory service varies significantly among different customers. It is important that at any time, customer service staff should be prepared to satisfy different customers with their different needs.
Reference: Wu Xiaohuai, Introduction to Tourism, Publishing House of Electronics Industry, 2008, Page 60-61.
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Section 2: Personal Attributes of Tourism and Hospitality Staff

I. Personality of customer service staff According to Hong Kong Tourism Board, tourism industry staff should have the following personal attributes: Grooming You do not have to be good looking to find work in the tourism industry. It will be sufficient as long as you have a pleasant character. Amicable smiles will also be beneficial to the job. The staff should keep his/her hair and clothes tidy. Fancy clothes should be avoided. Most organizations provide their staff with uniforms. Quality A tourism industry staff should enjoy meeting people and be able to communicate and get on well with all kinds of people. He/she

should be able to communicate effectively with customers either face-to-face or over the telephone. He/she should be mature, outgoing, humorous, helpful and patient. In
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addition, honesty and politeness are also critical. Qualification and skills Professional training will be preferred. Some higher positions would require tertiary qualifications. Generally, a tourism industry staff should be fluent in English, and have a good understanding about the current affairs of Hong Kong and Chinese culture. For the position of tour coordinator or tour escort, it would be helpful if the worker can speak other languages such as Putonghua, Japanese, French or German. Others You can be an outstanding tourism industry staff if you are physically healthy, quick in thinking, decisive, quick to adapt to different kinds of working environment, willing to work long and irregular hours, honest and reliable. II. The importance of personal attributes of tourism and hospitality staff to the provision of quality service The tourism and hospitality industry is a service industry which involves numerous interpersonal contacts, and the service staff is the ones who provide
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customers with services directly. In addition, the provision and consumption of tourism services are simultaneously, which means the personal attribute, behavior and attitude of the frontline staff will affect the customers experience in the consumption of products or services. If a staff is rude and careless, the customers impression and experiences of the products or services will be affected. Eventually, the customers would likely not to buy the product or service again. Personal grooming is also important in the tourism and hospitality industry because customers often comment on the appearance of the staff. Good personal grooming of staff reflects the services quality of a company. An outgoing, humorous, patient and honest personality also helps to maintain a good

customer relationship, which is an important factor in achieving good quality customer service. To a large extent, the delivery of a quality customer service depends on the personal attributes of the tourism and hospitality staff.
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Part 4 Customer Relations and Services

B. Customer Relations
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Section 1: Customs and Etiquette of Major Tourist Areas

I. Differences between Eastern and Western traditions
Nowadays, with the increasing contacts between people of different cultural backgrounds, cross-cultural communication becomes the worlds growing trend. Etiquette vary in different regions, countries and social systems. Among different cultural traditions, there is a vast difference between the Eastern traditions and Western traditions. Eastern etiquette prevails in countries such as China, Japan, Korea, India and Singapore; while Western etiquette is practiced in countries such as the United States, England, Italy, Germany and France. Characteristics of Eastern traditions 1. focus on family love and kinship 2. modest and implicit 3. accept the reality and satisfy with current status 4. emphasize on common features (holistic) 5. reciprocity Characteristics of Western traditions 1. simple and practical (practicality)
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2. advocate personal freedom 3. cherish time 4. free, equal and open-minded

II. What is etiquette?

The three fundamental elements that form etiquette

include language (in writing or verbal form), behavior and costumes. The basic forms of etiquette vary depending on a number of factors such as living conditions, historical traditions, cultural mindset and ethnic customs. The variation of these factors resulted in the four common types of etiquette: 1. Protocol: It is the code of behavior in showing respect and friendship to each other in the course of interpersonal, social and international contacts. 2. Courtesy: It is he usual form in expressing greetings, regards, wishes and sympathy in daily life and sometimes in special socializing occasions. The expressions may vary from countries to countries due to regional and ethnic differences. Examples include nods and handshakes which are commonly accepted all over the world, or putting palms together in India (Namaste), or hugging and kissing in Europe and America.
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3. Manners: It is the behavioral code in expressing modesty, respect and friendship among people by using words, facial expression and gestures. The forms of manners include: 1) appearance, grooming and deportment; 2) language and style of conversation; 3) apparel, clothing, hairstyle; 4) facial expression and gestures; and 5) ways in dealing with people, attitude, etc. 4. Ceremony: Those are the things that are said and done on a formal event or formal occasion. Examples include inspection of parade and cannon salutes when welcoming a head of foreign state or a head of government, curtain-unveiling, ribbon-cutting during exhibitions, or foundation laying for large projects.
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III. Etiquette and the tourism industry

During a visit, there are always interpersonal contacts including contacts between tourists, tourists between tourism staff, and tourists between local residents of the host country. These contacts are diversified in nature, we need etiquette to manage our behavior, enhance mutual understanding and friendship.

Think about:

What are the functions of tourist etiquette in tourism activities?

Suggested answers: the functions of tourism etiquette can: 1. increase the mutual understanding and communication between tourism staff and tourists 2. help to solve the disputes between the tourists and the hosts 3. improve the behavior of tourism staff 4. improve service quality
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Tourism industry must provide tourists with quality service etiquette in addition to the provision of tangible products and services such as transportation services, accommodation services and recreational facilities. Quality service etiquette aims to help tourism services staff to understand the different types of protocol, courtesy, manners and ceremony. Therefore, quality customer service etiquette is one of the essential factors for tourism industry in meeting the customers demand for service satisfaction.
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IV. Greeting etiquette for meeting people from different countries

Handshake Handshake originated in Europe. It was meant to reassure each other that neither person held any weapons. Handshake is commonly accepted in most countries. Therefore, a decent handshake is a good way to show happiness when meeting a foreign guest. However, never use your left hand or both hands to shake hands with an Indian because they never use their left hand except when using the washroom. Bow In some Asian countries such as South Korea (Republic of Korea) and Japan, people usually bow with their hands placing flat on their knees when they meet a friend. Bows are

usually accompanied by verbal greetings. Graceful motion should be ensured when making a bow.
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Hug Before hugging, you should first have a certain understanding about the degree of friendship between both of you, and also the relevant customs. Otherwise, your hug could be turned down. In particular, when a gentleman meets a lady, he should observe if the lady has the intention to hug. It is advised that the gentleman should wait for the lady to hint for a hug first. Cheek kissing Cheek kissing is prevailing in many countries. Generally, only the right side of the cheek would be kissed. This etiquette is especially popular in countries such as Spain and Italy. In addition, there are other forms of greeting etiquettes. For example, salute is an etiquette generally practiced by soldiers; putting palms together (Namaste) is a religious etiquette; hand kissing is an etiquette practiced in the upper class in Europe and the US. When a gentleman meets a noble lady and the lady holds out her hand with her palm facing downward, the gentleman should take the offered hand and touch it with his lips. Hand kissing will not be performed unless the lady holds out her hand.
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We should determine the form of etiquette depending on the country, religion and personal background of the person receiving the greetings. Otherwise, we may probably offend other people. Certainly, it would be safer if you express pleasant facial expressions first and observe the intention of the other party before determining which form of etiquette would be appropriate. Reference: The website of Civil Aviation Resources of China, http://news.carnoc.com/list/98/98996.html

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V. Etiquette and Taboos

The differences of cultural traditions and values vary in accordance to the differences between countries, regions, nationalities and economic development. In addition, tourists are different in terms of employments, genders, ages and lifestyles, which in turn have differences in their consumption patterns. In order to provide tourists with satisfactory services, tourism staff should have a good understanding of these differences. For example, Westerners treat the number 13 as ominous. Japanese also avoid the number 13, but their reason is not due to the number itself, instead it is related to the sum of 1 and 3, which makes 4. In Japanese, the pronunciation of 4 is similar to that of death. If a service staff presents 4 pieces of gifts to a Japanese customer, it would be regarded as a curse. Some nationalities have taboos about colors. For example, black is the color used in funerals in Europe and the US; blue is unlucky in the eyes of Belgians; in Brazil purple is sadness. Therefore, it is important to observe the customs and taboos of a region before going abroad. Asia The complexions of Asian people are more or less similar, but their etiquette and taboos in the aspects of politics, religion and customs may be different. It is necessary to know them before travelling. When
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travelling to Buddhist countries such as Sri Lanka, you may chat with monks freely in the street, but you must be respectful. For example, you have to bend a bit and lower your head when speaking to them. There is no exception even if you were the president of that country. In India, never jostle about if you see a cow ahead. Any disrespectful acts before a cow would irritate Indians because cows are considered sacred in Hinduism. As a common practice in the Southeast Asian region and India, passing things to others with the left hand means disrespect and malice. These are things that tourists should keep in mind. Middle East The Middle East is a vast region made up of a variety of countries. Some countries such as Lebanon is one of the most Europeanized countries in the Middle East, but some Islamic countries such as Saudi Arabia is quite conservative. In terms of tourism, the Middle East is not

a very popular tourist area due to complicated political issues. Nevertheless, Middle East countries always present a mysterious ambience that attracts people. When traveling to these countries, tourists should pay extra attention to the local religions. For example, in Saudi Arabia, women would cover their entire body except their eyes. The Jewish Sabbath begins from sunset on Friday to sunset of the next day every week. During this period, all government offices, banks and offices in Jerusalem would be closed. In Afghanistan,
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when people greet each other, they shake hands or hug each other twice. Tourists should never wear clothes with star patterns when travelling in the Middle East. It is because star is the symbol of the Israeli flag. It will easily offend local people. Africa Africans have a strong sense about tribes. People in African countries take the concept of nation lightly. Therefore, before communicating with African people, it is important to know what tribe they belong. Tourists should pay attention to appellations when communicating with people in Africa. For example, black people in Africa do not mind being called Black, but never call them Negro because this term denotes racial discrimination. In addition, it is a taboo to discuss skin color in Africa. Black Africans distinguish themselves from African Americans very clearly. They believe that black people in the United States are different from themselves as those were slaves trafficked from Africa. When travelling in Africa, shake hands firmly and sincerely with local people because they would judge your sincerity by the firmness of handshake. When travelling in Africa, you need to keep in mind that many local people believe that taking a photo of someone would draw away the spirit of the person being photographed. In their eyes, cameras are similar to guns. As a result, it is an improper and unforgivable action to take photos of them. If you want to take a photo of the
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local people when you are traveling in Africa, you must first ask for their permission. Europe The principle of Lady first is stressed in European etiquette. Sorry and Thank you are the most frequently used expressions in interpersonal communication and socialized occasions. There are

certain table manners to observe in European style dining. For example, toothpicks are generally not provided on tables. If you bring your own toothpicks, do not use them in front of others. It is better to use them in the washroom if you really need to. Never pickup the plates to eat, however, silverware and glassware are allowed. Europeans seldom drink water during meals, and they are usually served with alcoholic drinks. People who do not want alcoholic drinks are usually served with juices. In Europe, say Excuse me when you pass by others at a narrow space. But instead of jostling, you should turn your body to face those who are seated and move along slowly. Similar to the Americans, Europeans address people by names directly once they know each other. It is impolite to address others by You. America Americans and Canadians are outgoing and friendly. They welcome foreign guests. It is considered rude by
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Americans and Canadians if someone wears pajamas or slippers in meeting with other people. Venezuelans hate peacocks because they believe peacocks are ominous. As a result, no patterns of peacocks or ornaments made of peacock feathers are welcome. In Chile, it should be noted that local people there would take four meals a day: breakfast, lunch (around 1:00p.m.), tea (around 4:00p.m.) and supper (around 9:00p.m.). When attending social functions in Chile, one should arrive 15-30 minutes after the invitation time. Argentineans are picky about clothes. A man usually has to wear a vest if the suit he wears is single-breasted. Pay attention to the color of clothes when travelling in Mexico. Mexicans consider purple as the colour of a coffin. Therefore, when offering a gift to Mexicans, do not wrap it with purple wrapping paper.
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VI. Customs, etiquette and taboos of major tourist areas

Japan
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication Take off your hat and bow to express sincerity when greeting people. Exchange

business cards and bow but do not shake hands when meeting for the first time. Place your hands flat on your knees and speak out your greetings when bowing. Only old friends or acquaintances would shake hands. Sir is not an appellation to address everyone. Only educators and doctors are called Sir. A guest should not take off his/her coat before the host does. It is a taboo to point at people by holding out four fingers with the thumb clenching inside. This gesture is used to indicate the lowest class of people in Japanese society. It is a taboo to present gifts in the number of 9. This would cause misunderstanding because they would think that you regard them as bandits.
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Japan
Customs and etiquette Taboos Dining and food When a host or a waiter pours wine, he should hold the handle of the flagon with the right hand and support the bottom with the left. The mouth of flagon should not

touch the glass. The guest should hold the glass with the right hand and support the bottom with the left when accepting the wine. Making sound while having soup indicates that the guests enjoy the food. In Japan, it is a taboo to insert chopsticks vertically into the rice , it indicates as a sacrifice to the deceased. It is a taboo to put the glass on the table and let the guests pour their own wine. This is regarded as disrespect. It is a taboo to fill a rice bowl too full when serving guests. Do not fill-up a guests bowl with rice simply by one scoop. This act is considered as disrespectful to the guest. Others Japanese care about their attire. In casual occasions, the attire is Avoid green color which is deemed as ominous.
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Japan
Customs and etiquette Taboos decent and tidy. They dress up on formal occasions. Avoid patterns of lotus

which is deemed as a bewitching flower.

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Republic of Korea
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication When a junior meets a senior, or a subordinate meets his superior, he/she should bow, greet and then step aside to let the other person walk first in order to show respect. When men greet each other, they bow to each other only once and shake hands only with right hand or both hands. When a man meets a woman, the woman should bow first and greet the man. When a group of people get together, the order of seating are usually determined on the basis of their respective status and After greeting each other, do not smoke before obtaining consent from the other party. Do not ask a senior or a superior for a light. When you meet a woman, do not offer your hand first for handshaking to show enthusiasm. Instead, you should nod with a smile.

 It is a taboo to talk loudly at public places. A woman should cover her mouth with a handkerchief when laughing to avoid impoliteness.
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Republic of Korea
Customs and etiquette Taboos age. When men and women sit together, women sit on the left of men. Dining and food When eating at the same table with a senior, do not start eating unless the senior eats first. When proposing a toast, hold the bottle with the right hand and support the bottom with the left. Then bow and make your toast before you pour wine. Keep quiet and never speak loudly when dining. Loud speaking is impolite to others at the table. Others When the national anthem is being played on TV, at the cinema or theater, the entire audience has to rise to show respect to the nation and the people. Koreans have a strong dislike towards the number 4. The number 4 is a taboo in

the numbering of floors, the army and the hospitals etc.

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India
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication When meeting people, put your palms together (Namaste) and hold them up to the face to express greetings or blessings. In order to express reverence to a senior, the junior should bend down and touch the feet of the senior when greeting. When welcoming a distinguished guest, the host will present a garland and put it around the neck of the guest. The size of the garland depends on the status of the guest. In the course of conversation, sway your head to the left to show approval other than nodding. Nodding means disagreement. It is a taboo to nod when putting palms together. It is a taboo to offer your hand to a woman for handshaking. Do not talk to a woman alone even if in public places. The cow is a sacred animal in India. It is a taboo to wear cowhide shoes or use cowhide

trunk. It is a taboo to use your left hand to pass things to others. They believe the left hand to be dirty.
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India
Customs and etiquette Taboos Dining and food Indians use their right hand for eating, gifts or serving tea. They do not use their left hand nor both hands. They eat with their fingers. Indians are not allowed to eat beef. When taking or receiving food at table, use the right hand only. Do not use the left hand. This is considered offensive and unclean. Never use the left hand except in the washroom. Others When visiting a temple or a family, take off your shoes at the entrance. It is a taboo to bathe children in a basin. Water in a basin is regarded as dead water. Whistling is an offensive and uneducated act.
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Thailand
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication

 When meeting friends, put your palms together (Namaste) in front of your chest, bow your head slightly and greet each other. When a junior does Namaste to a senior, he/she should hold his hands up to the forehead. The senior should also do Namaste in return to accept the greetings of the other person. People usually use their right hand to pass objects to show respect, or with both hands on formal occasions. Passing things with the left hand would be regarded as contempt for others. It is a taboo to touch the head of a Thai. It is regarded as an insult. People believe that if a childs head is patted, the child will fall ill. Do not pass an object to a seated person over the persons head. Feet are regarded as a lowly bodys part. It is a taboo stretching your legs to the front of others, kick the door with the foot or lift up your leg when seated. Do not pass anything to others by kicking. It is a taboo having the sole of a shoe facing others. This is

regarded as trampling others and it is a humiliating act

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Thailand
Customs and etiquette Taboos If there is a senior, a junior has to sit on the floor or kneel down to avoid his/her height exceeding the head of the senior. Or he would be regarded as extremely disrespectful to the senior. When walking past people who are seated, bend down slightly to show respect. Take off your shoes when entering the living room of the local people. It is a taboo to discuss politics, corruption, the royal family or personal matters such as asking people how many wives they have. Dining and food Thai do not drink hot tea. They usually put ice into tea and make ice tea. Thailand prohibits sales of alcoholic drinks after 00:00 am. It would be equally illegal to ask the waiter for alcoholic drinks after 00:00 am.
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Thailand
Customs and etiquette Taboos Others Take off your shoes

and hat when entering a Buddhist temple. Be careful not to step on the doorsill. Never expose the chest or back when entering a temple, nor wearing only a vest or shorts. It is a taboo to sign in red because only the name of a deceased would be written in red on the coffin. When a woman is walking, her clothes should not touch the monks clothes. Do not be impolite to a monk, nor say anything or do any acts that would offend the King.
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United States
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication When meeting with an unacquainted person for the first time, they would address each other by the name, or simply smile and say Hello. When meeting a guest, handshaking is the most common etiquette. When parting, people do not shake hands. Instead, they just wave to each other or simply say Goodbye. If you are invited to a friends house, prepare a small present for the

host. Write a letter to express your gratitude after receiving a gift, attending a party or receiving help from a friend. A black cat is regarded as an ominous animal and a white elephant as a useless burden. Therefore, do not present gifts with such images. It is a taboo to ask about ones age or income. Black Americans do not reject the term Black, but they would be irritated to hear the word Negro because Negro refers to the blacks who were trafficked to the United States from Africa as slaves.
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United States
Customs and etiquette Taboos Dining and food Americans rarely drink teas. They like to drink ice water, mineral water, Coca-Cola, beers, etc. When having a meal, put the napkin on the thigh and wipe the lips gently with the napkin after eating. Leftovers, fish bones and other bones should be left on the plate. Do not leave them on the table.

Others When passing by others at a narrow gap, turn your back to those seated, move along slowly and say Excuse me. It is considered rude to meet up with someone in pajamas or slippers. Do not say I am sorry recklessly because this expression indicates you are admitting a fault. It is substantially different from the meaning of Excuse me or Never mind. Numbers 13, 3 and the day of Friday are taboos. They are believed to represent bad luck.
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United States
Customs and etiquette Taboos Pattern of the bat is a taboo. The bat is regarded as a devilish symbol.
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United Kingdom
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication Titles are used to address a senior, superior or an unfamiliar person. Put an appellation such as title, rank or Mr., Ms, Mrs. or Miss before the name of the person. People never say going to the washroom but

Excuse me for a few minutes or I need to wash my hands.. Terms such as Please, Excuse me and Thank you to show politeness are used frequently. People advocate gentlemanly behavior. For example, when a man and a woman enter a room at the same time, the man It is a taboo to use f elephants or peacocks in product design. British people considered elephant to be foolish, and peacock is a bird of misfortune. It is a taboo to talk about ones salary, age or political preference.
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United Kingdom
Customs and etiquette Taboos should open the door for the woman; and the man should pull the chair for the woman at dinner. Dining and food Hold the cup when drinking coffee, the coffee spoon shall be placed on the saucer. Avoid making sound while eating. Do not leave the spoon you use in the soup bowl or coffee cup. It is a taboo to make the glass tinkle carelessly or ignore

the tinkling without stopping it. This is impolite and is believed to incur mishaps. Others People do not bargain when they are shopping. Bargaining is regarded as a disgraceful act. Concern about public hygiene. Similar to the Americans, the term I am sorry should not be spoken recklessly since it has the indication of admitting a fault. This expression would be
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United Kingdom
Customs and etiquette Taboos used as evidence against you. It is substantially different from the meaning of Excuse me or Never mind. The number 13 is a taboo, which originated from the Last Supper shared by Jesus and his Twelve Apostles. As a result, 13 is regarded as ominous.
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France
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication People shake hands when meeting guests on socializing occasions. Young women and ladies

would give a curtsy. Usually a woman offers her hand to a man first, a senior offers his/hers to a junior, and a superior to a subordinate. It is a local practice that men kiss the cheek of one another when they meet. Never make loud noises or wild gestures recklessly at public places. When men and women sit together and attend an entertaining event, the women should sit in the middle and men on both sides. It is a taboo to give presents when meeting someone for the first time. This is regarded as without social civility and rude. It is a taboo to present cosmetics such as perfume to a French woman. This would incur a suspicion of undue intimacy or sinister intention. It is a taboo to call an elderly woman old lady. They would be unhappy to hear that. French women are used to putting on makeup. Therefore, they would be unhappy if the service staff offer them wet towels. It is a taboo to ask people about their
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France
Customs and etiquette Taboos political preference, salary or private matters. Dining and food French use knives and forks when dining. People drink wine instead of water when having a French meal. French advocate gentlemanly behavior and have a respect for women. When proposing a toast at table, they would offer a toast to women first, even if the status of the women is lower than the person. Do not pickup the plates or make sound while eating pasta. Others French advocate gentlemanly behavior. For example, ladies always go first when climbing a staircase or taking an elevator. French have a strong dislike of dark green because Nazi uniforms were dark green during World War II.
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France
Customs and etiquette Taboos The number 13 and Friday are taboos. It is a taboo to give carnations to French. French people believe that carnations would bring bad luck.

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Italy
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication Lady first is a rule for all socializing occasions. Kissing is the way to greet an intimate friend. The two people touch the cheeks of each other twice or thrice and make sounds of kissing. Consider something that denotes happiness when selecting a gift. It is a taboo to sneeze or cough in the face of others. This is very impolite. Do not present red roses to a female friend because red rose represents affection. Do not give chrysanthemums as they are used in funerals. Dining and food When friends get together, they usually pay for themselves unless someone indicate clearly that he would pay for others. Ladies start to eat first at a banquet. Gentlemen would wait Do not leave ketchup in the bowl or plate after finishing your pasta. Do not keep your

hands on your lap during the meal.

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Italy
Customs and etiquette Taboos for ladies to start before they do. Others Do not wear short skirts, short pants or vests when entering a church. Wear trousers, long skirts and clothes that can cover your shoulders to show respect. Italians are used to being late. They regard it as a graceful behaviour. Never smoke without obtaining consent from other people around you. That is a disrespectful act. It is a taboo to give handkerchiefs to others as presents because handkerchief represents separation of family members or friends.
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Germany
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication When shaking hands, look at the other person with sincerity. Shake hands firmly and keep shaking for a moment. When a man visits a friend, unwrap the flowers in the hallway and offer the flowers to

the hostess. It is a taboo to put your hands in the pockets when talking. This is regarded as rude. Avoid giving chopping knives, swords, scissors, knives and forks as presents. It is a taboo to celebrate birthday in advance. Dining and food In relation to the order of seating, seats on the right are seats of honor. Therefore, ladies and persons with higher positions should sit to the left of the host. Crush a potato with the back of a knife or a fork before eating. Finish everything on your plate. Do not drink water during a meal. People believe only horses drink water. Therefore, order beer or wine during a meal. Nondrinkers may choose juices.
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Germany
Customs and etiquette Taboos Others Westerners like the numbers 3 and 7, believing that these two numbers represent good luck. Germans believe that meeting a chimney sweeper on the way

would bring good luck for that day. Germans never mixed business with pleasure. Do not use tissue papers to blow your nose. Use a handkerchief instead. Do not take off your shoes in front of others. This is considered as a barbarian act.
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Spain
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication Wear formal and conservative clothes for business appointments. Arrive ahead of schedule. Personal trustworthiness is emphasized. Spaniards do not like to lose face, so they do not like publicly admitting they are wrong. It is a taboo to discuss religion, family or occupation. Never criticize bullfight. The gesture of OK is regarded as a vulgar gesture. It is extremely disrespectful not to give your business card in return when exchanging cards. Dining and food Spaniards take lunch as the formal meal of

the day. The family usually gets together for lunch. Food made from wheat is the major food in Spain. Cool soup is the favorite of Spaniards. It is a taboo to hold up the plate to eat. This is very impolite. When a Spaniard invites you to have a meal at his home, he may probably be making some polite remarks only. Do not accept the invitation
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Spain
Customs and etiquette Taboos immediately. Instead, try to find out if he really means it. Others Lady should wear earrings, and a lady without earrings is like not wearing any clothing on her body. Women use fans to express different meanings. For example, folding a fan means You do not deserve love. The number 13 and the day of Friday are believed to be ominous. Chrysanthemum and dahlia are taboos. They are believed to be symbols of death.
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Russia
Customs and etiquette Taboos

Contact and communication When people meet, they shake hands on most occasions. Remove your gloves when shaking hands. Do not sway the hand of the other person. Women may hug and kiss each other when they meet, and men only hug each other. Respect is shown to women on socializing occasions. For example, men take off the overcoats, open doors and find seats for women, and distribute dishes for women at a banquet. Smiling is not regarded as a necessary form of etiquette. On the contrary, casual smiles are considered factitious (fake). Do not offer your hand first when greeting an elderly woman. Shake hands with her only until she offers her hand. Traditionally, the left side is regarded as unlucky and the right lucky. People regard it impolite to shake hands or passing objects with the left hand. Respect women. Never ask about their ages or the prices of their clothes. Do not talk about politics. Do not

address others by their nicknames before getting to know each other very well. It is a taboo to pat
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Russia
Customs and etiquette Taboos someone on the shoulder because this stands for challenging an opponent for a fight. Dining and food It is fine to drink a large quantity of wine, but do not get drunk. Leaving a small amount of food on the plate indicates that the host has provided ample hospitality. Salt is regarded as treasure and a kind of sacrificial offering. Salt is believed to have the effect of exorcising and eliminating misfortune. It is a taboo to overturn a salt bottle or splash salt on the floor when visiting a friend or dining at a restaurant. This is regarded as ominous. Others A woman should never drink in a bar or restaurant alone because a woman drinking alone is usually considered to be waiting for a man. Mirrors are mysterious articles. Breaking a mirror means destroying a soul.

Therefore, it is a taboo to break someones mirror in Russia.

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Russia
Customs and etiquette Taboos Man are expected to bring flowers in a visit. Breaking a cup, a dish or a plate indicates wealth and happiness. Therefore, people would break some dishes and plates on purpose at a wedding banquet, a birthday banquet or other important ceremonies. Do not give yellow flower, it is considered as ominous.
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Africa
Customs and etiquette Taboos Contact and communication The way to greet people is to raise the right hand with the palm facing them. This is to indicate that I have no weapons. The gesture symbolizes friendliness. In Africa, particularly Algeria, when people shake hands, the stronger the grip, the more respectful it represents. Use the right hand or both hands when passing an object to others or receiving an object from others. It is a taboo to call

Africans Negro. It is advisable to address them by their nationality. It is a taboo to shake hands, passing an object or receiving an object with the left hand. This is believed to be an insult. Sway your palms horizontally when asking about the age of a child. Do not place your palms downward because Africans believed that this gesture symbolizes death. It is a taboo to talk about skin color.
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Africa
Customs and etiquette Taboos Dining and food Muslims do not eat pork. Meat and cheese are unavailable during the period of fasting. Leave a small amount of food in the plate, this is a courtesy. Others Men and women are not allowed to walk together hand in hand. Do not take photos of women wearing face covers. Africans have a strong sense of tribes. Africans believe that taking a photo would take away the spirit of a person or an

object. Therefore, do not take photos of people, houses or livestock. Tourists should obtain consent before taking a photo.
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VII. Cases of etiquette and taboos Case 1: Welcoming Ceremony

Miss Koo is assigned with responsibilities for her warmhearted personality and outstanding performance. Once, the company sent her to Thailand with several colleagues for a business trip. Miss Koo and her colleagues were warmly received by the host when they arrived at the destination. To show his respect for the guests from Hong Kong, the host held a special reception dinner for them. When the host presented the gift to Miss Koo, she accepted the gift with her left hand as she is a left-hander. Suddenly, the host pulled a face at Miss. Koo, and he puts the gift heavily on the table and turned his back on Miss Koo. Analyze the taboo that Miss Koo has committed in this case.
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Case 2: Lady First

Simon, a hotel porter, was looking at an approaching white limousine. The driver pulled the limousine skillfully and precisely at the hotel entrance. Simon saw two gentlemen seated in the back seat and a Western lady in the front. He stepped forward immediately, opened the back door and put his hand over the heads of the guests while they got out. After that, Simon stepped quickly to open the limos front door for the lady. However, the lady looked unhappy and this made Simon perplexed. As a rule of thumb, people of higher status usually sit in the back, and serving important guests (VIP) first is also the hotels priority. Why was the lady unhappy? What was Simons mistake?

 What is the proper procedure to open car doors for guests?

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Case 3: Customs and Taboos

A group of ethnic minority checked in at a hotel. Each of the girls in the group wore a beautiful cockscomb. Having got acquainted with the girls, a male staff of the hotel touched the cockscomb of one of the girls out of curiosity. He was then caught in an embarrassing situation because the leader of the group thought the staff was in love with the girl and proposed to her. Later, with the mediation by the hotel manager, the staff and the girl were arranged to set their relation as brother and sister. What was the mistake made by the hotels staff?
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Case 4: Receptions Etiquette

A travel agency in the mainland serves foreign tourists was going to receive a group of Italian tourists. Out of sincerity, the travel agency ordered a batch of silk handkerchiefs made in Hangzhou as gifts to the tourist. Each handkerchief was embroidered with patterns of flowers and grass, and looks beautiful and decent. Each handkerchief was packed in a delicate paper box with the logo of the travel agency on it. The tour guide brought along the well-packed handkerchiefs and welcomed the Italian tourists at the airport. His welcoming address was warm and well-spoken. On the coach, he presented two boxes of handkerchiefs to every tourist as a gift. To his surprise, the tourists were upset. A lady was very unhappy and yelled in anger. The tour guide was confused. He presented the gifts out of goodwill, but instead of receiving compliments from the tourists, he received this unexpected reaction from them.

 Why did the Italian tourists have such reaction?

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Case 5: Thoughtfulness or Thoughtlessness

Michael worked at a hotel in Tsim Sha Tsui after graduated from secondary school. He was a responsible, sharp and efficient receptionist. One day, Mr. and Mrs. Smith, guests of the hotel, returned to the hotel after shopping. After nodding to them, Michael asked casually, Mr. Smith, where have you been? Mr. Smith hesitated for quite some time before stammered, Weve been to Nathan Road. Michael asked, Which shops have you visited? Mr. Smith reply, Shops along Lady Street Michael suggested out of goodwill, Why dont you take a look at Harbour City? You may also find some good things at iSquare too. However, the Smiths had left before he finished. Michael lost his job two days later. Why did Michael lose his job?
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Case 6: Cultural Differences Between the East and the West

An English lady was traveling in Hong Kong thought highly of her tour guide. She thought the girl has good customer services skills, and her language was also excellent. So the lady praised the girl, Your English is perfect! Out of Chinese customs of being modest, the girl replied, My English is poor. The English lady was angry upon hearing this. She thought, Dont I know how to speak English? English is my mother tongue. She was furious at the girls

reply. The next day, she demanded the travel agency to replace the tour guide. Why did this problem happen?
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Case 7: Grooming Etiquette

Mr. Cheng is the general manager of a luxury hotel. He learned that the chairman of a Japanese international airline was in the city for a visit and was seeking business opportunities for a joint project. Mr. Cheng was lucky to be invited to meet the chairman and discuss the partnership plan. On the day of the meeting, Mr. Cheng took time to dress up. According to his general understanding of fashion, he wore a leather jacket, a pair of jeans and a baseball cap. Undoubtedly, he wished to impress the guest as smart, capable and stylish. However, contrary to his expectation, the way he dresses deemed fashionable ruined his business opportunity. What was Mr. Chengs mistake?
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References: Lu Yongqing and Cui Xiaolin, Introduction to Modern

Tourist Etiquette, Qingdao Publishing House, 1998, Page 167-221.

Wang Xiulin, Taboos for Overseas Travel, Tourism Education Publishing House, 2007. Zhou Yuxin, Modern Tourist Etiquette, Tongji University Press, 2006, Page 57 and 302-316. Xie Su, Etiquette for Tourism and Socializing, Wuhan University Press, 2006. Lin Heyou, Taboos for Travelling in Different Countries, Kuo Chia Publishing Co., 2005.
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Case study of etiquette taboos

[Case 1: Analysis] It is necessary to know the etiquette and taboos of different countries when making interpersonal contacts with guests of different nationalities. Miss Koo caused unhappiness at the dinner because she did not know the etiquette and taboos in Thailand. In some Southeast Asian countries such as Thailand, it is a taboo to pass an object or shake hands with the left hand. We can learn from this case that we need to know the basic information, daily life, practices, customs, etiquette and

taboos of different countries in the world when attending international business trips or traveling abroad. In this way, we will be able to respect the religions, customs and taboos of others and establish a good business partnership. [Case 2: Analysis] One of the popular protocol in the West is Lady first. Men should always be considerate of women in socializing occasions or at public places. For example, a man should always let the woman get on the vehicle first; when getting off the vehicle, the door should be opened for the woman. It is polite to open or close the door for the woman. The Western lady was unhappy because Simon did not open the door for her first according to international practice/protocol.
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[Case 3: Analysis] All the girls of the ethnic minority wear cockscombs. According to their customs, a man touching the cockscomb of a girl indicates a marriage proposal. Therefore, we should understand and respect the customs of ethnic minorities and avoid committing their taboos. This will facilitate the friendly contacts between different nationalities. [Case 4: Analysis] According to Italian customs, people would give a handkerchief as a gift only when they leave after gathering together for a long time. Giving a handkerchief represents wiping off tears for the parting. The Italian tourists had just started a pleasant journey, and the tour guide gave them handkerchiefs to wipe off their tears for parting. The tourists were certainly upset. The lady yelled in anger because the patterns of chrysanthemum were embroidered on the handkerchiefs. Chrysanthemum is an elegant flower in China, but in Italy, it is a flower offered to the deceased. The Italian lady was certainly annoyed and angry. Therefore, when receiving foreign tourists and during socializing occasions, we should understand their customs in order to show our respect. [Case 5: Analysis] As a matter of fact, what Michael said to the guests was entirely out of good intention. However, it is generally accepted that there should be a limit for thoughtfulness in
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international contacts, which Michael had ignored. To the Chinese, Michael demonstrated his thoughtfulness and friendliness. However, due to cultural differences, it appeared to the Western couple that Michael was interfering with their private life. As a result, Michael was dismissed. [Case 6: Analysis] Apparently, the tour guide did not understand Western culture

and customs well, which is different from the subtle characteristics of the Eastern culture. In the Western society, self-confidence is a persons fundamental quality. Westerners believe that you cannot convince others to believe you if you do not even believe of your own self. Therefore, the most appropriate answer is Thank you when the tour guide heard the English ladys compliment. This kind of response is neither humble nor arrogant. Therefore, it is necessary for tourism service staff to understand the culture, customs, etiquette and taboos of customers of different nationalities. [Case 7: Analysis] According to practice, everyone should pay attention to his appearance and apparel in social activities. The first impression is especially important in meeting people for the first time. Mr. Chengs first meeting with the foreign guest was a formal contact. He should wear suits to show his respect for others. However, he failed to do so. His stylish clothes gave the visiting guest the impression of casual, unconventional and disrespectful.
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Section 2: Customer Expectations and Perceptions Customer Services Policies

I. Ways to meet customer expectations
All customers expect the customer service staff to satisfy their demands. Demands are refer to as an efficient service with value for money. In order to meet their expectations, organizations nowadays would keep improving their service quality and management ensure of product enhancement. To satisfy customers, organizations should identify the services most needed by customers, and then try their best to reach or even exceed their expectations. The following are some approaches to meet customer expectations: 1. Respect Sending a thank-you letter or birthday card to customers would make them feel that they are respected. For example, the customer service staff should take the initiative in providing customers with information that they need. If you are busy with your work while a customer approaches, you should smile to him/her or indicate him/her to take a seat and wait for a moment. In this way, the customer will understand that you are aware of his/her presence.

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2. Polite Use polite expressions such as please and thank you. Any vulgar language or behavior is prohibited. You have to be polite even if the customer may not be right. When a customer complains, the service staff should listen to his/her requests patiently and carefully. Ask for help from others if you are unable to solve the problem. 3. Efficient The customer service staff must manage time efficiently. Do not neglect the customer you are serving nor let them waiting for too long. 4. Enthusiastic A smile and warm reception from customer service staff and their initiative in helping to solve problems will promote the message of quality service and commitment to customers. 5. Dedicated Try to look at problems from the perspective of customers and understand their actual needs. For example, if a customer from Beijing is not fluent in English, you should arrange a customer service staff who can speak Putonghua to serve this customer. If a customer complains, you must listen and explain the reasons to the customer patiently,
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and express your understanding and care, and apologize when necessary.

II. Gain customer loyalty

The purposes of customer service policy are to: meet customer expectations and needs; achieve the goal of the company; and gain customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is gained by offering extra services. A company should understand the personal needs of customers and decide how to provide customers with the best services. As Wu Qingjin (2006) noted by quoting the study of American scholars John T. Bowen and Stowe Shoemaker, the profitability of an organization depended on the loyalty of consumers. Loyal customers of the tourism and hospitality industry have the following characteristics: (i) rarely ask about the types of room when making a reservation. (ii) more likely to use other services of the hotel,

e.g. laundry, food and beverage. (iii) recommend the hotel he frequents to 12 persons on average. (iv) more likely to reflect their comments to the hotel management.
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In conclusion, loyal consumers not only would purchase the products and services of a company regularly, but also they pay little attention to prices. They are willing to pay higher prices for quality products and services. Therefore, if a company can gain their customers loyalty, it would be able to reduce promotion and service costs. Ultimately, the business can increase its operating income.
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Activity 1
Teaching Objectives: Develop students understanding of : - meeting customer satisfaction - gaining customer loyalty Contents: 1. Questions asked by the teacher: (students own answers) What are the objectives for running a company? Would you be loyal to a restaurant? Why? 2. The teacher facilities the students to engage in discussion: High level of customer satisfaction is important to a business. Therefore, many organizations put their customers in the first place
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3. Group activity: In the following group discussion, students should make use of the information in Appendix A. If customer satisfaction is the primary objective of an organization (represented in Stage [1]), and customer loyalty is the ultimate objective (represented in Stage [6]). Identify the order of the remaining four stages and number the answers accordingly in Appendix A. 4. Conclusion:

 The service industry emphasizes on the importance of customer satisfaction. The success in deliverying of customer satisfaction will ultimately help a company in gaining customer loyalty.
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Worksheet (Appendix A)

Customer services () Customer expectations for services () Customer contacts () Customer satisfaction (1) Strategies and tactics () Customer loyalty (6)
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Section 3: Challenges in Providing Quality Customer Services

Answer the following questions by circling Agree or Disagree to each statement. You may discuss with classmates.
1. There are always some people you are not able to please. Agree Disagree 2. When you have experience in dealing with customers, you would naturally know what they need without research. Agree Disagree 3. Usually, customers would be satisfied when you accomplish a task for them. Agree Disagree

. 4. All staff have the right to know if they can satisfy the customers with their services. Agree Disagree 5. You could save time and efforts if you understand the expectations of customers clearly. Agree Disagree . 6. Over the long term, customers feedbacks and comments are usually helpful to your work. Agree Disagree 7. Meeting customer expectations is the key in maintaining desirable customer relations. Agree Disagree
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I. Basic requirements for providing quality customer service:

The service staff who are responsible for customers services should provide quality service in order to establish good customer relations and thus secure businesses for an organization. When meeting customers, staff should be friendly in greeting the customer, trying to give the customer an impression that he/she is a valued guest. Greet customers politely and show your readiness to offer help. Quality service depends on many factors, but the most important factor is sensitivity when dealing with customers. It can be reflected from the following aspects: Are we fully aware that we have brought our personal feelings, attitude or belief to our work? How these things affect our relations with customers? How much we know about our role in the relationship with customers?. How tactful are our communication skills? It may affect our relations with customers.
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Quality customer service has the following basic requirements besides sensitivity. 1. Preparation We must be well prepared when expecting customers. 2. Presentation Dress properly e.g. wearing company uniforms. 3. Make customers feel that they are

important We may meet hundreds of customer everyday, but each customer may meet us once only. Therefore, whenever a customer approaches us, we should put aside our work at hand to greet the customer. It is very important not letting your customer wait until you finish your work. If you are busy, tell the customer honestly as well as assure the customer that you will attend to his/her needs shortly. 4. Let customers tell their own stories Allow the customers to express their dissatisfaction; however, you should stay calm. Guide the customer with questions and at the same time show your sympathy for the customers dissatisfaction: I understand how you feel. It will
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calm the customer down, which is very important in solving the customers complaints or problems. 5. Listen carefully Listen carefully when a customer is speaking. Find ways to understand and solve the customers problems. Let the customer tells the story and do not interrupt before the story ends. Listening is a very important skill in customer service. 6. Understand the perception of customers Put yourself in the position of the customers, and care for their needs. Sympathized and use appropriate communication skills. Identify the customers

needs or interest, and look for solutions in m eeting customers expectations. 7. Speak in the customers language Avoid using business or industrys jargons when dealing with customers. It is a failure for a customer to ask What do you mean by that? It would embarrass the customers and make them feel inferior. We should always use terms customer understands.
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8.Speak respectfully Be polite and respectful to customers; speak in a friendly tone; and use meaningful words. 9. Honesty Be honest when a customer asks for information which we do not know. Do not brag. Instead, simply tell the customer that we would help to find the relevant information. We certainly appreciate any recognition for our efforts as long as we sincerely provided good customer service. 10. Create a long-lasting impression Greet customers politely at the beginning as well as at the end of the service. This will create a long-lasting impression in the customers minds. It is also a good opportunity for the organization to create its positive corporate image.
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II. Effective handling of potential problem during service customer dissatisfaction 1. Reasons for customer dissatisfaction Reasons for customer dissatisfaction

1. Quality of products/ service Substandard quality of goods Poor service of staff Exaggerating advertisements/service commitment Bad value for the money 2. Lack of understanding Lack of relevant information Lack of effective communication Cultural differences and misunderstanding 3. Individual personality Failure to meet personal expectation/needs Failure to fulfill motives/meet specific objectives
Reasons for customer dissatisfaction 1. Quality of products/service 2. Lack of understanding 3. Individual personality

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2. Actions to express dissatisfaction

Any of the reasons set out above may result in customer dissatisfaction. A dissatisfied customer may take various courses of actions to express his/her dissatisfaction:
Dissatisfied with products or services
Take action Take no action Complain to the organization, government departments or non-governmental

organizations Claim compensation from the organization directly Obtain compensation through a lawsuit Refuse to buy the products or services from the organization Discourage others from using or purchasing the services or products Directly or third party

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Only a small number of customers would complain to an organization directly once they come across an unpleasant service experience. In fact, most of the customers take no action. However, this does not mean that these customers tolerate the behavior of the organization. They may have decided not to patronize the organization in the future. Therefore, the management should fully understand the importance of handling customer complaints.

III. Customer complaints

Effective communication is the key in establishing customer relations. The measures and basic skills taken by the management of the tourism and hospitality industry in handling customer complaints are as follows: Measures to handle customer complaints: (i) Encourage and facilitate customers to complain Provide customer survey and complaint hotlines, or arrange designated staff to handle customer complaints.
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(ii) Provide remedial service in a timely manner in handling customer complaints The management of a company should handle the customers complaints and dissatisfaction personally, listen to their comments, find out the reasons for the complaints, as well as apologize or explain for the problems. The management should also express their serious attention to the

complaints and follow with actions. It will help in restoring the customers trust in the company as well as encourage them to patronize the company in the future. (iii) Encourage the staff to solve customer complaints flexibly not rigidly The management of the business should assist the staff in learning the correct ways of handling customers complaints. They should educate the staff that it is undesirable to lose an existing customer in exchange for winning an argument. In addition, the management should authorize the staff the necessary power to handle customer complaints flexibly and effectively. (iv) Take the initiative in seeking for customers comments Many dissatisified customers are reluctant to
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spend their time and energy in making a complaint to the business. Therefore, the management should find out the customers comments through surveys, regular invitations for opinions as well as listening to the customers feedbacks. (v) Improve the service and product quality Based on customer complaints and survey findings, the management of the business should take various measures to improve management policies and prevent similar problems from happening again. In addition, they should improve the quality of products and services, and this is the key in reducing customer complaints.
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Basic skills of effectively handling customer complaints: 1. Stay calm Stay calm even if your customers are impolite. 2. Develop positive attitude Do not neglect complaints Do not put away complaints Do not overreact Do not take complaints personally 3. Listen

attentively Collect information (facts) from customers. Such information will give organization an opportunity to put things right that they might not otherwise have had. It is an effective way to keep eye contact and keep nodding when listening. 4. Repeat the facts This skill of making conclusion may help verify the information recorded and create a psychological effect that you are on the side of the customer. 5. Evaluate complaints We may evaluate whether the complaints are justified according to the information collected. 6. Make a decision We should decide on the actions to be taken after verifying the authenticity of the complaints.
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7. Make suggestions and other options If the suggestions we make to the customers are not accepted, we may put forward other options and explain our follow-up actions. 8. Maintain politeness Try your best to be as polite as possible when dealing with complaints. It is effective and appropriate to address the customer by his/her name.
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IV. Principles of dealing with complaints

When a customer is dissatisfied with the services or products of the company, we should handle the customers complaint promptly. The most important step is to manage complaints with appropriate procedures

and solve the problems sincerely and quickly. Basically, there are four principles in dealing with the three most common forms of complaint: 1. Telephone complaint Listen to the complaint attentively. Do not try to comment or interrupt the complaining customer. Ask questions properly and politely. This will help you understand the contents of the complaint. Make the customer understand that you will provide a constructive solution or [Questions for discussion] 1. What problems do you think will usually occur in the course of dealing with customer relations? (Students answers) 2. How would you deal with the situation when a customer inquires about a specific service which is not provided by the organization (e.g. the restaurant does not provide valet parking)? (Students answers)
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compensation within a certain period of time. If you are unable to deal with the complaint, let the customer know who would contact him/her and follow up the issue. Make all efforts to ensure that the customer is satisfied with the result. 2. Letter complaint Read complaint letters carefully and identify the key points of the complaint. If you doubt whether you are authorized to reply the letter, ask your superior for suggestions and reply as soon as possible. State clearly how you would handle the complaint. Provide the customer with the name and contact number of the person responsible for handling the complaint and ensure all matters raised would be addressed through actions. Call to notify the customer as soon as the complaint is solved. 3. Face-to-face complaint Keep eye contact with the customer and make records when receiving complaints face-to-face. Listen to the complaint carefully and attentively. You may ask meaningful

questions after obtaining sufficient

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information. Keep pleasant facial expression. Be careful not to assume a superior attitude or give people the impression that your smile is fake Assure the customer that his/her complaint will be treated seriously and a constructive solution or compensation would be provided in a certain period of time.
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Steps to Follow When Complaints Arise

Principles Show your care Clarify situation Agree action Follow-up

Telephone complaint
Listen to the complaint attentively. Do not try to comment or interrupt the complaining customer. Ask questions properly and politely. This will help you understand the contents of the complaint. Make the customer understand that you will provide a constructive solution or compensation within a certain period of time. If you are unable to deal with the complaint, let the customer know who

would contact him/her and follow up the issue. Make all efforts to ensure that
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Principles Show your care Clarify situation Agree action Follow-up

the customer is satisfied with the result.

Letter complaint
Read compliant letters carefully. State clearly how you would handle the complaint. Provide the customer with the name and contact number of the person responsible for handling the complaint and ensure all matters Call to notify the customer as soon as the complaint is solved.
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Principles Show your care Clarify situation Agree action Follow-up

raised would be addressed through actions.

Face-to-face complaint
Keep eye contact with the customer and make records when receiving

complaints face-to-face. You may ask meaningful questions after obtaining sufficient information. Assure the customer that his/her complaint will be treated seriously. A constructive solution or compensation would be provided in a certain period of time.
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V. Strategy of service recovery

The main purpose of service recovery is to restore the relationship between the customer and the service staff. Effective service recovery will not only win back the customers trust towards the business, but will also turn a dissatisfied customer into a loyal one. An effective strategy of service recovery should target on two types of customers: Customers who do complain and those who dont. Complaints provide the service business with an opportunity to take corrective actions and recover the service situation. Business have to make extra effort in facilitating customers who dont complain to give their comments about the service, such as conducting customer survey and setting up complaint hotlines. No matter from what channels the complaints are received, service recovery should consist of the following five stages: Stage Measures 1. Apologize, apologize and apologize again Listen Identify yourself

 Apologize Make no excuses Service recovery process 2. Take action Provide service
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as soon as possible options Make the greatest efforts Solve problems actively 3. Show sympathy Show your trust Be devoted Be empathized 4. Provide compensation Provide compensation before the customer requests Provide the customer with compensation equivalent to his/her loss 5. Follow-up service Face-to-face service Telephone calls Provide follow-up service within days after the problems are solved
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Activity 2 Objectives: Help students in analyzing the language used by angry customers and their

emotions in complaints Enhance the students skills of handling customers complaints or dissatisfaction through the writing conversations for cases Enhance the students presentation and organizational abilities through role plays Contents: 1. Questioned by the teacher: Have you ever encountered dissatisfactory services? What kind of language would you use in expressing your anger? Please fill in the worksheet (Appendix B) with expressions related to anger. Before the students answer, the teacher may share with them some personal experiences Example: Background information Having tea with family members in Maxim's Restaurant.
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Teacher: Waiter, why is my Fujian fried rice not yet ready? I have been waiting for 30 minutes! Waiter: Well, you know. This is the lunch period and your order would not be ready so soon. So, do you still want it or not? Teacher: Ask your manager to come over here. Manager: Is there anything I can do for you, Miss? Teacher: Ive ordered Fujian fried rice. Ive waited for half an hour and it is not yet served. I asked the waiter to check for me, but he just answered me impolitely that they are busy at this hour. What kind of servicing attitude is this? Manager: Sorry. I would follow up on this staff. And Ill check with the kitchen for you right now. Teacher: Ill be starved to death if you keep me waiting.

Manager: Well, very sorry indeed, but Im sure the rice will be OK in 10 minutes.
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2. Group activity: Design a conversation according to the six scenarios provided by the teacher (Appendix C) Work in groups of five and design a conversation according to the place, people and problem of each scenario. The problem in each scenario should be solved satisfactorily and customer trust should be restored. Write down each conversation onto the worksheet of Appendix C. Allow 20 minutes for preparation. Each group should select its members to play the roles. Allow 5 minutes for presentation. 3. Conclusion Effective use of conversation skills can help handle customer dissatisfaction and complaints Quality service can win back customer trust and provide solutions to crises.
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A satisfied customer will share his/her experience with family and friends (about 3-4 persons) and will come back repeatedly. On the contrary, a dissatisfied customer will not only stop coming back but will also share his/her experience with his/her family and friends (approximately 11-14 persons). Managing customer complaints is an essential skill required by all frontline staff. Therefore, when a customer complains or expresses dissatisfaction, the business should handle it effectively. Customer loyalty will be gained if the customer requests are met.
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Appendix B: Phrases that expresses anger

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Appendix C: Scenario (I)

Place: Concierge People: Concierge ambassador, Miss Chan (Guest) Time: Morning

Miss Chan: Whatve you done? This shirt was brought here for dry cleaning. How come it has shrunk? Concierge ambassador: Really? Do you mind if I take a look at the shirt first? Do you still keep the receipt? Miss Chan: Look. I have it here. You see, the shirt has become so small that even my dog cant put on.
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Appendix C: Scenario (II)

Place: Restaurant in Man Wah Hotel People: Waiter, Manager, Customer A, Customer B Time: Afternoon

Customer A: Wait, dont eat. Theres a cockroach leg in the rice. Customer B: Waiter, come over here and see what is this. Waiter: Why dont you point out the problem after youve finished eating! Customer A: What are you talking about? Ask your manager to come over here.
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Appendix C: Scenario (III)

Place: Front Desk Counter in a Hotel People: Customer service representative, Mr. Cheung (Guest) Time: Afternoon

Customer service representative: Good afternoon, sir. Is there anything that I can help? Mr. Cheung: Why is my bill so expensive? I didnt make that many phone calls. Customer service representative: Really? Would you please show me your bill? Let me check for you.
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Appendix C: Scenario (IV)

Place: _Travel Agency People: Travel consultant, Miss Chow (Customer) , Miss Yan (Customer) Time: Morning

Miss Chow: Why is this tour cancelled? Your colleague told me the other day that this Tokyo-Japan 5-day tour has already been confirmed. Travel consultant : Really? Sorry. But now we have a Honshu-Japan 6-day tour. It goes to Japan too. I can promise you that this tour will certainly be confirmed. Miss Yan: Last time you also said that the tour would be confirmed. Travel

consultant: Well, all travel agencies nowadays are more or less the same. Youd better sign up quickly, or youll miss this tour too. There are only a few vacancies available now.
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Appendix C: Scenario (V)

Place: Gift Shop in a Hotel People: Sales Clerk, Mr. Fong (Guest), Mrs. Fong (Guest) Time: Afternoon

Mrs. Fong: I bought a red swimming cap at your store yesterday. It discolored as soon as it got into the water. Just take a look. Sales clerk: Really? Do you have the receipt with you? Mrs. Fong: No. How would I expect the goods sold by a large company would have problems? I wouldnt have bought it here if I had known it is so poor in quality. Sales clerk: I wont be able to help you if you do not have the receipt. Mr. Fong: But this is your companys own brand. Everyone knows this is your product even I dont have the receipt. Moreover, you were the one who sold us the product yesterday.
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Appendix C: Scenario (VI)

Place: Grand Lobby of The Olympic Hotel People: Lobby receptionist, Miss Wong Time: Morning

Lobby receptionist: Good morning, Miss! What can I do for you? Miss Wong: Why is my bill so expensive? Ive just stayed for one night only and I didnt watch any paid programs on TV. Lobby receptionist: Really? Would you please tell me your room number and let me check for you?
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VI. Cases of customer services Case 1: No-Problem Service

The concierge service of The Superior is one of the best among 5-star hotels in Hong Kong. According to Mr. Chan, concierge supervisor of The Superior, the most important element in hotel service is caring for customers to make them satisfied and happy. Mr. Chan started taking his concierge responsibilities since The Superior opened in 1980. Over the years, customers who had been served by Mr. Chan definitely appreciated his no-problem service. There was once a customer requested to have a haircut at midnight. Mr. Chan and his colleagues acted immediately: Contacted a hairdresser, prepared a car and sent the hairdresser to the

customers room within 15 minutes. The customer was very touched and regarded it as a miracle.
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On another occasion, someone asked Mr. Chan how he would handle if a customer requested a bottle of premium champagne of a special year which was not available at the hotel. Mr. Chan said, Definitely, I would search for shops in Hong Kong. If it is not available, I would write down the name and the year of the champagne, fax the order to France and assure the customer that he/she will be able to have the champagne next time he/she comes to The Superior. Do you think Mr. Chan can satisfy the demands of the customers with his serving attitude? Please explain.
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Case 2: Stacked Dishes

Chi Kit works at a restaurant in a 3-star hotel as a waiter. One day, when he served the last course of the dinner, he found that there was not enough room on the table to put down the food. Therefore, he put the food on top of a dish which was almost finished. A customer saw this and said to him jokingly, Mister, we havent finished this dish yet. How can you put another dish on it? Chi Kit happened to be in a bad mood that day, and he fired back, Since you can afford to dine here, wont you care about this bit of food? After all, youre not poor. As a result, the two started to quarrel. Finally, the customers complained to the restaurant manager. Do you think the waiter should argue with a customer if the customer is unreasonable or rude? Please explain.
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Case 3: Skills for Answering the Phone

Mr. Ma is a frequent guest of a 3-star hotel in Hong Kong. One day, he checked in again at 7

oclock in the morning. He called the service counter and asked about the room number of his colleague Mr. Wong. Miss Li who answered the call asked Mr. Ma to wait for a moment and checked for him. She found out on the computer that Mr. Wong was in Room 901 and he did not request Do-Not-Disturb Service. So she put Mr. Ma call through. When answering the call, Mr. Wong complained that Mr. Ma should not wake him up so early, and was angry about this. Is it appropriate for Miss Li to handle the call in this way? How should Miss Li handle the request?
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Case 4: Late Customer

One day, a receptionist - Chi Fung received a reservation request from Mr. Wong, the boss of a company which had business relationship with the hotel. Chi Fung took extra care because Mr. Wong was a frequent guest. He reserved the only standard room remaining at that time for Mr. Wong and confirmed with him that the latest check-in time to be 23:00. Chi Fung reserved the room during this agreed period and turned down the requests from many guests coming to the hotel for rooms. However, Mr. Wong hasnt arrived at 23:40. Chi Fung thought that Mr. Wong might not be coming and it would be difficult to sell the room after 24:00. In the best interests of the hotel, Chi Fung sold the room to a guest who was waiting anxiously. Finally, Mr. Wong showed up in the front desk at 24:00. He claimed that his car had broken down. He was
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unable to contact the hotel because his mobile phone had run out of battery. When he heard that the room had been sold, he was extremely angry. He demanded the hotel to compensate for his loss and insisted that he would cancel the

partnership agreement with the hotel. Facing Mr. Wongs anger, what can Chi Fung do?
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Case 5: A Seat by the Window

Mary is a receptionist at the hotels coffee shop. One day, a gentleman came in at lunch time. Mary greeted him with a smile, Hello sir. Can I have your name please? The gentleman said casually, Hello Miss. You dont have to know my name. I stay in your hotel. Mary said politely, Welcome. Would you like to have a seat in the smoking area or non-smoking area? The gentleman said, I dont smoke. What appetizers and main courses do you have? Mary answered, We have salad and smoked fish for appetizers. As for the main courses, there are pork chop, steak, chicken, duck and seafood. If you like, you may have a seat and take a look at the menu if you like. Do you want to take a seat now? Please follow me if you do. At the sight of Marys tidy and decent dresses, the gentleman agreed willingly. Then, he pointed at the seats by
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the window and said to Mary, No, no. I dont want to sit here. Id like to have a seat by the window so that I can enjoy the sea view. Mary said, Please sit here for a moment. I will take you over there once there is a seat available by the window. Mary left after the gentleman agreed with her suggestion. List five points that show Mary in delivering quality reception etiquette to customers.
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Case 6: Paying the Bill Two guests were dining at a hotel restaurant in an evening. They had been sitting there for two hours with no intention to leave. The waitress was anxious and had stood beside them several times. She wanted them to pay the bill but she did not do so. Finally, she could not help but asking the customers: Could you please pay the

bill first, sir? You can chat in the bar or the caf if you like. What? You want to drive us away? We dont want to pay the bill yet. One of the customers was angry at her words and indicated that they did not want to leave. The other customer took a look at the watch and advised his friend to pay the bill immediately. Having checked the bill, the angry customer said that they did not order one of the dishes. He asked the waitress to correct the bill. The waitress replied immediately: There is
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definitely nothing wrong with the bill. The dish has been served. The two customers insisted, We havent ordered this dish. The waitress thought again carefully and found that she might have made a mistake. So she went to the cashier and correct the bill. When she handed the corrected bill to the customer, the customer said to her, We can pay the bill, but your serving attitude is unacceptable. Please ask the restaurant manager to come over here immediately. The customers remarks made her feel dejected. She just wanted to have the customers pay their bill before the closing time of the restaurant.
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What kind of mistake did the waitress make in settling the bill? How to prevent such situation from happening in the servicing process?
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Case 7: Room Booking

It was the peak period of the tourism season. Two customers were waiting at the reception counter of a hotel. After checking the reservation record, Man Yi - the receptionist told them briefly: Another customer has already booked Room 708, so you can only stay here for one night. Having heard this, the customers said unhappily, The company which invited us here promised that we could stay here for three nights. Why is it turn out to be one night only? Man Yi kept replying coldly. It is not our fault. If you

have any complaints, you may talk to the company which have invited you. The customers got more and more angry: We need to solve this problem. We are not interested in investigating whose fault it is in the booking process. An argument was about to occur when the duty manager of the front office came just
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in time. First of all, he stated that he was here to listen to the customers complaints on behalf of the hotel manager. He invited the customers to sit down and listen to them attentively. Afterwards, he said apologetically, Your comment is quite correct. The most important thing right now is not to find out whose fault it is. Since it is the tourism peak season, all double rooms are fully occupied. I wonder if you would accept my arrangement of a suite for you. Although the price is a bit higher, the facilities and amenities are excellent. We can offer you a 10% discount too. The customers accepted the offer because they felt that the manager was sincere. What kinds of customer service skills did the duty manager apply to win back the customers trust in this case?
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Case 8: Improvisation
Siu Chung is a waiter of a 5-star hotel and was serving a group of customers in the banquet hall at the moment. Tempted by the elegant silverware on the table, the banquets host took a spoon and put it into his pocket. This happened to be witnessed by Siu Chung. While he was working, he kept thinking about the solution for this situation. Generally, it would be a theft if the customer took away the silverware without asking for permission. However, this customer was the banquets host and this was not the first time for him to organize a banquet at the hotel. In this regard, Siu Chung thought it was unnecessary to expose the act the customer did. It is because it is likely resulted in the loss of a

long-term customer. On the other hand, it would be inappropriate for him to pretend not witnessing anything, after all, the spoon was the property of the hotel.
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When the banquet was about to finish, Siu Chung brought a set of elegant silverware with the hotel logos and handed it to the customer. He said, Excuse me sir, we learn that you are fond of our hotels silverware and our manager is pleased to offer you one set. The cost has been included in your bill. The customer was surprised to hear that. Then he said shyly: Thanks for your managers thoughtfulness. Ive got drunk today and please forgive me for my rudeness. Do you think the way Siu Chung dealt with the situation is appropriate? Please explain.
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References: Wu Qingjin, Behavior of Tourism Consumers, Tourism Education Publishing House, 2006, Page 211-218. Customer Service: Building Successful Skills for the Twenty-first Century, translated by Zhu Yingzi and Ai Fengyi, 2006, the Enterprise Management Publishing House, Page 401-403 and 431. Guang Yu, A Collection of Modern Etiquette, Beijing Earthquake Publishing House, 2007, Page 272-273. Xie Su, Etiquette for Tourism and Socializing, Wuhan University Press, 2006.
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Analysis - Cases of customer service

[Case 1: Analysis] Certainly, it is unlikely that we can act exactly in the way Mr. Chan did. We may not have such resources in our hotel. However, his attitude and awareness of serving customers wholeheartedly are essential for hotel and are indispensable qualities for every outstanding staff. For example, the rules of etiquette set by the front office in welcoming customers: Open the door for a customer when his/her vehicle arrives at the hotel. Put your hand to shield the upper doorframe of the vehicle to prevent the customer from hitting his/her head when getting off and greet the customer initiatively. If it happens to be an elderly person, you should even support him/her with your hand when he/she is getting off. It is not a hotels rule to

support an elderly person, but a devoted service staff should think of this and put it into practice. This shows how hotel etiquette can be applied flexibly to achieve whole-hearted service, or personalized service. Services of this kind can improve customer satisfaction, which in turn will bring about customer loyalty and will facilitate the profit and growth of the business. [Case 2: Analysis] In the hotel industry, if a service staff wins a dispute over a customer, that is similar to a slap in the face of the customer and will drive him/ her away. It is provided in the rules of Mandarin Oriental Hotel Bangkok in Thailand that no staff is
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allowed to argue with a customer. Any staff who is found arguing with a customer will be dismissed immediately. Therefore, all hotel staff are polite and good-tempered to their customers, and in turn a good reputation and image have been established for the hotel. Many customers are attracted to the hotel from far away by its reputation. [Case 3: Analysis] (1) Miss Li should consider the call at that time (7:00a.m.) could disturb the customer. (2) Miss Li should analyze quickly the reason for the customer in asking for the room number. Perhaps Mr. Ma might just want to find out the room number of Mr. Wong for future contact instead of speaking to him immediately. Before identifying the reason of the customer, Miss Li may response to the customers question and then asks: Mr. Wong stays in Room 901. Would you like me to put you through right away? Remind the customer politely and tactfully that it is still early and see whether the customer would like to call later. In this way, she will let the customer feel her proactive and considerate service, as well as meeting the customers needs.
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[Case 4: Analysis] (1) Chi Fung explained to Mr. Wong that the hotel had no responsibility because he did not arrive within the agreed time. This way of showing helplessness is obviously not tactful. There is nothing wrong in the operating procedure. However, simply following the operating procedure is not sufficient for being a good receptionist. You should make efforts to let the customer understand that you have tried your best. In addition, handling situation like this has not taken into account the long-term interests of the hotel. Mr. Wong will probably cancel all business transactions with the hotel, and he will discourage others such as relatives, friends or partners from staying at the hotel.

(2) Apologize to the customer and contact other hotels in our group or other hotels to find a room of the same class for Mr. Wong. If there are no other rooms, explain to the customer that you are really unable to help and report to the front desk manager immediately. It is advisable to write a letter of apology to Mr. Wong afterwards. When the angry customer sees you busy in calling other hotels for rooms, he would feel being empathized. You have tried your best to help him. (3) The lobby manager will understand the efforts you have made in the interests of the hotel as well.
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[Case 5: Analysis] This case shows the service process of a receptionist: 1. The receptionist should take the initiative to greet the customer when he/she enters the restaurant; 2. Asks the customers name and says a few words to show friendliness; 3. Asks the customer whether he/she would like to sit in the smoking or non-smoking area; 4. The receptionist should have decent appearance and tidy clothes to give customers a good impression; 5. The receptionist should arrange a suitable seat for the customer. If a customer is dissatisfied with the seat, find out the reason and change the seat whenever it is available. [Case 6: Analysis] 1. She should not push the customers to pay the bill. This is very impolite and will easily lead to customer dissatisfaction; 2. She did not check the bill before handing it to the customer. In addition, she did not make any reflection when the mistake was found. Instead, she put the blame on the customers; 3. She did not apologize to the customers promptly nor compensate with provision of higher responsiveness. We can learn from this case that we must not push customers to pay the bill in a straightforward manner. We should remind them warmly and patiently. For example, you may advise them: Its so late, please take care on your way home. In addition, we should check the bill carefully. Do not argue with the customer if he/she raises any doubts. If it is our mistake, we should admit it honestly and apologize sincerely.
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[Case 7: Analysis] 1. Hotel is the home of travelers. Making travelers feel like home is a hotels objective. It is necessary for a star-graded hotel to have an assistant front office manager/ front office manager to deal with customer complaints in a timely manner. 2. When a customer is unhappy and angry, the hotel

supervisor should calm him/her down first, listen to his/her complaints, then explain apologetically and tactfully, and try to solve the problem through discussion. 3. We must understand the expectation of a complained customer, i.e. looking for physical and psychological compensation. Therefore, the hotel in its agree action should agree a compromise with the guest and compensate for the guests inconvenience if appropriate. It would be considered as successful if a hotel can make the customer satisfied through reasonable compensation. [Case 8: Analysis] In this case, Siu Chung has taken the appropriate measure since he skillfully had the customer compensate for the silverware of the hotel and protected the best interest of the hotel without hurting the customer. Such a tactful response in conversation, flexible and smart application of problem-solving skills are usually the key to success in the service industry.
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[Questions for discussion]

1. Try to provide some measures which lead to customer satisfaction in relation to the following services and write them down in the following table: Dissatisfactory services Satisfactory services (measures) Reaction to mistakes in services Example A customer has booked a hotel room in advance, but there is no room available when he/ she arrives. The hotel does not give any explanation or apology, or help the customer to contact other hotels. Example Since it was a mistake made by the hotel staff in the booking, the hotel manager upgrades the customer to a luxury suite at the same price of the original booking. (i) Staff of an airline kept providing customers with incorrect information.

They told the customers that the flight would be delayed by one hour, but finally the customers have had to wait for 6 hours.
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Reaction to customer request (ii) A restaurant hostess is not willing to change a seat by the window for a customer and tells the customer that there is no seat available there. Proactive action of the service staff (iii) A waiter at a restaurant gets impatient because the customer is hesitating what to order. 2. Beautiful Life Travel Agency arranged a tours visit to a famous temple on their trip to Wuhan. When they came out of the temple, they were surrounded by a group of fortune-tellers who persuaded them to have a try. At first, the fortune-tellers told the tourists that they did not need to pay for the fortune-telling; however, they asked the tourists for money after the service was provided. The tourists felt that they were cheated. Many of them blamed the tour guide, saying that the travel agency should not arrange such a stop and stated their intention for further complaints. How would you handle this situation if you were the tour guide?
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Section 4: Dealing with Difficult Customers

I. Understand various difficult customers
You may meet many difficult customers in the service industry, including rude customers, angry customers, grumbling customers and domineering customers. These are the people you have to serve. However, they are

only some of the customers you will find difficult to deal with. How should you deal with them? The following are six types of difficult customers: 1. Angry customers 2. Customers dissatisfied with your products or service 3. Indecisive customers 4. Demanding or domineering customers 5. Rude or inconsiderate customers 6. Talkative customers

II. How to deal with difficult customers

1. Angry customers Take particular care when you are dealing with an angry customer. In order to serve an angry customer effectively, you have to control your emotion and find out the reason for the customers
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anger. The following are some suggested measures: i. Be initiative Tell the customer what you can do instead of what you cant. For example, do not respond passively such as telling the customer that no refund can be made according to company policy. Instead, you may say: We can offer you a coupon. You may enjoy 20% discount if you use the coupon to consume or shop in the hotel. (Of course, you have to obtain authorization from your supervisor before offering any coupons to a customer.) ii. Understand the reason for the customers anger Do not overlook the anger of the customer. For example, do not say: You dont need to be so angry. Instead, you should say: I can understand how you feel, and I really want to help you in solving this problem. Could you please tell me what happened?
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iii. Reassure the customer Indicate to the customer that you understand why he/she is angry and that you are willing to help him/her in solving the problem. The following phrases can reduce the customers worry: I will try my best to help you solve this problem, I assure you that this issue will be

settled within these two days or No worry, I will help you solve this problem first, etc. iv. Be objective Keep calm even if the customer has a bad attitude. If the customer is still very angry, you may ask your supervisor or colleagues for help. v. Listen attentively Angry customers need to express their dissatisfaction. They also need others to listen to them. The service staff should not interrupt their complaints. 2. Dissatisfied customers The following measures can be applied to deal with customers who are dissatisfied with the companys products or services:
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i. Listen Listen attentively to the reasons for the customers dissatisfaction. Use positive language when dealing with these customers. Avoid using negative expressions. Some examples are stated in the table below: Positive expressions Negative expressions What I (we) can do is I (We) cannot do this I (We) will do it as soon as possible I am (We are) unable to do this It is my pleasure to help you This is not my responsibility Would you please ? You must Although I am unable to what I can do is It is our policy to ii. Maintain a positive attitude Even an angry customer may make you exhausted, do not let them mention the dissatisfactory experience again. You should make a few positive comments while listening and then try to find out an effective solution.
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iii. Smile, introduce yourself and offer help To show your initiative, introduce yourself immediately and indicate your readiness to

help. Use non-verbal communication (e.g. nods and smiles) and some supportive expressions (e.g. eh, hmmm, aha, oh or other expressions) while listening. iv. Make no excuses Usually, customers are not interested to know why the products or services are unavailable. They only want to see a favorable solution to their problem. We should find out ways to correct the mistakes and avoid making any excuses. 3. Indecisive customers Customers with no ideas of their own tend to hesitate for a long time. In certain circumstances, they might not know what they need exactly, e.g. choosing a present for a specific occasion. At this moment, you may give them some suggestions by using your communication skills and personal experience. The following are some measures to deal with indecisive customers:
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i. Be patient You should greet the customer patiently and help him/her in satisfying his/her needs. You should provide suggestions when it is appropriate. You have to indicate to the customer that you are ready to help at anytime. ii. Ask open-ended questions Ask the customer open-ended questions to find out his/ her needs, identify the required products and then offer your help. iii. Listen attentively Pay attention to the verbal and non-verbal messages of the customer to identify his/her needs, followed by understanding his/her preferences. iv. Guide the customer in making decisions Positive suggestions/ comments given by a service staff may help customers make decisions. You should note that you are helping them to make decisions instead of deciding for them. If you impose your
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preference on the customers, they might be dissatisfied and would likely request for a refund or an exchange.

4. Demanding or domineering customers The following are some effective measures to deal with demanding customers: i. Be professional Do not raise your voice or revenge through language. Maintain your politeness and use professional service skills. ii. Respect customers Keep eye contact with the customer; keep calm; address the customer by his/her name; apologize when appropriate or necessary. Let the customer feel that he/she is respected. Seek solutions quickly. iii. Tell the customer your authority Do not present a negative attitude when talking to the customer. Instead, you should focus on what you can do and what you are
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willing to do. Make prompt decisions to win back the customers trust. You may appreciate the customer when his/her suggestions are feasible or helpful in solving the problem. For example, you may say: Mr. Chow, your suggestion is really good. I think it will work. After that, you may follow up according to this suggestion. This shows that you are willing to accept suggestions and make efforts to serve the customer to meet his/her expectation. It shows that you take the customers suggestions seriously. In case, you are unable to meet customers needs, you may try other ways to satisfy them. 5. Rude or inconsiderate customers Some customers offend others on purpose or try to attract attention from others. They may act in the following ways: Raising their voice when speaking; requesting to talk to a supervisor; using rude language; jumping the line; or disagreeing with you when you intent to offer help. Sometimes they may also offend or dominate others on purpose. You may try using the following measures in dealing with such customers:
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i. Be professional You cannot act the same way as the customer in responding to his/her rude

behavior. You should keep calm and self-confident in order to control the situation. For example, a rude customer interrupts you when you are serving another customer. You may pause for a moment, look in the eyes of the customer, and say firmly but with a smile, Sir/Madam, I will get back to you once I finish serving this customer. You may repeat once more if he/she persists, so that he/she understands the faster you finish serving the customer, the faster you will be able to serve him/her. 6. Talkative customers Some customers would spend much of their time by telling you some irrelevant topics such as personal experiences, family, friends, achievements and other things. The following are some of the skills to deal with talkative customers. i. Keep enthusiastic, sincere and concerned You should keep smiling and sincere to these
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customers. Agree with their comment and talk to them briefly during the course of service. For example, if a customer says that your family name is similar to that of his/her great-uncle and asks where your hometown is, you may answer: That is interesting. My hometown is But I dont think we have any relatives in other places. In this way, you are able to answer his/her question and at the same time stop his/her from further questioning. What you say next should be related to business. ii. Ask specific and open-end questions Such questions may help you to identify the customers needs and be concerned with the customers worries. iii. Ask closed-end questions to control the situation When the needs of customers are identified, you may ask closed-end questions, e.g. Would you like to buy this product? Such questions are effective in controlling the conversation and confine the customers to talk within a specific topic.
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iv. Dominate the course of conversation

You may give your idea to a customer through questions or statements so that you can dominate the conversation. You may imply that you are going to end the conversation by saying: You mentioned just now that you are going to buy several things. So I suppose I should not take up your time. Thank you for coming. Please let me know if you need my help in the future. Each type of customers listed above is difficult to deal with. Whether the service staff are able to provide customers with satisfactory service depends on good staff in demonstrating good communication skills, professional knowledge, patience and the willingness to solve problems for customers. In order to serve different types of customers successfully, we need to treat each customer as a special individual and avoid treating them all alike. .
Reference: Customer Service: Building Successful Skills for the Twenty-first Century, translated by Zhu Yingzi and Ai Fengyi, 2006, the Enterprise Management Publishing House, Page 217-226.
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[In-class Activity] Divide into groups of two and perform a role-play based on one of the following scenarios. Allow 10 minutes for discussion on the type of difficult customers you are going to deal with and how to talk with them. When the role-play is over, the teacher may ask other students to answer the following questions. Questions: 1. How to provide quality service? 2. Is there any negative or unclear verbal or non-verbal communication? (Please give example if any) 3. Is there anything in the role-play that should be improved or noted? Scenario 1: A customer walked into your travel agency. He seems to be hesitating about which type of theme park packaged tickets he is going to buy. The packaged tickets are classified into whole-year, half-year and weekends. Whole-year also consists of unlimited access can be used on all days within a year and limited access cannot be used on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays.

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Scenario 2: You are a staff member of a car rental company at the airport. You just received a call from a customer. He put forward his request at the very beginning: I need to know how to rent a car. I have read the catalogue about car rental. I want to know the discounts for car rental on weekends. I want to know the cars model after the booking is completed. There is an urgent need for me to have the car ready upon arrival. Scenario 3: You are a cashier at the express checkout counter of a business hotel. You are dealing with a customer when another customer jumped the line and says to you: Look, I have an urgent business. Ive stayed for two nights only. It costs HKD 600 per night and so its HKD 1,200 in total. Is it OK if I leave the money here with you? Scenario 4: You are a ticketing clerk of a travel agency. In a morning while you are working, a frequent customer comes to you. He takes a sit and starts to chat with you about the weather, his recent life and other topics irrelevant to business.
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Part 4 - Customer Relations and Services

C. Communication Skills
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Section 1: Communication with Customers

I. What is interpersonal communication?
Communication can be defined as the process of transmitting ones thoughts and messages to another person and making the recipient understand and respond to the content of messages.
Think about: (write the answer in the space)

What is your strength in interpersonal communication? Will it help you in your job? Students answers

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Activity 1 Ask your classmates the following questions and fill in the table. Questions Answers 1. Do I often smile when I am speaking? 2. Do I often use body language such as facial expressions, postures and gestures when I am speaking? 3. What are my usual movements when I am speaking? 4. What is your first impression of me? For example, is it hesitating, dominating, shy, self-confident, friendly or convincing?
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II. What is effective communication?

When the message received is the same as the message being transmitted, the communication is effective. Activity 2 Contents of the activity: 1. Questioned by the teacher: (optional answers by the students) What is communication? You communicate with classmates and teachers every day. So what is the function of communication? 2. Teachers explanation: Communication is a basic method for people to contact each other. People may share information, exchange ideas and establish good interpersonal relations through communication. Generally, communication may fulfill these five purposes: learning, establishing relations, transmitting ideas, convincing others and providing assistance. Each person has his/her own communication ability. Some are good at expressing ideas while others are not. Our activity today is going to test your communication ability.
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3. Activity - Part 1: The teacher invites two volunteers to take part, one as

the [sender] and the other as the [recipient]. Other students are observers. The two participants sit face to face at the opposite sides of the teachers desk. Each of them is provided with 6 cartons of drinks (or other objects as substitutes). The [sender] arranges the 6 cartons in an order he/she prefers. (Do not let the [recipient] see the order). The [sender] describes the order to the [recipient] by oral description. The [recipient] must arrange the 6 cartons in the same order as the [senders] according to the [senders] instructions. (The recipient cannot ask any questions). Five minutes later, the teacher asks all students to check how many cartons are placed in the same order. Finally, the teacher may give drinks to the participating students as prizes. 4. Activity - Part 2: Repeat the same procedures in [Part 1] but the [recipient] can ask the [sender] questions this time. Five minutes later, check the cartons again to see if more cartons are in the right order than in [Part 1].
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5. Conclusion Questioned by the teacher: Why is the result of [Part 1] better than that of [Part 2]? Teachers conclusion Communication can be categorized into two types, namely one-way communication and two-way communication: [Activity - Part 1] is one-way communication and [Activity - Part 2] is two-way communication. In one-way communication, the communication completes when the sender transmits the message to the recipient. The recipient is not allowed to respond to the sender or ask questions. In two-way communication, the recipient may respond to the sender as well as ask questions. On the one hand, this can help clarify the content of the message; on the other hand, new information may be added to the message. Therefore, this is a more

effective way of communication. Since the recipient has to interpret and decode the message being transmitted, the message received may differ from the original message. In addition, different people may interpret the same message in a different way. Moreover, the same person
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may even have different interpretations about messages at different times. This is due to the different factors that may affect the understanding of messages, such as noise. Effective communication consists of five aspects: (1) Ability in organization of thought, (2) Ability in expression (the sender), (3) Ability in transmission of message, (4) Ability in receiving message (the recipient), and (5) Ability in understanding. Teachers example: Give a daily life example for one-way communication and two-way communication respectively. 6. Extended activity [Activity - Part 2] can be repeated so that all students in the class may participate (in groups of two). When the whole class takes part in the activity, the teacher may consider using matchboxes/tissue paper to substitute cartons of drinks.
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III. The importance of politeness and hospitable reception

Complete the following questions before beginning this topic. Use Yes or No to indicate whether the statement is true or false. If most of your answers are correct, congratulations! You have mastered some key points of politeness and hospitable reception. Questions Answers 1. If customers are satisfied with your performance, even though youve made a mistake, their level of satisfaction exceeds your apologetic remarks. 2. Expressions such as I will do my best and I am not sure will give a reliable message to customers.

3. You should take the initiative in providing customer service. 4. When a customer complains and expresses his/her dissatisfaction, you should reply: Our companys policy wont allow 5. As long as you are able to provide service to customers, a badly dressed and an unpleasant appearance will not leave the customers with a bad impression.
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6. Communicate with customers actively can transmit your view to them effectively and let them feel your politeness and hospitable service.
Answers: 123456 Yes No Yes No No Yes
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IV. Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception

Activity 3 Contents of the activity: 1. Teachers questions: What are the core sectors of tourism service? The teacher puts the students answers on the board, and asks: Which positions in these core sectors require customers contacts? Reference answer:
Core sectors of tourism service Positions that need to have contacts with customers Hotel Lobby receptionist, bellman, restaurant waiter/ waitress, lobby manager, customer relations officer, telephone operator Travel agent/travel

agency Tour escort/tour guide, travel consultant,

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ticketing clerk, telephone operator Transportation industry (airline, railway company, cruise ship, coach, car rental) Ticketing clerk, booking clerk, flight attendant, ground crew, passenger service officer Scenic spot (theme park, museum, etc.) Tour guide,

ticket conductor/ conductress 2. The teacher brings out the following four scenarios from the students answers: Telephone operator at a hotel Receptionist at a hotel (Rooms Division) Telephone operator at a travel agency Ticketing clerk at a travel agency (counter) 3. Group activity: Each group selects one of the above scenarios and discusses the relevant Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception. Allow 10 minutes for preparation. Each group writes their agreed vocabulary on a large
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piece of drawing paper. (Refer to Annex A) Each group selects one student to report their Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception related to his/her position in the scenario. The teacher should review and give appropriate feedback on students presentations.. 4. Conclusion The tourism industry is a service industry in which

frequent contacts with customers are required. Therefore, frontline staff have to master the usage of vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception. It s also an important element of providing quality service.
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Annex A: Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception. Case Vocabulary of politeness and hospitable reception 1. Telephone operator in a hotel Greeting: Good morning/afternoon/evening. Hello! ----- Hotel. This is ---speaking. What can I do for you? Request: Please hold on. How should I address you, Miss/Sir? Gratitude: Thank you for your inquiry. Thank you for your valuable suggestion. Apology: I am awfully sorry. We do not provide this service. 2. Receptionist in a hotel (face-to-face) Greeting: Welcome. Good morning/afternoon/evening. What can I do for you, Miss/Sir? Farewell: Thank you for your inquiry. Have a nice day. Goodbye! Wish to see you again. 3. Telephone operator in a travel agency Greeting: Good morning/afternoon/evening. ----Travel Agency. Hello. This is ---speaking. How should I address you? What can I do for you? Request: Please leave your
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information. I will get back to you as soon as possible. Gratitude: Thank you for your inquiry. Youre welcome. It is my pleasure to serve you. Apology: I am awfully sorry. I

understand how you feel. I will convey your idea to the relevant department to take care of it as soon as possible. 4. Ticketing clerk at a travel agency (face-to-face) Greeting: Good morning/afternoon/evening. Please take a seat, Miss/Sir. How should I address you? What can I do for you? Reception: May I ask where are you planning to travel? May I ask what time you will start off? Gratitude: Thank you for your inquiry. You may take the information home and discuss with your family. If you are interested, you may sign up at any of our branch offices or call us for inquiry.
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V. What communication method?

We use verbal and non-verbal approaches to transmit messages during the course of communication. Verbal communication In verbal communication, written or oral language must be used. Verbal communication has a hierarchy system and is subject to grammatical rules. Non-verbal communication Non-verbal communication may also be referred to as body language. It uses some signs such as facial expressions, gestures, eye movements, distance, touches, postures, body movements, appearance, sound, etc. Non-verbal communication may be affected by the genders, ages, relations and cultural backgrounds of the communicating parties.

VI. What does non-verbal communication consist of?

In addition to oral and written messages, each of your movements is actually an action of non-verbal communication with other people. These movements include the following six types:

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1. Body language For example, gestures, eye contacts, postures, facial expressions, nods, etc. 2. Sound implication For example, tone, volume, frequency, clarity, pause, etc. 3. Personal hygiene & grooming For example, people in Western countries attend a churchs wedding dressed in white. However, in Indonesia, people would dress in white only when they attend a funeral. 4. Spatial implication For example, the distance between two persons during communication may suggest the degree of trust and friendliness. 5. Environmental implication For example, your customers would doubt your ability and serving attitude if your office is in a terrible mess. 6. Other implications For example, the length of time, the whole process, etc.
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Facial Eye movements Gestures Distance Touches Postures Apparel

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Activity 4 Write some cases of positive or negative non-verbal communication in the following table Positive non-verbal communication Negative non-verbal communication Example: natural standing posture

Example: crossed arms Reference answers: Positive non-verbal communication Negative non-verbal communication Look into the eyes of the other person Look at the other person absent-mindedly Listen to the customer quietly and nod from time to time Interrupt the customers speaking from time to time Arms spread open Point the finger at the customer or whisper Professional clothes Casual and untidy clothes Tidy and orderly working environment Disorderly working environment
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Activity 5 In order to enhance the students understanding of communication techniques with customers, practice the skills for politeness and hospitable reception with two students in the class. See below for details: Divide into groups of five. Each group selects a scenario (Annex B2) and designs a conversation (Annex B1) (3-4 minutes). Each group has 20 minutes for preparation. Use as many as possible verbal and non-verbal feedbacks during the conversation. Allow 5 minutes for presentation. Each group takes turns to report. Other students should watch the reporting students carefully and answer the questions in the following table. After the role-play, other students should provide their comments on the methods used by each group in dealing with their problems.
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Annex B1: Conversation

Questions Name of student 1. Refer to the scenarios, and provide

examples of verbal feedbacks. 2. Refer to the scenarios, and provide examples of non-verbal feedbacks. 3. Comment on the ability of students in transmitting messages using verbal (Q.1) and non-verbal (Q2) feedbacks. 174

Annex B2: Scenarios Scenario 1: You are an executive housekeeper of a hotel. One day, a frequent customer came to you with a stain on her dress. She complained that she did not remember there was such a stain on her dress when she took it to the laundry last time. She was very annoyed because it was an expensive one. Scenario 2: You are a sales agent of a travel agency, providing customers with tour booking, air ticket booking, hotel booking, tour service and other tourism products. A customer comes to inquire about tour packages for the Christmas holiday. Scenario 3: You are a counter crew of a fast food restaurant. It is lunch hour and the restaurant is very busy. When a customer orders food from you, another customer comes to the front of the counter and wants to interrupt you. He asks to return a ham sandwich because what he orders is luncheon meat and egg sandwich.
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Scenario 4: You work for a car rental company. Many frequent customers patronize your company and you have established good relations with them. One day, a customer who often rents cars from you come to the office and enquire about travel insurance, which we do not offer to customers.
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VII. Effective communication - politeness and

hospitable reception in the tourism industry

The tourism industry involves many interpersonal contacts. A tourism industry staff is required to communicate with customers when providing service. In addition, communication in the tourism industry usually involves people from different countries and of different cultural backgrounds. They do not know each other, nor do they have enough time to develop a close friendship. Therefore, if a service staff can communicate with his/her customers effectively, it will not only create a friendly and comfortable atmosphere, but also allow the customers to experience politeness and hospitable reception. This is an important factor in providing quality service.

Reception etiquette for the accommodation sector A. Front Office

I. Concierge/Baggage 1. Doorman Doorman should comply with the following requirements when providing service:
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Be dressed tidily, keep elegant and decent appearance, stand at the main entrance energetically and wait for customers. When a customer arrives in a car, step forward and guide the car to stop at the entrance and then open the door for the customer. Smile when greeting a customer (including stepping forward). Bow to the customer and say hospitably, Good morning/afternoon/evening. Welcome. Address a frequent customer by his family name, e.g. Mr. Smith, Mr. Li, etc. Hold an umbrella for a customer if it is a rainy day. If the customer is an elderly person, a child or a disabled person, support him/her with your hand and give extra care. When a customer is about to leave, guide the car to a position where the customer would be easy to aboard, open the door and invite the customer to get in, close the door gently after assuring the customer is properly seated and say goodbye politely, Thank you for

coming. Wish to see you again next time. Goodbye! Wave your hand when the car starts and see the customer off.
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2. Bell captain / Bellman Bell captain / Bellman should comply with the following requirements when providing service: Be dressed tidily, keep pleasant appearance and be polite. When a customer arrives, carry his/her baggage for him/her. Take up or put down the baggage gently when using a trolley. Take extra care to prevent any baggage from dropping onto the ground to avoid customer dissatisfaction. Guide the customer to the reception counter to complete the check-in procedures. When taking a lift, the bellman should enter the lift with the baggage first. Then keep the lift door open with one hand and invite the customer to come in. After that, press the button of the designated floor and inform the customer. When the lift stops at the designated floor, wait for the customer to get off the lift before handling the baggage. When leading the customer to his/her room, put down the baggage first and then ring the doorbell or knock on the door to announce your presence. After opening the door, take a quick look around the room. Make sure there is no problem then step aside and invite the
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customer to come in. Put the baggage onto the baggage rack gently with the front of the trunk facing upwards and the trunk handle facing outwards. Afterwards, introduce the facilities in the room to the customer briefly. Say goodbye to the customer politely if he/she has no further requests. Before leaving the room, say with a smile, Have a good stay, sir (or Miss, etc.) See you later. Face the customer and take a step backwards and then turn around, step out of the room and close the door gently behind you. If you received a notice to carry baggage

from the guest room, you have to do the followings: 1. Ring the doorbell or knock on the door to make known of your presence; 2. Do the above (1), no matter the door is opened or closed; 3. Do not enter the room before hearing the customer say, Come in, please. Then say, Hello! I am here to carry the baggage. 4. After confirming the number of baggage with the customer, carry the baggage to the entrance by using a trolley; 5. Close the door gently behind you when the
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customer leaves the room and follow the customer to the entrance. II. Reception Although the first contact point that serves a guest when he/she arrives at a hotel is the doorman or the bell captain/bellman, the person who will make the first good customers service perception is the front desk receptionist. 1. Receptionist A receptionist should comply with the following requirements: Be dressed tidily, keep a pleasant appearance, stand energetically to wait for customers. When a customer comes to the reception counter, greet politely with a smile, Good morning/afternoon/evening, sir (Miss, etc.)! Welcome to Fortune Hotel. Have you made a reservation? Is there anything that I can do for you? Ask the customer to complete the registration form and assign the customer with a room to meet his/her requirements (such as on which floor and in which direction, etc.) as far as
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possible. Be polite when checking the customers identification document and registration form. Return the identification document to the customer as soon as you finish checking. Express your gratitude by saying: Sorry for keeping you waiting, Miss (Mr., etc) Lee. Thank you. Address the customer by his/her

family name as soon as you find out the full name. This shows your respect to the customer. When giving the room key to the customer, do not throw it onto the counter. Instead, you should say politely, Miss (Mr., etc) Lee, we have prepared a room facing north. The room is on the twelfth floor and the room number is shown here in the key envelope. Here is the room card. This receptionist will accompany you there immediately. Have a nice stay. Or you may say: See you later. If the customer has not made any reservation and the hotel is fully booked, you should explain patiently and ask the customer to wait for a moment. At this moment we should wait for any last minute cancellation and requests other hotels for room. At the end (whether a room is secured), we will say: Please make a reservation next time. We will definitely reserve a room for you.
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If an important guest checks in at the hotel, ask the guest after he/she settles in his /her room, Are you satisfied with this room? If you need anything, please let us know. We are ready to serve you anytime. This shows your respect for the important guests. A guest often goes to the reception counter to express his/her comment or make a complaint. The receptionist should smile and welcome the guest sincerely. Listen attentively and never argue with or rebuke the customer. Handle matters properly with sincerity.
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III. Reservation 1. Reservations clerk A reservations clerk should comply with the following requirements when providing service: If a customer makes a reservation in person Greet the customer sincerely and make timely replies. If there is a room available, complete a reservation form immediately and thank the customer for booking. Apologize if you are unable to arrange a reservation due to full booking. However, you should not start with:

Sorry, there is no room available. Instead, you should say, One moment please. Ill check for you. After that, you should say, Sorry, there is no room available. Thank you for coming. Wish to see you again next time. You should also recommend subsidiary hotels to the customer enthusiastically. If a customer makes a reservation by telephone Answer the telephone according to telephone etiquette. Use respectful expressions and speak to the customer politely. Make careful records according to the reservation form and repeat to the customer to avoid mistakes or
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omissions. If you are unable to accept booking because the rooms are fully booked, apologize to the customer. But you should not reply directly that No rooms are available so as to avoid misunderstanding and affect the reputation of the hotel. If disputes over reservations occur due to various reasons, be polite and explain to the customer patiently. Never argue with the customer. Stay calm when encountering problems. Handle problems flexibly rather than rigidly. If it is the fault of the hotel, admit it initiatively and apologize. If it is the fault of the customer, handle properly to enhance the reputation of the hotel and secure more customer sources.
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B. Housekeeping Department

1. Room attendant A room attendant should comply with the following requirements when providing service: Check whether the Do Not Disturb sign is hung over the door handle or whether the door is locked so as to avoid disturbing the customer. Etiquette is particularly required when entering a room. First, ring the doorbell. If there is no response, knock on the door and say, Housekeeping. When the customer answers the door, say politely, Sorry for disturbing you. I am the room attendant. May I clean the room now? Only enter the room

after getting the customers permission. Never close the door. Leave it half-open. If the customer answers Come in, please after knocking on the door, open the door gently and ask May I clean the room now? If there is still no response, knock a few more times. Open the door with the key if there is still no answer. If you find that the guest is sleeping, you should leave the room immediately and close the door gently. If no one is in the room, you can start cleaning, but always leave the door open.
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While cleaning the room, do not browse through the customers documents or articles. Put back the articles where they are after cleaning. Do not move or break, or take away the customers articles, let alone asking the customer for anything. Do not watch TV, listen to the music, use the telephone or answer the customers call in the room during the course of service. Do not ask any personal matters about a customer. Do not interrupt or listen to peoples conversation. Try to avoid disturbing the customer from taking rest or work when cleaning the room. It is advised to clean the room when the customer is away. Do not stay in the room after the cleaning is completed. If the customer is in the room, say Sorry for disturbing you. Thank you after the cleaning, and then leave the room politely and close the door gently. If you happen to see a customer leaving or returning to the room, nod to the guest with a smile or greet him/her. Do not pretend not seeing him/her nor ignore him/her, nor simply walk away. When a customer has his/her laundry done, collect or deliver the clothes punctually. Do not delay or make any mistakes.
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Clean the rooms according to the cleaning procedures.

C. Food and Beverage Department

The restaurant is an important outlet in a hotel. It is one

of the main sources of revenue for a hotel. In order to meet the different needs of customers, politeness and hospitable service is very important: 1. Waiter/ waitress A waiter/ waitress should comply with the following requirements when providing service: Welcome customers enthusiastically (i) Welcome the customers proactively when they approach the table. Greet them with a smile and pull the chairs for them, first for ladies and then gentlemen. (ii) Help the customer proactively when he/she needs to take off his/her coat or hat. Never carry the clothes upside down to avoid articles falling out of the pockets. (iii) Serve napkins and tea after the customers are seated. Serve them from right to left. Greet to the customers when serving napkins:
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Miss (or sir, etc.), please. Taking orders (i) Hand the menu with both hands to a customer from his/her left side. Do not pass the menu to a customer casually or throw the menu onto the table. This is extremely rude. (ii) Wait patiently when a customer is ordering dishes. Do not urge the customer. (iii) When taking orders, always wear a smile and stand to the left of the customer. Bow slightly with the order book in hand and listen to the customers orders carefully. (iv) When the guest hesitates about what to order, recommend enthusiastically the chefs recommendation and the special dishes of the restaurant. (v) If a dish ordered by the customer is not available, do not simply say, It is sold out. Instead, apologize and explain politely, and tactfully recommend other similar dishes to the customer.

(vi) If a dish ordered by the customer is not listed on the menu, make efforts to satisfy the customer other than
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simply replying not available. You may say, Please wait a minute. I will check with the chefs and do what we can to meet your request. Apologize and explain to the customer if there is indeed difficulty, and then recommend the customer to order other dishes. (vii) When the customer finishes ordering, wine or beverage are recommended. After writing down all orders, repeat them politely for the customers confirmation. Considerate service (i) Take out the napkins and put them on the customers laps politely. If there are foreign customers (Westerners), Silverware such as knives, forks and spoons should be placed on the table. (ii) Follow strictly with the operation procedures when pouring wines or serving dishes. Do not touch glasses or dishes with fingers. Never pass a dish over the head of a customer. (iii) At a banquet, pour wine for ladies first, then for gentlemen. Stand at an appropriate position when the host is making a toast to his/her guests. Do not
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move around and keep quiet. (iv) Plan the timing and interval for serving dishes. Do not serve too fast, which would result in messy stacking of dishes. If there is no space on the table, take away the dish that contains the least food. However, always have permission from the customers to avoid their dissatisfaction. (v) Some dishes take longer time to prepare. Tell the customers in advance to avoid their complaint for waiting too long. (vi) After all dishes are served, inform the

customers, All dishes are served. Please enjoy. (vii) Answer readily when a customer asks about the ingredients and assortments of dishes. If you are unable to answer right away, say: Sorry, I am not sure about it. Ill find it out and get back to you shortly. (viii)If the customers have not finished their meals after the restaurants operating hours, never push them to leave or act impolitely, such as collecting plates, cleaning the table or turning off the lights. Bill settlement and departing customers
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(i) When the customer finishes the meals, put the bill in a bill holder and hand it to the customer from the left side. Say thank you to the customer after the bill is paid. When they are leaving, say goodbye to the guest, Wish to see you again. Goodbye!
Reference: Lu Yongqing and Cui Xiaolin, Introduction to Modern Tourist Etiquette, Qingdao Publishing House, 1998, Page 85-104.