Tour & Travel Groups are fun,  easy to work with, easy revenue and crazy all in one.  These days Sales Manager’s don’t have coordinators or secretaries to assist with the follow up and maintenance of the group.  There is a lot of leg work for a Sales Manager.

It is important for the Sales Manager to gather all of the clients information so they can communicate that with the Management Team.  Some things to make sure they get is the rooming list, payment, arrival and departure times,  do they need baggage service, where are they eating, what is the age group, where are they going (is there more business?), what is their schedule, how many per room and are their chaperons.  If you can get the name of the bus driver and tour guide that is even better.

The Sales Manager needs to communicate all this information to their Team.  Make sure that the Front Desk Agent is aware that a bus in arriving and help them with any questions.  The Front Desk Manager especially must be informed of every detail.

If baggage service is needed, as a Sales Manager you will need to know what your market is charging for this service.  Is the charge per person or per bag?   I have seen pricing in my area of $4.00 per bag ~ round trip and $6.00 per person.

Most all tour buses will pay for room and tax on a master folio.  On the groups day of arrival, the Front Desk Manager can charge the master, pre-key their rooms and even check them in.  Piece of cake.  You want to have the room keys ready to go when the bus driver or tour guide walks up to your front desk.   There is nothing more embarrassing then the hotel operations not being ready.

Of course, for early arrivals it is understood that chances are the hotel may not be ready.  If the bus is to arrive prior to your check-in time, the Sales Manager should clearly communicate the check-in time with the client and make sure they know that all of the rooms may not be ready.  The Sales Manager should not promise an early check-in.

Where permitted, it is the Sales Manager’s role to meet and greet the bus, chat with the guest’s and provide information such as where your business center is, where they can go to eat, help them if they are not happy with their room or their room key didn’t work and make them feel welcome and at home.  Just think, these people may have been on that bus for 5-6 hours. Kids, Seniors or whoever they are, they want to head to their rooms, wander around the hotel to stretch their legs and simply relax.

When baggage service is required, it is important for the hotel staff to get their bags to their rooms as swiftly as possible.  I find it easier if someone marks the luggage with the room number and the remainder of the team to start getting them to their rooms.  It is a common rule that their luggage is never left without supervision.  Some hotels will place their bags right in their rooms.  Some will leave the bags outside of their rooms.  Personally, I would rather the bags go right into their rooms for safety and security issues.

There are no rules to how long it takes to get the bags up to the rooms.  It is common to know that it is important to get the bags up to them as fast as possible. Some hotels are more efficient and get a system down.  Other’s struggle and take a long time.  The longer you make them wait, the more impatient they get and the more annoyed they are.   Every minute is 10 minutes to them.  And the one thing you don’t want is for them to start taking their own bags.

Have you ever had someone say their bag was stolen?  Well, I can promise you that experience isn’t any fun at all and can cost you your account.

So good luck with your tour buses!  Make sure you take good care of them or someone else will!

Pure Energy

How has the economy affected your hotel? Are you down in occupancy? Are you finding that other hotels are outbidding you and you are already bidding rock bottom?

The clients are getting smarter under pressure and becoming hotel savvy. They don’t have time or patience to deal with a bunch of bull. They want bottom line costs, comparisons and concessions….lots of them. “Give it to me or someone else will.”

I am finding this type of client at my mid-scale hotel. A lot more than usual. I try to remember that they are busy and probably doing 5 people’s job. Overworked and underpaid.

If you occupancy is down then it is partly due to the Sales Manager’s efforts. Great Sales People are still making their budget and raking in the bonus. The stay on top of their market and on top of their game.

Right now these Sales People are nurturing your account that you didn’t even know you lost yet. Slowly and surely they are booking with the Sales People that treat them well, know what they want and keep in touch.

I am a Sales Person. We are down in occupancy because I did not get enough bookings. Other reasons may include poor front desk service and condition of the hotel. For example, Suzie the Administrator likes you and books with you but yet the actual clients staying with you complain about the hotel….for what ever reason. I am seeing a lot of this.

Hotel Management should make sure that their staff is properly trained. This is key to the success of the hotel. A customer may deal with a hair in the bathroom or crappy food in the restaurant, but if the service is friendly, attentive and courteous, then they will continue to stay at your hotel.

May I suggest – “Apologize for the hair, do turn down service and leave a fruit basket – comp the food that he didn’t like. ”

Put him/her on your hot sheet and check for upcoming reservations with this guest. If you don’t see any return visits, get someone to call to see what’s up. Can you imagine the impact of that? I WOWED myself…LOL.

I guarantee that they will be back and with less complaints. Guests hate their complaints being ignored. Sometimes you will have to give money back but in the long run, it will make more profit. Now of course there are abusers out there so use your best judgement. But always remember – Service is very important.

Front Desk Agents should be fully trained on how to take a reservation. Just think how much revenue is lost because the Agent did not know how to SELL the reservation. If they are taking the time to call you to inquire, book those babies no matter what. The caller will hang up and book the next hotel who was smarter and got the sale.

Take this week and take 5 minutes with each Agent. Tell them what you do and why you do it. Talk to them about your accounts and upcoming groups that are coming in. Give them a story or two. I know it will help.

Ask if they have seen the rooms and banquet space. Take them into the Sales Office and introduce them to everyone and tell them their purpose.

It isn’t the Front Desk Agents fault. It is our fault as Manager’s that we did not give them the tools and knowledge to do a good job.

My recommendation …..take a good look at your Front Desk Agents. What do they need? Ask them.

Good luck.

Pure Energy

A client of mine was killed in a car accident a couple weeks ago.  I didn’t find out until today.  I was devastated.  I had to fight with myself to get back on track and complete my goals of the day.  It was hard to focus since we also lost an employee this past Friday.  Even though I had ordered a yummy lunch, it sat on my desk until it got mushy as every ounce of my energy left had to go to sales.  I couldn’t let this get me down.

The office is nearly completed.  Now will be the fun of moving the rest of the junk back in that we had stored in a meeting room.  Finding a spot for it all….we are going to have to be creative.  Still so loud and noisy but I managed to get some good contacts and possibilities for future sales. 

I found out that they are interviewing for another Catering Sales Person.  Thank goodness and finally.  With so much flexible meeting space, you need two.  And as far as the Transient Sales Person, I haven’t heard anything but I hope they fill that position too.  I don’t know how the hotel’s revenues are going to afford more in salaries, but my Catering buddy made a good point…don’t worry about it.

The front desk still struggling, I hope they hire a new Front Office – Rooms Division Manager soon.  I’m frankly embarrassed with the desk operations right now. 

We are preparing for a busy weekend over this Labor Day.  Mostly with sporting teams and that means, kids out of control.  Do you have that?  When the parents go into the bar and the kids run all over the building?  Certainly we make them all sign “the waiver” at check in….yea and that works.  Oh how nice they are on the phone when you spend time going out of your way to assist them in every beckoned wish.  You think they would appreciate and respect your property?  But NOT.  So anyone out there with some ideas, let me know.  (other then not booking them or locking them in their rooms)

I can only imagine how the old front desk staff and the new front desk staff are going to handle these groups.  These guest’s are going to eat them up alive if they don’t get it right.   It’s going to be interesting.  I wonder if any of the new staff will quit.

It took about 2 hours to finalize the details for the additional groups that I booked for this weekend.  They all came through….but….it was like pulling teeth to get a couple to understand that yes, I need your credit card!

Well, another busy day ahead and lots of new clients to solicit.  Good luck to all of us crazy Sales People!

Pure Energy