Getting rid of people - hotel techniques

Hotel and training centre, Melksham, Wiltshire

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"Get rid of her first, then deal with the three men"

You can imagine the line from a Hollywood movie, can't you ... but this is Melksham, last Thursday evening. And the line was overheard by one of our friends from her seat in the restaurant, eating alone and already feeling somewhat uncomfortable. "Formal wear only" and a menu that insists on you choosing two courses as a minimum, cordon bleu food that takes a while to prepare, is great for a romantic evening but not if you're in town alone.

Now let's be fair - it could well be that the talk was technical kitchen talk, arranging the order of service. In fact that's more than likely the case. But it scarcely helped to make the customer feel at home.

We don't run a fine restaurant - we can and do cater as required for groups, but we feel that our own visitors prefer the less formal environment we offer, with a wide choice of local eating places they can go to or bring in a takeaway meal; it's a very different market, and I revel in the difference. We could conside this other place, which is just a couple of streets from our own Well House Manor to be competiton, but we don't - there's a big difference between a restaurant with rooms and a business hotel and although people may occasionally book into "a" when "b" is more in tune with their needs, the competition will be minimal.

What IS common to both "them" and "us" is the need to provide the customer with the service that's sought, to put yourself in their shoes, and to avoid making any comments - whether or not you think you're in earshot of the guests - that could be taken the wrong way. Indeed that's a good general rule; if any of you happen to be watching "Celebrity Big Brother" that's running at the moment, you'll have just seen Jade ejected amidst a great deal of coverage. Comments that she made appeared to be racist - she swears that they weren't.
(written 2007-01-21, updated 2007-01-30)

Associated topics are indexed under

M400 - Well House Manor - The Hospitality Business
  [4051] On reading a new hotel review - (2013-03-24)
  [4033] Official Star ratings for hotels - still worth having? - (2013-03-07)
  [3988] Three cheers for the staff at Well House Manor - (2013-01-24)
  [3909] Every Customer Counts - (2012-11-01)
  [3838] Guest review - Well House Manor, Melksham - (2012-08-14)
  [3832] A busy day at Well House Manor - so come in and make it even busier! - (2012-08-10)
  [3743] Sunday - no longer a day of rest - (2012-05-28)
  [3660] A Pivotal Incident - learning how to welcome your guests - (2012-03-18)
  [3309] Tipping Policy - Well House Manor - (2011-05-29)
  [3164] Brown - or Mrs Sally Brown, accountant from Whitstable? - (2011-02-10)
  [3147] Hotel star ratings - towards a better system of review - (2011-01-25)
  [2936] The service that customers should receive - (2010-08-27)
  [2879] Night Porter and reception - 24 hours a day? - (2010-07-20)
  [2724] Escapee Grandparents welcome - Henfield and Melksham - (2010-04-15)
  [2593] Food and drink launch - (2010-01-21)
  [2303] Turning potential customers away - (2009-07-24)
  [2283] Everyone is in the customer relations business - (2009-07-12)
  [2007] Launch of Melksham Food and Drink Festival - (2009-01-24)
  [1877] Guests doing a bunk? - (2008-11-09)
  [1792] All the pieces fall into place - hotel and courses - (2008-09-10)
  [1622] An extra step - victory from defeat - (2008-04-25)
  [1548] Hotelympia - show report - the lighter side - (2008-02-21)
  [1445] Looking after you Christmas Customer Crowds - (2007-11-26)
  [1422] Wiltshire - speaker / after dinner talker offer - (2007-11-05)
  [1421] Castle Lodge Hotel, Ely, Cambridgeshire - (2007-11-04)
  [1284] An update on the West Wilts show ... - (2007-07-30)
  [1248] How NOT to oversell a hotel - (2007-06-27)
  [1180] Conjugation - (2007-05-08)
  [1161] A contrast in room rates and facilities - (2007-04-25)
  [1122] Hotel - online feedback forms compared - (2007-03-30)
  [1108] Express service - (2007-03-14)
  [1084] Writing terms and conditions for conferences and other events - (2007-02-17)
  [1046] Bounce, bounce, bounce - (2007-01-20)
  [1002] Meet the neighbours - (2006-12-20)
  [988] You should think you're first in a hotel room - (2006-12-15)
  [922] Staying at your own hotel - (2006-11-12)
  [884] Drive time - (2006-10-02)
  [774] Bed and Breakfast, or Hotel? - (2006-06-22)

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This is a page archived from The Horse's Mouth at http://www.wellho.net/horse/ - the diary and writings of Graham Ellis. Every attempt was made to provide current information at the time the page was written, but things do move forward in our business - new software releases, price changes, new techniques. Please check back via our main site for current courses, prices, versions, etc - any mention of a price in "The Horse's Mouth" cannot be taken as an offer to supply at that price.

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