Hi folks,
The thing that annoys me the most as a guest is waiting for checkin/checkout at the reception. What would be the tips & tricks to expedite these processes?
1. Having proper software to automate tasks?
2. Having the front desk person trained that it is horrible to wait and that he must act quickly
3. Having one extra person available at front desk from 10am to 2pm,the general checkin/checkout time?
And last question: Is there any research on what time would be preferable/acceptable for the customer to wait for these processes?
Just for the reference, for an unpatient person like myself (and I know plenty like me :D), the preferable time would be 2, 3 minutes, and I could wait up to 10 minutes max. Do you have any numbers like that?
14 years
Item 3 is the most important. Simply It's the hostel's job to make sure there are enough staff on duty at whatever time to cope with the typical load.
There is a major hostel in London where there was always a long queue for the reception desk -- to the extent that, if you just had a quick question, you had to try to push in front to ask it. This contributed to some reviewers' dissatisfaction with the hostel. A hostel needs to be aware when this happens, as it is easily curable.
14 years
Hi,
I think I know which hostel you´re talking about UKtrail. I was working there for over 2 years. The main problem at this hostel is the reception organization, there is up to 3 check in posts at the front desk, and the barely use the 3rd post, which could be used as an information-quick question post during rush hours (morning check outs and evening check ins). I remember I suggested this idea, barely followed, and in the back office the extra staff (management, supervisors, reservation team) is ¨afraid ¨of going to the front as they might not come back to the back to their duty, because of the amount of people passing by the reception (250 check ins per day, what are you expecting?). The other trouble is that due to the high employee turn over, the staff at the front isn´t that well trained and/or experienced, and it take sometime hours to deal with live room allocation or payments.
I remember some huge lines sometime, and people waiting over 30 minutes, without any explanation or even a "Welcome", checked in as sheep as soon as in front of the receptionist.
At the moment I´m working in a smaller Hostel (100 beds) and we´ve got only one check in post available, there´s sometimes few groups of guests coming at the same time, so, to avoid them the pain of waiting, which is as unpleasant for them as it is for the receptionist, we kindly ask them to leave their passport at the reception and go take a tea or coffee, to check internet or get their free drink at the bar until we´re ready to check them in. The funny in this is that they might actually even check in few hours later as they´ve meet new friends in few minutes and are not in a rush anymore to check in. In this case, the ¨extra¨ staff at the reception (the manager) is just making sure they can find the luggage room, the kitchen, the computers... Which is I think a VERY good idea.
I could wait up to 5 minutes, unless I´ve got something fun to do or to watch to buy my patience.
Current Hostels´ softwares are usually too slow, or without enough usability, or incorrect datas entered are difficult to... correct.
14 years
@YannusHost - thank you very much for your response.
I guess if you improve the process to the point it takes max 3 minutes, the wait will not be there anymore
Also if like 5 or 10 people are checking in at the same time, you can check them in *at the same time*. Like handling short forms for them to fulfill, some will fill quickly and as little as possible, those you can check in first, ehhee, and then you can check in the other ones.
The key is to have the mandatory steps in the checkin to a minimum. So if just one guest walks in you can check him in and then start talking about the town, asking questions, etc. None of that if a group comes in.
The idea to redirect to the bar/internet is a nice one, I would happily wait at either place for very long time
:D :D
14 years
there is up to 3 check in posts at the front desk, and the barely use the 3rd post, which could be used as an information-quick question post during rush hours (morning check outs and evening check ins). I remember I suggested this idea, barely followed, and in the back office the extra staff (management, supervisors, reservation team) is ¨afraid ¨of going to the front as they might not come back to the back to their duty, because of the amount of people passing by the reception (250 check ins per day, what are you expecting?)
The extra support staff CAN avoid getting trapped behind the desk if they’re worried about not being able to return to work. During a rush the support staff can step into the lobby and ask if anyone has any questions or needs assistance that does not involve a payment. Those guests can then step out of line and you can help them off to the side.
In small hostels the mad rushes of people tend to come in waves and then calm down, so this works well. In a bigger hostel where there’s a constant storm it might be better to designate reception stations for check-ins/outs and for other issues like you suggested. Then it’s better to stick a real receptionist at each station so everyone can get helped faster and no one is trying to escape back into the office.
14 years
I think it depends largely on what size hostel we're talking about here. There's a world of difference between the front desk of a 30 bed hostel and a 300 bed.
A few things I've always noticed work; check in slips. You're not waiting if you're doing something - if you can pass across your check in slips to guests waiting in line, this at the very least, occupies their time until the staff member is free. Addressing groups of people rather than individuals can also help - though this really only applies to larger hostels IMO, as it can reduce the personalised touch somewhat. Given that the 'welcome speech' most people on the desk have is essentially the same for everyone, it can speed things up if you can give the speech to a group of people rather than repeating yourself everytime. I remember a few times when I've actually stood on the front desk itself to address a room full of guests and given them the 'speel', then as individual members come up all they need to do is be told their respective rooms and any little issues.
At the end of the day though, the single most important factor is acknowledging the waiting guests; a simple 'sorry guys, Ill be with you in a moment' goes a long way. You can always back this up by making a little joke to those whove been waiting once they get to the desk 'sorry that took so long, those guys would NOT stop asking questions!' - people are always far more accepting of delays when they feel included and when they know WHY its taking so long. I always explain any slight delay and problem to guests as its happening (with a little spin of course) and I find that if guests understand that staff arent happy with the delay too then things go over much better.
All of this said, I HATE it when people push in line. I really dont care what your question/issue is, if someones in front of you, you have to wait your turn. Sucks, but thats the way the world works. I pride myself on my customer service but I will tell people to essentially 'talk to the hand' if I see them jump in front of people waiting.
How to actually speed things up? Well, its important to understand when your busy times are and if possible advise guests of this. For example if someone says 'Oh, Ill come down and sort it out in the morning' make sure to tell them not to do it right on check out time. If you have a couple of staff on, theres no point often in having 3 people at the desk at midday when everyone is out - duh right? You'd be surprised. Being able to automate certain functions is nice but by no means essential. Another idea is to simply provide as much information to the guests as possible without it having to come out of the mouth of reception - a lot of vert basic questions can be answered with a well placed sign. "do you lock the door at night?" can be answered a) at check in and b) with a big sign behind reception or near the door "the door locks at 11pm but reception is open 24hrs, your key lets you in after hours". Of course, some people never read squat and you always remember those guests but a lot of guests DO read the signs (you never notice those guests because strangely enough, they pay attention and arent repeat questioners).
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