Managing Customer Experience Assignment | Hilton Hotel

Managing Customer Experience

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
LO1..................................................................................................................................................1
P1 Explain the value and importance of understanding the needs, wants and preferences of
target customer groups.................................................................................................................1
P2 Explore the different factors that drive and influence customer engagement of different
target customer groups.................................................................................................................2
LO2..................................................................................................................................................3
P3 Create a customer experience map.........................................................................................3
P4 Discuss how the touch points create such opportunities throughout the customer experience
.....................................................................................................................................................5
LO3..................................................................................................................................................6
P5 Examine how digital technology is employed in managing the customer experience...........6
LO4..................................................................................................................................................7
P6 Illustrate customer service strategies......................................................................................7
P7 Demonstrate how customer service strategies create and develop the customer experience.8
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................9
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
In hospitality sector it is very important to target market. This is because the needs of
people vary from one market to another. Also, hospitality industry consists of sub sectors and is
expanded in large area. Customer experience refers to the way in which an organization interact
with customer over a specific duration of time (Radojevic, Stanisic and Stanic, 2015). it can
vary from person and companies depending upon the relationship. This report will describe the
importance of understanding customer needs. It will discuss factors that drive and influence
customer engagement. In another section, customer experience map is shown and touch points
are explained. Moreover, it will examine how digital technology helps in managing customer
experience. For present report organization selected is Hilton Hotel. It belongs to travel and
tourism sector and operates globally.
LO1
P1 Explain the value and importance of understanding the needs, wants and preferences of target
customer groups
Target market- it refers to the targeted people for which the product is been developed. this is
done by segmenting the population on basis of certain factors (Kandampully, Zhang and
Bilgihan, 2015).
Marketing segmentation – it means to divide overall market into potential groups or customers
on basis of their characteristics. They may be divided on basis of needs, location, etc.
For every company it is required they identify needs of people so that products and
services can be offered accordingly. As hospitality sector is expanded into wide area, company
engaged in this must determine needs of people. This can be done by segregating them into
groups on basis of factors like age, gender, class, etc. the importance of understanding needs is
described below :-
 It helps Hilton Hotel to develop product as per needs of people and set targets. They are
able to focus on specific market. Moreover, strategies are formulated as per product and
target market.
 Understanding customer needs enables Hilton Hotel to ask questions regarding interest of
people. Besides this, actively listening to them allows company to think and exploring
more options.
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 It assists Hilton Hotel in finding out what features or specifications can be added in
products. Also, what a product must contains to fulfil needs of people.
 Once customer needs are identified market can be segregated accordingly. This is useful
for Hilton Hotel to design and develop different products. It is beneficial in finding out
customer expectations.
 It enables company to know why they choose their products and services over others,
what will help in retaining them and what reasons will compel them to switch over
competitors (Jones, Hillier and Comfort, 2016).
 In addition it allows Hilton Hotel to remain in control and having stability in market. This
means the option provided by company should be relevant to them and for each option
value can be generated.
Hilton Hotel customers are spread over the world. They have effectively segregated their
market and provided variety of options to choose from. There are several customer of Hilton
Hotel described as below :-
Business persons- the company offers various business tour facilities for them. For this they have
entered into contract with many companies. It has benefited Hilton Hotel to grow in industry.
They have effectively identified the needs of business persons.
Travelers- Hilton Hotel is the best platform for travelers. This is because they offer many types
of tour packages for them to choose from (Pirani and Arafat, 2016). By selecting appropriate
package travelers can travel around the world.
High class people – organization also offers tour packages to high class people. These packages
can vary in different countries.
Teenager Fast food, loud music,
Wi fi.
Business person Wi fi
Poolside service
Mobile telephone
Meeting rooms.
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Family Peaceful environment.
Silent music
Healthy food
P2 Explore the different factors that drive and influence customer engagement of different target
customer groups
A customer behaviour can be influenced in many ways. This is because of change in their
taste and preference and needs (Factors affecting customer engagement. 2018). Also, customer
engagement can be influenced due to change in various channels through which interaction is
done. Moreover, there are several other factors that influence customer engagement of Hilton
Hotel which is as follow :-
Understanding customer expectation- this factor identifies how Hilton Hotel understand
customers and interact with them to fulfil need (Kim, Vogt and Knutson, 2015). In order to
deliver product, it is necessary to provide all relevant information. It is done via different
methods. It is important to be available to customer at a right time and place. So, if Hilton Hotel
is not able to understand customer expectation it may influence their customer engagement.
Value customer – it is essential for every company engaged in hospitality sector to value their
customers so that long term relationship can be maintained. this also benefits in influencing their
behaviour toward to purchase services. so, if there is any change in generating customer value by
Hilton Hotel, it will drive their engagement as well.
Communication- it is most crucial factor that can drive customer engagement. It is because the
communication shows how company interact with customer and through which channel. besides
this, it is useful in attracting them and providing all information related to product as well as
company (Neirotti, Raguseo and Paolucci, 2016). likewise, an effective way of communication
will pursue them to buy Hilton Hotel services. therefore, if there is any change in way of
communication it can influence customer engagement.
Social media – it helps in influencing customer engagement. For example, FB and Instagram
helps customer to read reviews or comments on service. then, they are able to select proper serice
by comparing price and quality.
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Due to change in any of the above factor’s customer engagement can be influenced. This
is because it will change the entire way of communicating with them. moreover, the touch points
through which customer interact will be interrupted. They will have to engage with Hilton Hotel
through another way.
LO2
P3 Create a customer experience map
A customer journey map is a diagram that consists of steps through which customer has
interacted with company. it covers from accessing information to buying on social media.
Basically, there are five steps in which are as follows :-
 Set clear objectives – in this clear objectives are develop regarding on what will be target
customers and how customer experience will be developed by using particular channel.
 Profile personas and define their goals- after objectives, goals are decided that in how much
time and what resources will be used in creating map.
 List out all the touchpoints.- it is major step in which all touch points are identified and
evaluated (Shani and et.al., 2014). This is done to focus on specific one through which
customer experience can be developed. Here, the touch points are eliminated that are already
been used in map.
 Identify the elements want map to show- in this the elements are defined that will reflect the
map. This is most important set as elements are basis and entire success depends on it.
 Take the customer journey yourself.- here, the customer journey is tested to find out how it
will help in developing customer experience. By doing this, errors are determined and
improved.
 Make necessary changes- at last after completion of all steps, entire map is evaluated and
changes are made if necessary. Moreover, it helps in finding out strong points on which map
is based.
The map is as follows :-
Element Response
Website It is the first step in which customer experience
regarding tour packages and other services
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provided by Hilton Hotel can be identified. It
will be useful in greeting them and building
relations with them.
Review sites This a platform where Hilton Hotel can review
their website that how customer share their
experience and on what basis.
Text messages Here, Hilton Hotel can send text messages to
customer about offers, discounts, benefits, etc,
on various services. it will help in determining
how customer respond and are connected to
Hilton Hotel.
E mails It is a modern way through which company
sends e mails to customer about new products
or services. basically, it is done to maintain
relation for long time.
Social media Integration of marketing and social media will
give an overview about response of different
target groups. By using it Hilton Hotel can find
out how customer has interacted on various
networking sites. Also, it shows the attraction
of them towards organisation.
Customer touch points
Phases Searching
hotel
Booking room Pre stay stay Post stay
Activity Website Email Pick and
drop
facility
Hotel app Review site
Touchpoint Social media Hotel app Hotel Staff, Uploading
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and e mails reception receptionist photos
P4 Discuss how the touch points create such opportunities throughout the customer experience
A customer touch point is a point of contact through which relationship are developed. It
shows that how company has exchanged information and provide products to customers. they are
websites, rating, reviews, etc. For every company these touch points can vary. It also depends on
customer that how they are interacting with company. By identifying touch points it becomes
easy for business to retain them for long timer period.
While interacting with company there are some points through which customer experience is
identified (Solnet, Kralj and Baum, 2015). These points help in determining what are major
area which can be focused. A customer touch point is entire journey in which there are many
steps. It includes :
Awareness: - in this company can start and run certain campaigns to create awareness in the
market about their products and services. alongside this, by using social media, e mails, etc.
people can be made aware about Hilton Hotel.
Find-ability: it refers to finding out target market and how they come in contact with Hilton
Hotel. by this it becomes easy to develop relations with them.
Reputation: here, Hilton Hotel needs to develop their reputation in industry so that customer gets
attracted. Building better reputation helps people to easily recognise about organisation products
and services. the touch point can be
Conversion: this is main stage in touch point where customers are converted to buy company
service. it is done by targeting a specific group (Lee, 2016). By this it becomes easy to interact
with them in future and converting into loyal one.
Advocacy: After conversion it is necessary to improve customer experience so that they can be
retained. It is beneficial in developing strong customer base.
By measuring customer experience, touch points are identified. With help of this, it
becomes easy to determine the weak points. Thus, strategies are developed to make changes so
that relationship can be strengthened. Besides this, it becomes easy to find out opportunities and
targeting that area.
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LO3
P5 Examine how digital technology is employed in managing the customer experience
Digital technology has played a vital role in hospitality sector. It has transformed the way
of doing business. Its major impact is on advertising products and services through social media.
This has benefited companies to gain their trust and retain them (Customer relationship
management. 2018). Hilton Hotel have also implemented CRM systems. This has enabled them
to store, manage, etc. data and information of large number of customers. it has made it easy for
them to manage customer experience. They are able to find out any change in trends and taste of
customers. furthermore, by taking their feedback Hilton Hotel is able to create customer value
(Modica and et.al., 2018). It will help firm in maintaining all the data related to individuals and
groups visited their hotel at one place. This can allow workers to be more efficient and
productive, and they will be able to easily track the data related to customers.
Sales force – it is the most common used CRM software by companies. It collects data and
analyses it go give precise information about customer. The CRM software is integrated with
social media and evaluates data.
There are many advantage and disadvantage of CRM systems used in Hilton Hotel. They
are as follows :-
Advantage
 It helps in collecting data of customers and analyzing them. Through this, it becomes
easy to access, insert, etc. data in appropriate manner.
 It is easy to access and store data as there are predefined and default structure of entering
data in CRM software. This flexibility helps in effective use of sales force software.
Disadvantage –
 the cost of implementation of sales force is very high. also, it becomes difficult for
company to maintain software.
 There are no basis on which CRM software analyze customer data (Shani and et.al.,
2014). This makes it difficult for Hilton Hotel to find out exactly how to maintain
customer experience.
HubSpot CRM- this software eliminates manual work and help sales workers to sell products
and services in efficient way. In this software data is kept centralized and customized so that it is
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easy to use or access. Furthermore, it helps in keeping track records and automatically integrates
with internet when it is used.
Advantage
As it eliminates manual work, the activities are done quickly. this reduces time and cost of
company to manage their CRM data.
Disadvantage –
The integration of internet is major concern. It can lead to unauthorized access of data and it can
be misused.
Hilton Hotel uses CRM software to manage data of how many customers has taken what
type of package. Also, what type of services are provided to them and in what are major
preferred location of people. They evaluate data on basis of target people and type of tour
package they choose.
LO4
P6 Illustrate customer service strategies
In hospitality sector it is important for companies to develop strategies so that customer
can be retained. The strategies can vary in from target market. moreover, hospitality sector is
known for providing customer services (Pirani and Arafat, 2016). hence, it differs from
customer expectation and needs. Hilton Hotel is also having several customer service strategies
as explained below:
Customer focus- now company focuses on attracting customer and gaining their trust. they
provide high quality services to people to convert them into loyal. This strategy aims at focusing
on customer expectation and offering services. it has enabled them to create such a large
customer base.
Providing employees excellent product knowledge: In order to retain consumers, Hilton Hotel
must have engaged in giving keen knowledge about goods and services, they are offering. This
will help them in making customers understand of various tour packages firm is dealing in.
Strategy helps in satisfying consumers which creates brand loyalty towards enterprise.
Solving customer issues- it is most common strategy followed. Here, focus is on solving
customer issues at prior contact. If issues are solved quickly, customer feels they are also a part
of company (Jones, Hillier and Comfort, 2016). moreover, a systematic process is developed to
solve customer issues. But modifications are done in process to make it easy and fast to resolve
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problems. besides this, it is ensured by Hilton Hotel that issues are reduced so that services can
be delivered in smooth way.
Training employees – in order to interact with customer and deliver services, it is necessary that
employees are properly trained. Hilton Hotel also provides effective training to their staff so that
customer satisfaction can be gained. This enables them to treat and respect customers. apart from
this, employees are trained to solve and support customer in every situation.
With help of these stratifies Hilton Hotel is able to gain trust of customers. they are able
to create a loyal customer base. Furthermore, focusing on customers has enabled organisation to
generate customer value. This has given a major advantage to them.
P7 Demonstrate how customer service strategies create and develop the customer experience
Customer service strategies are related to customer experience. This is because it helps in
providing a way through which customer can be interacted. So, if customer strategies are
properly implemented it will allow Hilton Hotel to communicate in proper way. they will be able
to provide service information in better way.
Focusing on customers helps in developing a proper channel will be followed to interact
with customer. All information will be delivered in efficient way. this will be useful in fulfilling
their needs. The focus allows Hilton Hotel to show why they care about customers and how they
are interacting with them. it reflects a better image in industry about organisation.
By providing effective information to employees it becomes easy for them to provide
further information about any of tour packages to customers. they will able to differentiate
between services offered.
By solving customer issues customer automatically gets attracted towards company. they
feel delighted that organisation cares about them. along with this, a positive and better relations
are developed. customers get a new experience of interacting with company. sometimes, by
solving issues services are provided to them at point.
The trained employees helps in delivering services and they are first person through which
customer interact. The effective training of employees helps in developing customer experience.
They communicate through various channels and try to attract people (Lee, 2016). if employees
possess skills and abilities to handle and solve customer queries it reflects their attitude towards
customers.
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It can be stated that with help of service strategies, customer experience is developed. this
is because strategies particularly aim at improving customer satisfaction. It emphasis on how
interaction can be done with them at touch point.
CONCLUSION
From report it can be concluded that it is necessary to understand customer experience so
that needs are identified. There are many factors such as understanding customer expectation,
value customer, etc. that can influence customer engagement. A customer experience map
describe stages through which customer has interacted with company. in Hilton Hotel, different
CRM systems such as sales force, etc. are installed to manage customer experience. Moreover,
organisation customer service strategies are customer focus, solving customer issues, etc. this has
enabled them to attain a loyal and large customer base. With help of this, they are able to satisfy
customer needs. Hereby, with help of service strategies, customer experience is developed. this is
because strategies particularly aim at improving customer satisfaction.
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REFERENCES
Books and journals
Jones, P., Hillier, D. and Comfort, D., 2016. Sustainability in the hospitality industry: Some
personal reflections on corporate challenges and research agendas. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 28(1), pp.36-67.
Kandampully, J., Zhang, T. and Bilgihan, A., 2015. Customer loyalty: a review and future
directions with a special focus on the hospitality industry. International Journal of
Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(3), pp.379-414.
Kim, M., Vogt, C.A. and Knutson, B.J., 2015. Relationships among customer satisfaction,
delight, and loyalty in the hospitality industry. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism
Research, 39(2), pp.170-197.
Lee, L.Y.S., 2016. Hospitality industry web-based self-service technology adoption model:
A cross-cultural perspective. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 40(2), pp.162-197.
Modica, P.D. and et.al., 2018. Consumer perceptions towards sustainable supply chain
practices in the hospitality industry. Current Issues in Tourism, pp.1-18.
Neirotti, P., Raguseo, E. and Paolucci, E., 2016. Are customers’ reviews creating value in
the hospitality industry? Exploring the moderating effects of market positioning. International
Journal of Information Management, 36(6), pp.1133-1143.
Pirani, S.I. and Arafat, H.A., 2016. Reduction of food waste generation in the hospitality
industry. Journal of Cleaner Production, 132, pp.129-145.
Radojevic, T., Stanisic, N. and Stanic, N., 2015. Ensuring positive feedback: Factors that
influence customer satisfaction in the contemporary hospitality industry. Tourism
Management, 51, pp.13-21.
Shani, A. and et.al., 2014. Emotional labor in the hospitality industry: The influence of
contextual factors. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 37, pp.150-158.
Solnet, D., Kralj, A. and Baum, T., 2015. 360 degrees of pressure: The changing role of the
HR professional in the hospitality industry. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research, 39(2),
pp.271-292.
Online
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Factors affecting customer engagement. 2018. [online] Available through : <
http://www.apparellogisticsgroup.com/White-Papers/Key-factors-of-customer-engagement---
Whitepaper.aspx >
Customer relationship management. 2018. [Online]. Available through
<https://www.startupgrind.com/blog/customer-experience-mapping-what-is-it-and-how-
to-do-it/>
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