Managing Customer Experience in the Hospitality Industry

This document discusses the importance of preferences and wants of target customers in the service sector industry and how it influences customer engagement. It also explores the use of digital technology in managing customer experience in the service sector. Furthermore, it provides insights into the strategies to create and develop consumer experience in the hospitality industry.

MANAGING
CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
P1 Explain importance of preferences and wants of target customers in a servi9ec sector
industry........................................................................................................................................3
P2 Various factors which have a influence on customer engagement of a various target groups
in a service sector........................................................................................................................4
TASK 2............................................................................................................................................6
P3: Consumer experience map for a particular organisation.....................................................6
P4: Customer touch points which can create opportunity for customer experience in
hospitality organisation...............................................................................................................8
TASK 3............................................................................................................................................9
P5: Digital Technology can be used in managing the experience of customers in the service
sector...........................................................................................................................................9
TASK 4..........................................................................................................................................10
P6: Illustrate consumer services with context to specific service sector...................................10
P7: Create and develop consumer experience in the hospitality industry.................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
Reference.......................................................................................................................................10

INTRODUCTION
Managing the customer experience refers to a practise in which business interact
with the customers so as to meet the needs of customers. This helps in increasing the
customer’s loyalty. For having a better understanding Intercontinental group of hotels
has been taken as a base company in this report. This group of hotels provides many
different kinds of services such as insurance, restaurants, travelling services to satisfy
the needs of national and international guests(In ICMLG 2018). This report is covering
following topics which are expectation of customers in the service industry, creation of
business opportunities for building of customer experience and touch points of
customers, overall impact of digital media in managing the customer relationship,
applying customer experience in the hospitality industry to maximize the engagement of
customers.
TASK 1
P1 Explain importance of preferences and wants of target customers in a service sector
industry.
It is important for every successful business to identify various emerging needs,
preferences and trends of customers so as to serve them. Companies have a mass
segment of market which is divided into smaller segments based on the interests,
preferences and buying behaviour of various customers in are affected by this
practise(Choo, Ling. and Fernando, 2018). With context of Intercontinental group
manages divide the market into various different segments such as family, friend, based
on the interest area of various customers. For example friends prefer a trip of
adventurous nature while families have a preference for ethnic trips. For analysis of
customers needs and adopting various changes helps in long term sustainability of the
company.
There are many benefits which can get be identification of the requirements and
value of customers which are defined below:
 The effort should be made in understanding of the buying behaviour of various
customers for their products based on their taste and income which will help

them in flourishing their business by satisfaction of the comprehended exceptions
of their target customers.
 It will help in choosing the most effective strategy for a place where services will
be offered and promotional tools will be used for meeting the interest of target
audience.
 When the company will be familiar with the existing nature of customers then it
will help in designing of various promotional tools.
P2 Various factors which have a influence on customer engagement of a various target
groups in a service sector
Customer engagement basically is related to various stakeholders in the
company who are having interest towards the activities of business and organisations.
Based on such experience there is interaction and reviews of customer strategies are
build. Business does not possess control on switching of customers from a particular
brand to another but firms can compel the customers by having differentiation in the
products between the alternatives. With this context respective company is using both
offline and online platforms so as to bind their customers for a longer period of time.
Mostly companies use ECRM techniques for maintaining electronic customer relation
when they are willing to manage the data electronically(Paulišić, Tanković. and Hrvatin,
2016). With the help of digital technology like email and text messages company can
connect with the customers so that they are able to make better choices and have
engagement of customers for a longer period of time.
Each target market has their own preference which can help Companies in
identifying them so as to have engagement of customers.
Various category
of customers
Different customer
needs
Family members Easy accessibility of
internet
Basic amenities
such as dining area
Healthy food and
laundry facilities
Middle aged and
old aged group
Clean environment,
pleasant music,
timely room services
Purified water &
nutritious quality of
food
full services

Business persons Convenient room for
resting and
conference facilities
having various
equipments such as
TV, speaker and
other.
Picking up and
dropping facilities to
the airport(Roos.
and Bekker, 2018).
Electronic gadgets
and wi-fi facility
Sports person Housekeeping and
quick room services
Access to internet
and facilities of bar
Fitness and
recreational area

The priority of various travellers in Intercontinental Hotel group is defined below:
Family member: This comprises of various people who belong to different age
groups having different requirements which the responsibility of the company to fulfil
them. Company should make sure that they are providing essential amenities such as
room services, dining facilities, laundry and various others.
Middle and older age group: These are travellers who are more keen in
exploring holy and ethnic places with comparison to adventurous trips. Intercontinental
group should provide convenient services such as nutritious food, pleasant area and
beverages (Högström, Gustafsson,. and Tronvoll, 2015).
Business person: In this traveller wants services so that the are able to visit and
invest their time in conducting of business and meeting with international clients.
Company must have the facility of conference room, computer and other.
Sports person: This refers to a recreational area, area of fitness. Such facilitate
are helpful in engagement of customers.
TASK 2
P3: Consumer experience map for a particular organisation
Customer mapping refers to the customer’s journey which will help in
development of individual experience. This experience will be carried forward for further
decision regarding products and services to be availed which are belonging to a
particular brand (Kandampully, Zhang. and Bilgihan, 2015). With context of
Intercontinental group there is significantly effort which is used to get insights with
regard to whole scenario of customer demand and making strategy. Company provides
regular training to staff so that effective relationships an be maintained with customers:
Pre Tour During Tour Post Tour
Touch Points Customer has
intention that is to
avail tourism and
travel services for
which they can gain
with the help of
Once all the
bookings have been
done then a
particular industry is
selected which acts
as a guide for the
Based on such
experience customer
is able to develop
opinion of company
and this refers to
referral. With that

digital media such as
websites from which
bookings can be
done.
traveller in
development of
experience at time
when the journey is
started.
people are able to
take feedbacks on
the website. This
helps the new
customer in making
of wise decisions.
Thinking and feeling In this phase
customer does not
has any local referral
who can guide for
the tour. Lack of
printing ticket &
recommendations
can create confusion
when final decision
is made(Gobble,
2015)
Initially travellers
may have some type
of negative feelings
and may be
unhappy as there is
communication gap
between local
residents.
At this stage the
customer is happy
and is having a
delightful experience
with regards to
whole trip. When the
post memories of
the visit are being
experienced such as
watching of albums
of photos.
Ideas for
improvement
Company can
posses the printing
function of tickets,
discussions with the
family members.
Checklist can also
be provided which
can help employees
in making better
plans.
Adequate amount of
training has to be
given to the tour
guide so as to
enhance the
listening and
communication
skills. They posses’
ideas related to local
communities and
should be familiar
with the local
Customer has the
option of sharing of
album and
memories with their
known ones. This is
the post visit
behaviour of people.

language.
P4: Customer touch points which can create opportunity for customer experience in
hospitality organisation
Customer touch points are related to the phase where customers come in
contact and they become familiar with the company and its services. It refers to the
journey of customers which will begin before the services are being availed, in this
phase services are being experienced by the traveller. It includes the using of digital
media which will help in connecting customers at a particular point of time(Kale, 2019).
Websites: All the important details of the Intercontinental Hotel are covered in the
official websites of this brand. There are a number of trips which have to be organised.
Detail information of the trip, customer review, contact details etc. this is a platform
which will help customer in gaining information which can be further utilised to do
comparisons and make decisions effectively.
Email marketing: This is the medium which is adopted by the company so as to
communicate the important information to customers. Company and travellers have
communication based on important information. IGH will use this tool to share
documents with regards to booking of tickets, reservation in hotels and solving the
queries of customers.
Review sites: People visit such sites so as to get the feedback of their
customers which will help in making the decision based on review. Examples of such
sites are Yelp and Trip Advisor which can be considered by the management of the
company so as to bring changes in an effective manner. This will help in making the
travellers loyal towards company and company can make changes to match with the
requirements of traveller(Hollebeek, Conduit and Brodie, , 2016).
Social media: This is a group which consists of likeminded people who can have
communication with each other with the help of various platforms such as Facebook,
Instagram and other social media application. In Intercontinental Hotel group they can
use such tools so as to update the information with regards to trip, reviews of their
customers and images. This will help the company in engaging a pool of potential
people in their company.

Customer touch points will help company so as to cover customers across the
world and get results which are real with the help of various analytical tools. This will
help in saving of time and enhancement of performance level in a significant way.
TASK 3
P5: Digital Technology can be used in managing the experience of customers in the
service sector
Digital technology relates to online platforms such as computer and smart
phones which can deliver value to their customers which can help in formulation of
experience (Cambra-Fierro, Melero and Sese, 2015). This is very effective Strategy of
marketing with comparison to traditional media sources which can help in covering of
large market in a significant way. Such method will help in engaging potential of
customers for a longer duration of time by using different platforms such as website,
social media, email marketing etc. In Intercontinental group of Hotels Company consists
of operations with the help of digital media such as consisting of detailed information
with the help of digital media sources. Company carries data of present customers
which helps them in making of some attractive offers for such customers. Such
techniques are very useful for the customers so as to avail their services from a
company and they perform all the business operations. Such techniques will help in
identification of sources from where traffic can be emerged in the company. With the
advent of internet the digital media has gained a lot of popularity especially in the
millennial generation, the usage of social media sites have increased a lot.
There are various tools of digital technology techniques and programmes which are
adopted by the company to build a effective Strategy for their customers and also their
competitors so that they can being changes according to the needs of their customers
(Brashear-Alejandro, Kang and Groza,, 2016). The constructive feedback is very helpful
in analysing to achieve desired results. Some of the software used by company is
described below:
ECRM hospitality software: ECRM or electronic customer relationship
management can be referred to as software which is designed for the purpose to
maintain the data of their customers in an effective manner. This will help to maintain

long term relationship with the customers as their forecasted needs will be analysed and
based on that products and services will be offered to them. It will require digital
platforms so as to remain in contact with the customers and also in formulating effective
relationships with them.
Opera Software: This Software has a advance features which can be used by
Intercontinental Hotel group so as to make dealings use in the online platform. It is small
in size, has speed and provides quick results and it works in various operating system it
is macOS, Android and IOS, Company prefers this as compared to other software such
as Mozilla or chrome(Below, C.I.A.A.).
TASK 4
P6: Illustrate consumer services with context to specific service sector
Every business organisation emphasises on delivering high quality services to
customers in order to make them loyal towards the company for longer period of time.
The major concern of company towards company mainly develop because it they are
main source of income for business entity. With reference to hospitality sector, it can be
said that it is essential for business associations belonging to this sector to deliver
services to customers in such a manner that raises their experience. Business manager
of Intercontinental Hotel group emphasises on developing effective strategy in order to
develop strong and healthier relationship with customers for longer period of time. For
this they provides more options in travelling packages, hotel bookings, customised
services, etc. to customers for enhancing their experience with the customers in
appropriate manner(Steinhoff and Palmatier, 2016). Some of the common strategies
adopted by manager of this company for enhancing customer experience are described
as below:
Deliver promise: In order to attract customers in effective manner, the manager
prefers to fulfil all of its promises given to customers. This is supportive for businesses
in making themselves separated from competitors. As a result, it is helpful for them in
gaining competitive edge because they are having higher brand recognition at
marketplace in respect to other companies belonging to same industry. In order to
maintain its brand image, the manager of intercontinental prefers keep transparency

with their customers in order to reduce chances of future conflicts. Along with this, they
also prefer to provide services to each of its customers at best possible prices (Bilgihan,
2016).
By taking customer feedback: Feedback is identified as the best approach that
allows company in understanding that how effectively their services are perceived
by customers or in which manner they are taking it. With reference to
InterContinental Hotel group, its manager emphasises on taking regular based
feedback from customers in order to find out their core weakness and strengths
from customers point of view. For executing this, manager of this company make
use of one to one communication, email, telephonic survey and other activities in
order to communicate to its customers and take feedback from them at regular
basis. The information developed with this feedback allows business manager in
identifying those areas which are required to be improved by company. As a result,
it directly contributes in the improvement of hotel’s services which results in
enhancing customers experience.
Provide reward to loyal customers: Manager of InterContinental Hotel group
also keeps record of all of its cliental in order to identify its loyal customers. According
to this data, its manager have developed list of additional service or complimentary
services like discount to its loyal customers in order to make them feel special and
more attached to company. This is directly supportive for them in influencing interest
of these customers towards them for longer period of time(Verleye, 2015).
P7: Create and develop consumer experience in the hospitality industry
Firms develop various strategies which help in compelling and persuading
customer decisions. The major purpose is development of a customer strategy so as to
engage customers and guest by usage of digital tools. With the help of market research,
the Intercontinental group of Hotels can determine various requirements related to
consumers and make effective decisions in operating the business in a smooth manner.

It is important that firms should determine various demands and needs of customers so
as to develop effective ways which can be used to satisfy the production of services
accordingly. After the services have been provided to the customers it is necessary to
take feedback from the customers so as to understand what their level of satisfaction
was and were their expectation have been met. In future the companies should design
their services in a way which can help them in upgrading themselves according to the
changing needs of their customers and this will aid in development of a strong base of
customers.
Recommendations
 Company should provide services of customer care so as to address query and
handle the emerging needs of customers which can help in delivery of services
in a stipulated period of time.
 Technology up gradation is necessary so as to enhance the emerging needs of
customers.
Company should make attempts that they are taking timely feedback from the
customers but also making efforts to adopt constructive changes. If the feedback
received is not positive than various changes should be made by them(Rahimi and
Kozak, 2017).
 Companies should lay more emphasis on developing a competitive advantage
which can help the company in surviving in the market for a long term period, as
the competition in case of the service industry is growing very fast and this can
posses a great threat for existing companies.
 Whole quality of services which are actually been experienced by the final
customers must be according to the benchmarks set by the company and
accordance with the expectations of their customers.

CONCLUSION
From above report it is being concluded that hospitality industry is offering a
great convenience to their customers. With regards to travel, tour, exploring new places
and many another additional services. It is very important for the companies to cater to
the changing requirements of the people belonging to different age groups such as
children, youth or adults. Expectations should be met by company various digital tools
should be used so as to make the customer experience better. This will help in
establishing customer loyalty and building strong customer base.

Reference
Books and Journals
Below, C.I.A.A.L., Managing Customer Experience Turning Customers Into Advocates.
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Roos, M. and Bekker, J., 2018, September. MANAGING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
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Steinhoff, L. and Palmatier, R.W., 2016. Understanding loyalty program effectiveness:
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