Customer Experience Management Report: Hilton's Strategies & Analysis

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of customer experience management, using Hilton Hotels as a case study. It explores the importance of understanding customer needs and wants, factors influencing customer engagement, and the application of customer experience mapping. The report delves into customer touchpoints, highlighting their role in creating business opportunities, and examines the use of digital technology, including CRM systems and social media marketing, to enhance customer relationships. Furthermore, it discusses customer service strategies and their impact on developing a positive customer experience. The report concludes with a summary of key findings and recommendations for improving customer experience within the hospitality industry.

MANAGING THE
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY..................................................................................................................................3
LO1..................................................................................................................................................3
P1 Importance of knowing the wants and needs of target customer groups...............................3
P2 Factors that influences and drives customer engagement of various target customer groups4
LO2..................................................................................................................................................4
P3 Customer experience map......................................................................................................4
P4 Customer touch-points throughout the customer experience create business opportunities. .6
LO3..................................................................................................................................................7
P5 Digital technology is employed for managing the customer experience...............................7
LO4................................................................................................................................................10
P6 Customer service strategies..................................................................................................10
P7 Ways customer service strategies develop customer experience.........................................11
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Managing the customer experience is very important task to a business in the market
place. There is no business can achieve appropriate outcomes in market without managing
experience of customers. Basically, when upper management of a business has succeeded in
providing very excellent experience to customers, then they can simply able to raise huge profit
margins in the market. Day to day competition is increasing in ever sector or industry, and that’s
why upper management of each business have to put its huge efforts for improving their levels of
customers experience to always retain them (Gardini, 2020). This report discusses customer
experience management task of Hilton hotel. Basically, Hilton is very popular American
hospitality business which currently different hotels in across the world. Value and importance of
understanding wants and needs of target customer groups has been discussed in this report.
Factors that influence customer engagement of target customer groups, customer experience
map, customer touch-points etc. aspects also have been mentioned in this report.
MAIN BODY
LO1
P1 Importance of knowing the wants and needs of target customer groups
Top-level management of present hotel organisation need to take the proper steps
towards systemically understanding different needs and wants of its target groups of customers
within market place. Generally, many people exist in market with different mentality, motivation
and mindset, in which they have various wants and needs as well. So, present management of
hotel need to develop its services and products according to own customers’ needs and wants.
However, services which has provided by hotel fully comes under prime wants and needs of
customers. Suppose; currently food, air, clothes etc. are major needs of customers, so lots of
customers are visited in Hilton hotel for fulfilling own needs of accommodation. Generally,
when business will be understood actual wants of its target customer groups within market, then
it will be simply improved its hospitality services accordingly (Schuckert and e.al., 2019).
Suppose; currently lots of customers within market likes clean and well-maintained rooms, so

this need of customers can be influenced to upper management of Hilton for making its
hospitality or room services very excellent.
P2 Factors that influences and drives customer engagement of various target customer groups
There are prime factors has been included below which highly impacts to customers’
engagement in service sector.
Quality
Quality is the first factor that influence and drive the engagement of customers within the
market place. Basically, this quality factor can influence to the management of Hilton hotel as
well, because each customer within market currently wants to stay in such hotels where existing
management had properly maintained good hygiene and cleanness.
Economic factor
This is another major factor that drives customers’ engagement in market place, in which
upper management of company have to consider this factor as well in own workplace (Lee,
2020). Basically, a customer always demands in market according to its existing economic
condition, so the company have to target its customers on the basis of their economic conditions.
It needs to ensure that, who’s people are able to afford services of Hilton and who’s are not.
Evaluation
These are major factors that influences and drives customer engagement in the market
place. The management of Hilton should also have to understand all factors for developing such
services and products which can improve its levels of employee engagement in workplace.
LO2
P3 Customer experience map
There are few productive methods has been used below to hotel which can be contributed
in creation of the map of customer experience.
Set Goals

This is the beginning step of creating the effective map of customer experience for
existing management of Hilton hotel, so the management of hotel have to set its goals and aims
behind formulating this map.
Conduct persona research
The management of hotel needs to be conducted persona research also for creating map
of customer experience (Robinson, 2017). Generally, this personal research can be able to Hilton
for knowing customers’ behaviours, interests and attitude for offering them better services and
products.
An effective customer journey model has been included below for hotel in order to
develop its customer service levels.
Customer journey model
According this customer journey model, there are customers always faces the decision-
making journey before taking last decision of purchasing. After analysing customer journey,
Hilton hotel can easily deal with such factors that can affect to customers’ decision-making. At
the end, this business will be able to positively affect to journey of customers’ decision-making
in market place after adhering the concept of customer journey model.
Figure 1. The decision-making journey of consumer
Source: Quarterly. M. 2009
There are some other aspects relating to experience mapping has been discussed below;
 Hilton hotel should always understand own target market groups, because after
understanding them properly, this hotel business can simply fulfil their actual wants,
needs and requirements in the market place.

 This is really a very important task to Hilton hotel that, it should be focused on taking
interviews of their target customers groups for knowing their opinions on hotel’s existing
products and services.
 Capture considerations of customers is another major task to hotel business in order map
their experience (Jelassi and Martínez-López, 2020). Basically, each customer has its
own attitude and behaviour, so Hilton have to influence them according to their existing
considerations.
 Detail of each touch point is another step to business for perfectly mapping experience of
customers, because detail of customers’ touch points always provides a specific
framework for providing better outcomes to customers in market place.
P4 Customer touch-points throughout the customer experience create business opportunities
Customer tough-points throughout experience of customer mostly creates excellent
business opportunities within market place. Generally, this factor also fully depends on the actual
needs or wants customers in service sector. Suppose; customers mostly like to stay in that hotel
which has offered them excellent experience as well as satisfaction in the precious visit. So,
upper management of Hilton hotel highly need to offer the best satisfaction and experience to
different customers by using their touch-points in the market place.
Touch point analysis
Pre purchase/pre stay: Pre purchase or pre stay is the first touch point of customers which upper
management of Hilton can be considered for effectively analysing actual wants and needs of
customers.
During the stay: During the stay is second touch point of customer, in which this also needs to
be considered by Hilton, because this is the point where hotel can effectively inform them about
own products and services (Meng, 2017).
After stay: After stay is another major touch point of customers, and the hotel business need to
consider this point for knowing experience to customer after consuming Hilton’s hospitality
services.

LO3
P5 Digital technology is employed for managing the customer experience
Upper management of Hilton hotel have to understand the value of digital technology,
because it plays an effective role in the management of customer experience. Day to day many
new technologies comes in market place, in which upper management need to order its IT
department in order to implement different new as well as modern technologies within the
workplace (Rossi, 2019). The company have to focus on adopting the concept of CRM (customer
relationship management), because it is very necessary in order to make provide excellent
experience and satisfaction to all customers. There are basically three types of customer
relationship management systems exists in market place which upper management of company
have to consider, in which these all three types of CRM systems have been discussed below;
Operational system
Operational system of CRM is one of the best systems of customer relationship
management, in which upper management of Hilton have consider this tool within its workplace.
Basically, this system enables to a business for conducting such operations in workplace which
can contribute in improving relationship with different customers.
Advantages: This system is very helpful in making all operations of hotel very effective, and at
the end these operations will contribute in managing effective relations with customers (Martínez
and Nishiyama, 2019).
Disadvantages: The business have to give too much time for systematically managing and
controlling all operations. Basically, this is very time-consuming system.
Analytical system
This is another major system of CRM, and this also contributes in making effective
relationship with customers. Basically, this system can help to hotel for gaining different
analytical data to know actual things which positively affects to customers. Analytical system
provides analytical data relating to customer needs.

Advantages: By adopting this system, the Hilton can simply know actual needs and wants of
customers, and then it can make effective relationship with them by fulfilling their needs.
Disadvantages: This system is very complicated to a user, so this hotel can’t use this system
without having some effective professionals of CRM’s analytical system (Kelly and Lawlor,
2019).
Collaborative system
Collaborative system is the best system to Hilton in the context of making effective
relations with customers. Basically, this system enables to different employees of Hilton hotel
for working with all collaborative values to help each. So, this system helps to hotel for
improving customer services by using employees, and finally, hotel can simply make proper
relations with customers by providing excellent customer services.
Advantages: This system consumes very less time and precious resources of a business.
Disadvantages: collaborative system is not favourable for earning long term benefits in market
place.
Features of CRM systems
There are some key features of CRM system has been discussed below;
Customer needs: It contributes in properly understanding needs of customers and enable to fulfil
them accordingly (Alexandridou, 2019).
Customer satisfaction: Hotel can simply give great satisfaction and experience to its customer
after adopting a CRM system.
Customer loyalty: By using a system of CRM, a business enables to make the base of many loyal
customers.
Customer retention: A CRM system helps in retaining many customers in the highly competitive
market place.
Reasons behind why digital technology is important in building customer relationship

There are some specific reasons has been discussed below which shows why the Hilton
have to use digital technology in building customer relationship management.
 Digital technology will support to hotel for enable building a detailed picture of own
customer tastes, needs, buying habits etc.
 It can help to upper management of Hilton to target new aspect and enhance their sales
ratio.
 Digital technology and CRM systems are very simple to understand and they also be able
for attracting new customers in market place
 It can be recorded awareness of products’ likes and dislikes of customers within Hilton.
This also contribute for monitoring and controlling all data relating customer experience.
Social media platforms
Social media marketing: Social media marketing is one of the best platforms of digital
technologies, and this will help to Hilton for effectively promoting own brand in across the world
(Montargot, 2016).
Email marketing: Email-marketing also contributes in promoting own brand. Basically, business
have to send emails to different people for informing them about own products and services by
using email marketing digital technology.
Display advertising: This is the most appropriate technology to business for quickly influencing
customers to buy only hotel’s products and services.
Affiliate marketing: Affiliate marketing is currently highly trending in market place, in which
this technique of marketing also will support Hilton for gaining better outcomes.
Impacts of digital content and speed and consistency on companies
 Digital content and speed and consistency can support to Hilton for effectively boosting
sales ratio of the business, and this is really very positive impact.
 More affordable methods of reaching a wider audience. This is another major impact on
Hilton of digital content and speed and consistency, and the hotel have to consider them
properly.

 In this modern world, everyone’s online or on internet, so more customers can be seen
Hilton advertisements.
LO4
P6 Customer service strategies
There are many customer service strategies are simply available in the market place, and
upper management of Hilton have to use all of them for effectively improve its levels of
customer service.
Create a customer service vision
This is the first strategy of customer service, in which upper management of Hilton have
to create the service vision (Buhalis and Yen, 2020). Basically, after having an appropriate
vision, a business can simply put its huge efforts in workplace.
Assess the customer needs
Proper assessment of customer needs is very helpful to a business for developing its
products and services accordingly, and this is the main reason that Hilton have to adopt and use
this strategy in its workplace.
Hire the right employees
The HR department of Hilton have to be focused on hiring the right employees in its
workplace, because after having many talented and skilled employees within workplace, this
hotel business can simply make its customer services very appropriate.
Set goals for customer service
Set goals for customer service is another major strategy to existing hotel business, and
this strategy will always motivate to existing people or employees of hotel to put their huge
efforts in order to achieve the decided goals.
Train on service skills

Proper skills of serving also highly matters in workplace of a hospitality business, in
which the company have to be focused on providing proper training and development sessions to
all employees for improving their skills and abilities of customer service.
Attend to negative reviews ASAP
This is the best strategy to put very positive impact on different customers. Basically, this
strategy will encourage to Hilton for attending various negative reviews of customers as soon as
possible in the market place, and this thing of business will impress customers.
P7 Ways customer service strategies develop customer experience
Customer service strategies are very essential to a company or business in the market
place, in which upper management of Hilton hotel also need to adopt and implement different
strategies of customer service strategies in own workplace (Keiningham and et.al., 2019).
Basically, these strategies are very helpful to the business for providing the best experience to all
customers. Currently top-level management within most companies and businesses puts their
huge efforts for proving very excellent experience as well as satisfaction to all customers,
because this is the only way to survive in the current highly competitive market place. In this
situation, these strategies of customer service will definitely help to Hilton for improving its
levels of customer service, and after having excellent customer service, this hotel business can
simply give great experience to all customers.
Recommendations
Top-level management of Hilton have to properly understand the existing needs and
wants of all customers, because these are enough to develop its products and services
accordingly. After providing offering such products and services customers which they really
want to buy, then this hotel will be provided great experience and satisfaction to them. The
management of hotel should always follow all customer service strategies as well.
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded that there are various areas are associated with customer relationship
in order to the business. Customers’ requirements and needs are directly relating with the service

quality of Hilton hotel is catering to its different customers. Rates is also fully associated with
part of the expectations of customers from existing hotel organisation. There are factors such as
values of customers, service quality level and also various other factors that are potentially
impacted to the engagement of customers for Hilton. Lots of touch points of customers and
strategies of customer service needs to be properly considered by upper management of Hilton
for offering the best experience and satisfaction to customers.

REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Alexandridou, S., 2019. Customer satisfaction in Hospitality throught the lens of CEM, CRM
and technological innovations.
Buhalis, D. and Yen, E. C. S., 2020. Exploring the use of chatbots in hotels: technology
providers’ perspective. In Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism
2020. (pp. 231-242). Springer, Cham.
Gardini, M. A., 2020. A Look at Research and Practice. The Routledge Companion to
International Hospitality Management. p.246.
Jelassi, T. and Martínez-López, F. J., 2020. AccorHotels’ Digital Transformation: A Strategic
Response to Hospitality Disruptor Airbnb. In Strategies for e-Business. (pp. 665-689).
Springer, Cham.
Keiningham, T. L., and et.al., 2019. Creating innovation that drives authenticity. Journal of
Service Management.
Kelly, P. and Lawlor, J., 2019. Adding or destroying value? User experiences of tourism self-
service technologies. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights.
Lee, K. H., 2020. Marketing approach to the tourist experience. The Routledge Handbook of
Tourism Experience Management and Marketing.
Martínez, P. and Nishiyama, N., 2019. Enhancing customer-based brand equity through CSR in
the hospitality sector. International Journal of Hospitality & Tourism
Administration. 20(3). pp.329-353.
Meng, J., 2017. Hotel Operational Audit.
Montargot, N., 2016. Digitalisation advances and hospitality service encounters. Symphonya.
Emerging Issues in Management. (1). pp.64-74.
Robinson, J., 2017. Passenger terminal development in the digital age. Journal of Airport
Management. 11(4). pp.355-368.
Rossi, P., 2019. Conflicts in Leading and Managing Change: Towards a Reflexive
Practice. Leading Change in a Complex World: Transdisciplinary Perspectives.
Schuckert, M., and e.al., 2019. How do domestic and international high-end hotel brands receive
and manage customer feedback?. International Journal of Hospitality Management. 77.
pp.528-537.
Online

Quarterly. M. 2009. The consumer decision journey. [Online]. Available Through: <
https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/the-
consumer-decision-journey#>.