Customer Experience Management in Hospitality: A Detailed Report (HND)

This report delves into customer experience management within the hospitality sector, using the Hilton Hotel as a case study. It begins by emphasizing the significance of understanding customer needs, wants, and preferences, highlighting their impact on customer loyalty, brand development, marketing strategies, and profitability. The report then explores factors influencing customer engagement, such as accessibility, language, convenience, and customer onboarding strategies. A detailed customer experience map for Hilton is presented, outlining key touchpoints like online searches, booking, customer service, and payment processes. The report further identifies opportunities for enhancing customer experience, including website optimization, email marketing, social media engagement, phone interactions, and digital marketing. It also examines the role of digital technology, particularly customer relationship management (CRM) systems, in managing customer interactions. Finally, the report discusses customer service strategies, reviews their effectiveness, and concludes with recommendations for improving customer experience within the hospitality industry. This report provides valuable insights into the practical application of customer experience management principles.

Managing Customer
Experience

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
1. Value and importance of the needs, wants and preferences of target customer groups for
hospitality industry.......................................................................................................................3
2. Different factors which influence customer engagement of different target customer groups.
......................................................................................................................................................4
3. Customer experience map .......................................................................................................5
4. Opportunities throughout customer experience in the hospitality organization......................7
5. Digital technology employed in managing customer experience within service sector
organization with examples of customer relationship management systems..............................8
6. Customer service strategies in service sector...........................................................................9
7. Review of customer service strategies - ................................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................13

INTRODUCTION
Customer experience is the perception of the customer that what relationship they had
with brand which they get from the experience with that brand. In the customer life cycle.
Customer experience management or CEM is the process of reaction with the customers to fulfil
the customer wants or expectations and creating customer loyalty. It increases the revenue
because company get sales with the old customers and also getting business from the new one
through publicity. Hilton is the hotel and resorts is the international brand which provide hotel
services. Conrad Hilton was founded Hilton hotels. Company is famous for providing luxury
services to their customers. This study will discuss the importance of needs, wants and
preference of customer groups for hospitality industry. Explaining factors that influence
customer engagement of target customer groups within organization. Creating customer
experience map. Discussion of touch points created opportunities through customer experience.
Further, examine digital technology is used in managing customer experience. Illustrating
customer service strategy. Demonstrating these strategies and creating customer experience that
meet the needs of customer.
MAIN BODY
1. Value and importance of the needs, wants and preferences of target customer groups for
hospitality industry.
Target market - Target market is group of customers or the companies which wanted to
buy the products or services from the company. Buyers want to fulfil their needs or wants by
purchasing from the company. So company make marketing strategies to target those customers
group. Hospitality industry is very big, and they focus on providing good services to the
customers. It is very important for the company who are in the service industry to understand the
needs, wants and preferences of the target customer so that they can provide services according
to the expectations of the customer. Hilton is a multinational group, company target those high
class customer who can pay good for the premium service provided by the company. Some
benefits for understanding needs, wants and preferences are:
Promotes customer loyalty - Customer loyalty is very important for the company to sustain
longer. Hilton is well-known for the good quality service they provide (Kandampully, Zhang and
Jaakkola, 2018). Customer loyalty bring new sales which is good for the company and also

increase its revenue. Customer loyalty is based on fulfilling their wants and expectations.
Company should not only focus on their new customer only but also should have focus on
existing one.
Helps in brand development - The brand of the company is what customer resonate with. If
company want to improve the quality of brand then considering the needs of the clients should be
the priority. Hilton have conducted the market research to know the preferences of the customer
and company make sure that they are fulfilling all the demands of their customers. Company
even take the suggestions from the customer and apply in their business (Hwang and Seo, 2016).
It is the customer only who uses the services, so they can give better suggestions.
Development of relevant marketing strategies - Marketing strategies will be successful only if
the company know that whom they are targeting. With the help of customer needs and wants
company can make relevant marketing strategies. Taking regular feedbacks from the customers
can also prove to be helpful (Witell and et.al., 2020). Hilton carefully choose the marketing
platforms because it determines that the target customer got the message of the company or not.
Increase profits - If the customer wants are evaluated and understood then no can stop the
company for the good profits.
2. Different factors which influence customer engagement of different target customer groups.
Customer engagement - Customer engagement is process of communication or
interactions between the brands and the customer. It is also the emotional connection between
both the parties. If the customer engagement is more they will buy more, do more promotion and
bring customer loyalty. Good quality of customer service is the component of customer
engagement.
The different factors which influence customer engagement are:
Accessibility - It is the very important factor. It tells that customer is reaching towards the
products or services or not (Gacanin and Wagner, 2019). It customer is not getting the products
and services easily then how will company do sales. Hospitality industry like Hilton, the location
of the hotel influence the customer. Target group preferences are also those king of hotels which
are near to airports. Because after the flight no customer want to travel long for the hotel as they
are already tired so near location are mostly preferred.

Language - Language is the another factor which influence the engagement of customer. Hotel
staff should treat their customer with a soothing language (Holmlund and et.al., 2020). They
should speak in such a respectful manner which makes the customer happy because staff
represent the brand of that company. Workers should satisfy the premium and luxury needs of
the customers to attain customer loyalty.
Convenience - It is the necessary element for the positive customer engagement. It influences
the decisions of the customers about what they are buying, services which they are using and
what brand they choose. It is dependent on the accessibility of the place. If the hotel is easily
reachable then it will be convenient for the customer to go their and take the services. Good
customer service is also the element which attract the customer towards company.
Customer on boarding strategies - it is the best way to retain the customer. In this
company impress the customer with products and services. Factors which determine that are:
Setting goals - Before on-boarding company should make goals which define success. Once
company come to know what their goals are then they make steps to achieve them.
Success team on board - Hilton make sure that their staffs know their goals and always ready to
help customers by providing good quality services. Staff should be trained so that they know that
how to handle the customers in different situations.
3. Customer experience map

Customer experience map - This is the process of laying out and map the customer experiences
according to what they feel for the brand.
Steps involve in customer journey maps are: Creating map for Hilton -
How customer find company - Customer google about the company. They found the location
and reviews about the company. There is positive review, so they has done booking for the hotel.
Other way is customer hear about the company from the method of mouth of publicity. In this
the known person of customer suggest taking services from the hotel.
Comparing options - Customer gets many options on google when they search. Customer
compares each and every options on the basis of their budgets, company reviews, location of the
company, convenience etc and after evaluating all the companies on the basis of this criteria then
the best option is selected.
Customer problems and suggestions - Customer faces problem which include finding the
rooms, restaurants, playing areas, pools etc. by guiding properly by the staff customer problem
solves (AthuluruTlrumala and Attuluru, Ytrre Inc, 2019). Company always keep their customer
at priority stage because it is the customer only who give sales to the company.
Access to customer service - It is very easy to customer service. Hilton have land-line in every
room so that their customer can call at any time in the case of any query. Hotel has also installed
such gadgets through which company can easily write theory queries or services they needed.
Illustration 1: Customer journey map
Source: Ewerman, 2018

Improving customer engagement: company is trying a lot to improve customer engagement.
They interact with the customers through their staffs and find out that what issues they are
facing. Company does not neglect any problem of the customer rather solve their issue within
less time.
Payment - Customer which comes in the hotel easily make payment for the services they had
taken. Payments can be make in cash, using cards or online or e wallets payment.
Check out and feedback: when the customer does the check out, then the company ask the
customer about their experiences. They make them fill the feedback form in which company can
write about their experiences or can also give suggestions to the company which will help the
company in providing better services. Client can even write about the issues if he or she has
faced.
4. Opportunities throughout customer experience in the hospitality organization
There are various opportunities to create customer experience in the hospitality
organization which is taken as Hilton Hotel (Milliman, Gatling and Kim, 2018). Touch points
which create opportunities throughout customer experience define the key areas where the
concentration can be diverted to. What customers experience in the hotel services directly
impacts their behaviour.
Website of the hotel plays an important role in providing the services which is easily available to
the customers, and they consume all the services of their favour. Website of the hotel also helps
in viewing the information and details that what the hotel has to offer to its consumers. Creation
of websites have been helpful for developing proper plan and also helps in reviewing the external
and internal services that are provided to the customer to inculcate the best experience.
E – mail has also created a small platform for the queries and the basic information submission
to the customers whenever there is any type of offer or discount that has been provided by the
hotel industry. E – mails are the personalized mails that access internet connectivity and which
ensures that the customers are up to date with the new updates that has been processed in
functioning of the hotel organization.
Social Media Marketing is the main key touch point which operates in accordance with the
organization providing excellent customer experience on which they review. Through social

media marketing there increases number of chances to change the strategies for the efficient
market structure and for providing the best quality services at reasonable rates. Social media
marketing helps the hotel in being more attractive and coming up with new ideas of innovation
and growth.
Phone calls and text messages contribute in the touch point factor as in gaining and engaging
more customers the organization target its customers and continuously stay with them through
the services like making phone calls and sending text messages. This helps in direct and one-to-
one conversation with the customers leading them to acknowledge the importance the hotel
offers.
Digital Marketing is also one of the major key touch points which helps in defining the market
structure and popularity the organization holds in the practical world. Active digital marketing
strategies lead to better development of the organization and through that they are able to
acknowledge the services that the hotel renders to its customers.
5. Digital technology employed in managing customer experience within service sector
organization with examples of customer relationship management systems
Technology has paved a way for the business organizations and have created vast digital
platforms to increase the utility of the products and services that the hospitality industry has to
offer. Digital world has not only upgraded the whole system of development in the services to be
provided to the customers to experience the best possible way the industry maintains customer
relations (Busulwa, Evans, Oh and et.al., 2020). There are different paths through which the
consumer experience can be analysed with advancement in digital technologies such as -
Online App – The Hilton Hotel has created an app for providing the services and an overview of
what are facilities the hotel offers to its customers with the choices that are mentioned as per the
requirement of the consumer. Due to the recent pandemic situation the hotel offers contactless
arrival by pre-booking the room on the app. The check – in and check – outs from the hotel is
done through the Hilton app.
Recognition Technology – This type of technology in the Hotel industry includes everything
from face recognition to finger print scanning. This is primarily needed in the payment
procedures that is done in the hotel for reducing the amount of contact within the hotel staff. This

is very helpful in analysing the identity the customer holds while check – in and check – out
from the hotel.
Chatbots and Artificial Intelligence (AI) – Chatbots deliver responses and solve queries
through artificial intelligence and has proved to be one of the most effective and efficient ways
of digital tend for Hilton Hotel in the hospitality industry (Ivanov and Webster, 2019). Artificial
Intelligence helps the hotel to easily and automatically analyse the data that has been fed in the
system.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System is a software solution which
helps in managing lead, sales, marketing of the Hilton Hotel. CRM system helps in managing
customer feedbacks, loyalty programs and 360 degree view of customer information that is
required to the hotel for maintaining their personal data for future reference (Rahimi, Köseoglu,
Ersoy and et.al., 2017).
Examples of CRM of organization are – Basic characteristics which defines the customers age
whether they are travelling along with large or small group, customers behaviour defining their
stay for how long and short period they have occupied the room and their in – hotel services
which they use suitable according to their needs and expectations.
6. Customer service strategies in service sector
There are various service strategies in the service sector of the Hilton hotel among which
some of them are as follows -
Response to Feedback – Customers feedback plays very significant role in the development and
growth of the hotel as it increases the chance of improvement and fills the loopholes wherever
necessary (Hudson and Hudson, 2017). Customers who are loyal to the hotel give away their
feedback about the services that were rendered by the organization . There feedback should be
considered so that there emerges a chance of improvement for the betterment of the industry as
whole.
Quality Check – A quick quality check procedure is followed which helps in knowing that the
products are services that are provided to the customers are of the best quality or not. This is
based on the judgement that is given by the customer when they utilize the product. This strategy
helps in solving many difficulties that whether the products are according to the customers needs
and desires.

Personalized Experience – Hotel industry follows this strategy for serving the customers best
with their services through which customers offer review through their experience and is
considered as the key towards the success step which the customers experience while staying at
the hotel.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Strategy – An effective CRM strategy helps in
analysing the practical aspect that is evaluating sales potential and psychological aspect that is
the value of the customers for hotel industry as it fuels the growth and the leading industry to
effective and efficient work process (Rahimi and Gunlu, 2016).
Modify Communication – By following recent trends and upgrading technologies it increases
the chance of the customer interaction with the hotel industry staff members to communicate in a
much better way which help them in also evaluating their market performance. Direct
communication with the sources helps customers know more about the facilities Hilton
provides.
Perfect sales activities – One such practical key strategy defines that how to ensure that the
sales activities are in accordance with the financial statements by measuring the profits and
losses of the industry. Sales activities of the hotel are measured by analysing the growth in sales
per year compared to the previous year's growth. This helps in up-gradation of the activities
which overall develops the financial budget and the processing of financial plan is measured.
7. Review of customer service strategies -
It has been reviewed form the strategies that more the strategies are formed more it
makes the process of evaluation of customer service programmes easier and valuable in context
with both industry and the customers of the Hilton Hotel. Response to feedback of the customers,
quality check of the products and services which are consumed by the customers, experience that
the customers have during the stay at the hotel, the CRM strategy helps in analysing the key roles
of the hotel in the market structure and maintaining the relationship with the customer on the
foreground along with other activities and strategies. These strategies helped in reviewing the
growth aspect and the key features of the hotel which provide and serve the customers bets living
experience while they stay in the hotel. The scale of strategies on which they are formulated
analyse how and what are the major key areas where the hotel can be polished more in terms of

its business environment and communicating with the customers on different platforms giving
them personal attention for what they desire.
Recommendations -
Giving importance to customers - If Hilton will give importance to the customers and treat
them will then it will increase the chance that the customer will repeatedly visit the hotel. It
increases the customer loyalty and customer do the publicity of the company through word of
mouth.
Providing personalized customer service - The staff of the company should take some efforts
and make customer feel that they are very important for the company. Their preferences should
be considered and providing them everything which is needed by them.
Providing training to the staff - Company should give training to their employees regarding
how to greet the customer or how to give them good quality of services (Klink, Zhang and
Athaide, 2020). Training should not be only given to the new employees but should be given to
the existing employees as well so that old employees can also learn advance techniques.
Check performance of workforce - Company should timely check the performances of the
staffs like how they are serving customers. Employees whose performance is good should be
appreciated and those employees who are not performing up to the mark should provide
suggestions.
CONCLUSION
Thus, form the above report it is analysed that the needs and wants of the customer group
helps in knowing what and in how ways are the preferences of the target groups along with the
customer engagement within different target customer groups and the map which shows
customer services in the hospitality industry. The explanation of touch points helped in creating
the opportunities throughout the customer experience with the advancement of digital technology
that helped in analysing new innovations and techniques that have been updated in the hospitality
industry. Customer service strategies also helped in measuring and evaluating different aspects
through which the hotel industry integrated and modified their ways of serving best to the
customers by satisfying their needs and wants. Customer strategies verifies the customer

experience aspect that whether they are satisfied or not with the services rendered to them by the
Hilton Hotel.

REFERENCES
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Online
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through<https://custellence.com/blog/what-lanes-do-i-need-in-my-customer-journey-map.html>