Chapter 12 effective communication will improve your property. Communication is something we do automatically, like breathing. We've all been talking since we were small, to our partners, kids friends, without giving it a thought. It might seem easy, but communicating effectively actually takes quite a bit of skill. Choosing the right words, listening with our minds instead of just our ears, and getting your message across our skills that we all need to work on. When at home or with friends, not finding the right words or miscommunication can lead to problems or even arguments.

At work. The result could be much worse unenthusiastic employees, poor productivity, even legal issues can be the result of bad communication skills. This does not have to be a problem at your property if you incorporate a few changes into your communication practices since the end of the year, century, many companies have become dependent on email as their primary source of communication with colleagues and outside clients. Many of us have become so reliant on our computers and email that we've neglected the art of conversation. Email does have its advantages over the old fashioned snail mail letters, because they're quick and direct, and they do leave a trail of your correspondence. But unfortunately for many, the desire for speed has almost created a whole new language of short sentences and abbreviations.

Have you ever sent off an email with the best intentions, only to have it misunderstood at the other end? An email sent quickly can easily be misinterpreted as lack of caring, or even worse, a sign that you're mad. When speaking to someone face to face. A conversation is more than words itself. It's the tone of voice, facial expressions and body language. Take body gestures and smiles out of the equation and reception hands can easily get the wrong idea, especially when the sender isn't the most coherent writer.

Let's look at some ways you can improve your email communication at your property. When sending an email, writing a letter or even a note, I use spellcheck, and after you use spell check, have someone else read it. Don't send messages with all caps. Recipients might feel like you're yelling. Please, please, please use complete sentences. Organize your inbox, making sure priority messages are dealt with immediately.

Use folders to prioritize missing important emails could cost you money. Make sure everything is clear. A good clear message can build engagement, prevent problems and streamline efforts. Have a standard communication schedule. Here you can highlight important messages. Refrain from sending an email every time you ever thought that can be overwhelming clutter, and important messages will be missed.

Document, document everything and make sure it is clear. When was the last time you said or one of your employees said, didn't I tell you or sorry I forgot to mention, or it's supposed to be done this way. It is imperative to work together as a team. And as a team, you will receive the same information, check and recheck to make sure this is happening. Handle conflicts with tact. When you have more than two people working together eight hours a day, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, you're eventually going to have some issues.

Minor issues will quite often take care of themselves, but those sub low into major issues can be very disruptive and stressful. any situation like this, you want to nip it in the bud immediately. Good start is to let all employees know from day one, your door is always open. You have to create a safe environment in which employees feel comfortable to be honest and openly voiced their frustrations. Encourage them to come to you with any problems and make sure all conversations held in your office remain completely confidential. This is very important when responding to conflicts.

You have to be neutral and keep an open mind. Ask questions and really listen to the answers so you understand how each person in the dispute feels. Here you can help the two parties reach a resolution that's acceptable to everyone. If you have a policy in place in your operations manual for this type of situation, use it if the policy is to blame, change it and if there is no policy for this issue and you feel one is justified, add it. Respect cultural variances. Our world is getting smaller And more and more hospitality properties are hiring foreign employees, as well as receiving guests from every corner of the planet.

For this reason, property owners need to be more culturally sensitive and aware of the little differences in the way people of different nationalities interpret words and gestures. I ran into this problem myself one time in this sample. A Turkish friend of mine was at one end of a busy hotel lobby, and I was at the other. He held up his arm and pointed to his watch indicating he wanted to know what time we were going to leave. I held up my hand indicating 2pm. But instead of using the victory signal, I use the American and Canadian Football signal per second down, which was the index and pinky fingers extended.

He raced across the lobby and told me never to use that signal in Turkey, had been the sign of a past political party that had been responsible for many deaths. An interesting note The V for victory sign would not have been acceptable in Australia, as it is their way of giving the finger. So it's important to create an environment that is understanding of and sensitive to the needs of employees and customers no matter what the culture or religion. I had one property owner told me that if his employees or guests did not like or could not deal with his beliefs, that was their problem. Needless to say, he did not have many happy employees or a high return rate. This is a wonderful topic to include in your training program.

Feedback is important. In chapter 11, how to train for success. I said that praise was important for your employees. Just as important as praise is feedback. If you have employees working hard for you, tell them if you have employees or not pulling their weight, tell them you don't have to hold regular meetings to share feed. back, you can let employees know what you're thinking by email, a phone call, or the way I think works the best in person, when offering feedback, be as clear as possible.

If you're giving praise, give specific examples. Most employees enjoy hearing details when they're doing something right. If there's a problem, don't just say you're not finishing your tasks on time, offer a solution. You could say, there seems to be a problem with your workload. What can we do to help? Talking down or being demeaning to a person is never a solution.

When to hold meetings, it is understandable that when operating a hospitality property, unless closed for the season, holding staff meetings with everybody in attendance is almost impossible. So what's the solution? A short note every morning might work. It could state how many guests will be arriving any VIPs very important person or Persons who might be on the property, any events taking place menu specials, or any product specials. I cannot emphasize this enough unless it's an emergency or highly confidential. You should not hold a meeting with an employee in your office.

You're the face of your property. You have to be out and about as much as possible, talking with your guests. So with this in mind, if you have to meet an employee, go where they are. This way you can share the information you need to share, watch the things are going and you're not taking that employee away from their duties. If you want to keep good open communication with your employees, make them feel like owners. If you utilize the proper hiring process, and have incorporated step by step ongoing training, then it should be obvious to your employees that you have a vested interest in them.

And at this point, employees should have a vested interest in your property. Stop there. If you have major decisions that have to be made about your property and will affect your employees, let them have a say before the decision is made. For example, major renovations, group insurance policy changes for the operations manual. Make sure you educate them on all aspects of the decision. But then let them have a vote.

You might be thinking, Wait a minute, this is my business. But think about it. If your employees see that you value their opinions, they will feel like they have a more vested interest in the business and rewards you with incredible loyalty. Be open with them on how the business is going. If your bookings are great and revenue is up, tell them if things are slow. Tell them that as well.

You might have the feeling that you're giving up control, when in actual fact it has been proven many times. employees that feel they have a vested interest will work harder for your success. It's all about open communication. Emotions on the job can be a killer. being friends with your employees is great. Letting them know they can talk to you at any time is very important.

But what is also very important is that you're the boss, you're running a business. This is your livelihood, you have to be professional. With any independent operation and different personalities. This can be really difficult. If an employee for some reason is not happy and starts making negative conversations personal, there's a good chance that you are going to feel irritated. This is the time to stop.

Take a step back, calm yourself down. Don't be emotional, but instead professional. When responding. Don't make it personal. Ask your employee to present their case in a clear, concise way. And you listen.

Don't say anything until they're finished with They are finished. Repeat your concerns and make sure it's clear. As they start interrupting you. You can say, I'm sorry, I thought you were finished. And then don't say anything. It's very difficult to have an argument of only one person is talking.

Once the problem is clear, offer solutions if you have them. If not, ask them what they would suggest. If you remain calm and professional, most problems will quickly find an agreeable solution. I had mentioned when listening to a complaint or a discussion, it is important for you to listen, listening is sometimes not that easy. To be a good listener actually takes practice. So how can you improve?

Challenge yourself? Whenever you're listening to a conversation, pretend there's a test at the end, and you won't have to list the three most important items in that conversation. It's not as easy as you would think. With practice and a little time, it'll soon become second nature. Another way To know what you heard is to repeat what the person said. It's good for both the memory and clarification.

Have fun at work. Okay, you have excellent employees. They understand your business goals and objectives. They're all well trained. Following all the step by step procedures from your operations manual, you'll all enjoy open and clear communications Is that all? Even companies with the best intentions are sometimes monotonous?

Is there anything else you can do to enhance the work atmosphere? Have fun? The workday can be as fun and as exciting as your company wants to make it. Many successful hospitality property owners that I've talked to over the years have one thing in common. They enjoy what they do. Not that every day is a barrel of laughs But there is enough happiness generated over time to see them through the rough times.

Here are some examples of things you could try. How to motivate your employees. heard your employees to take a few moments every day to get out and walk around. It has been proven that just a few minutes can energize the body and boost creativity. Let your employees make their work environment a place they enjoy being. For example, housekeepers, keeping notes of things or pictures of their family or vacations and their worker.

Yeah. I'm omental from a pleasant experience that might make them smile when they look at it. Laugh. Yes, professionalism is very important. That doesn't mean you can't smile or joke. A smile or a laugh can be contagious.

And when you're happy endorphins are released, which are natural pain and stress relievers. compliment your coworkers every day. You actually feel just as good giving the compliment as you do receiving it. Check in with your colleagues, just to say hi or drop a note to see how they're doing can brighten up everyone's day significantly. be appreciative if someone's always willing to go the extra Step, let them know how meaningful that is, which makes any workday better. If you're lucky enough to find something you're good at, and love doing it, you're less likely to think of it as just work.

You don't have to come up with these ideas yourself. Go online for ideas, or ask your employees. Giving employees a few minutes a day to cut loose can make them much more appreciative and productive and they need to put their noses to the grindstone bonus communication techniques, guidelines for answering your hospitality properties phone. When people call you looking for information, or to get a reservation, they want to talk to a live person, not a recorded robot. If you operate a small property and are not always at the desk to take a call, get called forwarding, answering service or extra staff if you need to make sure a real human is answering your business phone. The next step is to make sure the person answering your properties phone is used.

The appropriate skills for business. For many guests the phone will be their first point of contact and their first impression of your business. Here's how to answer the phone properly and when business answer all incoming calls before the third ring. When you answer the phone, smile, be warm and enthusiastic. Your voice on the phone can make a major impression on a possible guest. When answering the phone, welcome callers courteously and identify yourself and your property.

Say for instance, good morning, twin oaks in center speaking, how may I help you? No one should ever have to ask if they reach the twin oaks in enunciate, speak slowly and clearly. Keeping your voice volume moderate, so your caller can understand you easily. Don't use buzzwords or slang or use fillers when you speak. For example, or phrases such as like, or you know, quite often we do not realize we're doing this. So record your voice and listen for those filler words and train yourself to recognize them when you are speaking.

With practice, you will soon be able to remove these filler words from your speech pattern. Be positive when answering even on a down day. For example, rather than saying, I don't know, say, let me find out about that for you. Take full messages completely and accurately using full sentences. If there's something you don't understand or can't spell, such as the person's address or surname, ask the caller to repeat it or spell it for you. It's quite acceptable.

Return your messages within one day at the latest. I can't emphasize this one enough. Remember the early bird, that one missed call might become a long term customer for your competition. Always ask the caller if it's alright to put them on hold when answering the phone, and don't leave people on hold. Provide callers on hold with the progress reports every 30 to 45 seconds. Offer them choices if possible, such as that line is still busy.

Will you continue to hold or should I have? call you back? When on hold? Don't leave your callers listening to dead air. Have soothing music playing and occasional promotions of your products. Don't use speaker phones unless absolutely necessary.

The speaker might feel that you're multitasking and leave the impression that you're not fully concentrating on their call. If you have to use an answering machine to answer calls, make sure you have a professional message recorded as earlier mentioned and an idea of when they can expect their call returned. Make sure your answering machine is up to date. Trained everyone else who answers the phone to answer it the same way