New reputation management tool allows businesses in the hospitality industry to effectively monitor major review sites and win their guests back if mistakes in service have been made – and improve their ratings at the same time.
Today, Hospitality Defender launched its new, proprietary relationship management system focused on tracking Yelp reviews and recovering guests that have been disappointed in their experiences at restaurants or hotels.
This new system utilizes a highly specialized CRM-type database that can record and analyze reviews posted on the major review sites, tracking the path of the guest follow-up and eventual recovery. Customized reporting shows the client exactly where their business stands, including review trends and operational deficiencies. An automated instant feedback email is sent to the client when a new review is posted and responded to, which details the contents of the review and includes the response sent to the guest on behalf of the business.
The process: within three hours of a guest posting a review, a member of the Hospitality Defender team reaches out to the guest using the review site’s personal messaging system. The response comes from your own Yelp, TripAdvisor, Google+ Local or other review site’s business account. The team asks for details about the guest’s experience, and then offers an apology and incentive to return. Clear instructions are then given to the business on how to complete the recovery. This three-hour response time is over eight times faster than the standard of other reputation management services.
“We believe that every minute counts when recovering a guest,” says Jay Skowron, Founder & Principal of Hospitality Defender. “So many guests that are contacted through our system are just blown away that the business cares enough to reach out. Even more so, our three hour guarantee is essential to diffusing the situation and making the guest feel heard, understood, and appreciated.” Skowron has worked in all aspects of the hospitality industry for more than a decade, and has extensive experience in dealing with guest satisfaction. “Many times, guests will upgrade their rating based on this level of customer service. Acknowledging your guests’ feedback and correcting the situation is such an important thing to do.”
Old-fashioned word of mouth has evolved into the ability to tell millions of people instantly about a negative experience via the Internet. Communicating with guests who have a bad experience and made it public on review sites, and making it right for them, is essential in this age of social media. A recent study showed that over 50% of Internet users consult online reviews before making a purchase, and 72% trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations. A one-star decline in a Yelp rating can decrease revenue by 9% or more, and is made worse when the business appears to be ignoring negative feedback on these very public sites. Now, with Hospitality Defender, there’s an easy solution for the hospitality industry.
For more information, and to get started, please contact Hospitality Defender at info(at)hospitalitydefender(dot)com or call (888) 951-3105. Watch a short video here.
Hospitality Defender is a growing Bay Area company that specializes in ensuring guest satisfaction for the hospitality industry, focusing specifically on review site guest recovery, secret shopping, online guest surveys and social media. For more information, please visit hospitalitydefender.com.
