04/08/21
Hospitality Desks have been a staple of travel management companies since the very beginning. The idea is well intentioned, make it as easy as possible for travelers to get the help that they need. Travel has changed a lot over the years, but the hospitality desk has more or less remained the same. Now that travelers can instantly access information from their smartphone, is a Dry Erase board the best place to put important updates? When seeking improvement, start with the end goal. The #1 goal of a hospitality desk is to provide a high level of service for travelers....
10/12/20
Since the start of the pandemic, it seems like every phone call we make has the same recorded warning. It goes something like, “We are experiencing higher than normal call volumes due to the COVID pandemic. Expect longer wait times…” While that makes sense for some businesses, it feels like an excuse for others. In an attempt to handle the higher volume of calls, some businesses have implemented new service options. After giving the dire warning of longer wait times, callers are offered other service options such as text or chat. These are omni-channel options and can potentially provide a...
08/03/20
The coronavirus pandemic has changed how businesses interact and communicate with customers. Limited or no contact mandates have pushed businesses to find other ways to personally communicate with customers. One strategy some businesses have turned to is a messaging channel. In fact, during the first few months of the pandemic, the use of a messaging channel to interact with customers increased by 26%. At the same time, businesses are still learning to manage a messaging channel. Our company provides a 2-way messaging channel for businesses to interact with their customers. Two-way messaging is different from SMS messaging. SMS messages are...
03/20/20
As businesses close and life as we know it comes to a halt due to COVID-19, many of us are beginning to realize just how much we depend on various services we use including restaurants, dry cleaners, and gyms. Along with the uncertainty and fears of COVID-19, our inability to access these services can create anxiety. Many businesses that provide services are thinking creatively to offer alternatives for their customers. Gyms are coming out with home workouts and other tips for staying healthy during this time. Dry cleaners are offering free pickup and delivery. Restaurants that have not typically offered...
12/30/19
Student retention is one of the major issues in higher education with the undergraduate graduation rate hovering around 60% (NCES). Freshmen arrive on campus excited and ready for a great experience. Once the welcome week is over and classes begin reality sets in. Communication is the key to success in any relationship including the relationship between a university and its students. With class schedules in full swing, communicating students can be more challenging. When students start to struggle, support resources available to them are forgotten and difficult to find. A strong communication strategy that keeps students engaged will have a positive...
10/30/19
As a kid, I knew the best houses to stop at while trick or treating. The ones with friendly people, houses that were fun and welcoming, and especially the ones who gave full-size candy bars! When we ran into our friends while we were trick or treating, we told them what houses to be sure to go to and what ones to skip. We even remembered our experiences the following year! Customers are looking for full-size service. Customers act much the same way as trick or treaters. They look for friendly, welcoming businesses that provide a full-size equivalent of products...
07/24/19
When you want to ask a friend or family member a question, how do you contact them? Most people’s preferred channel of communication looks something like this: Answering concerns as efficiently as possible is the goal for most customer service departments. Making sure you’re communicating on a channel comfortable for customers is equally important. When should you call vs message your customers? Read on to find out. If you’re interested in learning about where email should fall in your communication strategy, read this article. Quick Comparison (Peoplocity vs Phone Calls): Unique Phone Features Phone calls are free. Sort of… Unlimited minutes...
07/11/19
Alumni Travelers tend to range from 50-85 years old. These travelers remember when cell phones were bigger than their heads. An iPhone was merely science fiction when they were born. Now the majority of people have smartphones, and they use them to message friends and family while traveling. Percentage of Smart Phone Users (Aged 50+) Pew Research cites that 96% of Americans currently own some kind of cell phone. 81% of those Americans are using smartphones. 8 years ago, this was unheard of. In 2011 only 35% of people had smartphones. But what about your clients? If your travelers fall between...
06/20/19
Email will never die. Despite attempts to dethrone it; email has survived for decades. Email’s popularity has led businesses to use it for every message they send out. All messages land in the same inbox; spam requests from a Nigerian Prince along side order information and important event reminders. “People try to make email do everything when it’s not particularly good at anything.” Don Norman (author of The Design of Everyday Things) In a world that’s increasingly mobile, 2-way personalized messaging might be a better fit for you and your customers. On the other hand, email has done its job...
04/15/19
Students are notorious for asking the same graduation questions over and over again. We work with students from 42 universities across the United States and we’d like to bet that we know three of the five questions they’re asking Commencement offices most often. What if you could eliminate these repetitive questions by understanding the root cause? Question 1: Do I need tickets/Can I get more tickets? This is on the mind of both students and their parents. But didn’t you already tell them? It’s on the website, social media, and in their email inbox. Here’s the thing, students don’t read...
