Should I charge 12.5% service charge on my restaurant bill?
Nope its rude as it assumes you have delivered a good service. Pre-calculate for your customers 10.5%, 12.5% and 15% showing on the bill allowing them to chose one of the 3 suggestions.
View ArticleShould I use twitter for my hotel or restaurant business?
Yes! if you can afford the time, but twitter alone wont save you have a clear communications and marketing strategy. Have a clear message and integrade all media from traditional to web 2.0.
View ArticleAre customer surveys a waste of time?
No customer feedback is always useful provided you actually use it. Keep on having conversations with your customers, use a combination of quantitative and qualitative tools to gather data, and...
View ArticleShould I let my customers know I am using twitter?
Not until you feel ready you can engange in meaningful conversations. Its ok to create an account to get a feel for how things work but do not make the mistake of thinking that simply because you have...
View ArticleShould I use a Facebook group or page for my hotel / restaurant?
You could use both! Facebook wants you to only use a page and if you are a big company then page may be the best way forward. But facebook groups allow your loyal fan base to interact in a more...
View ArticleHow many rooms should a maid clean in an 8 hour shift?
Most hotel chains will limit the number to 14-16 rooms per shift. Of course room size and type affects this so do average the time that your fastest and slowest maid takes without compromising...
View ArticleIs the Burj trully a 7 star hotel?
I believe the whole 7 star thing was started by a journalist, the hotel is a 5 star but when they were labeled as a 7 star by the media they never challenged it (and why would they?). In the last...
View ArticleBen Asks: At the end of the day what makes the sale in hospitality - product...
Ioannis Answers: BOTH! A great meal can be ruined by terrible service whilst amazing service cannot save disastrous food. Striking the right balance of both quality service and product is instrumental...
View ArticleWhy should I work in the Hospitality industry if the pay is crap?
If you love people, you love fun, you are not afraid of hard work, you want to work in an industry that offers great opportunities for progression to the right people, if you value learning and...
View ArticleJose asks: What needs to happen for hospitality employers to realise that...
Ioannis answers: Hospitality managers need to fight their instincts of cost cutting and making a quick £/$/ € . They need to get out of the habit of being in the panic box , managing solely the day to...
View ArticleJane asks: What makes great customer service and how (if at all) is this...
Ioannis:Here is my Triple E (3E) theory: Great customer service is not about exceeding expectations any more, it’s about Enjoying Exceeding Expectations™. Simply training your staff to attempt to...
View ArticleStarting over in Hospitality! How do I do it?
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View ArticleThe dangers of hospitality bureaucracy!
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View ArticleHospitality Graduate expectations - Realistic or not?
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View ArticleThe future of Hotel Revenue Management
Kim Asks: What's the future of revenue management? Do you see a future where it will be applied to more then rooms?Ioannis Answers: The future of revenue management, is profit management. The evolution...
View ArticleThe value of joining online hospitality networks.
Jose asks (paraphrased): why should hospitality professionals join online hospitality networks?Ioannis Answers: Networking is not about collecting cards! It is about creating meaningful professional...
View ArticleWhere are all the Inspirational Hospitality Lecturers?
Olivier asks: How much do academics help inspire hospitality students on how great it is to work as "Professional Experience Providers" through their courses or lectures?Ioannis Answers: Although I...
View ArticleMass mailing CVs in hospitality.
Jose asks: What's with hospitality candidates who mass mail their CV?Ioannis Answers: Consider that not every candidate’s motivation is to actually be offered a job. Some are expected by a job center...
View ArticleDream and love as key performance indicators in hospitality?
Olivier asks: How much do hospitality professionals inspire their associates in their daily operational tasks ? Are the words "Dream" or "Love" compatible with performance or revenue generation and...
View ArticleMeasuring Love and Dream in Hospitality management?
Some suggestions in measuring Dream and Love two seemingly intangible elements...in my mind they have tangible results that can be measured.Two ideas to measure Dream:Once every quarter announce an...
View ArticleShould London hospitality businesses adopt the London Minimum Wage?
Jose asks: Should London hospitality businesses adopt the London Minimum Wage?Ioannis Answers: No that's not enough, they should not adopt it. They should go beyond and pay MORE (even if it is 2 pence...
View ArticleTop priority for managers in hospitality business.
Colum asks: What is the most important responsibility of a manager in a hospitality business?Ioannis Answers: People. Hospitality is a People's industry and hospitality managers should strive to become...
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